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A free government is essentially a government by persuasion; and as are the people to be persuaded, and as are the persuaders, so will that government be.
Said by
Walter Bagehot
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gutenberg.orgWalter Bagehot: “A free government is essentially a government by persuasion; and as are the people to be persuaded, and as are the…”
Editor's note · Context
This quote emphasizes Bagehot's belief that effective governance relies on the ability to persuade the populace.
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More from Walter Bagehot
The United States could not have become monarchical, even if the Constitutional Convention had decreed it, even if the component States had ratified it.
But all men heed great results, and a change of Government is a great result.
And again, in political matters, how quickly a leading statesman can change the tone of the community!
He could have found the truth as a statesman just as he found it when a judge; but he never did find it.
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