Egotism.—When all is summed up, a man never speaks of himself without loss; his accusations of himself are always believed, his praises never.—Montaigne.
Be your character what it will, it will be known; and nobody will take it upon your word.—Chesterfield.
We would rather speak ill of ourselves than not to talk of ourselves at all.—La Rochefoucauld.
It is never permissible to say, I say.—Madame Necker.
The more you speak of yourself, the more you are likely to lie.—Zimmermann.
What hypocrites we seem to be whenever we talk of ourselves! Our words sound so humble, while our hearts are so proud.—Hare.
The more anyone speaks of himself, the less he likes to hear another talked of.—Lavater.
Do you wish men to speak well of you? Then never speak well of yourself.—Pascal.
He who thinks he can find in himself the means of doing without others is much mistaken; but he who thinks that others cannot do without him is still more mistaken.—La Rochefoucauld.
Eloquence.—Extemporaneous and oral harangues will always have this advantage over those that are read from a manuscript; every burst of eloquence or spark of genius they may contain, however studied they may have been beforehand, will appear to the audience to be the effect of the sudden inspiration of talent.—Colton.