One of the most striking differences between a cat and a lie is that a cat has only nine lives.

Doesn't make any difference who we are or what we are, there's always somebody to look down on.

There is only one expert who is qualified to examine the souls and the life of a people and make a valuable report - the native novelist. ... And when a thousand able novels have been written, there you have the soul of the people; and not anywhere else can these be had.

We can't always have the beautiful aspect of things. Let us make the most of our sights that are beautiful and let the others go

The older we grow the greater becomes our wonder at how much ignorance one can contain without bursting one's clothes.

In America, we hurry-which is well; but when the day's work is done, we go on thinking of losses and gains, we plan for the morrow, we even carry our business cares to bed with us...we burn up our energies with these excitements, and either die early or drop into a lean and mean old age at a time of life which they call a man's prime in Europe...What a robust people, what a nation of thinkers we might be, if we would only lay ourselves on the shelf occasionally and renew our edges!

There are two things nobody should ever have to watch being made, sausage and laws.