---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Public office is a public trust, the…"
description: "\"Public office is a public trust, the authority and opportunities of which must be used as absolutely as the public moneys for the public benefit, and n..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b6/dorman-bridgeman-eaton-233549_authority_public-office-is-a-public-trust-the-auth_2666715.jpg"
---

#  Public office is a public trust, the authority and…

![“Public office is a public trust, the authority and opportunities of which must be used as absolutely as the public moneys for the public benefit, and not for the purposes of any individual or party.” quote by Dorman Bridgeman Eaton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b6/dorman-bridgeman-eaton-233549_authority_public-office-is-a-public-trust-the-auth_2666715.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b6/dorman-bridgeman-eaton-233549_authority_public-office-is-a-public-trust-the-auth_2666715.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b6/dorman-bridgeman-eaton-233549_authority_public-office-is-a-public-trust-the-auth_2666715.jpg)

> “Public office is a public trust, the authority and opportunities of which must be used as absolutely as the public moneys for the public benefit, and not for the purposes of any individual or party.”

Dorman Bridgeman Eaton

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

States that public office is a trust requiring officials to use resources solely for the public good, not personal or partisan gain.

**In simple terms:** Public service must prioritize the public interest.

Key Takeaway

Serve with integrity, avoiding personal gain.

Themes

ethics public service trust accountability good governance

Mood

serious instructive

Type

Authority:0 Benefits:0 Individual:0 Money:0 Office:0 Opportunity:0 Party:0 Public office:0 Public trust:0 Purpose:0 Trust:0 Used:0 Public Benefit:0 Office Public:0 Trust Authority:0

When to use this quote

- government policy
- public administration
- ethical training
- political reform

Key Concepts

public trust resource stewardship conflict of interest

Questions to Reflect On

- How can we enforce accountability?
- What safeguards protect public resources?

A Different Perspective

Political realities may compromise ideals.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Authority](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/authority/) [Individual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/individual/) [Money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/money/) [Office](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/office/) [Opportunity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opportunity/) [Party](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/party/) [Public office](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/public-office/) [Public trust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/public-trust/) [Purpose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/purpose/) [Trust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trust/)

## Related quotes

> [Public office is a public trust.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-s-lamont/public-office-is-a-public-trust/)

Daniel S. Lamont

> [The phrase public office is a public trust, has of last become common property.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-sumner/the-phrase-public-office-is-a-public-trust-has-of-last-become-common/)

[Charles Sumner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-sumner/)

> [Public office is supposed to be a public trust. This is a clear sign of the rampant corruption at the highest levels of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-etheridge/public-office-is-supposed-to-be-a-public-trust-this-is-a-clear-sign/)

Bob Etheridge

> [During my two terms serving the good people of New Hampshire's First District, I always worked for what I call the bottom 99% of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-shea-porter/during-my-two-terms-serving-the-good-people-of-new-hampshire-s-first/)

Carol Shea-Porter

> [The very essence of a free government consists in considering offices as public trusts, bestowed for the good of the country, and not for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-c-calhoun/the-very-essence-of-a-free-government-consists-in-considering-offices/)

[John C. Calhoun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-c-calhoun/)

> [For many immigrant groups, lack of trust in authority is something they actually bring from the countries they come from.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kemi-badenoch/for-many-immigrant-groups-lack-of-trust-in-authority-is-something/)

[Kemi Badenoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kemi-badenoch/)

> [It's true that most people find it far more comfortable to trust an authority than to have their faith questioned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-ellsberg/it-s-true-that-most-people-find-it-far-more-comfortable-to-trust-an/)

[Daniel Ellsberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-ellsberg/)

> [My disposition as a human being is kind of a go-along-to-get-along person. I tend to trust authority.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-hayes/my-disposition-as-a-human-being-is-kind-of-a-go-along-to-get-along/)

[Chris Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-hayes/)

> [If you're going to use the public resources, you need the public benefit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-dellums/if-you-re-going-to-use-the-public-resources-you-need-the-public/)

[Ron Dellums](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-dellums/)

> [Data by itself is not useful. Data is only useful if it can be applied for public benefit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-park/data-by-itself-is-not-useful-data-is-only-useful-if-it-can-be-applied/)

Todd Park

> [A lively blockhead in company is a public benefit. Silence or dulness by the side of folly looks like wisdom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-hazlitt/a-lively-blockhead-in-company-is-a-public-benefit-silence-or-dulness/)

[William Hazlitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-hazlitt/)

> [Where the quest for knowledge is relatively, and now almost absolutely, unrestrained, the public benefit will be great, especially where the certainty of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-johnson/where-the-quest-for-knowledge-is-relatively-and-now-almost-absolutely/)

[Paul Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-johnson/)

> ['Freeing' a literary work into the public domain is less a public benefit than a transfer of wealth from the families of American writers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-helprin/freeing-a-literary-work-into-the-public-domain-is-less-a-public/)

[Mark Helprin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-helprin/)

> [The real cost of corruption in government, whether it is local, state, or federal, is a loss of the public trust.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-quigley/the-real-cost-of-corruption-in-government-whether-it-is-local-state/)

[Mike Quigley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-quigley/)

> [A free society depends upon a high degree of mutual trust. The public will not give that trust to officials who are not seen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/archibald-cox/a-free-society-depends-upon-a-high-degree-of-mutual-trust-the-public/)

[Archibald Cox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/archibald-cox/)

## More Authority quotes

> [I don't believe in competitions between artists. This is insane. Who has the authority to say someone is better?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-arkin/i-don-t-believe-in-competitions-between-artists-this-is-insane-who/)

[Alan Arkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-arkin/)

> [Islam never differentiates between men and women as regards political rights and puts them on an equal footing. However, even if a woman is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yusuf-al-qaradawi/islam-never-differentiates-between-men-and-women-as-regards-political/)

[Yusuf al-Qaradawi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yusuf-al-qaradawi/)

> [I think people need to be comfortable questioning the authority of a doctor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susannah-cahalan/i-think-people-need-to-be-comfortable-questioning-the-authority-of-a/)

[Susannah Cahalan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susannah-cahalan/)

> [At a distance, we cannot conceive of the authority of a despot who knows all his subjects on sight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stendhal/at-a-distance-we-cannot-conceive-of-the-authority-of-a-despot-who/)

[Stendhal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stendhal/)

> [Throughout human history, as our species has faced the frightening, terrorizing fact that we do not know who we are, or where we are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-leary/throughout-human-history-as-our-species-has-faced-the-frightening/)

[Timothy Leary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-leary/)

> [“I'm of the age and immaturity level that I cannot give you my respect solely because you are older or ranked higher on an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-goros/i-m-of-the-age-and-immaturity-level-that-i-cannot-give-you-my-respect/)

[Erica Goros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-goros/)

> [In the end theologians are jealous of science, for they are aware that it has greater authority than do their own ways of finding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-a-coyne/in-the-end-theologians-are-jealous-of-science-for-they-are-aware-that/)

[Jerry A. Coyne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-a-coyne/)

> [Every wife ought to answer for her man. If the husband be engaged in a seditious club, or drinks mysterious healths, or be frugal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/every-wife-ought-to-answer-for-her-man-if-the-husband-be-engaged-in-a/)

[Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/)

> [Miracles are like candles lit up until the sun rises, and then blown out. Therefore, I am amused when I hear sects and churches…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/miracles-are-like-candles-lit-up-until-the-sun-rises-and-then-blown/)

[Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/)

> [The execution was set for the 29th of March, at nine in the morning. This delay was due to a desire on the part…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/the-execution-was-set-for-the-29th-of-march-at-nine-in-the-morning/)

[Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/)

> [I started with the belief that every person who came to the laboratory was free to accept or to reject the dictates of authority.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-milgram/i-started-with-the-belief-that-every-person-who-came-to-the/)

[Stanley Milgram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-milgram/)

> [The rationale which accompanies that imposition of male authority euphemistically referred to as 'the battle of the sexes' bears a certain resemblance to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-millett/the-rationale-which-accompanies-that-imposition-of-male-authority/)

[Kate Millett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-millett/)

> [“We are at the mercy of whoever wields authority over the things we either desire or detest. If you would be free, then, do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/epictetus/we-are-at-the-mercy-of-whoever-wields-authority-over-the-things-we/)

[Epictetus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/epictetus/)

> [Sometimes it's easier for people who are in authority to be authoritarian, because people know where you stand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meryl-streep/sometimes-it-s-easier-for-people-who-are-in-authority-to-be/)

[Meryl Streep](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meryl-streep/)

> [The victory of Hamas is not only based on the corruption of the Palestinian Authority. Hamas has a vision and a program, and this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ismail-haniyeh/the-victory-of-hamas-is-not-only-based-on-the-corruption-of-the/)

[Ismail Haniyeh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ismail-haniyeh/)

[Browse all 4,003 Authority quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/authority/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Public office is a public trust, the authority and opportunities of which must be used as absolutely as the public moneys for the public benefit, and not for the purposes of any individual or party.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Dorman Bridgeman Eaton"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorman-bridgeman-eaton/public-office-is-a-public-trust-the-authority-and-opportunities-of/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Authority"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorman-bridgeman-eaton/public-office-is-a-public-trust-the-authority-and-opportunities-of/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b6/dorman-bridgeman-eaton-233549_authority_public-office-is-a-public-trust-the-auth_2666715.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b6/dorman-bridgeman-eaton-233549_authority_public-office-is-a-public-trust-the-auth_2666715.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b6/dorman-bridgeman-eaton-233549_authority_public-office-is-a-public-trust-the-auth_2666715.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Public office is a public trust, the authority and opportunities of which must be used as absolutely as the…” — Dorman Bridgeman Eaton",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Dorman Bridgeman Eaton",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorman-bridgeman-eaton/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Public office is a public trust,...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorman-bridgeman-eaton/public-office-is-a-public-trust-the-authority-and-opportunities-of/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorman-bridgeman-eaton/public-office-is-a-public-trust-the-authority-and-opportunities-of/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
