In all things I would have the island of a man inviolate. Let us sit apart as the gods, talking from peak to peak all round Olympus. No degree of affection need invade this religion.

To laugh often and love much; to win the respect of intelligent persons and the affection of children; to earn the approbation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty.

Wise men put their trust in ideas and not in circumstances.

It is with a good book as it is with good company.

Again, the great number of cultivated men keep each other up to a high standard. The habit of meeting well-read and knowing men teaches the art of omission and selection.

As much wisdom may be expended on a private economy as on an empire, and as much wisdom may be drawn from it.

The worst of charity is that the lives you are asked to preserve are not worth preserving.