Henry Laurens Quotes
Finally, gentleman, from the considerations above mentioned, as I cannot consistently with my own honor, nor with utility to my country, considering the manner in which Business is transacted here, remain any longer in this chair, I now resign it.
Laurens, Henry. "Statement to Congress, December 9, 1778." Letters of Delegates to Congress, 1774-1789, Volume 11: October 1, 1778-January 31, 1779, edited by Paul H. Smith, Library of Congress, 1985, p. 315.
The Treasury Secretary had discovered a massive fraud between some whiskey distillers and some government officials whereby the government was defrauded of millions of dollars of tax revenue. One of the Federal officials Bristow wanted to indict was O. E. Babcock, the President’s personal secretary and advisor. Bristow marshaled the facts and sent a report to Grant who wrote the quoted material in the margin of the report and sent it back to Bristow. Despite Grant’s lack of personal involvement and his immediate willingness to prosecute his close friend and colleague, the stain of scandal spread to Grant and to this day is a part of any discussion of his presidency.
The irony of this quotation is that in later years, Sanford, was involved in his own sex scandal. Sanford refused to resign - see related quote.
Henry Laurens was an American merchant, slave trader, and rice planter from South Carolina who became a political leader during the Revolutionary War. A delegate to the Second Continental Congress, Laurens succeeded John Hancock as President of the Congress. He was a signatory to the Articles of Confederation and President of the Continental Congress when the Articles were passed on November 15, 1777.
