Samuel Butler

Fear is static that prevents me from hearing myself.

In law, nothing is certain but the expense.

To give pain is the tyranny; to make happy, the true empire of beauty.

Everybody seems to be imprisoned in their own sectarian or political affiliations. They don't seem to be able to rise above these things.

Another thing that freaks me out is time. Time is like a book. You have a beginning, a middle and an end. It's just a cycle.

A free life cannot acquire many possessions, because this is not easy to do without servility to mobs or monarchs.