part, and gently separates the immortal and wafts the spirit back to God who gave it. ¶ And what does the sea do with all these secrets, mysteries and treasures? Go shrive thyself, and with soul all in tune to the harmonies of the Universe listen to the waves and they shall tell thee the secrets of life! [Illustration] [Illustration] Epigrams How much finer it is to go out into the woods and lift up your voice in song, and be a child again, than to fight inclination and waste good God-given energy endeavoring to be proper! I am not sure what the unpardonable sin is, but I believe it is a disposition to evade the payment of small bills ❦ Labor is the only prayer that is ever answered ❦ ❦ If men could only know each other, they would never either idolize or hate. I would rather be able to appreciate things I can not have than to have things I am not able to appreciate ❦ Vivisection is blood-lust, screened behind the sacred name of Science ❦ If pleasures are greatest in anticipation, just remember that this is also true of trouble ❦ ❦ Friends and credit pursue the man who does not need them. Hell is a separation, and Heaven is only a going home to our friends. Success is the realization of the estimate which you place upon yourself. We are all children in the kindergarten of God ❦ ❦ Missionaries are sincere, self-deceived persons suffering from meddler’s itch. Give us this day our daily work. A criminal: One who does by illegal means what all the rest of us do legally. How beautiful that most of our troubles never happen! We are not punished for our sins, but by them ❦ ❦ One great, strong, unselfish soul in every community would actually redeem the world ❦ ❦ Do not take life too seriously—you will never get out of it alive. You are what you think, and not what you think you are. Who is my brother? I’ll tell you—he is the one who recognizes the good in me. Do your work with a whole heart and you will succeed—there is so little competition! When a woman works, she gets a woman’s wage; but when she sins, she gets a man’s pay—and then some ❦ Life without absorbing occupation is hell—joy consists in forgetting life ❦ Respectability is the dickey on the bosom of civilization. A man is as good as he has to be, and a woman as bad as she dares. If you want work well done, select a busy man—the other kind has no time. Mind your own business, and thus give other folks an opportunity to mind theirs ❦ ❦ The outcome of the battle is of no importance—but, how did you fight? ❦ Do not keep your kindness in water-tight compartments. If it runs over a bit ’twill do no harm. Genius is fine, but if it comes to a show-down, gumption is better. In a world where death is, there is no time for hate. An ounce of loyalty is worth a pound of cleverness. A failure is a man who has blundered, but is not able to cash in the experience.