Samuel Johnson: If a man was to compare the effect of a single stroke of the pick-axe, or of…

If a man was to compare the effect of a single stroke of the pick-axe, or of one impression of the spade, with the general design and last result, he would be overwhelmed by the sense of their disproportion; yet those petty operations, incessantly continued, in time surmount the greatest difficulties, and mountains are levelled, and oceans bounded, by the slender force of human beings.

In today’s wordsCompare a single swing of the pickaxe or one scoop of the spade with the whole plan and final result, and you'd be overwhelmed by how tiny it seems. Yet small efforts, kept up without stopping, eventually overcome the greatest difficulties; mountains are leveled and oceans are bounded by the slender strength of human beings.