We are not what we are, nor do we treat or esteem each other for such, but for what we are capable of being.

A grain of gold will gild a great surface, but not so much as a grain of wisdom.

This was sheer idleness to my fellow-townsmen, no doubt; but if the birds and flowers had tried me by their standard, I should not have been found wanting. A man must find his occasions in himself, it is true. The natural day is very calm, and will hardly reprove his indolence.

To say that a man is your Friend, means commonly no more than this, that he is not your enemy. Most contemplate only what would be the accidental and trifling advantages of Friendship, as that the Friend can assist in time of need by his substance, or his influence, or his counsel. Even the utmost goodwill and harmony and practical kindness are not sufficient for Friendship, for Friends do not live in harmony merely, as some say, but in melody.

The more you have thought and written on a given theme, the more you can still write. Thought breeds thought. It grows under your hands.

In ancient days the Pythagoreans were used to change names with each other,--fancying that each would share the virtues they admired in the other.

After all, I believe it is the style of thought entirely, and the style of expression, which makes the difference in books.