“The real price of everything, what everything really costs to the man who wants to acquire it, is the toil and trouble of acquiring it.”

The man scarce lives who is not more credulous than he ought to be. The natural disposition is always to believe. It is acquired wisdom and experience only that teach incredulity, and they very seldom teach it enough.

The world neither ever saw, nor ever will see, a perfectly fair lottery.

Goods can serve many other purposes besides purchasing money, but money can serve no other purpose besides purchasing goods.

I have no faith in political arithmetic.

Never complain of that of which it is at all times in your power to rid yourself.

The real and effectual discipline which is exercised over a workman is that of his customers. It is the fear of losing their employment which restrains his frauds and corrects his negligence.

No complaint is more common than that of a scarcity of money.

Men, like animals, naturally multiply in proportion to the means of their subsistence.

Labour was the first price, the original purchase – money that was paid for all things. It was not by gold or by silver, but by labour, that all wealth of the world was originally purchased.

Justice, however, never was in reality administered gratis in any country. Lawyers and attornies, at least, must always be paid by the parties; and, if they were not, they would perform their duty still worse than they actually perform it.

Mercantile jealousy is excited, and both inflames, and is itself inflamed, by the violence of national animosity.

Consumption is the sole end and purpose of all production; and the interest of the producer ought to be attended to, only so far as it may be necessary for promoting that of the consumer.

It is the natural effect of improvement, however, to diminish gradually the real price of almost all manufactures.

Man naturally desires, not only to be loved, but to be lovely; or to be that thing which is the natural and proper object of love.

The rate of profit is naturally low in rich and high in poor countries, and it is always highest in the countries which are going fastest to ruin.

What is prudence in the conduct of every private family can scarce be folly in that of a great kingdom.

All I really know is whatever the cost you’re worth it.

It is disgraceful to live at the cost of one’s self-respect.

A Black beauty has to protect her skin at all cost.

It’s not what you pay a man, but what he costs you that counts.

It is hard to contend against one’s heart’s desire; for whatever it wishes to have it buys at the cost of soul.

Who wishes to fight must first count the cost

Courtesy costs nothing, but buys everything.

The cost of a thing is the amount of what I will call life which is required to be exchanged for it, immediately or in the long run.