It is the lot of man to suffer; it is also his fortune to forget. Oblivion and sorrow share our being, as darkness and light divide the course of time.

There are so many plans, so many schemes, and so many reasons why there should be neither plans nor schemes.

We have legalized confiscation, consecrated sacrilege, and condoned high treason.

The unfortunate are always egotistical.

I do not understand how an aristocracy can exist, unless it be distinguished by some quality which no other class of the community possesses.

Man is made to create, from the poet to the potter.

It is a great mistake to suppose that bribery and corruption, although they may be very convenient for gratifying the ambition or the vanity of individuals, have any great effect upon the fortunes or the power of parties. And it is a great mistake to suppose that bribery and corruption are means by which power can either be ob-tained or retained.