Reason alone is insufficient to make us enthusiastic in any matter.

The whimsicalness of our own humor is a thousand times more fickle and unaccountable than what we blame so much in fortune.

We only acknowledge small faults in order to make it appear that we are free from great ones.

One cannot answer for his courage when he has never been in danger.

What renders us so changeable in our friendship is, that it is difficult to know the qualities of the soul, but easy to know those of the mind.

The same strength of character which helps a man resist love, helps to make it more violent and lasting too. People of unsettled minds are always driven about with passions, but never absolutely filled with any.

The courage of a great many men, and the virtue of a great many women, are the effect of vanity, shame, and especially a suitabletemperament.