The first requisite of style, not only in rhetoric, but in all compositions, is perspicuity. Richard Whately More Quotes by Richard Whately More Quotes From Richard Whately To know your ruling passion, examine your castles in the air. Richard Whately words-of-wisdompassionair Curiosity is as much the parent of attention, as attention is of memory. Richard Whately curiosityparentmemories To teach one who has no curiosity to learn, is to sow a field without ploughing it. Richard Whately ploughingcuriosityscience A man is called selfish not for pursuing his own good, but for neglecting his neighbor's. Richard Whately selfishhelping-othersmen He only is exempt from failures who makes no efforts. Richard Whately effortfailure Some persons resemble certain trees, such as the nut, which flowers in February and ripens its fruit in September; or the juniper and the arbutus; which take a whole year or more to perfect their fruit; and others, the cherry, which takes between two an three months. Richard Whately flowernutsyears It is generally true that all that is required to make men unmindful of what they owe to God for any blessing, is, that they should receive that blessing often and regularly. Richard Whately shouldblessingmen Honesty is the best policy; but he who is governed by that maxim is not an honest man. Richard Whately honestytruthmen Manners are one of the greatest engines of influence ever given to man. Richard Whately influencemannersmen It is the neglect of timely repair that makes rebuilding necessary. Richard Whately rebuildingwisdomwise To be always thinking about your manners is not the way to make them good; the very perfection of manners is not to think about yourself. Richard Whately thinking-about-youperfectionway Persecution is not wrong because it is cruel; but it is cruel because it is wrong. Richard Whately persecution Lose an hour in the morning, and you will spend all day looking for it. Richard Whately good-morningup-earlygood-day A man who gives his children habits of industry provides for them better than by giving them fortune. Richard Whately givingmenchildren Falsehood is difficult to be maintained. When the materials of a building are solid blocks of stone, very rude architecture will suffice; but a structure of rotten materials needs the most careful adjustment to make it stand at all. Richard Whately blockrudeneeds When any person of really eminent virtue becomes the object of envy, the clamor and abuse by which he is assailed is but the sign and accompaniment of his success in doing service to the public. And if he is a truly wise man, he will take no more notice of it than the moon does of the howling of the dogs. Her only answer to them is to shine on. Richard Whately moonwisedog Habits are formed, not at one stroke, but gradually and insensibly; so that, unless vigilant care be employed, a great change may come over the character without our being conscious of any. Richard Whately caremaycharacter Controversy, though always an evil in itself, is sometimes a necessary evil. Richard Whately necessary-evilevilsometimes It is quite possible, and not uncommon, to read most laboriously, even so as to get by heart the words of a book, without really studying it at all,--that is, without employing the thoughts on the subject. Richard Whately studyheartbook Sophistry, like poison, is at once detected and nauseated, when presented to us in a concentrated form; but a fallacy which, when stated barely in a few sentences, would not deceive a child, may deceive half the world, if diluted in a quarto volume. Richard Whately poisonhalfchildren
