He only fears men who does not know them, and he who avoids them will soon misjudge them.

As for solitude, I cannot understand how certain people seek to lay claim to intellectual stature, nobility of soul and strength of character, yet have not the slightest feeling for seclusion; for solitude, I maintain, when joined with a quiet contemplation of nature, a serene and conscious faith in creation and the Creator, and a few vexations from outside is the only school for a mind of lofty endowment.

The greatest evil that can befall man is that he should come to think ill of himself.

Secrecy has many advantages, for when you tell someone the purpose of any object right away, they often think there is nothing to it.

Superstition is part of the poetry of life.

Where confidence is wanting, the most beautiful flower in the garland of love is missing.

The most original of authors are not so because they advance what is new, but more because they know how to say something, as if it had never been said before.