Politics is the science which teaches the people of a country to care for each other. If a mischievous individual were to attempt to cut off his neighbour’s hand, would that neighbour’s other hand and feet do well quietly to permit the amputation of the limb if they could hinder it? All will say, No. This then is politics. That part of our duty which teaches us to study the welfare of our whole country, and not to rest satisfied altho’ our own household is well off when our neighbours are in difficulty and danger. The honest politician is he who gives all he can of his time and means to promote the public good, whose charity begins at home but does not end there. The man who says he is no politician, is either ignorant of what he is saying, or a contemptible selfish creature, unworthy of the country or community of which is a part.
William Lyon Mackenzie
March 12, 1795 ā August 28, 1861
Mayor of Toronto, 1834
Member of the Legislative Assembly of Upper Canada, 1829-1833, 1834-1836
Member of the Legislative Assembly of the United Province of Canada, 1851-1858
Sourced from: Mackenzie: A Political Biography of William Lyon Mackenzie by John Sewell; James Lorimer & Company Ltd., Publishers; 2002
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