To return to the Epigram Guide Webpage.Beware of the doctor who talks about "cure," instead of looking for the cause. There is nothing to be gained by curing a symptom.
Celebrity is THE opiate of the Proletariat.
No great spiritual event befalls those who do not summon it.
Life is a compromise between fate and free will.
There are only two classes of men who live in history: those who crowd a thing to its extreme limit, and those who then arise and cry, "Hold!"
Honors are pleasant, but revenues are necessary.
Preaching should be the work of amateurs - not professionals, just as love, in order to be pure, must be the expression of the amateur, and never the professional.
The men who make the deepest notches on the Stick of Time are not usually preceded by a brass band.
Beaten paths are for the Lilliputs. Climb the fence and cut across if you expect to "arrive."
Any blithering idiot can be waited on, but it takes intelligence and skill to serve.
Troubles that don't happen worry you more than those that do.
Fear not that your life should come to an end, but rather fear that it may never have a beginning.
Those who can, do; those who cannot, organize a class and show others how. (This is a variant on an earlier Roycroft epigram which was "Folks who can, do; those who can't, chin." Obviously, this lead to the now classic jibe/joke, "Those who can, do; those who can't, teach." and all it's endless variants. - The Fra-in-Charge.)
No one will believe in you until you believe in yourself.
If you want to go fast, go slow.
Meet rudeness with unfailing politeness and see how much better you feel.
The human face is the alphabet of the soul.
Popularity, good-fellowship, ease, contentment and next-door reputation are the bribes for which the man sells the integrity of his own soul.
The habit of fear, hate and cold feet is upon us all.
All suffering is caused by an obstacle in the path of a force.
Blessed are they who do not look for an easy job; for they are the only ones who shall find it.
To understand things at your door is the best preparation for understanding those beyond.
Progress oftens springs from doubt.
The pen is mightier than the sword, but the typewriter makes the big noise.
To the great masses, no theory of life is true until it is proved practical.
Work your grief into art and it is gone.
Nature gives us facts, but it is for man to distill truth from facts.
It takes energy to think. It is so much easier to jump to conclusions or accept some one else's view, than to climb, see and decide for yourself.
You write your poem, your essay, your play - just as you paint your picture, carve your statue, or give your oration - out of your surplus, and never out of your capital.
When in doubt, mind your own business.
If you help yourself, everyone will help you.
To return to the Epigram Guide Webpage.