Books are like imprisoned souls till someone takes them down from a shelf and frees them.

Quote by Samuel Butler

Topics: Samuel Butler Quotes

And so there is no God but has been in the loins of past gods.

And so there is no God but has been in the loins of past gods.

To die is but to leave off dying and do the thing once for all.

To die is but to leave off dying and do the thing once for all.

Half the vices which the world condemns most loudly have seeds of good in them...

Half the vices which the world condemns most loudly have seeds of good in them...

Logic is like the sword--those who appeal to it shall perish by it.

Logic is like the sword--those who appeal to it shall perish by it.

If you follow reason far enough it always leads to conclusions that are contrary to...

If you follow reason far enough it always leads to conclusions that are contrary to...

All philosophies, if you ride them home, are nonsense, but some are greater nonsense than...

All philosophies, if you ride them home, are nonsense, but some are greater nonsense than...

If God wants us to do a thing, he should make his wishes sufficiently clear....

If God wants us to do a thing, he should make his wishes sufficiently clear....

A physician's physiology has much the same relation to his power of healing as a...

A physician's physiology has much the same relation to his power of healing as a...

The great pleasure of a dog is that you may make a fool of yourself...

The great pleasure of a dog is that you may make a fool of yourself...

Man is the only animal that laughs and has a state legislature.

Man is the only animal that laughs and has a state legislature.

Genius is a nuisance, and it is the duty of schools and colleges to abate...

Genius is a nuisance, and it is the duty of schools and colleges to abate...

Brigands demand your money or your life; women require both.

Brigands demand your money or your life; women require both.

Youth is like spring, an overpraised season

Youth is like spring, an overpraised season

People are lucky and unlucky...according to the ratio between what they get and what they...

People are lucky and unlucky...according to the ratio between what they get and what they...

Let us eat and drink neither forgetting death unduly nor remembering it. The Lord hath...

Let us eat and drink neither forgetting death unduly nor remembering it. The Lord hath...

Self-preservation is the first law of nature.

Self-preservation is the first law of nature.

If the headache would only precede the intoxication, alcoholism would be a virtue.

If the headache would only precede the intoxication, alcoholism would be a virtue.

God cannot alter the past, though historians can.

God cannot alter the past, though historians can.

To write history is so difficult that most historians are forced to make concessions to...

To write history is so difficult that most historians are forced to make concessions to...

Historians are prophets with their face turned backward.

Historians are prophets with their face turned backward.