There is no greater mistake than the hasty conclusion that opinions are worthless because they are badly argued.

Sit down before fact as a little child, be prepared to give up every conceived notion, follow humbly wherever and whatever abysses nature leads, or you will learn nothing.

Deduction, which takes us from the general proposition to facts again-teaches us, if I may so say, to anticipate from the ticket what is inside the bundle.

I would rather be the offspring of two apes than be a man and afraid to face the truth.

It does not matter how many tumbles you have in this life, so long as you do not get dirty when you tumble; it is only the people who have to stop to be washed and made clean, who must necessarily lose the race. And I can assure you that there is the greatest practical benefit in making a few failures early in life. You learn that which is of inestimable importance

That mysterious independent variable of political calculation, Public Opinion.

A drop of water is as powerful as a thunder-bolt.