Chance happens to all, but to turn chance to account is the gift of few.

In belief lies the secret of all valuable exertion.

Man hazards the condition and loses the virtues of a freeman, in proportion as he accustoms his thoughts to view without anguish or shame, his lapse into the bondage of debtor.

When you talk to the half-wise, twaddle; when you talk to the ignorant, brag; when you talk to the sagacious, look very humble and ask their opinion.

People praise us behind our backs, but we hear them not; few before our faces, and who is not suspicious of the truth of such praise?

More is got from one book on which the thought settles for a definite end in knowledge, than from libraries skimmed over by a wandering eye.

Love is the business of the idle, but the idleness of the busy.