"A person of my acquaintance said: . . . "Study has always been for me the sovereign remedy against life's unpleasantness, since I have never experi… - Montesquieu

Every man is capable of doing good to another, but to contribute to the happiness of an entire society is to become akin to the gods

They who love to inform themselves, are never idle. Though I have no business of consequence to take care of, I am nevertheless continually employed. I spend my life in examining things: I write down in the evening whatever I have remarked, what I have seen, and what I have heard in the day: every thing engages my attention, and every thing excites my wonder: I am like an infant, whose organs, as yet tender, are strongly affected by the slightest objects.

Translation: Raillery is a mode of speaking in favor of one's wit at the expense of one's better nature.