Piety with some people, but especially with women, is either a passion, or an infirmity of age, or a fashion which must be followed.

Extremes are vicious, and proceed from men; compensation is just, and proceeds from God.

Some young people do not sufficiently understand the advantages of natural charms, and how much they would gain by trusting to them entirely. They weaken these gifts of heaven, so rare and fragile, by affected manners and an awkward imitation. Their tones and their gait are borrowed; they study their attitudes before the glass until they have lost all trace of natural manner, and, with all their pains, they please but little.

We should keep silent about those in power; to speak well of them almost implies flattery; to speak ill of them while they are alive is dangerous, and when they are dead is cowardly.

If you suppress the exorbitant love of pleasure and money, idle curiosity, iniquitous pursuits and wanton mirth, what a stillness would there be in the greatest cities.

A heap of epithets is poor praise: the praise lies in the facts, and in the way of telling them.

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