--- title: "8 Foundation Quotes By Henry David Thoreau" description: "8 Foundation quotes by Henry David Thoreau. Plus more from Henry David Thoreau and more Foundation sayings from other authors." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7c2/henry-david-thoreau-20_disobedience_disobedience-is-the-true-foundation-of-l_435022.jpg" --- > [Disobedience is the true foundation of liberty. The obedient must be slaves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/disobedience-is-the-true-foundation-of-liberty-the-obedient-must-be/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7c2/henry-david-thoreau-20_disobedience_disobedience-is-the-true-foundation-of-l_435022.jpg) > [If labor mainly, or to any considerable degree, serves the purpose of a police, to keep men out of mischief, it indicates…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/if-labor-mainly-or-to-any-considerable-degree-serves-the-purpose-of-a/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d7/henry-david-thoreau-20_community_if-labor-mainly-or-to-any-considerable-d_578105.jpg) > [Deep are the foundations of sincerity. Even stone walls have their foundation below the frost.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/deep-are-the-foundations-of-sincerity-even-stone-walls-have-their/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/397/henry-david-thoreau-20_deep_deep-are-the-foundations-of-sincerity-ev_832293.jpg) > [See yonder thin column of smoke curling up through the woods from some invisible farmhouse, the standard raised over some rural homestead……](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/see-yonder-thin-column-of-smoke-curling-up-through-the-woods-from/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6f7/henry-david-thoreau-20_america_see-yonder-thin-column-of-smoke-curling_1212009.jpg) > [I love man-kind, but I hate the institutions of the dead unkind. Men execute nothing so faithfully as the wills of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/i-love-man-kind-but-i-hate-the-institutions-of-the-dead-unkind-men/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a95/henry-david-thoreau-20_education_i-love-man-kind-but-i-hate-the-instituti_2080617.jpg) > [Sobriety, severity, and self-respect are the foundations of all true sociality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/sobriety-severity-and-self-respect-are-the-foundations-of-all-true/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e6/henry-david-thoreau-20_foundation_sobriety-severity-and-self-respect-are-t_2258250.jpg) > [By what a delicate and far-stretched contribution every island is made! What an enterprise of nature thus to lay the foundations of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/by-what-a-delicate-and-far-stretched-contribution-every-island-is/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d7a/henry-david-thoreau-20_ants_by-what-a-delicate-and-far-stretched-con_2357164.jpg) > [The cart before the horse is neither beautiful nor useful. Before we can adorn our houses with beautiful objects the walls must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/the-cart-before-the-horse-is-neither-beautiful-nor-useful-before-we/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/764/henry-david-thoreau-20_beautiful_the-cart-before-the-horse-is-neither-bea_3027439.jpg) ## Other authors on Foundation ## 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/foundation/henry-david-thoreau/#itemlist", "name": "8 Foundation Quotes By Henry David Thoreau", "numberOfItems": 8, "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Disobedience is the true foundation of liberty. 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