“If you really want to judge the character of a man, look not at his great performances. Watch a man do his most common actions.”

“The coward is an object to be pitied.”

“Calm and silent and steady work, and no newspaper humbug, no name-making, you must always remember.”

“One link in a chain explains the infinite chain.”

“Compared to the coward that never made the attempt, he is a hero.”

“Those that are good manners at the court are as ridiculous in the country, as the behavior of the country is most mockable at the court.”

“Literature is a comprehensive essence of the intellectual life of a nation.”

“If we tire of the saints, Shakspeare is our city of refuge.”