--- title: "9 Five Quotes By Henry David Thoreau" description: "9 Five quotes by Henry David Thoreau. Plus more from Henry David Thoreau and more Five sayings from other authors." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3bd/henry-david-thoreau-20_five_i-often-visited-a-particular-plant-four_18461.jpg" --- > [I often visited a particular plant four or five miles distant, half a dozen times within a fortnight, that I might know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/i-often-visited-a-particular-plant-four-or-five-miles-distant-half-a/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3bd/henry-david-thoreau-20_five_i-often-visited-a-particular-plant-four_18461.jpg) > [It is easier to sail many thousand miles through cold and storm and cannibals, ina government ship, with five hundred men and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/it-is-easier-to-sail-many-thousand-miles-through-cold-and-storm-and/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11d/henry-david-thoreau-20_atlantic-ocean_it-is-easier-to-sail-many-thousand-miles_1286492.jpg) > [It is surprising how many great men and women a small house will contain. I have had twenty-five or thirty souls, with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/it-is-surprising-how-many-great-men-and-women-a-small-house-will/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/387/henry-david-thoreau-20_body_it-is-surprising-how-many-great-men-and_3033050.jpg) > [For more than five years I maintained myself thus solely by the labour of my hands, and I found, that by working…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/for-more-than-five-years-i-maintained-myself-thus-solely-by-the/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/674/henry-david-thoreau-20_expenses_for-more-than-five-years-i-maintained-my_2992297.jpg) > [The sugar maple is remarkable for its clean ankle. The groves of these trees looked like vast forest sheds, their branches stoppingshort…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/the-sugar-maple-is-remarkable-for-its-clean-ankle-the-groves-of-these/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/731/henry-david-thoreau-20_ankles_the-sugar-maple-is-remarkable-for-its-cl_13688.jpg) > [I think that every town should have a park, or rather a primitive forest, of five hundred or a thousand acres, either…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/i-think-that-every-town-should-have-a-park-or-rather-a-primitive/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f95/henry-david-thoreau-20_acres_i-think-that-every-town-should-have-a-pa_1232900.jpg) > [Perhaps anxious politicians may prove that only seventeen white men and five negroes were concerned in the late enterprise; but their very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/perhaps-anxious-politicians-may-prove-that-only-seventeen-white-men/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d42/henry-david-thoreau-20_anxiety_perhaps-anxious-politicians-may-prove-th_2201682.jpg) > [One little bird not larger than a sparrow, it may have been a Phalarope, would alight on the turbulent surface where the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/one-little-bird-not-larger-than-a-sparrow-it-may-have-been-a/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/659/henry-david-thoreau-20_air_one-little-bird-not-larger-than-a-sparro_1637992.jpg) > [Ice is an interesting subject for contemplation. They told me that they had some in the ice-houses at Fresh Pond five years…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/ice-is-an-interesting-subject-for-contemplation-they-told-me-that/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d15/henry-david-thoreau-20_affection_ice-is-an-interesting-subject-for-contem_694337.jpg) ## Other authors on Five ## More by Henry David Thoreau > [If ever I did a man any goodof course it was something exceptional and insignificant compared with the good or evil which I am…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/if-ever-i-did-a-man-any-goodof-course-it-was-something-exceptional/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [Our inventions are wont to be pretty toys, which distract our attention from serious things. They are but improved means to an unimproved end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/our-inventions-are-wont-to-be-pretty-toys-which-distract-our/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [“Men say they know many things; But lo! they have taken wings, — The arts and sciences, And a thousand appliances; The wind that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/men-say-they-know-many-things-but-lo-they-have-taken-wings-the-arts/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [I am not afraid of praise, for I have practiced it on myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/i-am-not-afraid-of-praise-for-i-have-practiced-it-on-myself/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [“All voting is a sort of gaming, like checkers or back gammon, with a slight moral tinge to it, a playing with right and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/all-voting-is-a-sort-of-gaming-like-checkers-or-back-gammon-with-a/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [“This spending of the best part of one's life earning money in order to enjoy a questionable liberty during the least valuable part of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/this-spending-of-the-best-part-of-one-s-life-earning-money-in-order/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [As for doing good; that is one of the professions which is full. Moreover I have tried it fairly and, strange as it may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/as-for-doing-good-that-is-one-of-the-professions-which-is-full/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [A traveler who looks at things with an impartial eye may see what the oldest inhabitant has not observed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/a-traveler-who-looks-at-things-with-an-impartial-eye-may-see-what-the/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [In proportion as our inward life fails, we go more constantly and desperately to the post office. You may depend on it, that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/in-proportion-as-our-inward-life-fails-we-go-more-constantly-and/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [I had three chairs in my house; one for solitude, two for friendship, three for society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/i-had-three-chairs-in-my-house-one-for-solitude-two-for-friendship/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [The still youthful energies of the globe have only to be directed in their proper channel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/the-still-youthful-energies-of-the-globe-have-only-to-be-directed-in/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [Concord's little arch does not span all our fate, nor is what transpires under it law for the universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/concord-s-little-arch-does-not-span-all-our-fate-nor-is-what/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [The lumberers rarely trouble themselves to put out their fires, such is the dampness of the primitive forest; and this is one cause, no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/the-lumberers-rarely-trouble-themselves-to-put-out-their-fires-such/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [“When he has obtained those things which are necessary to life, there is another alternative than to obtain the superfluities; and that is, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/when-he-has-obtained-those-things-which-are-necessary-to-life-there/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [Wealth is measured by the level of experience in all aspects of life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/wealth-is-measured-by-the-level-of-experience-in-all-aspects-of-life/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "ItemList", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/five/henry-david-thoreau/#itemlist", "name": "9 Five Quotes By Henry David Thoreau", "numberOfItems": 9, "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I often visited a particular plant four or five miles distant, half a dozen times within a fortnight, that I might know exactly when it opened.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Henry David Thoreau" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/i-often-visited-a-particular-plant-four-or-five-miles-distant-half-a/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3bd/henry-david-thoreau-20_five_i-often-visited-a-particular-plant-four_18461.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3bd/henry-david-thoreau-20_five_i-often-visited-a-particular-plant-four_18461.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3bd/henry-david-thoreau-20_five_i-often-visited-a-particular-plant-four_18461.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I often visited a particular plant four or five miles distant, half a dozen times within a fortnight, that I…” — Henry David Thoreau", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It is easier to sail many thousand miles through cold and storm and cannibals, ina government ship, with five hundred men and boys to assist one, than it is to explore the private sea, the Atlantic and Pacific Ocean of one's being alone.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Henry David Thoreau" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/it-is-easier-to-sail-many-thousand-miles-through-cold-and-storm-and/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11d/henry-david-thoreau-20_atlantic-ocean_it-is-easier-to-sail-many-thousand-miles_1286492.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11d/henry-david-thoreau-20_atlantic-ocean_it-is-easier-to-sail-many-thousand-miles_1286492.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/11d/henry-david-thoreau-20_atlantic-ocean_it-is-easier-to-sail-many-thousand-miles_1286492.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It is easier to sail many thousand miles through cold and storm and cannibals, ina government ship, with…” — Henry David Thoreau", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It is surprising how many great men and women a small house will contain. 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They told me that they had some in the ice-houses at Fresh Pond five years old which was as good as ever. Why is it that a bucket of water soon becomes putrid, but frozen remains sweet forever? It is commonly said that this is the difference between the affections and the intellect.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Henry David Thoreau" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/ice-is-an-interesting-subject-for-contemplation-they-told-me-that/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d15/henry-david-thoreau-20_affection_ice-is-an-interesting-subject-for-contem_694337.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d15/henry-david-thoreau-20_affection_ice-is-an-interesting-subject-for-contem_694337.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d15/henry-david-thoreau-20_affection_ice-is-an-interesting-subject-for-contem_694337.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Ice is an interesting subject for contemplation. 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