Humour is the making others act or talk absurdly and unconsciously; wit is the pointing out and ridiculing that absurdity consciously, and with more or less ill-nature.

The origin of all science is the desire to know causes, and the origin of all false science is the desire to accept false causes rather than none; or, which is the same thing, in the unwillingness to acknowledge our own ignorance.

The devil was a great loss in the preternatural world. He was always something to fear and to hate; he supplied the antagonist powers of the imagination, and the arch of true religion hardly stands firm without him.

The insolence of the vulgar is in proportion to their ignorance. They treat everything with contempt which they do not understand.

A great mind is one that can forget or look beyond itself.

Malice often takes the garb of truth.

Prosperity is a great teacher; adversity is a greater. Possession pampers the mind; privation trains and strengthens it.