Nature does not loathe virtue: it is unaware of its existence. - A Letter to Myself.

Nature does not loathe virtue: it is unaware of its existence. - A Letter to Myself.

Etiquette means behaving yourself a little better than is absolutely essential.

Etiquette means behaving yourself a little better than is absolutely essential.

There is no self-delusion more fatal than that which makes the conscience dreamy with the anodyne of lofty sentiments, while read more

There is no self-delusion more fatal than that which makes the conscience dreamy with the anodyne of lofty sentiments, while the life is groveling and sensual.

The man who will follow precedent, but never create one, is merely an obvious example of the routineer. You find read more

The man who will follow precedent, but never create one, is merely an obvious example of the routineer. You find him desperately numerous in the civil service, in the official bureaus. To him government is something given as unconditionally, as absolutely as ocean or hill. He goes on winding the tape that he finds. His imagination has rarely extricated itself from under the administrative machine to gain any sense of what a human, temporary contraption the whole affair is. What he thinks is the heavens above him is nothing but the roof.

The fastest way to succeed is to look as if you're playing by somebody else's rules, while quietly playing by read more

The fastest way to succeed is to look as if you're playing by somebody else's rules, while quietly playing by your own.

Freedom is the by-product of economic surplus.

Freedom is the by-product of economic surplus.

The weak have one weapon: the errors of those who think they are strong.

The weak have one weapon: the errors of those who think they are strong.

Never frown...even when you're sad you never know when someone is falling in love with your smile.

Never frown...even when you're sad you never know when someone is falling in love with your smile.

The shy man does have some slight revenge upon society for the torture it inflicts upon him. He is able, read more

The shy man does have some slight revenge upon society for the torture it inflicts upon him. He is able, to a certain extent, to communicate his misery. He frightens other people as much as they frighten him. He acts like a damper upon the whole room, and the most jovial spirits become, in his presence, depressed and nervous.