... we all know the wag’s definition of a philanthropist: a man whose charity increases directly as the square of the distance.
—George Eliot [Mary Ann (or Marian)
In old times people used to try and square the circle; now they try and devise schemes for satisfying the Irish nation.
—Samuel Butler (1835–1902)
Mark you the floore? that square & speckled stone,
Which looks so firm and strong,
Is Patience:
—George Herbert (1593–1633)