A man is the prisoner of his power. A topical memory makes him an almanac; a talent for debate, disputant; skill to get money makes him a miser, that is, a beggar. Culture reduces these inflammations by invoking the aid of other powers against the dominant talent, and by appealing to the rank of powers. It watches success.

If government knew how, I should like to see it check, not multiply, the population. When it reaches its true law of action, every man that is born will be hailed as essential.

The secret of fortune is joy in our hands.

Religion must always be a crab fruit; it cannot be grafted, and keep its wild beauty.

The word unto the prophet spoken Was writ on tablets yet unbroken: The word by seers or sibyls told, In groves of oak or fanes of gold, Still floats upon the morning wind, Still whispers to the willing mind.

A great man scarcely knows how he dines, how he dresses; but without railing or precision, his living is natural and poetic.

The finest poems of the world have been expedients to get bread.