It is reminiscent in its way with a sentiment expressed by Abraham Lincoln in his last public speech, about Reconstruction (April 11, 1865): "[I]mportant principles may, and must, be inflexible." Or as Thomas Paine wrote in _The Rights of Man_ (1792): "A thing moderately good is not so good as it ought to be. Moderation in temper is always a virtue, but moderation in principle is always a vice." The question has yielded some very interesting posts! All my best, --Eric Eric D. M. Johnson Proprietor The Village Factsmith Historical Research & Consulting http://www.factsmith.com/ [log in to unmask] ----- Original Message ----- From: "Robin Gabriel" <[log in to unmask]> To: <[log in to unmask]> Sent: Tuesday, November 15, 2005 10:52 AM Subject: TJ quotation citation >I was recently at a presentation where the speaker used an unfamiliar > Jefferson quotation and I have had no luck tracking down its citation. A > Google search led to 359,000 sites, but alas none of them on the first 5 > pages gives me a citation. I have also checked the Jefferson Cyclopedia > and > staff at Monticello. > > Does anyone recognize this quotation and can you tell me from where it > comes: > > "In matters of principle, stand like a rock; in matters of taste, swim > with > the current." > > Thanks, > Robin Gabriel > Director of Education > Monticello > > To subscribe, change options, or unsubscribe, please see the instructions > at http://listlva.lib.va.us/archives/va-hist.html > To subscribe, change options, or unsubscribe, please see the instructions at http://listlva.lib.va.us/archives/va-hist.html