Voltaire

I have never made but one prayer to God, a very short one: “O Lord make my enemies ridiculous.” And God granted it.

Judge a man by his questions rather than his answers.

To learn who rules over you, simply find out who you are not allowed to criticize.

It is with books as with men: a very small number play a great part.

Of all religions, the Christian should of course inspire the most tolerance, but until now Christians have been the most intolerant of all men.

One great use of words is to hide our thoughts.

Do not assume anything. Clear your mind must be if you are to discover the real villains behind this plot.

If I have said something to hurt a man once, I shall not get the better of this by saying many things to please him.

No just cause is futile, even if it’s lost, if it helps make the future better than the past.

Many men go fishing all of their lives without knowing that it is not fish they are after.

He that reads and grows no wiser seldom suspects his own deficiency, but complains of hard words and obscure sentences, and asks why books are written which cannot be understood.

Let us read, and let us dance; these two amusements will never do any harm to the world.

A good head and a good heart are always a formidable combination.

Truth is the summit of being justice is the application of it to affairs.

For Wealth are all things that conduce, to one’s destruction or their use. A standard both to buy and sell, all things from heaven down to hell.

The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity. The optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.

We meet on the broad pathway of good faith and good will; no advantage shall be taken on either side, but all shall be openness and love. I will not call you children, — for parents sometimes chide their children too severely; nor brothers only, — for brothers differ. The friendship between me and you I will not compare to a chain; for that the rains might rust, or the falling tree might break. We are the same as if one man’s body were to be divided into two parts, we are all one flesh and blood.

If men be good, government cannot be bad.

We are always paid for our suspicion by finding what we suspect.

Young people are fitter to invent than to judge; fitter for execution than for counsel; and more fit for new projects than for settled business.

If you pick up a starving dog and make him prosperous, he will not bite you. This is the principal difference between a dog and a man.