The statesman， who should attempt to direct private people in what manner they ought to employ their capitals， would not only load himself with a most unnecessary attention but assume an authority which could safely be trusted， not only to no single person， but to no council or senate whatever， and which would nowhere be so dangerous as in the hands of a man who had folly and presumption enough to fancy himself fit to exercise it.
The only way to get to the top of the ladder is to climb it step by step.
"With a library you are free, not confined by temporary political climates. It is the most democratic of institutions because no one—but no one at all—can tell you what to read and when and how."
What we know is not much. What we do not know is immense.