"In every government there are three sorts of power: the legislative; the executive in respect to things dependent on the law of nations; and the executive in regard to matters that depend on the civil…"

"When the legislative power is more corrupt than the executive, the danger is that laws will be made that are too arbitrary."

"The natural effect of commerce is to lead to peace. Two nations who traffic with each other become reciprocally dependent; for if one has an interest in buying, the other has an interest in selling; a…"

"Luxury is therefore absolutely necessary in monarchies; as it is also in despotic states, but not in republics."

"The principle of democracy is corrupted not only when the spirit of equality is extinct, but likewise when they fall into a spirit of extreme equality, and when every citizen wants to be equal to thos…"