The essence of true nobility is neglect of self. Let the thought of self pass in, and the beauty of a great action is gone, like the bloom from a soiled flower.

The superstition of science scoffs at the superstition of faith.

Men think to mend their condition by a change of circumstances. They might as well hope to escape from their shadows.

The practical effect of a belief is the real test of its soundness.

Nature is less partial than she appears, and all situations in life have their compensations along with them.

The best that we can do for one another is to exchange our thoughts freely; and that, after all, is about all.

We enter the world alone, we leave it alone.