John Adams: Thoughts on Government

Glossary

• Confucius, Zoroaster, Socrates, Mahomet Confucius (551–479 BCE), the founder of Chinese Confucianism; Zoroaster (dates unknown; Latinized version of Zarathushtra), an ancient Iranian poet and prophet who founded the religion called Zoroastrianism; Socrates (469–399 BCE), classical Greek philosopher and author of Republic; Mahomet (ca. 570–662; Western variant of Muhammad), founder of Islam
• despatch speed, efficiency (“dispatch” in modern English)
• divines theologians and ministers
• indefatigable tireless, incapable of being fatigued
• Locke John Locke (1632–1704), English Enlightenment philosopher
• Long Parliament session of the British Parliament called by Charles I in 1640 that, through an act of Parliament, could be dissolved only by agreement of the members, which did not occur until 1660
• Milton John Milton (1608–1674), English poet; the quotation at the end of the document is from his Sonnet XII, whose title is the first line of the quotation
• Nedham Marchmont Nedham (1620–1678), English journalist and propagandist
• Pope Alexander Pope (1688–1744), a prominent English poet; the quotation is from his Essay on Man (1733–1734)