Happiness ... leads none of us by the same route.

Constant success shows us but one side of the world; adversity brings out the reverse of the picture.

That politeness which we put on, in order to keep the assuming and the presumptuous at a proper distance will generally succeed. But it sometimes happens that these obtrusive characters are on such excellent terms with themselves that they put down this very politeness to the score of their own great merits and high pretensions, meeting the coldness of our reserve with a ridiculous condescension of familiarity, in order to set us at ease with ourselves.

Books, like friends, should be few and well chosen. Like friends, too, we should return to them again and again for, like true friends, they will never fail us - never cease to instruct - never cloy.

Expect not praise without envy until you are dead.

Men of great and shining qualities do not always succeed in life, but the fault lies more often in themselves than in others.

Some read to think, these are rare; some to write, these are common; and some read to talk, and these form the great majority.