John Morley: “If, instead of concord and interchange of support, one part seeks to uphold an old form of government, and the other…”

We ought to be able to separate in thought the question of the grounds and evidence for a given dogma being true, from the distinct and purely historic question of the social and intellectual conditions which made men accept it for true.

What I endeavoured to show was that King George III., without changing his opinion of the justice of his war against the colonies, was obliged to give it up on account of a change of public opinion, and was not open to blame for so doing.

I think they will commit a great error if they take this course.

Yet they had certainly no less value and truth than they ever had, and perhaps were more needed than ever in face of the present chaos of opinion.