Maria Mitchell Quotes

I would as soon put a girl alone into a closet to meditate as give her only the society of her needle.

There is something of the same pleasure in noticing the hues of the stars that there is in looking at a flower garden in autumn.

How strange that some people cannot believe in both the Book of Nature and the Book of God.

Small aids to individuals, large aid to masses.

The greatest object in educating is to give a right habit of study.

I was born, for instance, incapable of appreciating music.

There is no cosmetic for beauty like happiness.

It is sad to see a woman sacrificing the ties of the affections even to do good.

The greatest benefit derived from the study of science is that it lifts you out of and above the littleness of daily trials. We learn to live in the universe as a part of it; we cannot seperate ourselves from it - our every act connects us with it - our every act affects the whole. Standing under the canopy of stars and remembering their presence you could scarcely do a petty deed, or think a wicked thought.

Women, more than men, are bound by tradition and authority. What the father, the brother, the doctor, and the minister have said has been received undoubtingly. Until women throw off this reverence for authority they will not develop.

I had only ordinary capacity but extraordinary persistency.

Besides learning to see, there is another art to be learned - not to see what is not.

But why look back at all? Why turn your eyes to your shadow, when, by looking upward, you see your rainbow in the same direction?

I saw, in looking over Cooper, elements of a comet of 1825 which resemble what I get out for this, from my own observations, but I cannot rely upon my own.

I was a little doubtful about the propriety of going to the Mammoth Cave without a gentleman escort, but if two ladies travel alone they must have the courage of men.

Let us secure not such books as people want, but books just above their wants, and they will reach up to take what is put out for them.

Every formula which expresses a law of nature is a hymn of praise to God.

Do not look at stars as bright spots only. Try to take in the vastness of the universe.

The Southern character is opposed to haste. Safety is of more worth than speed, and there is no hurry.

To read a book, to think it over, and to write out notes is a useful exercise; a book which will not repay some hard thought is not worth publishing.

I made observations for three hours last night, and am almost ill today from fatigue; still I have worked all day, trying to reduce the places, and mean to work hard again tonight.

Altogether, St. Louis is a growing place, and the West has a large hand and a strong grasp.

The world of learning is so broad, and the human soul is so limited in power!

We have a hunger of the mind which asks for knowledge of all around us, and the more we gain, the more is our desire; the more we see, the more we are capable of seeing.

We travel to learn; and I have never been in any country where they did not do something better than we do it, think some thoughts better than we think, catch some inspiration from heights above our own.

The love of one's own sex is precious, for it is neither provoked by vanity nor retained by flattery; it is genuine and sincere.

I am just learning to notice the different colors of the stars, and already begin to have a new enjoyment.

I am always the better for open-air breathing, and was certainly meant for the wandering life of the Indian.