Every time a child says, "I don't believe in fairies," there is a fairy somewhere that falls down dead. God gave us memory that we might have roses in December. Every man who is high up loves to think that he has done it all himself; and the wife smiles, and lets it go at that. I know not, sir, whether Bacon wrote the works of Shakespeare, but if he did not it seems to me that he missed the opportunity of his life. When the first baby laughed for the first time, the laugh broke into a thousand pieces and they all went skipping about, and that was the beginning of fairies. And now when every new baby is born its first laugh becomes a fairy. So there ought to be one It is all very well to be able to write books, but can you waggle your ears? It is not real work unless you would rather be doing something else. Life is a long lesson in humility. One's religion is whatever one is most interested in. Shall we make a new rule of life from tonight: always try to be a little kinder than is necessary. | 
