People differ in their discourse and profession about these matters, but men of sense are really but of one religion . . . "What religion?" . . . the Earl said, "Men of sense never tell it."

The law of England is the greatest grievance of the nation, very expensive and dilatory.

The Duke of Buckingham gave me once a short but severe character of the two brothers. It was the more severe, because it was true: the King (he said) could see things if he would, and the Duke would see things if he could.

. . . was apt to suffer things to run on till there was a great heap of papers laid before him, so then he signed them a little too precipitately.

. . . it a great error to waste young gentlemen's years so long in learning Latin by so tedious a grammar.

He [Halifax] had said that he had known many kicked downstairs, but he never knew any kicked upstairs before.