“Il y a de mauvais exemples qui sont pires que les crimes : et plus d’états ont péri parce qu’on a violé les mœurs que parce qu’on a violé les lois.”
“There are bad examples which are worse than crimes, and more states owe their fall to violations of morality than to violations of the laws.”
“Il y a des gens dont il ne faut pas dire qu’ils craignent Dieu, mais
bien qu’ils en ont peur.”
“There are some people of whom we should not say that they fear God, but rather that they are afraid of Him.”
“Il y a des gens qui commencent à vivre lorsqu’il faut cesser de vivre; ou, plutôt, qui ont cesse de vivre avant de commencer.”
“There are people who begin to live when it is time to cease living; or, rather, have ceased to live before they have fairly begun.”
“Il y a des reproches qui louent et des louanges qui médisent.”
“There are reproaches which praise and praises which disparage.”
“Il y a fagots et fagots.”
“There are faggots and faggots.”
“Il y a moins d’obliges ingrats que de bienfaiteurs intéresses.”
“There are fewer ungrateful recipients of kindness than there are interested benefactors.”
“Il y a peu d’honndtes famines qui ne soient lasses de leur metiér.”
“There are few honest women who are not tired of their trade.”
“Il y a plus affaire a interpreter les interpretations, qu" interpreter les choses : et plus de livres sur les livres, que sur autre sujet.”
“It is harder work interpreting interpretations than interpreting the things themselves, and there are more books about books than about any other subject.”
“Il y a plus de politique dans une vertu de Fénelon que dans toutes
les maximes de Machiavel.”
“There is more statesmanship in one of Fenelon’s virtues than in all the maxims of Macchiavelli.”
“Il y a plus de quarante ans que je dis de la prose, sans que j’en susse rien.”
“For more than forty years I have been talking prose, and I never knew it.”
