<P> Thoreau said he was willing to pay the highway tax, which went to pay for something of benefit to his neighbors, but that he was opposed to taxes that went to support the government itself--even if he could not tell if his particular contribution would eventually be spent on an unjust project or a beneficial one . "I simply wish to refuse allegiance to the State, to withdraw and stand aloof from it effectually ." </P> <P> Because government is man - made, not an element of nature or an act of God, Thoreau hoped that its makers could be reasoned with . As governments go, he felt, the U.S. government, with all its faults, was not the worst and even had some admirable qualities . But he felt we could and should insist on better . "The progress from an absolute to a limited monarchy, from a limited monarchy to a democracy, is a progress toward a true respect for the individual...Is a democracy, such as we know it, the last improvement possible in government? Is it not possible to take a step further towards recognizing and organizing the rights of man? There will never be a really free and enlightened State until the State comes to recognize the individual as a higher and independent power, from which all its own power and authority are derived, and treats him accordingly ." </P> <P> An aphorism often erroneously attributed to Thomas Jefferson, "That government is best which governs least ...", was actually found in Thoreau's Civil Disobedience . Thoreau was apparently paraphrasing the motto of The United States Magazine and Democratic Review: "The best government is that which governs least ." Thoreau expanded it significantly: </P> <P> I heartily accept the motto,--"That government is best which governs least;" and I should like to see it acted up to more rapidly and systematically . Carried out, it finally amounts to this, which I also believe,--"That government is best which governs not at all;" and when men are prepared for it, that will be the kind of government which they will have . Government is at best but an expedient; but most governments are usually, and all governments are sometimes, inexpedient . </P>

Who said the government is best which governs least