US Presidency
1885

All discussionas to their fitness for the place accorded to them as American citizensis idle and unprofitable except as it suggests the necessity for theirimprovement. The fact that they are citizens entitles them to all the rightsdue to that relation and charges them with all its duties, obligations, and responsibilities. These topics and the constant and ever-varying wants of an active andenterprising population may well receive the attention and the patrioticendeavor of all who make and execute the Federal law. Our duties are practicaland call for industrious application, an intelligent perception of theclaims of public office, and, above all, a firm determination, by unitedaction, to secure to all the people of the land the full benefits of thebest form of government ever vouchsafed to man. And let us not trust tohuman effort alone, but humbly acknowledging the power and goodness ofAlmighty God, who presides over the destiny of nations, and who has atall times been revealed in our country's history, let us invoke His aidand His blessings upon our labors