It takes so much to be a king that he exists only as such. That extraneous glare that surrounds him hides him and conceals him from us; our sight breaks and is dissipated by it being filled and arrested by this strong light.

Silence and modesty are very valuable qualities in conversation.

Obstinacy and dogmatism are the surest signs of stupidity. Is there anything more confident, resolute, disdainful, grave and serious than an ass?

The easy, gentle, and sloping path . . . is not the path of true virtue. It demands a rough and thorny road.

There are few men who dare to publish to the world the prayers they make to Almighty God.

Pride dwells in the thought; the tongue can have but a very little share in it.

When all is summed up, a man never speaks of himself without loss; his accusations of himself are always believed; his praises never.