Time that's so short with mortal sloth doth move
Whene'er the soul its moments idly counts:
'Tis by toil only that on wings it mounts.

Ce temps, si court, a des langueurs mortelles
Quand l'âme oisive en compte les instans:
C'est le travail qui lui donne des ailes.

Original text (French)

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Quote text and notes from Wikiquote: Jean-François Marmontel (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Source quality and labels are our own summary of what Wikiquote records.