Breach of Contract Quotes
This humorous quotation has been used in all fields to emphasize the importance of getting agreements in writing.
Eli Whitney, the inventor of the cotton gin, tried his hand as a gun manufacturer early in the history of the new nation. He persuaded President Thomas Jefferson that he could manufacture muskets with interchangeable parts in an era where each gun was made uniquely and there were no “spare parts.” So Whitney was the first of the American Defense Contractors. He was also the first to fail to deliver on his contract. His guns were years late and when they were finally delivered, they were very expensive and worse, not very good. The reason that this quotation is cited is that while Irvine was trying to recover the taxpayer’s money, Whitney visited the Secretaries of State and War as well as President Madison and members of Congress. The result was to give Whitney another chance and another big order for 15,000 guns. Even Whitney later admitted that these were not very good. Some argue that this quotation shows that nothing has changed much in military procurement and defense spending.
Trust is undermined in 2 ways. Allies and others who speak or negotiation with the government in confidence, lose trust in the government to maintain the appropriate level of confidentiality and security over information. And second, citizens lost trust in the government because they have been secretive and kept information from the citizenry that usually is just embarrassing or being kept secret to avoid opposition. Worst is when the leak shows that the Government has been lying to the public. Where there are what the public regards as legitimate secrets, public trust is not diminished, but those instances are not typical.
His older brother was running for Consul—the highest elected office of the Roman Empire. The Handbook, was his advice to his brother as to how to conduct his campaign.
He was captured and executed shortly thereafter by the King’s troops.
