Men fall from great fortune because of the same shortcomings that led to their rise.

Discourtesy does not spring merely from one bad quality, but from several--from foolish vanity, from ignorance of what is due to others, from indolence, from stupidity, from distraction of thought, from contempt of others, from jealousy.

The first day one is a guest, the second a burden, and the third a pest.

There is what is called the highway to posts and honor, and there is a cross and by way, which is much the shortest.

All the world says of a coxcomb that he is a coxcomb; but no one dares to say so to his face, and he dies without knowing it.

Generosity lies less in giving much than in giving at the right moment.

Every hour in itself, as it respects us in particular, is the only one we can call our own.