The critic is beneath the maker, but is his needed friend. The critic is not a base caviler, but the younger brother of genius. Next to invention is the power of interpreting invention; next to beauty the power of appreciating beauty. And of making others appreciate it.

Our capacities, our instincts for this our present sphere are but half developed. Let us be completely natural; before we trouble ourselves with the supernatural.

Woman is born for love, and it is impossible to turn her from seeking it.

Genius will live and thrive without training, but it does not the less reward the watering pot and the pruning knife.

If you have knowledge, let others light their candles in it.

Be what you would seem to be - or, if you'd like it put more simply - a house is no home unless it contains food and fire for the mind as well as the body.

I now know all the people worth knowing in America, and I find no intellect comparable to my own.