John Bartlett (1820–1905). Familiar Quotations, 10th ed. 1919.
4369 Oliver Goldsmith 1730?-1774 John Bartlett
| NUMBER: | 4369 |
| AUTHOR: | Oliver Goldsmith (1730?–1774) |
| QUOTATION: | One writer, for instance, excels at a plan or a title-page, another works away the body of the book, and a third is a dab at an index. 1 |
| ATTRIBUTION: | The Bee. No. 1, Oct. 6, 1759. |
| Note 1. There are two things which I am confident I can do very well: one is an introduction to any literary work, stating what it is to contain, and how it should be executed in the most perfect manner. Boswell: Life of Johnson, An. 1775. [back] |