[on Cantor's Work:] The Finest Product Of

In Mathematics ... We Find Two Tendencies Present. On The One Hand, The Tendency Towards Abstraction Seeks To Crystallise The Logical Relations Inherent In The Maze Of Materials ... Being Studied, And To Correlate The Material In A Systematic And Orderly Manner. On The Other Hand, The Tendency Towards Intuitive Understanding Fosters A More Immediate Grasp Of The Objects One Studies, A Live Rapport With Them, So To Speak, Which Stresses The Concrete Meaning Of Their Relations.

He Who Seeks For Methods Without Having A Definite Problem In Mind Seeks In The Most Part In Vain.

Begin With The Simplest Examples.

Geometry Is The Most Complete Science.

Before Beginning [to Try To Prove Fermat's Last Theorem] I Should Have To Put In Three Years Of Intensive Study, And I Haven't That Much Time To Squander On A Probable Failure.