I, on my side, require of every writer, first or last, a simple and sincere account of his own life, and not merely what he has heard of other men's lives; some such account as he would send to his kindred from a distant land; for if he has lived sincerely, it must have been in a distant land to me.

There are theoretical reformers at all times, and all the world over, living on anticipation.

Staying in the house breeds a sort of insanity always. Every house is, in this sense, a hospital.

What the banker sighs for, the meanest clown may have-leisure and a quiet mind.

The very uprightness of the pines and maples asserts the ancient rectitude and vigor of nature. Our lives need the relief of such a background, where the pine flourishes and the jay still screams.

In what concerns you much, do not think that you have companions: know that you are alone in the world.

Wherever a man separates from the multitude, and goes his own way in this mood, there indeed is a fork in the road, though ordinary travelers may see only a gap in the paling. His solitary path across lots will turn out the higher way of the two.