A man making the confession of any creed worth ten minutes' intelligent talk, is always a man who gains something and gives up something. So long as he does both he can create: for he is making an outline and a shape.

The long words are not the hard words, it is the short words that are hard. There is much more metaphysical subtlety in the word "damn" than in the word "degeneration."

He wondered why the pelican was the symbol of charity, except it was that it wanted a good deal of charity to admire a pelican.

Every man speaks of public opinion, and means by public opinion, public opinion minus his opinion.

Only poor men get hanged.

No man knows he is young while he is young.

I am concerned with a certain way of looking at life, which was created in me by the fairy tales, but has since been meekly ratified by the mere facts.