Samuel Johnson

Great works are performed not by strength, but by perseverance.

He that thinks he can afford to be negligent is not far from being poor.

I have thought of a pulley to raise me gradually; but that would give me pain, as it would counteract my natural inclination. I would have something that can dissipate the inertia and give elasticity to the muscles. We can heat the body, we can cool it; we can give it tension or relaxation; and surely it is possible to bring it into a state in which rising from bed will not be a pain.

Bravery has no place where it can avail nothing.

Sir, they are a race of convicts, and ought to be thankful for anything we allow them short of hanging.

The mind is refrigerated by interruption; the thoughts are diverted from the principal subject; the reader is weary, he suspects not why; and at last throws away the book, which he has too diligently studied.

Clouds come floating into my life, no longer to carry rain or usher storm, but to add color to my sunset sky.

If you want the moon, do not hide from the night. If you want a rose, do not hide from the thorns. If you want love, do not hide from yourself.

The liar’s punishment is, not in the least that he is not believed, but that he cannot believe anyone else.

There is not human being from whom we cannot learn something if we are interested enough to dig deep.

If he really thinks there is no distinction between vice and virtue, when he leaves our houses let us count our spoons.

In the multitude of middle-aged men who go about their vocations in a daily course determined for them much in the same way as the tie of their cravats, there is always a good number who once meant to shape their own deeds and alter the world a little.

Great geniuses have the shortest biographies.

Read not to contradict and confute, nor to believe and take for granted… but to weigh and consider.

Be slow to fall into friendship; but when thou art in, continue firm and constant.

We had the sky up there, and we used to lay on our backs and look up at them, and discuss whether they was made or just happened.

Antiquities are history defaced, or some remnants of history which have casually escaped the shipwreck of time.

What do sad complaints avail if the offense is not cut down by punishment.

Soap and education are not as sudden as a massacre, but they are more deadly in the long run. Training is everything. The peach was once a bitter almond; cauliflower is nothing but cabbage with a college education.

The best part of beauty is that which no picture can express.

Do not waste your time on Social Questions. What is the matter with the poor is Poverty; what is the matter with the rich is Uselessness.