Time deals gently only with those who take it gently.

The man of science multiples the points of contact between man and nature.

In every well-governed state wealth is a sacred thing; in democracies it is the only sacred thing.

There are no bad books any more than there are ugly women.

He flattered himself on being a man without any prejudices; and his pretension itself is a very great prejudice.

I thank fate for having made me born poor. Poverty taught me the true value of the gifts useful to life.

What frightens us most in a madman is his sane conversation.

Awaken people's curiosity. It is enough to open minds, do not overload them. Put there just a spark.

A tale without love is like beef without mustard: insipid.

Irony and pity are two good counselors: one, in smiling, makes life pleasurable; the other, who cries, makes it sacred.

Suffering -- how divine it is, how misunderstood! We owe to it all that is good in us, all that gives value to life; we owe to it pity, we owe to it courage, we owe to it all the virtues.

I do not know any reading more easy, more fascinating, more delightful than a catalogue.

He flattered himself on being a man without any prejudices; and this pretension itself is a very great prejudice.

True education is the ability to discern the difference between what you do know and what you don't.

Lack of understanding is a great power. Sometimes it enables men to conquer the world.

The books that everybody admires are those that nobody reads.

It is well for the heart to be naive and the mind not to be.

Until one has loved an animal a part of one's soul remains unawakened.

You learn to speak by speaking, to study by studying, to run by running, to work by working; in just the same way, you learn to love by loving.

Innocence most often is a good fortune and not a virtue.