The heart of man ever finds a constant succession of passions, so that the destroying and pulling down of one proves generally tobe nothing else but the production and the setting up of another.

We often act treacherously more from weakness than from a fixed motive.

Our minds are lazier than our bodies.

Whatever pretended causes we may blame our afflictions upon, it is often nothing but self-interest and vanity that produce them.

We often in our misfortunes take that for constancy and patience which is only dejection of mind; we suffer without daring to holdup our heads, just as cowards let themselves be knocked on the head because they have not courage to strike back.

Old men delight in giving good advice as a consolation for the fact that they can no longer set bad examples.

A true friend is the greatest of all blessings, and that which we take the least care of all to acquire.