About Pontus there are some creatures of such an extempore being that the whole term of their life is confined within the space of a day; for they are brought forth in the morning, are in the prime of their existence at noon, grow old at night, and then die.

Consolation to Apollonius.

The measure of a man's life is the well spending of it, and not the length.

Consolation to Apollonius.

For many, as Cranton tells us, and those very wise men, not now but long ago, have deplored the condition of human nature, esteeming life a punishment, and to be born a man the highest pitch of calamity; this, Aristotle tells us, Silenus declared when he was brought captive to Midas.

Consolation to Apollonius.

There are two sentences inscribed upon the Delphic oracle, hugely accommodated to the usages of man's life: "Know thyself,"[736:1] and "Nothing too much;" and upon these all other precepts depend.

Consolation to Apollonius.

To one commending an orator for his skill in amplifying petty matters, Agesilaus said, "I do not think that [[737]]shoemaker a good workman that makes a great shoe for a little foot."

Laconic Apophthegms. Of Agesilaus the Great.