called from a retirement which i had supposed was to continue for the residue of my life to fill the chief executive office of this great and free nation， i appear before you， fellow-citizens， to take the oaths which the constitution prescribes as a necessary qualification for the performance of its duties； and in obedience to a custom coeval with our government and what i believe to be your expectations i proceed to present to you a summary of the principles which will govern me in the discharge of the duties which i shall be called upon to perform.
it was the remark of a roman consul in an early period of that celebrated republic that a most striking contrast was observable in the conduct of candidates for offices of power and trust before and after obtaining them， they seldom carrying out in the latter case the pledges and promises made in the former. however much the world may have improved in many respects in the lapse of upward of two thousand years since the remark was made by the virtuous and indignant roman， i fear that a strict examination of the annals of some of the modern elective governments would develop similar instances of violated confidence.
although the fiat of the people has gone forth proclaiming me the chief magistrate of this glorious union， nothing upon their part remaining to be done， it may be thought that a motive may exist to keep up the delusion under which they may be supposed to have acted in relation to my principles a
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