There is no book so poor that it would not be a prodigy if wholly made by a single man.

Cucumber should be well sliced, dressed with pepper and vinegar, and then thrown out.

The true measure of a man is how he treats someone who can do him absolutely no good.

Curiosity is one of the most permanent and certain characteristics of a vigorous intellect.

Kindness is in our power, even when fondness is not.

When a man knows he is to be hanged in a fortnight, it concentrates his mind wonderfully.

Classical quotation is the parole of literary men all over the world.

A man who uses a great many words to express his meaning is like a bad marksman who, instead of aiming a single stone at an object, takes up a handful and throws at it in hopes he may hit.

There are minds so impatient of inferiority that their gratitude is a species of revenge, and they return benefits, not because recompense is a pleasure, but because obligation is a pain.

When a man is tired of London, he is tired of life; for there is in London all that life can afford.

He who has so little knowledge of human nature as to seek happiness by changing anything but his own disposition will waste his life in fruitless efforts.

There is more to life than simply increasing its speed.

Most smiles are started by another smile.

If you're not first, you're last.

If it's a real dream it's uncrushable.

If man reflects on the changes and transformations which follow one another like wave after wave and their rapidity, he will despise everything which is perishable.

No one came to earth empty; everybody came with a contribution to make to their generation. Most of them never find that gift and even more die never releasing it.

Be sure you separate 'who you are' from 'what you have' and 'what you do'.

I've been told that my music tells a story, but I don't know the story.

Regrets are so far from reality.

Remorse is virtue's root; its fair increase is fruits of innocence and blessedness.