Abraham Lincoln, first inaugural address (final text), March 4, 1861. The Collected Works of Abraham Lincoln, ed. Roy P. Basler, vol. 4, p. 270 (1953)
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While the people retain their virtue, and vigilance, no administration, by any extreme of wickedness or folly, can very seriously injure the government, in the short space of four years.
— Abraham Lincoln on Government
What It Means
This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "While the people retain their virtue, and vigilance, no administration, by any extreme of wickedness or folly, can very seriously injure the government, in the short space of four years." in the context of "Abraham Lincoln, first inaugural address (final text), March 4, 1861. The Collected Works of Abraham Lincoln, ed. Roy P. Basler, vol. 4, p. 270 (1953)" to mean that wisdom is timeless.
Source: Wikiquote: "Government" (Respectfully Quoted: A Dictionary of Quotations (1989))
The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed February 05, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app
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About Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln, a self-taught lawyer and politician, steered the United States through its most tumultuous period, the Civil War. His unwavering commitment to preserving the Union and abolishing slavery forever altered the course of American history and enshrined him as a champion of equality and justice.
About Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln, a self-taught lawyer and politician, steered the United States through its most tumultuous period, the Civil War. His unwavering commitment to preserving the Union and abolishing slavery forever altered the course of American history and enshrined him as a champion of equality and justice.
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