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  ...America. Instantly he was tied down to his engagements by some, who had no objection to such experiments, when made at the cost of persons for whom they had no particular regard. The whole body of courtiers drove him onward. They always talked as if the king stood in a sort of humiliated state, until something of the kind should be done.
Here this extraordinary man, then Chancellor of the Exchequer, found himself in great straits. To please universally was the object of his life; but To tax and to please, no more than to love and to be wise, is not given to men. However, he attempted it. To render the tax palatable to the partisans of American revenue, he made a preamble stating the necessity of such a revenue. To close with the American distinction, this revenue was _external_ or port-duty; but again, to soften it to the other party, it was a duty of _supply_. To gratify the _colonists_, it was laid on British manufactures; to satisfy the _merchants of Britain_, the duty was trivial, and (except that on tea, which touched only the devoted East...   Burke, Edmund

Excerpt from The Works of the Right Honourable Edmund Burke, Vol. 02 (of 12) · This quote is filed under Taxes and Taxation · Search on Google Books to find all references and sources for this quotation · Tell us if you know any facts or errors in this quote · Make a shirt with this quote on our USA or UK shop · Help your friends discover QB

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