"Invention is an Heroic thing, and plac'd above……" — Thomas Sprat
"Invention is an Heroic thing, and plac'd above the reach of a low, and vulgar Genius. It requires an active, a bold, a nimble, a restless mind: a thousand difficulties must be contemn'd with which a mean heart would be broken: many attempts must be made to no purpose: much Treasure must sometimes be scatter'd without any return: much violence, and vigour of thoughts must attend it: some irregularities, and excesses must be granted it, that would hardly be pardon'd by the severe Rules of Prudence."
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Thomas Sprat
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8 Quotes by Thomas Sprat
Thomas Sprat has 8 quotes on this site.
A few more worth reading:
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What you dislike in another take care to correct in yourself.
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...they have never affirm'd any thing, concerning the Cause, till the Trial was past: whereas, to do it before, is…
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Greediness of getting more deprives... the enjoyment of what it had got.
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[In the Royal Society, there] has been, a constant Resolution, to reject all the amplifications, digressions, and swellings of style:…
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Passion is the great mover and spring of the soul. When men’s passions are strongest, they may have great and…
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A great proportion of the wretchedness which has embittered married life, has originated in a negligence of trifles.
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All false practices and affections of knowledge are more odious to God, and deserve to be so to men, than…
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More Active Quotes
This quote is filed under Active Quotes,
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There are more active volcanoes beneath the sea than on land by two orders of magnitude.
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Science regards man as an aggregation of atoms temporarily united by a mysterious force called the life-principle. To the materialist,…
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The mental body, like the astral, varies much in different people; it is composed of coarser or of finer matter,…
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Curiosity, n. An objectionable quality of the female mind. The desire to know whether or not a woman is cursed…
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Active Evil is better than Passive Good.
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I've always been on the side of science that tries to help man. I play an active part with the…
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The traveler was active; he went strenuously in search of people, of adventure, of experience. The tourist is passive; he…
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As an active member of the Air Force, Army and Mine Warfare Caucuses, I meet with enlisted personnel and officers…
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Fortunately, Iranians are politically active worldwide.
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Memory in youth is active and easily impressible; in old age it is comparatively callous to new impressions, but still…
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When the farmer can sell directly to the consumer, it is a more active process. There's more contact. The consumer…
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We must look for ways to be an active force in our own lives. We must take charge of our…
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