On the record
It is the weight of that preamble, of which you are so fond, and not the weight of the duty, that the Americans are unable and unwilling to bear.
Said by
Edmund Burke
Source
gutenberg.orgEdmund Burke: “It is the weight of that preamble, of which you are so fond, and not the weight of the duty, that the Americans are…”
Editor's note · Context
Burke claims that the preamble of a tax law is more burdensome than the tax itself for the Americans.
Share
More from Edmund Burke
Jan 1, 1790
Our people will find employment enough for a truly patriotic, free, and independent spirit, in guarding what they possess from violation.
Jan 1, 1790
They will become flatterers instead of legislators,--the instruments, not the guides of the people.
Jan 1, 1790
Not being illuminated with the light of which the gentlemen of France tell us they have got so abundant a share, they acted under a strong impression of the ignorance and fallibility of mankind.
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.
Other voices in this conversation
