Political Quotes

Edmund Burke: “They endeavored to establish a distinction, by the belief of which they hoped to keep the spirit of murder safely…”

On the record
They endeavored to establish a distinction, by the belief of which they hoped to keep the spirit of murder safely bottled up and sealed for their own purposes, without endangering themselves by the fumes of the poison which they prepared for their enemies.
Said by
Edmund Burke

Editor's note · Context

Burke describes the manipulative tactics of political factions to control violence for their own ends.

Share

More from Edmund Burke

Jan 1, 1790

Whatever they are, I wish my countrymen rather to recommend to our neighbors the example of the British Constitution than to take models from them for the improvement of our own.

gutenberg.org
Jan 1, 1790

If any of them should happen to propose a scheme of liberty soberly limited, and defined with proper qualifications, he will be immediately outbid by his competitors, who will produce something more splendidly popular.

gutenberg.org
Jan 1, 1790

Let us add, if we please, but let us preserve what they have left; and standing on the firm ground of the British Constitution, let us be satisfied to admire, rather than attempt to follow in their desperate flights, the aëronauts of…

gutenberg.org
Jan 1, 1790

Our people will find employment enough for a truly patriotic, free, and independent spirit, in guarding what they possess from violation.

gutenberg.org

Other voices in this conversation