L'Abbé Prévost

“ The most delightful moments of his life are those which he spends, either in solitude or with some friend, in open-hearted communion on the charms of virtue, the joys of friendship, the means of attaining happiness, the frailties of our nature, which alienate us from it, and the remedies by which they may be counteracted. ”

“ How comes it, then, that one falls so easily from these lofty speculations, and so soon finds one's self on a level with the common run of mankind? I am much deceived if the reason I am about to allege for it does not fully explain this contradiction between our ideals and our actions. It is this: all the precepts of morality being no more than vague and general principles, there is great difficulty in applying them specifically to the details of life and duty. ”

“ All generous natures feel that benevolence and humanity are estimable virtues, and are eager to display them. At the very moment for putting them into practice, however, they often pause and hesitate, debating whether this be indeed a proper occasion for their exercise, not being quite sure as to how far they should be carried, and doubting whether the object may not be a mistaken one. ”

“ In each adventure may be found an example for imitation; all that is lacking is its application to the circumstances of the individual case. The whole work, in fact, may be regarded as a treatise on morality, pleasantly reduced into practice. ”

“ To judicious minds, a work of this nature will not appear a waste of labor. Besides the entertainment to be derived from its perusal, it will be found to contain but few incidents that may not be turned to good account as lessons in morality ”

“ It is dependent upon the surroundings amid which our lot may have been cast, and these differ in the case of every one of us.
A vast number of persons, therefore, are left with nothing but precedent to serve them as a standard in the practice of virtue. ”