Hastings, as a British governor, ought to govern on British principles, not by British forms,--God forbid!--for if ever there was a case in which the letter kills and the spirit gives life, it would be an attempt to introduce British forms and the substance of despotic principles together into any country.
Burke warns against the dangers of applying British forms of governance while adhering to despotic principles.
Share
More from Edmund Burke
Our people will find employment enough for a truly patriotic, free, and independent spirit, in guarding what they possess from violation.
Let us imitate their caution, if we wish to deserve their fortune or to retain their bequests.
They come from one who has been no tool of power, no flatterer of greatness, and who in his last acts does not wish to belie the tenor of his life.
They will become flatterers instead of legislators,--the instruments, not the guides of the people.
Other voices in this conversation
