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Lubbock, Sir John, 1834-1913

"The Pleasures of Life"

"
And Bacon assures us that "if a man look sharp and attentively he shall
see fortune; for though she is blind, she is not invisible."
To give ourselves a reasonable prospect of success we must realize what we
hope to achieve; and then make the most of our opportunities. Of these the
use of time is one of the most important. What have we to do with time,
asks Oliver Wendell Holmes, but to fill it up with labor.
"At the battle of Montebello," said Napoleon, "I ordered Kellermann to
attack with 800 horse, and with these he separated the 6000 Hungarian
grenadiers before the very eyes of the Austrian cavalry. This cavalry was
half a league off, and required a quarter of an hour to arrive on the
field of action; and I have observed that it is always these quarters of
an hour that decide the fate of a battle," including, we may add, the
battle of life.
Nor must we spare ourselves in other ways, for
"He who thinks in strife
To earn a deathless fame, must do, nor ever care for life.


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