The purest and most thoughtful minds are those which love colour the most.

I do not mean to call an elephant a vulgar animal, but if you think about him carefully, you will find that his nonvulgarity consists in such gentleness as is possible to elephantine nature-not in his insensitive hide, nor in his clumsy foot, but in the way he will lift his foot if a child lies in his way; and in his sensitive trunk, and still more sensitive mind, and capability of pique on points of honor.

Say all you have to say in the fewest possible words, or your reader will be sure to skip them; and in the plainest possible words or he will certainly misunderstand them.

The greatest thing a human soul ever does in this world... to see clearly is poetry, prophecy and religion all in one.

There is no such thing as bad weather, only different kinds of good weather.

Nature is always mysterious and secret in her use of means; and art is always likest her when it is most inexplicable.

If the thing is impossible, you need not trouble yourselves about it; if possible, try for it.