They only are wise who know that they know nothing.

The first duty of man is to conquer fear; he must get rid of it, he cannot act till then.

Fame, we may understand, is no sure test of merit, but only a probability of such; it is an accident, not a property of man.

Roguery is thought by some to be cunning and laughable: it is neither; it is devilish.

History shows that the majority of people that have done anything great have passed their youth in seclusion.

Cease to brag to me of America, and its model institutions and constitutions. America, too, will have to strain its energies, crack its sinews, and all but break its heart, as the rest of us have had to do, in thousand-fold wrestle with the Pythons, and mud-demons, before it can become a babitation for the gods.

The eternal stars shine out again, so soon as it is dark enough.