Cosimo Classics

Any man will sign a note for a thousand dollars if a revolver is held against his head... The law, however, will not hold him for the payment of the note, on the ground that it was signed under...

[T]o slaughter fellow-citizens, to betray friends, to be devoid of pity, honor, and religion, cannot be counted as merits, for these are means which may lead to power, but which confer no glory...

"The moral and intellectual wealth of a nation largely consists in the multifarious variety of the gifts of the men who compose it . . ." -Sir Francis Galton, Inquiries into Human Faculty and Its...

Surely the man or woman who lacks strong sexual emotions should seriously hesitate before getting married to one who possesses such. For this reason alone we should to-day honour the "bachelor girl"...

Originally published in 1919, this classic work of social psychology introduces the concept of the herd instinct in relation to human behavior and explores the fundamental importance of...

Originally published in 1919, this classic work of social psychology introduces the concept of "the herd instinct" in relation to human behavior and explores the fundamental importance of...

"Nature shows all things formed and bound. The intellect pierces the form, overleaps the wall, detects intrinsic likeness between remote things, and reduces all things into a few principles."-Ralph...

Not to be confused with the philosophy of mathematics, mathematical philosophy is the structured set of rules that govern all existence. Or, in a word: logic. While this branch of philosophy...

After a certain time the society thus founded on kindred or common religion or both, becomes aware that its union is a thing valuable for its own sake, that government and organisation and...

In Introduction to the Devout Life, 17th-century French clergyman Francis de Sales addresses himself to the mass of Christians who do not believe it possible that they could live a devout life while...

In Introduction to the Devout Life, 17th-century French clergyman Francis de Sales addresses himself to the mass of Christians who do not believe it possible that they could live a devout life while...

Do "guardian angels" watch over us from the astral plane? What do the many examples of "invisible helpers" coming to the aid of those in danger say about the afterlife, and about the eternal soul's...

"If any one should importune me to give a reason why I loved him [Stephen de la Bo?tie] I feel it could no otherwise be expressed than by making answer, 'Because it was he; because it was I.'" -from...

Is the Bible the word of God? This classic of atheistic literature has the answer, and it's a loud and profound NO! American writer JOSEPH WHELESS (1868-1950) employs all the tools of the logician,...

"From away back toward the very beginning of the Shakespeare-Bacon controversy I have been on the Bacon side, and have wanted to see our majestic Shakespeare unhorsed. My reasons for this attitude...

"From away back toward the very beginning of the Shakespeare-Bacon controversy I have been on the Bacon side, and have wanted to see our majestic Shakespeare unhorsed. My reasons for this attitude...

A mere three chapters, Isl?m is an introduction to the Islamic faith and human spirituality. This short but informative primer contains words of wisdom about the human condition and spiritual...

"For many years Alfred Russel Wallace traveled the globe, observing fauna and flora and wondering whether the environment in which they lived affected their development. Island Life, a classic of...

"If you (...) would like a decided change from your present condition, you can have it. But first of all you must know what you want and this is no easy task." -R. H. Jarrett, It Works (1926) It...

"Zouch was the first to conceive of the topic...that war...is but a means, whereby, in the last resort, the rights which Nations enjoy in time of peace may be vindicated." -Thomas Erskine Holland,...

"The literary output of Zouch, especially if we remember his life-long occupations as Professor, Advocate and Judge, was as surprising in amount as it was varied in character." -Thomas Erskine...

"Even if a man has entered a field against the will of the owner he takes possession of his spoils." -Richard Zouch, Iuris et Iudicii Fecialis, Sive, Iuris Inter Gentes, et Quaestionum de Eodem...

The Sacred Books of the East, a 50-volume series, encompasses the seven non-Christian religions of Asia: Hinduism, Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism, Zoroastrianism, Jainism, and Islam. Translated into...

The Sacred Books of the East, a 50-volume series, encompasses the seven non-Christian religions of Asia: Hinduism, Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism, Zoroastrianism, Jainism, and Islam. Translated into...

[H]e created a new type of workmen capable of executing his plans, working with, and educating them often with his own hands. Only thus did he triumph, laboring mentally and physically. Watt...

The belief that the dead need affection, that to neglect them is a cruelty, that their happiness depends upon duty, is a belief that has almost cast out the primitive fear of their displeasure. They...

This is a collection of 22 charming Japanese fairy tales, originally published in 1905, selected and translated by Yei Theodora Ozaki. Included are legends and fairy tales about peasants and kings,...

The Black Forest is not the only place where fairies beguile and animals take human shape-the shadows of Mount Fuji boast their own impressive catalogue of accounts of the weird and the wonderful...

Having fully immersed himself in Japanese life, with which he was thoroughly smitten, Westerner Lafcadio Hearn came to occupy a unique position from which he could offer the English-speaking world a...

Margaret Oliphant viewed Jerusalem as the center of Western culture. "The story of Jerusalem is one of the most wonderful in the world, besides being of unparalleled importance to the human race....