CHAPTER XI.: notable precepts and maxims.

1. Great modesty is essential to good manners. You must never do an act or say a word that can cause displeasure. You must be reverent to your superiors, modest with your equals, and affable to your inferiors. These things will make you beloved by the whole city.

2. One of the most important things in this world is to know one’s self, and properly to measure the forces of one’s mind, and one’s condition.

3. Those only deserve to be free who apply themselves to good works, and not to evil ones; for liberty badly employed injures itself and others.

4. To the generous mind, the speaking of the truth gives pleasure, especially when in the presence of wise men.

5. The consideration derived from one’s father or ancestors is fallacious, and is quickly lost when not sustained by one’s own virtue.

6. In judging of the acts of others, we must never cover a dishonest act with an honest reason, nor tarnish a praiseworthy act as having been done for a contrary purpose.

7. Forgiveness springs from a generous spirit.

8. The wise and good man should be content to leave to angry spirits the grave offences resulting from their own violent words.

9. A good citizen should forget his own private wrongs for the love of the public good.

10. Whoever offends wrongfully, gives to others the right to offend him rightfully.

11. The beginning of enmity is injury, and benefits are the beginning of friendship; and he makes a great mistake who, wishing to make another his friend, begins by injuring him.

12. No merciful thought can enter the heart of a dissolute villain.

13. The virtuous man who knows the world is daily less gladdened by good actions, and less saddened by evil ones.

14. A resolute spirit shows that misfortune has no power over it.

15. Superior men retain in all the vicissitudes of fortune the same courage and the same dignity. Weak-minded men become intoxicated in prosperity, attributing all their good fortune to virtues which they never knew, and thus they become insupportable and odious to all those whom they have around them.

16. It is the nature of proud and cowardly men to be insolent in prosperity, and in adversity abject and humble.

17. Fraud is detestable in every action.

18. That man will never be regarded as good, who, for the purpose of always making a profit from an occupation which he carries on, proves himself rapacious, fraudulent, and violent.

19. An evil principle can only produce alike evil results.

20. Evil-disposed men constantly fear that others will do to them what they are conscious of deserving.

21. Of all the insults that can be offered to men, that which touches the honor of their wives is most keenly felt.

22. There is no more certain indication of a man’s character than the company he keeps. A man who frequents honest company acquires deservedly a good name; for it is impossible that he should not somewhat resemble his associates.

23. A man who has been a good friend to others finds good friends in turn.

24. In time of adversity one learns to know the fidelity of one’s friends.

25. There is nothing which a man should not cheerfully spend to serve a friend.

26. It is impossible without tears to recall to memory the loss of one who was gifted with all those qualities that can be desired in a good friend, or in a citizen by his country.

27. When fortune has robbed us of a friend, then there is no other consolation than to try, as far as possible, to enjoy his memory, and to recall all the wise things he has said, and all the good things he has done.

28. There never was and never will be a law that prohibits or censures and condemns mercy, liberality, and benevolence.

29. It is the duty of a virtuous man, who has been prevented by the malignity of fortune from doing good, to teach it to others; so that they, more favored by Heaven than he was, may be able to practise it.

30. The good citizen should be compassionate, and not only give charity to those who ask it, but should frequently supply the wants of the poor without being asked.

31. The good citizen should relieve others in adversity, and sustain them in prosperity.

32. The good citizen should love everybody, praise the good, and have compassion for the bad.

33. There is no gain in benefiting one to offend the many.

34. We must esteem him who is, not him who can be liberal.

35. Nothing makes us meet death with more cheerfulness than to remember that we have never injured any one, but rather benefited everybody.