“Folks who have lived the cornered sort of life most scholars, teachers, and storekeepers live seldom realize what they've missed in the way of conversation. Some of the best talk and the wisest talk I've ever heard was around campfires, in saloons, bunkhouses, and the like. The idea that all the knowledge of the world is bound up in schools and schoolteachers is a mistaken one.”

“No memory is ever alone; it's at the end of a trail of memories, a dozen trails that each have their own associations.”

“Anger is a killing thing: it kills the man who angers, for each rage leaves him less than he had been before - it takes something from him.”

“Too often I would hear men boast of the miles covered that day, rarely of what they had seen.”

“No one can get an education, for of necessity education is a continuing process.”

“The idea of education has been so tied to schools, universities, and professors that many assume there is no other way, but education is available to anyone within reach of a library, a post office, or even a newsstand.”

“A great book begins with an idea; a great life, with a determination.”

“Knowledge is like money: to be of value it must circulate, and in circulating it can increase in quantity and, hopefully, in value.”

“A good beginning makes a good end.”

“To make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain.”

“A mountain man tries to live with the country instead of against it.”