In the occurrence of unpleasant things among neighbors, fear comes readily to heart and magnifies the consequence of the other party; but it is a bad counsellor. Every man is actually weak and apparently strong. To himself he seems weak; to others, formidable. You are afraid of Grim; but Grim also is afraid of you. You are solicitous of the good-will of the meanest person, uneasy at his ill-will. But the sturdiest offender of your peace and of the neighborhood, if you rip up his claims, is as thin and timid as any, and the peace of society is often kept, because, as children say, one is afraid and the other dares not.

Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882) American essayist, lecturer, poet

Essay (1841), “Prudence,” Essays: First Series, No. 7
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Based on a lecture (winter 1837-1838), Boston, the seventh in his course on "Human Culture."