William Paterson Quotes & Sayings

The Constitution is the origin and measure of legislative authority. It says to legislators, thus far ye shall go and no farther. Not a particle of it should be shaken; not a pebble of it should be removed ... — William Paterson

When the righteous rule, the people rejoice; when the wicked rule, the people groan. — William Paterson

It is evident that the right of acquiring and possessing property, and having it protected, is one of the natural, inherent, and unalienable rights of man. Men have a sense of property: Property is necessary to their subsistence, and correspondent to their natural wants and desires; its security was one of the objects, that induced them to unite in society. No man would become a member of a community, in which he could not enjoy the fruits of his honest labour and industry. — William Paterson

The bank hath benefit of interest on all moneys which it creates out of nothing. — William Paterson

Does he [the president] possess the power of making war? That power is exclusively vested in Congress ... It is the exclusive province of Congress to change a state of peace into a state of war. — William Paterson