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There is no arguing with him, for if his pistol misses fire, he knocks you down with the butt end of it.

There can be no doubt that the average man blames much more than he praises. His instinct is to blame. If he is satisfied he says nothing; if he is not, he most illogically kicks up a row.

Calamity is the perfect glass wherein we truly see and know ourselves.

Calamity is man's true touchstone.

Pandemonium did not reign; it poured.

Always hold your head up but be careful to keep your nose at a friendly level.

He who boasts of his accomplishments will heap ridicule.

The term up has no meaning apart from the word down. The term fast has no meaning apart from the term slow. In addition such terms have no meaning even when used together, except when confined to a very particular situation... most of our language about the organization and objective's of government is made up of such polar terms. Justice and injustice are typical. A reformer who wants to abolish injustice and create a world in which nothing but justice prevails is like a man who wants to make everything up. Such a man might feel that if he took the lowest in the world and carried it up to the highest point and kept on doing this, everything would eventually become up. This would certainly move a great many objects and create an enormous amount of activity. It might or might not be useful, according to the standards which we apply. However it would never result in the abolishment of down.

One might as well try to ride two horses moving in different directions, as to try to maintain in equal force two opposing or contradictory sets of desires.

We are enslaved by anything we do not consciously see. We are freed by conscious perception.

No man ever did a designed injury to another, but at the same time he did a greater to himself.

The easiest way to be cheated is to believe yourself to be more cunning than others.

The people of the world having once been deceived, suspect deceit in truth itself.

There are two ways of meeting difficulties: you alter the difficulties or you alter yourself meeting them.

If you don't stand for something, you'll fall for anything.

Failure is an event, never a person.

You cannot explain failure any more than you can argue with success.

Sometimes a noble failure serves the world as faithfully as a distinguished success.

They who lack talent expect things to happen without effort. They ascribe failure to a lack of inspiration or ability, or to misfortune, rather than to insufficient application. At the core of every true talent there is an awareness of the difficulties inherent in any achievement, and the confidence that by persistence and patience something worthwhile will be realized. Thus talent is a species of vigor.

People may flatter themselves just as much by thinking that their faults are always present to other people's minds, as if they believe that the world is always contemplating their individual charms and virtues.