I have abandoned, then, the thoughts of affairs great and serious; I do not any more take delight in reading ancient things or in discussing modern ones; they are all turned to soft conversations, for which I thank Venus and all Cyprus.
Separated by 1,300 leagues of sea from their enemies, aided by a powerful ally, the United States owed victory much more to its position than to the valor of its armies or to the patriotism of its citizens.
I hope no body will doubt, but that men would much more greedily be carried by nature, if all fear were removed, to obtain dominion, than to gain society.
Necessity and perhaps the nature of the climate have given the Chinese an unthinkable avidity for gain, and the laws have not dreamed of checking it. Everything has been prohibited if it is a question of acquisition by violence; everything has been permitted if it is a matter of obtaining by artifice or industry. Therefore, let us not compare the morality of China with that of Europe.