My wife determined that my genius should prevail, and that my final success as an ornithologist should be triumphant.

I used to love the saying, 'If you build a better mousetrap, the world will beat a path to your door.' It sounds great, right?

The only problem is that, as it turns out, it’s not even remotely true.
Worse yet, it encourages people to passively wait for someone else to give them a break. Most people who do that will grow old waiting for someone to come along and recognize their genius.

It is impossible that the whisper of a faction should prevail against the voice of a nation.

Success is never final.

Success is never final, failure is never fatal. It's courage that counts.

On landing at New York I caught the yellow fever. The kind man who commanded the ship that brought me from France took charge of me and placed me under the care of two Quaker ladies. To their skillful and untiring care I may safely say I owe my life.