Heaven and hell suppose two distinct species of men, the good and the bad. But the greatest part of mankind float betwixt vice and virtue.

There is not to be found, in all history, any miracle attested by a sufficient number of men, of such unquestioned good sense, education and learning, as to secure us against all delusion in themselves.

Men are much oftener thrown on their knees by the melancholy than by the agreeable passions.

Men often act knowingly against their interest.

However great an evil immorality may be, we must not forget that it is not without its beneficial consequences. It is only through extremes that men can arrive at the middle path of wisdom and virtue.

Adversity makes men, and prosperity makes monsters.

Civil war? What does that mean? Is there any foreign war? Isn't every war fought between men, between brothers?

Men like me are impossible until the day when they become necessary.

Men become accustomed to poison by degrees.

I love all men who think, even those who think otherwise than myself.

Doing nothing is happiness for children and misery for old men.

The mountains, the forest, and the sea, render men savage; they develop the fierce, but yet do not destroy the human.

I believe in work, hard work, and long hours of work. Men do not breakdown from overwork, but from worry and dissipation.

Men do not die from overwork. They die from dissipation and worry.

Men are not punished for their for sins, but by them.