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That a well-regulated militia, composed of the body of the people, trained to arms, is the proper, natural, and safe defense of a free State; that standing armies, in time of peace, should be avoided, as dangerous to liberty; and that in all cases the military should be under strict subordination to, and governed by, the civil power.

— George Mason Virginia Declaration of Rights (1776)

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The freedom of the press is one of the great bulwarks of liberty, and can never be restrained but by despotic governments.

Virginia Declaration of Rights (1776)

The freedom of the press is one of the greatest bulwarks of liberty, and can never be restrained but by despotic governments.

There is a Passion natural to the Mind of man, especially a free Man, which renders him impatient of Restraint.

Happiness and Prosperity are now within our Reach; but to attain and preserve them must depend upon our own Wisdom and Virtue.

Does any man suppose that one general national government can exist in so extensive a country as this?

Addresses to the Virginia Ratifying Convention (1788)

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Quote text and notes from Wikiquote: George Mason (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Source quality and labels are our own summary of what Wikiquote records.