“If a man . . . would shake and not be shaken, grip and not be gripped, taking care always to squeeze the hand of his adversary as hard as it squeezed him, then he suffered no inconvenience from it.”
More from James K. Polk
“Minorities have a right to appeal to the Constitution as a shield against such oppression.”
“The world has nothing to fear from military ambition in our Government.”
“Peace, plenty, and contentment reign throughout our borders, and our beloved country…”
“I cannot, whilst President of the United States, descend to enter into a newspaper…”