“Vino torus et ira.”

And experience showeth there are few men so true to themselves and so settled but that, sometimes upon heat, sometimes upon bravery, sometimes upon kindness, sometimes upon trouble of mind and weakness, they open themselves; specially if they be put to it with a counter-dissimulation, according to the proverb of Spain, Di mentira, y sacar as verdad:  “Tell a lie and find a truth.”

(19) As for the knowing of men which is at second hand from reports:  men’s weaknesses and faults are best known from their enemies, their virtues and abilities from their friends, their customs and times from their servants, their conceits and opinions from their familiar friends, with whom they discourse most.  General fame is light, and the opinions conceived by superiors or equals are deceitful; for to such men are more masked:  Verior fama e domesticis emanat.

(20) But the soundest disclosing and expounding of men is by their natures and ends, wherein the weakest sort of men are best interpreted by their natures, and the wisest by their ends.  For it was both pleasantly and wisely said (though I think very untruly) by a nuncio of the Pope, returning from a certain nation where he served as lidger; whose opinion being asked touching the appointment of one to go in his place, he wished that in any case they did not send one that was too wise; because no very wise man would ever imagine what they in that country were like to do.  And certainly it is an error frequent for men to shoot over, and to suppose deeper ends and more compass reaches than are:  the Italian proverb being elegant, and for the most part true:-

“Di danari, di senno, e di fede,
C’e ne manco che non credi.”

“There is commonly less money, less wisdom, and less good faith than men do account upon.”

(21) But princes, upon a far other reason, are best interpreted by their natures, and private persons by their ends.  For princes being at the top of human desires, they have for the most part no particular ends whereto they aspire, by distance from which a man might take measure and scale of the rest of their actions and desires; which is one of the causes that maketh their hearts more inscrutable.  Neither is it sufficient to inform ourselves in men’s ends and natures of the variety of them only, but also of the predominancy, what humour reigneth most, and what end is principally sought.  For so we see, when Tigellinus saw himself outstripped by Petronius Turpilianus in Nero’s humours of pleasures, metus ejus rimatur, he wrought upon Nero’s fears, whereby he broke the other’s neck.