Part 5

The _Hopes_ of a Fool are Bullets he throws into the Air, that fall down again and break his Skull.

There can be no entire Disappointment to a wise Man, because he maketh it a Cause of succeeding another time. A Fool is so unreasonably raised by his _Hopes_, that he is half dead by a Disappointment: his mistaken Fancy draweth him so high, that when he falleth, he is sure to break his Bones.

_Of_ ANGER.

Anger is a better Sign of the Heart than of the Head; it is a breaking out of the Disease of Honesty. Just Anger may be as dangerous as it could be if there was no Provocation to it; for a Knave is not so nice a Casuist but that he will ruin, if he can, any Man that blameth him.

Where Ill-nature is not predominant, Anger will be short-breathed, it cannot hold out a long Course. Hatred can be tired and cloyed as well as Love: for our Spirits, like our Limbs, are tired with being long in one Posture.

There is a Dignity in Good-sense that is offended and defaced by Anger.

Anger is never without an Argument, but seldom with a good one.

Anger raiseth Invention but it overheateth the Oven.

Anger, like Drink, raiseth a great deal of unmannerly Wit.

True Wit must come by Drops; Anger throweth it out in a Stream, and then it is not likely to be of the best kind.

Ill Language punisheth Anger by drawing a Contempt upon it.

_Of_ APOLOGIES.

It is a dangerous Task to answer Objections, because they are helped by the Malice of Mankind.

A bold Accusation doth at first draw such a general Attention, that it gets the World on its side.

To a Man who hath a mind to find a Fault, an Excuse generally giveth farther hold.

Explaining is generally half confessing.

Innocence hath a very short Style.

When a Jealousy of any kind is once raised, it is as often provoked as cured by any Arguments, let them be never so reasonable.

When Laziness letteth things alone, it is a Disease; but when Skill doth it, it is a Vertue.

Malice may help a Fool to aggravate, but there must be _Skill_ to know how to extenuate.

To lessen an Object that at the first Sight giveth Offence, requireth a dexterous Hand: There must be Strength as well as Skill to take off the Weight of the first Impression.

When a Man is very unfortunate, it looketh like a saucy thing in him to justify himself.

A Man must stoop sometimes to his ill Star, but he must never lie down to it.

The Vindications Men make of themselves to _Posterity_ would hardly be supported by Good-Sense, if they were not of some Advantage to their own Families.

The defending an ill Thing is more criminal than the doing it, because it wanteth the Excuse of its not being premeditated.

An Advocate for Injustice is like a Bawd that is worse than her Client who committeth the Sin.

There is hardly any Man so strict as not to vary a little from Truth when he is to make an Excuse.

Not telling all the Truth is hiding it, and that is comforting or abetting a Lye.

A long Vindication is seldom a skilful one.

_Long_ doth at least imply _Doubtful_ in such a Case.

A Fool should avoid the making an Excuse, as much as the committing a Fault; for a Fool's Excuse is always a second Fault: and whenever he will undertake either to hide or mend a thing, he proclaimeth and spoileth it.

_Of_ MALICE _and_ ENVY.

Malice is a greater Magnifying-Glass than Kindness.

Malice is of a low Stature, but it hath very long Arms. It often reacheth into the next World, Death itself is not a Bar to it.

Malice, like Lust, when it is at the Height, doth not know Shame.

If it did not sometimes cut itself with its own Edge, it would destroy the World.

Malice can mistake by being _keen_ as well as by being _dull_.

When Malice groweth _critical_, it loseth its Credit.

It must go under the Disguise of Plainness, or else it is exposed.

Anger may have some Excuse for being blind, but Malice none: for Malice hath time to look before it.

When Malice is overgrown, it cometh to be the highest degree of Impertinence. For that reason, it must not be fed and pampered, which is apt to make it play the fool. But where it is wise and steady, there is no Precaution, that can be quite Proof against it.

Ill-will is seldom cured on a sudden, it must go off by degrees, by insensible Transpiration.

Malice may be sometimes out of Breath, Envy never. A Man may make Peace with Hatred, but never with Envy.

No Passion is better heard by our will, than that of Envy: No Passion is admitted to have Audience with less Exception.

Envy taketh the Shape of _Flattery_, and that maketh Men hug it so close, that they cannot part with it.

The sure way to be commended is to get into a Condition of being pitied. For Envy will not give its leave to commend a Man, till he is miserable.

A Man is undone, when Envy will not vouchsafe to look upon him.

Yet after all, Envy doth Virtue as much good as hurt, by provoking it to appear. Nay, it forcibly draweth out, and inviteth Virtue, by giving it a Mind to be revenged of it.

_Of_ VANITY.

The World is nothing but Vanity cut out into several Shapes.

Men often _mistake_ themselves, but they never _forget_ themselves.

A Man must not so entirely fall out with Vanity, as not to take its Assistance in the doing great Things.

Vanity is like some Men who are very useful, if they are kept under; and else not to be endured.

A little Vanity may be allowed in a Man's Train, but it must not sit down at Table with him.

Without some Share of it, Mens Talents would be buried like Ore in a Mine unwrought.

Men would be less eager to gain Knowledge, if they did not hope to set themselves out by it.

It sheweth the Narrowness of our Nature, that a Man that intendeth any one thing extreamly, hath not Thought enough lest for any thing else.

Our Pride maketh us over-value our Stock of Thought, so as to trade much beyond what it is able to make good.

Many aspire to learn what they can never comprehend, as others pretend to teach what they themselves do not know.

The Vanity of teaching often tempteth a Man to forget he is a Blockhead.

Self-conceit driveth away the suspecting how scurvily others think of us.

Vanity cannot be a Friend to Truth, because it is restrained by it; and Vanity is so impatiently desirous of shewing itself, that it cannot bear the being crossed.

There is a Degree of Vanity that recommendeth; if it goeth further, it exposeth.

So much as to stir the Blood to do commendable Things, but not so much as to possess the Brain, and turn it round.

There are as many that are blown up by the Wind of Vanity, as are carried away by the Stream of Interest.

Every body hath not Wit enough to Act out of Interest, but every body hath little enough to do it out of Vanity.

Some Mens Heads are as easily blown away as their Hats.

If the commending others well, did not recommend ourselves, there would be few Panegyricks.

Mens Vanity will often dispose them to be commended into very troublesome Employments.

The desiring to be remember'd when we are dead, is to so little purpose, that it is fit Men should, as they generally are, be disappointed in it. Nevertheless, the desire of leaving a good Name behind us is so honourable to ourselves, and so useful to the World, that good Sense must not be heard against it.

Heraldry is one of those foolish Things that may yet be too much despised.

The Contempt of Scutcheons is as much a Disease in this Age, as the over-valuing them was in former Times.

There is a good Use to be made of the most contemptible Things, and an ill one of those that are the most valuable.

_Of_ MONEY.

If Men considered how many Things there are that Riches cannot buy, they would not be so fond of them.

The Things to be bought with Money, are such as least deserve the giving a Price for them.

Wit and Money are so apt to be abused, that Men generally make a shift to be the worse for them.

Money in a Fool's Hand exposeth him worse than a pyed Coat.

Money hath too great a Preference given to it by States, as well as by particular Men.

Men are more the Sinews of War than Money.

The third part of an Army must be destroyed, before a good one can be made out of it.

They who are of opinion that Money will do every thing, may very well be suspected to do every thing for Money.

_False_ LEARNING.

A little Learning _misleadeth_, and a great deal often _stupifieth_ the Understanding.

Great Reading without applying it, is like Corn _heaped_ that is not _stirred_, it groweth musty.

A learned Coxcomb dyeth his Mistakes in so much a deeper Colour: A wrong kind of Learning serveth only to embroider his Errors.

A Man that hath read without judgment, is like a Gun charged with Goose-shot, let loose upon the Company.

He is only well furnished with Materials to expose himself, and to mortify those he liveth with.

The reading of the greatest Scholars, if put into a Limbeck, might be distilled into a small quantity of _Essence_.

The Reading of most Men, is like a Wardrobe of old Cloaths that are seldom used.

Weak Men are the worse for the good Sense they read in Books, because it furnisheth them only with more Matter to mistake.

_Of_ COMPANY.

Men that cannot entertain themselves want somebody, though they care for nobody.

An impertinent Fellow is never in the right, but in his being weary of _himself_.

By that time Men are fit for Company, they see the Objections to it.

The Company of a Fool is dangerous as well as tedious.

It is flattering some Men to endure them.

Present Punishment attendeth the Fault.

A _following_ Wit will be welcome in most Companies; A _leading_ one lieth too heavy for Envy to bear.

Out-doing is so near reproaching, that it will generally be thought very ill Company.

Any thing that shineth doth in some measure tarnish every thing that standeth next to it.

Keeping much Company generally endeth in playing the Fool or the Knave with them.

_Of_ FRIENDSHIP.

Friendship cometh oftener by Chance than by Choice, which maketh it generally so uncertain.

It is a Mistake to say a Friend can be bought.

A Man may buy a good Turn, but he cannot buy the Heart that doth it.

Friendship cannot live with Ceremony, nor without Civility.

There must be a nice Diet observed to keep Friendship from falling sick; nay, there is more Skill necessary to keep a Friend, than there is to reclaim an Enemy.

Those Friends who are above Interest are seldom above jealousy.

It is a Misfortune for a Man not to have a Friend in the World, but for that reason he shall have no Enemy.

In the Commerce of the World, Men struggle little less with their Friends, than they do with their Enemies.

_Esteem_ ought to be the ground of _Kindness_, and yet there are no Friends that seldomer meet.

Kindness is apt to be as _afraid_ of Esteem, as that is to be _ashamed_ of Kindness.

Our Kindness is greatest to those that will do what we would have them, in which our Esteem cannot always go along.

Miscellaneous Thoughts AND REFLECTIONS.

[Sidenote: _Of Advice and Correction._]

The Rule _of doing as we would be done by_, is never less observed than it is in telling others their Faults. But Men intend more to shew others that they are free from the Fault, than to dissuade them from committing it.

They are so pleased with the prudent Shape of an Adviser, that it raiseth the value they have of themselves, whilst they are about it.

Certainly, to give Advice to a Friend, either asked or unasked, is so far from a Fault, that it is a Duty; but if a Man love to give Advice, it is a sure sign that he himself wanteth it.

A Man whilst he is advising putteth his Understanding upon Tiptoes, and is unwilling to bring it down again.

A weak Man had rather _be thought_ to know, than _know_, and that maketh him so impatient to be told of a Mistake.

He who will not be the better for other Mens Faults, hath no cure left for his own.

But he that can probe himself to cure his own Faults, will seldom need either the Surgery of his Friends or of his Enemies.

[Sidenote: _Of Alterations._]

In a corrupted Age the putting the World in order would breed Confusion.

A rooted Disease must be _stroaked away_, rather than _kicked away_.

As soon as Men have Understanding enough to find a Fault, they have enough to see the danger of mending it.

Desiring to have any thing mended, is venturing to have it spoiled: To know when to let Things alone, is a high pitch of good Sense. But a Fool hath an Eagerness, like a Monkey in a Glass Shop, to break every thing in the handling.

_Curing_ and _Mending_ are generally meer Words of Art not to be relied upon. They are set out in Bills, but the _Mountebanks_ only get by them.

[Sidenote: _Bashfulness._]

Great Bashfulness is oftener an Effect of Pride than of Modesty.

Modesty is oftner mistaken than any other Virtue.

[Sidenote: _Boldness._]

Wise Venturing is the most commendable Part of human Prudence.

It is the upper Story of Prudence, whereas perpetual Caution is a kind of under-ground Wisdom that doth not care to see the Light.

It is best for great Men to shoot over, and for lesser Men to shoot short.

[Sidenote: _Borrowers of Opinions._]

Men who borrow their Opinions can never repay their Debts.

They are Beggars by Nature, and can therefore never get a Stock to grow rich upon.

A Man who hath not a distinguishing Head, is safest by not minding what any body sayeth.

He had better trust to his own Opinion, than spoil another Man's for want of apprehending it.

[Sidenote: _Candour._]

It is some kind of Scandal not to bear with the Faults of an honest Man.

It is not loving Honesty enough to allow it distinguishing Privileges.

There are some decent Faults which may pretend to be in the lower Rank of Virtues; and surely where Honour or Gratitude are the Motives, Censure must be a good deal silenced.

[Sidenote: _Of Caution and Suspicion._]

Men must be saved in this World by their Want of Faith.

A Man that getteth Care into his Thoughts, cannot properly be said to trade without a Stock.

Care and right Thought will produce Crops all the Year without staying for the Seasons.

A Man is to go about his own Business as if he had not a Friend in the World to help him in it.

He that relieth upon himself will be oppressed by others with Offers of their Service.

All are apt to shrink from those that lean upon them.

If Men would think how often their own Words are thrown at their Heads, they would less often let them go out of their Mouths.

Mens Words are Bullets that their Enemies take up and make use of against them.

A Man watches himself best when others watch him too.

It is as necessary for us to suppress our Reason when it offendeth, as our Mistakes when they expose us.

In an unreasonable Age, a Man's Reason let loose would undo him.

A wise Man will do with his Reason as a Miser doth with his Money, hoard it, but be very sparing in the Expence of it.

A Man that should call every thing by its right Name, would hardly pass the Streets without being knock'd down as a common Enemy.

A Man cannot be more in the Wrong than to own without Distinction the being in the Right.

When a Man is very kind or very angry, there is no sure Guard but Silence upon that Subject.

A Man's Understanding is easily shoved out of its Place by warm Thoughts of any kind.

We are not so much Masters of our Heat as to have enough to warm our Thoughts, and not so much as to set them on fire.

A great Enemy is a great Object that inviteth Precaution, which maketh him less dangerous than a mean one.

An old Man concludeth from his knowing Mankind, that they know him too, and that maketh him very wary.

On the other hand, it must be allowed, that a Man's being deceived by Knaves hath often this ill Effect, that it maketh him too jealous of honest Men.

The Mind, like the Body, is subject to be hurt by every thing it taketh for a Remedy.

There are some such very great Foreseers, that they grow into the Vanity of pretending to see where nothing is to be seen.

He that will see at too great a distance, will sometimes mistake a Bush for a Horse: The Prospect of a wise Man will be bounded.

A Man may so overdo it in looking too far before him, that he may stumble the more for it.

And, to conclude, He that leaveth nothing to Chance will do few things ill, but he will do very few things.

Suspicion is rather a Virtue than a Fault, as long as it doth like a Dog that _watcheth_, and doth _not bite_.

A wise Man, in trusting another, must not rely upon his _Promise_ against his _Nature_.

Early Suspicion is often an Injury, and late Suspicion is always a Folly.

A wise Man will keep his Suspicions muzzled, but he will keep them awake.

There can no Rules be given to Suspicion, no more than to Love.

Suspicion taketh Root, and beareth Fruit, from the moment it is planted.

Suspicion seldom wanteth Food to keep it up in Health and Vigour. It feedeth upon every thing it seeth, and is not curious in its Diet.

Suspicion doth not grow up to an Injury till it breaketh out.

When our Suspicion of another Man is once discovered by him, there ought to be an end of all further Commerce.

He that is never suspected, is either very much esteemed, or very much despised.

A Man's _Interest_ is not a sufficient Ground to suspect him, if his _Nature_ doth not concur in it.

A weak Man hath less Suspicion than a wise one, but when he hath it, he is less easily cured.

The Remedies as often increase the Disease, as they do allay it; and a Fool valueth himself upon suspecting at a venture.

[Sidenote: _Cheats._]

Many Men _swallow_ the being cheated, but no Man could ever endure to _chew_ it.

Few Men would be deceived, if their Conceit of themselves did not help the Skill of those that go about it.

[Sidenote: _Complaint._]

Complaining is a Contempt upon ones self:

It is an ill Sign both of a Man's Head and of his Heart.

A Man throweth himself down whilst he complaineth; and when a Man throweth himself down, no body careth to take him up again.

[Sidenote: _Content._]

Content layeth Pleasure, nay Virtue, in a Slumber, with few and faint Intermissions.

It is to the Mind, like Moss to a Tree, it bindeth it up so as to stop its Growth.

[Sidenote: _Converts._]

The Impudence of a Bawd is Modestly, compared with that of a Convert.

A Convert hath so much to do to gain Credit, that a Man is to think well before he changeth.

[Sidenote: _Desires._]

Men generally state their Wants by their Fancy, and not by their Reason.

The poor young Children are whipt and beaten by the old ones, who are much more inexcusably impertinent.

Not having things, is a more proper Expression for a Man of Sense than his wanting them.

Where Sense is wanting, every thing is wanting.

A Man of Sense can hardly want, but for his Friends and Children that have none.

Most Men let their Wishes run away with them.

They have no mind to stop them in their Career, the Motion is so pleasing.

To desire what belongeth to another Man is Misprision of Robbery.

Men are commanded not to covet, because when they do they are very apt to take.

[Sidenote: _Difficulty._]

A Difficulty raiseth the Spirits of a great Man, he hath a mind to wrestle with it, and give it a Fall.

A Man's Mind must be very low, if the Difficulty doth not make a part of his Pleasure.

The Pride of Compassing may more than compare with the Pleasure of Enjoying.

[Sidenote: _Dissembling._]

Nothing so ridiculous as a false Philosopher, and nothing so rare as a true one.

Men take more pains to hide than to mend themselves.

[Sidenote: _Dreams._]

Mens Pride, as well as their Weakness, disposeth them to rely upon Dreams, from their thinking themselves of such Importance as to have Warning of what is to befal them.

The Enquiry into a Dream is another Dream.

[Sidenote: _Drunkenness._]

It is a piece of Arrogance to dare to be drunk, because a Man sheweth himself without a Vail.

[Sidenote: _Experience._]

The best way to suppose what may come, is to remember what is past.

The best Qualification of a Prophet is to have a good Memory.

Experience maketh more Prophets than Revelation.

The Knowledge that is got without Pains, is kept without Pleasure.

The Struggling for Knowledge hath a Pleasure in it like that of Wrestling with a fine Woman.

[Sidenote: _Extremes._]

Extremity is always ill, that which is good cannot live a Moment with it.

Any body that is Fool enough will be safe in the World, and any body that can be Knave enough will be rich in it.

The generality of the World falleth into an insufficient _Mean_ that exposeth them more than an _Extreme_ on either Side.

[Sidenote: _Faculties of the Mind._]

Though Memory and Invention are not upon good Terms, yet when the first is loaded, the other is stifled.

The Memory hath Claws by which it holdeth fast; but it hath no Wings, like the Invention, to enable it to fly.

Some Mens Memory is like a Box, where a Man should mingle his Jewels with his old Shoes.

There ought to be a great Difference between the Memory and the Stomach; the last is to admit every thing, the former should have the Faculty of Rejecting.

It is a nice Mean between letting the Thought languish for want of Exercise, and tiring it by giving it too much.

A Man may dwell so long upon a Thought, that it may take him Prisoner.

The hardest thing in the World is to give the Thoughts due Liberty, and yet retain them in due Discipline.

They are Libertines that are apt to abuse Freedom, and do not well know how to bear Restraint.

A Man that excels in any one thing has a kind of arbitrary Power over all that hear him upon that Subject, and no Man's Life is too short to know any one thing perfectly.

The modern Wit is rather to set Men out, than to make them of any Use.

Some Men have acted Courage who had it not; but no Man can act Wit, if Nature doth not teach him his Part. True Wit is always revenged upon any false Pretender that meddleth with it.

Wit is the only thing that Men are willing to think they can ever have enough of.

There is a happy Pitch of Ignorance that a Man of Sense might pray for.

A Man that hath true Wit will have Honour too, not only to adorn, but to support it.

[Sidenote: _Families._]

The building up a Family is a Manufacture very little above the building a House of Cards.

Time and Accidents are sure to furnish a Blast to blow it down.

No House wanteth new Tiling so often as a Family wants Repairing.

The Desire of having Children is as much the Effect of Vanity as of Good-nature.

We think our Children a Part of ourselves, though as they grow up they might very well undeceive us.

Men love their Children, not because they are promising Plants, but because they are theirs.

They cannot discredit the Plant, without disparaging the Soil out of which it came.

Pride in this, as in many other things, is often mistaken for Love.

As Children make a Man poor in one Sense, so in another they inforce Care, and that begetteth Riches.

Love is presently out of Breath when it is to go up Hill, from the Children to the Parents.

[Sidenote: _Fear._]

'Tis good to have Men in Awe, but dangerous to have them afraid of us.

The Mean is so nice, that the hitting upon it is oftner the Effect of Chance than of Skill.

A Degree of Fear sharpeneth, the Excess of it stupifieth.

It is as scandalous not to fear at some times, as it can be to be afraid at others.

[Sidenote: _Flattery._]

Folly begets Want, and Want Flattery; so that Flattery, with all its Wit, is the Grandchild of Folly.

Were it not for Bunglers in the manner of doing it, hardly any Man would ever find out he was laughed at.

And yet, generally speaking, a Trowel is a more effectual Instrument than a Pencil for Flattery.

Men generally do so love the Taste of Flattery, their Stomach can never be overcharged with it.

There is a Right Reverend Flattery that hath the Precedence of all other Kinds of it.