Quotes by Francis Bacon

The surest way to prevent seditions...is to take away the matter of them.

I wonder why it is that the countries with the most nobles also have the most misery?

Nature to be commanded must be obeyed.

The virtue of prosperity is temperance the virtue of adversity is fortitude which in morals is the heroical virtue.

Prosperity is not without many fears and distastes and adversity is not without comforts and hopes.

The virtue of prosperity is temperance the virtue of adversity is fortitude.

There is no excellent beauty that hath not some strangeness in the proportion.

As the births of living creatures at first are ill-shapen so are all innovations which are the births of time.

Some books are to be tasted others to be swallowed and some few to be chewed and digested.

Things alter for the worse spontaneously if they be not altered for the better designedly.

He that will not apply new remedies must expect new evils.

The lame man who keeps the right road outstrips the runner who takes a wrong one ... the more active and swift the latter is the further he will go astray.

They are ill discoverers that think there is no land when they see nothing but sea.

If a man will begin with certainties he shall end in doubts but if he will content to begin with doubts he shall end in certainties.

Nothing is terrible except fear itself.

The worst solitude is to be destitute of sincere friendship.

Those that lack friends to open themselves unto are cannibals of their own hearts.

There is no man that imparteth his joys to his friends but he joyeth the more and no man that imparteth his griefs to his friends but he grieveth the less.

The best preservative to keep the mind in health is the faithful admonition of a friend.

All rising to great places is by a winding stair.