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John Bartlett (1820–1905). Familiar Quotations, 10th ed. 1919.

2108 Robert Burton 1577-1640 John Bartlett

 
NUMBER:2108
AUTHOR:Robert Burton (1577–1640)
QUOTATION:I had not time to lick it into form, as a bear doth her young ones. 1
ATTRIBUTION:Anatomy of Melancholy. Democritus to the Reader.
 
Note 1.
Arts and sciences are not cast in a mould, but are formed and perfected by degrees, by often handling and polishing, as bears leisurely lick their cubs into form.—Montaigne: Apology for Raimond Sebond, book ii. chap. xii. [back]