Six hours a day I lived under school discipline in active intercourse with people none of whom were known to those at home, and the other hours of the twenty-four I spent at home, or with relatives of the people at home, none of whom were known to anybody at school.

But when I was twelve years old I caught my first strong glimpse of one of the fundamental forces of existence, whose votary I was destined to be for life - namely, Beauty.

The person upon whom the schoolboys' attention centred was, of course, the Headmaster.

I was not given to looking at life in a rosy light.

He who does not understand a joke, he does not understand Danish.

Birth was something that came quite unexpectedly, and afterwards there was one child more in the house.

I did not know what it was to be happy for a whole day at a time, scarcely for an hour.