When Our Vices Desert Us, We Flatter

We Endeavor To Make A Virtue Of The Faults We Are Unwilling To Correct.

Most Men, Like Plants, Possess Hidden Qualities Which Chance Discovers.

Most People Judge Men By Their Success Or Their Good Fortune.

Our Wisdom Is No Less At Fortune's Mercy Than Our Wealth.

There Is A Form Of Eminence Which Does Not Depend On Fate; It Is An Air Which Sets Us Apart And Seems To Prtend Great Things; It Is The Value Which We Unconsciously Attach To Ourselves; It Is The Quality Which Wins Us Deference Of Others; More Than Birth, Position, Or Ability, It Gives Us Ascendance.