“Our grand business undoubtedly is, not to see what lies dimly at a distance, but to do what lies clearly at hand
“Books are the legacies that a great genius leaves to mankind, which are delivered down from generation to generation as presents to the posterity of those who are yet unborn
“Reflect upon your present blessings, of which every man has plenty; not on your past misfortunes, of which all men have some
“The problem of our age is the proper administration of wealth, so that the ties of brotherhood may still bind together the rich and poor in harmonious relationship
“The disadvantage of men not knowing the past is that they do not know the present. History is a hill or high point of vantage, from which alone men see the town in which they live or the age in which they are living
“Every present state of a simple substance is the natural consequence of its preceding state, in such a way that its present is big with its future
“All you have shall some day be given; therefore give now, that the season of giving may be yours and not your inheritors
“The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes.