FastSaying

My dear friend, clear your mind of cant [excessive thought]. You may talk as other people do: you may say to a man, "Sir, I am your most humble servant." You are not his most humble servant. You may say, "These are bad times; it is a melancholy thing to be reserved to such times." You don't mind the times ... You may talk in this manner; it is a mode of talking in Society; but don't think foolishly.

Samuel Johnson

Related Quotes

Language is the dress of thought.
— Samuel Johnson
LanguageThought
Moderation is commonly firm, and firmness is commonly successful
— Samuel Johnson
Moderation
Once one becomes a man, he can and must make his own decisions. But I do offer warning. Even a good thing can become destructive if taken to excess.
— Brandon Sanderson
excessmoderation
There are those people who can eat one piece of chocolate, one piece of cake, drink one glass of wine. There are even people who smoke one or two cigarettes a week. And then there are people for whom one of anything is not even an option.
— Abigail Thomas
excessmoderation
Let's not quibble! I'm the foe of moderation, the champion of excess. If I may lift a line from a die-hard whose identity is lost in the shuffle, I'd rather be strongly wrong than weakly right..
— Tallulah Bankhead
ExcessModeration