← Familiar Quotations / A Collection of Passages, Phrases, and Proverbs Traced to / Their Sources in Ancient and Modern Literature

Charles Churchill. 1731-1764

He mouths a sentence as curs mouth a bone.

The Rosciad. Line 322.

But, spite of all the criticising elves,

Those who would make us feel—must feel themselves.[412:5]

The Rosciad. Line 961.

Who to patch up his fame, or fill his purse,

Still pilfers wretched plans, and makes them worse;

Like gypsies, lest the stolen brat be known,

Defacing first, then claiming for his own.[413:1]

The Apology. Line 232.

No statesman e'er will find it worth his pains

To tax our labours and excise our brains.

Night. Line 271.

Apt alliteration 's artful aid.

The Prophecy of Famine. Line 86.

There webs were spread of more than common size,

And half-starved spiders prey'd on half-starved flies.

The Prophecy of Famine. Line 327.

With curious art the brain, too finely wrought,

Preys on herself, and is destroyed by thought.

Epistle to William Hogarth. Line 645.

Men the most infamous are fond of fame,

And those who fear not guilt yet start at shame.

The Author. Line 233.

Be England what she will,

With all her faults she is my country still.[413:2]

The Farewell. Line 27.

Wherever waves can roll, and winds can blow.[413:3]

The Farewell. Line 38.