Oh, don't tell me of facts, I never believe facts; you know, [George] Canning said nothing was so fallacious as facts, except figures.
Sydney SmithWhen you rise in the morning, form a resolution to make the day a happy one for a fellow creature.
Sydney SmithDo not try to push your way through to the front ranks of your profession; do not run after distinctions and rewards; but do your utmost to find an entry into the world of beauty.
Sydney SmithNever try to reason the prejudice out of a man. It was not reasoned into him, and cannot be reasoned out.
Sydney SmithAmong the smaller duties of life I hardly know any one more important than that of not praising where praise is not due.
Sydney SmithLucy, dear child, mind your arithmetic. You know in the first sum of yours I ever saw there was a mistake. You had carried two (as a cab is licensed to do), and you ought, dear Lucy, to have carried but one. Is this a trifle? What would life be without arithmetic, but a scene of horrors.
Sydney Smith