Letter 16 — On Philosophy, the Guide of Life (§8)

“Nature’s wants are slight; the demands of opinion are boundless. Suppose that the property of many millionaires is heaped up in your possession. Assume that fortune carries you far beyond the limits of a private income, decks you with gold, clothes you in purple, and brings you to such a degree of luxury and wealth that you can bury the earth under your marble floors; that you may not only possess, but tread upon, riches. Add statues, paintings, and and whatever any art has devised for the satisfaction of luxury; you will only learn from such things to crave still greater.”