[Footnote 1:  See, for instance, Stobasus, Eclog.  I. xxii. 9.]

SECTION 27.  When any wrong statement is made, whether in public or in society, or in books, and well received—­or, at any rate, not refuted—­that that is no reason why you should despair or think there the matter will rest.  You should comfort yourself with the reflection that the question will be afterwards gradually subjected to examination; light will be thrown upon it; it will be thought over, considered, discussed, and generally in the end the correct view will be reached; so that, after a time—­the length of which will depend upon the difficulty of the subject—­everyone will come to understand that which a clear head saw at once.

In the meantime, of course, you must have patience.  He who can see truly in the midst of general infatuation is like a man whose watch keeps good time, when all clocks in the town in which he lives are wrong.  He alone knows the right time; but what use is that to him? for everyone goes by the clocks which speak false, not even excepting those who know that his watch is the only one that is right.

SECTION 28.  Men are like children, in that, if you spoil them, they become naughty.

Therefore it is well not to be too indulgent or charitable with anyone.  You may take it as a general rule that you will not lose a friend by refusing him a loan, but that you are very likely to do so by granting it; and, for similar reasons, you will not readily alienate people by being somewhat proud and careless in your behaviour; but if you are very kind and complaisant towards them, you will often make them arrogant and intolerable, and so a breach will ensue.

There is one thing that, more than any other, throws people absolutely off their balance—­the thought that you are dependent upon them.  This is sure to produce an insolent and domineering manner towards you.  There are some people, indeed, who become rude if you enter into any kind of relation with them; for instance, if you have occasion to converse with them frequently upon confidential matters, they soon come to fancy that they can take liberties with you, and so they try and transgress the laws of politeness.  This is why there are so few with whom you care to become more intimate, and why you should avoid familiarity with vulgar people.  If a man comes to think that I am more dependent upon him than he is upon me, he at once feels as though I had stolen something from him; and his endeavor will be to have his vengeance and get it back.  The only way to attain superiority in dealing with men, is to let it be seen that you are independent of them.

And in this view it is advisable to let everyone of your acquaintance—­whether man or woman—­feel now and then that you could very well dispense with their company.  This will consolidate friendship.  Nay, with most people there will be no harm in occasionally mixing a grain of disdain with your treatment of them; that will make them value your friendship all the more. Chi non istima vien stimato, as a subtle Italian proverb has it—­to disregard is to win regard.  But if we really think very highly of a person, we should conceal it from him like a crime.  This is not a very gratifying thing to do, but it is right.  Why, a dog will not bear being treated too kindly, let alone a man!