Quotes from Abraham Lincoln

Tact: the ability to describe others as they see themselves.

Elections belong to the people. It's their decision. If they decide to turn their back on the fire and burn their behinds, then they will just have to sit on their blisters.

I will prepare and some day my chance will come.

The best thing about the future is that it comes one day at a time.

I have always found that mercy bears richer fruits than strict justice.

My father taught me to work, but not to love it. I never did like to work, and I don't deny it. I'd rather read, tell stories, crack jokes, talk, laugh -- anything but work.

If you once forfeit the confidence of your fellow citizens, you can never regain their respect and esteem. It is true that you may fool all of the people some of the time; you can even fool some of the people all of the time; but you can't fool all of the people all of the time. -Speech at Clinton, Illinois, September 8, 1854.

All I have learned, I learned from books.

Things may come to those who wait, but only the things left by those who hustle.

I care not for a man's religion whose dog and cat are not the better for it.

You cannot escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today.

Every man's happiness is his own responsibility.

I am in favor of animal rights as well as human rights. That is the way of a whole human being.

It's not me who can't keep a secret. It's the people I tell that can't.

The Lord prefers common-looking people. That is why he made so many of them.

It has been my experience that folks who have no vices have very few virtues.

You have to do your own growing no matter how tall your grandfather was.

You cannot help people permanently by doing for them, what they could and should do for themselves.

You can tell the greatness of a man by what makes him angry

If this is coffee, please bring me some tea; but if this is tea, please bring me some coffee.

I am a firm believer in the people. If given the truth, they can be depended upon to meet any national crisis. The great point is to bring them the real facts, and beer.

It is difficult to make a man miserable while he feels worthy of himself and claims kindred to the great God who made him.

A house divided against itself cannot stand. I believe this government cannot endure, permanently half slave and half free. I do not expect the Union to be dissolved — I do not expect the house to fall — but I do expect it will cease to be divided. It will become all one thing or all the other.

As a nation, we began by declaring that 'all men are created equal.' We now practically read it 'all men are created equal, except negroes.' When the Know-Nothings get control, it will read 'all men are created equal, except negroes, and foreigners, and Catholics.' When it comes to this I should prefer emigrating to some country where they make no pretense of loving liberty – to Russia, for instance, where despotism can be taken pure, and without the base alloy of hypocrisy.