I had rather take my chance that some traitors will escape detection than spread abroad a spirit of general suspicion and distrust, which accepts rumor and gossip in place of undismayed and unintimidated inquiry.

Hand contrasts two risks in a democracy under perceived internal threat: tolerating the possibility that a few wrongdoers may evade punishment versus cultivating a culture of suspicion that corrodes civic trust and due process. The line argues that the latter danger is worse because it replaces evidence-based investigation with rumor, gossip, and intimidation—pressures that can warp institutions and chill dissent. Implicit is a civil-libertarian preference for restrained, principled inquiry and procedural safeguards, even at the cost of imperfect enforcement. The quote thus frames liberty as dependent not only on laws but on public habits of mind: courage, fairness, and skepticism toward unverified accusation.