A quotation by Jefferson, Thomas

Some men look at Constitutions with sanctimonious reverence, & deem them, like the ark of the covenant, too sacred to be touched. they ascribe to the men of the preceding age a wisdom more than human, and suppose what they did to be beyond amendment. I knew that age well: I belonged to it, and labored with it. it deserved well of it’s country. it was very like the present, but without the experience of the present: and 40. years of experience in government is worth a century of book-reading: and this they would say themselves, were they to rise from the dead.

Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826) American political philosopher, polymath, statesman, US President (1801-09)

Letter to “Henry Tompkinson” (Samuel Kercheval) (12 Jul 1816)

#quote #quotation #amendment #change #constitution #experience #fetish #founders #progress #reverence

More notes and sourcing on WIST: https://wist.info/jefferson-thomas/22555/