Jefferson on Honesty

Celebrating honesty, Jefferson observed,

The whole art of government consists in the art of being honest. (Thomas Jefferson)

Honest Abe

We can examine the exemplary lives of many great leaders. Jefferson was not alone. As a frontier lawyer, Abraham Lincoln established a recognition for his dedicated honesty and integrity. Lincoln did not like to charge people much who were as poor as he was. Once a man sent him twenty-five dollars, but Lincoln sent him back ten of it, saying he was being too generous.



Lincoln was known at times to convince his clients to settle their issue out of court, saving them a lot of money, and earning himself nothing.


Can anyone imagine such a lawyer in practice today?

Would such a quality be something we should seek for in political leaders today? How do we identify or measure such character in an individual?