WIST Quotations

Carlyle, Thomas -- Lecture (1840-05-22), “The Hero as King,” Home House, Portman Square, London

Dave — Thu, 26 Mar 2026 16:11:06 +0000

Dupes indeed are many: but, of all dupes, there is none so fatally situated as he who lives in undue terror of being duped.

Thomas Carlyle (1795-1881) Scottish essayist and historian
Lecture (1840-05-22), “The Hero as King,” Home House, Portman Square, London
(Source)

The lecture notes were collected by Carlyle into On Heroes, Hero-Worship, & the Heroic in History, Lecture 6 (1841).

Montaigne, Michel de -- Essays, Book 2, ch. 18 (2.18), “Of Giving the Lie [Du Démentir]” (1578–79) [tr. Screech (1987)]

Dave — Wed, 25 Feb 2026 21:40:04 +0000

Our understanding is conducted solely by means of the word: anyone who falsifies it betrays public society. It is the only tool by which we communicate our wishes and our thoughts; it is our soul’s interpreter: if we lack that, we can no longer hold together; we can no longer know each other. When words deceive us, it breaks all intercourse and loosens the bonds of our polity.

[Nostre intelligence se conduisant par la seule voye de la parolle, celuy qui la faulse, trahit la societé publique. C’est le seul util, par le moyen duquel se communiquent noz volontez & noz pensees : c’est le truchement de nostre ame : s’il nous faut, nous ne nous tenons plus, nous ne nous entreconnoissons plus. S’il nous trompe, il rompt tout nostre commerce, & dissoult toutes les liaisons de nostre police.]

Michel de Montaigne (1533-1592) French essayist
Essays, Book 2, ch. 18 (2.18), “Of Giving the Lie [Du Démentir]” (1578–79) [tr. Screech (1987)]
(Source)

This essay (and this passage) appeared in the 1st (1580) edition.

(Source (French)). Alternate translations:

Our intelligence being onely conducted by the way of the Worde: Who so falsifieth the same, betraieth publike society. It is the onely instrument, by meanes wherof our wils and thoughts are communicated: it is the interpretour of our souls: If that faile us we hold our selves no more, we enterknow one another no longer. If it deceive us, it breaketh all our commerce, and dissolveth all bonds of our policie.
[tr. Florio (1603)]

Our intelligence being by no other canal to be conveyed to one another but by words, he, who falsifies them, betrays public society: it is the only tube through which we communicate our thoughts and wills to one another; it is the interpreter of the soul, and, if it fails us, we no longer know, nor have any farther tie upon another: if that deceive us, it breaks all our correspondence, and dissolves all the bands of our government.
[tr. Cotton (1686)]

Our intelligence being by no other way communicable to one another but by a particular word, he who falsifies that betrays public society. ’Tis the only way by which we communicate our thoughts and wills; ’tis the interpreter of the soul, and if it deceive us, we no longer know nor have further tie upon one another; if that deceive us, it breaks all our correspondence, and dissolves all the ties of government.
[tr. Cotton/Hazlitt (1877)]

Our intelligence being conducted solely by the way of the word, he who falsifies that betrays all society. It is the only instrument by means of which our desires and our thoughts are exchanged; it is the interpreter of our souls; if it fails us, we no longer have any hold upon one another, we no longer mutually know one another. If it deceives us, it severs all our intercourse and dissolves all the ties of our government.
[tr. Ives (1925)]

Our intercourse being carried on solely by means of the word, he who falsifies that is a traitor to society. It is the only instrument by which our thoughts and wills are communicated, it is the interpreter of our soul. If it fails us, we no longer hold together, we no longer know one anther. If it deceives us, it breaks up all our intercourse and dissolves all the ties of our government.
[tr. Zeitlin (1934)]

Since mutual understanding is brought about solely by way of words, he who breaks his word betrays human society. It is the only instrument by means of which our wills and thoughts communicate, it is the interpreter of our soul. If it fails us, we have no more hold on each other, no more knowledge of each other. If it deceives us, it breaks up all our relations and dissolves all the bonds of our society.
[tr. Frame (1943)]

Montaigne, Michel de -- Essays, Book 2, ch. 18 (2.18), “Of Giving the Lie [Du Démentir]” (1578–79) [tr. Ives (1925)]

Dave — Wed, 18 Feb 2026 21:51:02 +0000

Lying is a villainous vice, and an ancient writer depicts it as most shameful when he says that to lie is to manifest contempt of God together with fear of man. It is not possible to represent more fully the horror, the vileness, the outrageousness of it. For what can be conceived more villainous than to be cowardly with respect to men, and audacious with respect to God?

[C’est un vilain vice, que le mentir; & qu’un ancien peint bien honteusement, quand il dit, que c’est donner tesmoignage de mespriser Dieu, & quand & quand de craindre les hommes. Il n’est pas possible d’en representer plus richement l’horreur, la vilité & le desreiglement: Car que peut on imaginer plus vilain, que d’estre couart à l’endroit des hommes, & brave à l’endroit de Dieu?]

Michel de Montaigne (1533-1592) French essayist
Essays, Book 2, ch. 18 (2.18), “Of Giving the Lie [Du Démentir]” (1578–79) [tr. Ives (1925)]
(Source)

This essay (and passage) appeared in the 1st (1580) edition, and was expanded in each succeeding edition.

The ancient writer mentioned is Plutarch in his Life of Lysander.

(Source (French)). Alternate translations:

To ly is a horrible-filthy vice; and which an auncient writer setteth forth very shamefully, when he saith, that whosoever lieth, witnesseth that he contemneth God and therewithal feareth men. It is impossible more richly to represent the horrour, the vilenesse and the disorder of it: For, What can be imagined so vile, and base, as to be a coward towardes men, and a boaster towardes God?
[tr. Florio (1603)]

Lying is a base vice; a vice that one of the ancients paints in the most odious colours when he says, "That it is too manifest a contempt of God, and a fear of man." It is not possible more copiously to represent the horror, baseness, and irregularity of it; for what can be imagined more vile, than a man, who is a coward towards man, so courageous as to defy his Maker?
[tr. Cotton (1686)]

Lying is a base vice; a vice that one of the ancients portrays in the most odious colors when he says, “that it is to manifest a contempt of God, and withal a fear of men.” It is not possible more fully to represent the horror, baseness, and irregularity of it; for what can a man imagine more hateful and contemptible than to be a coward toward men, and valiant against his Maker?
[tr. Cotton/Hazlitt (1877)]

Lying is a base vice, and painted in its most shameful colours by one of the ancients, who says that to lie is to give proof that you despise god and at the same time are afraid of men. It is impossible to state its horror, its vileness, and its outrageousness more felicitously. For what baser thing can we imagine than to be a coward toward men and act the brave fellow toward God?
[tr. Zeitlin (1934)]

Lying is an ugly vice, which an ancient paints in most shameful colors when he says that it is giving evidence of contempt for God, and at the same time of fear of men. It is not possible to represent more vividly the horror, the vileness, and the profligacy of it. For what can you imagine uglier than being a coward toward men and bold toward God?
[tr. Frame (1943)]

Lying is a villein's vice, a vice which an Ancient paints full shamefully when he says that it gives testimony to contempt for God together with fear of men. It is not possible to show more richly the horror of it, its vileness and its disorderliness. For what can one imagine more serf-like than to be cowardly before men and defiant towards God?
[tr. Screech (1987)]

Euripides -- Medea [Μήδεια], l. 580ff (431 BC) [tr. Ewans (2022)]

Dave — Tue, 03 Feb 2026 18:39:32 +0000

MEDEA: I think the unjust man who can speak cleverly
incurs the greatest penalty for, feeling confident
to cloak injustice in fair speech,
he dares the utmost villainy.

[ΜΉΔΕΙΑ: ἐμοὶ γὰρ ὅστις ἄδικος ὢν σοφὸς λέγειν
πέφυκε, πλείστην ζημίαν ὀφλισκάνει:
γλώσσῃ γὰρ αὐχῶν τἄδικ᾽ εὖ περιστελεῖν
τολμᾷ πανουργεῖν.]

Euripides (485?-406? BC) Greek tragic dramatist
Medea [Μήδεια], l. 580ff (431 BC) [tr. Ewans (2022)]
(Source)

(Source (Greek)). Other translations:

In my judgement, he
Who tramples on the laws, but can express
His thoughts with plausibility, deserves
Severest punishment: for that injustice
On which he glories, with his artful tongue.
That he a fair appearance can bestow,
He dares to practise.
[tr. Wodhull (1782)]

Th' injurious man, whose tongue
Flows with pernicious rhetoric, I hold
To merit the severest punishment.
For confident his speech can varnish o'er
The blackest deeds, his craft dares venture on them.
[tr. Potter (1814)]

For him who does wrong and is wise to gloze it
I hold worth worser doom. For making sure
He'll show wrong gracious with his tongue, he's bold
To every crime.
[tr. Webster (1868)]

To my mind, whoso hath skill to fence with words in an unjust cause, incurs the heaviest penalty; for such an one, confident that he can cast a decent veil of words o'er his injustice, dares to practise it.
[tr. Coleridge (1891)]

In my judgment, whatever man being unjust, is deeply skilled in argument, merits the severest punishment. For vaunting that with his tongue he can well gloze over injustice, he dares to work deceit.
[tr. Buckley (1892)]

For in my sight the villain subtle-tongued
Getteth himself for gain exceeding loss,
Who, confident his tongue can gloze the wrong,
Becomes a bold knave.
[tr. Way (Loeb) (1894)]

To me it seemeth, when
A crafty tongue is given to evil men
'Tis like to wreck, not help them. Their own brain
Tempts them with lies to dare and dare again,
Till .... [tr. Murray (1906)]

I think that the plausible speaker
Who is a villain deserves the greatest punishment.
Confident in his tongue’s power to adorn evil,
He stops at nothing.
[tr. Warner (1944)]

To me, a wicked man who is also eloquent
Seems the most guilty of them all. He’ll cut your throat
As bold as brass, because he knows he can dress up murder
In handsome words.
[tr. Vellacott (1963)]

For me, the man who is a villain, but clever
In speech, would have to pay the highest fine;
Confident of cloaking his villainy in fine words,
He dares anything.
[tr. Podlecki (1989)]

To my mind, the plausible speaker who is a scoundrel incurs the greatest punishment. For since he is confident that he can cleverly cloak injustice with his words, his boldness stops at no knavery.
[tr. Kovacs (Loeb) (1994)]

For in my eyes the criminal with a gift for speaking deserves the worst of punishments. So confident is he in his tongue’s ability to dress his foul thoughts in fair words, there is nothing he dares not do.
[tr. Davie (1996)]

What I believe, for example is the more eloquent the misfit, the greater the punishment he deserves because, thinking that his eloquence and his pretty words will get him out of any injustice, he has the audacity to commit even greater evils.
[tr. Theodoridis (2004)]

In my opinion,
the unjust man who speaks so plausibly
brings on himself the harshest punishment.
Since he’s sure his tongue can hide injustice,
he dares anything.
[tr. Johnston (2008), l. 689ff]

To my mind, whoever is naturally sophos in speaking but has no dikē deserves the heaviest punishment. Such a man boasts that he can cast a decent veil of words over his unjust deeds, and boldly proceeds to wickedness.
[tr. Coleridge / Ceragioli / Nagy / Hour25]

To my mind, the plausible speaker who is a scoundrel incurs the greatest punishment. For since he is confident that he can cleverly cloak injustice with his words, his boldness stops at no dishonesty.
[tr. Kovacs / Zhang / Rogak]

Berry, Wendell -- Speech (2005-05-14), Commencement, Lindsey Wilson College, Columbia, Kentucky

Dave — Mon, 29 Dec 2025 20:35:32 +0000

We know that war depresses public dialogue and debate, enlarges executive power, diminishes citizens’ rights, encourages governmental secrecy and deception, and deforms the outlines of human decency. Thus a government making war for the sake of peace, freedom, and human dignity — as it will never cease to declare — will curtail the rights of prisoners, resort to torture, deny its errors, exaggerate its virtues, demonize the enemy, and (as is inevitable in modern war) kill many innocent people, including, of course, many children.

Wendell Berry (b. 1934) American farmer, educator, poet, conservationist
Speech (2005-05-14), Commencement, Lindsey Wilson College, Columbia, Kentucky
(Source)

This was either excerpted from, or included in, his undated essay "Letter to Daniel Kemmis," collected in The Way of Ignorance and Other Essays, Part 2 (2005).

Fuller, Thomas (1654) -- Introductio ad Prudentiam, Vol. 2, # 2462 (1727)

Dave — Wed, 03 Dec 2025 17:07:17 +0000

Thou canst scarcely be truly wise till thou hast been deceived. Thy own Errors will teach thee more Prudence, than the grave Precepts, and even Examples of others.

Thomas Fuller (1654-1734) English physician, preacher, aphorist, writer
Introductio ad Prudentiam, Vol. 2, # 2462 (1727)
(Source)

Franklin, Benjamin -- Poor Richard (1742 ed.)

Dave — Thu, 30 Oct 2025 15:37:39 +0000

Money and Man a mutual Friendship show:
Man makes false Money, Money makes Man so.

Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) American statesman, scientist, philosopher, aphorist
Poor Richard (1742 ed.)
(Source)

Adams, John -- Letter (1785-09-10) to John Jebb

Dave — Wed, 29 Oct 2025 23:18:52 +0000

Knaves and Hipocrates see through the Whole sistem at once. I will take the People their own way says one of these, I will serve them without Pay, I will give them money, I will make them beleive that I am perfectly disinterested untill I gain their Confidence and exite their enthusiasm. then I will Carry that Confidence and Enthusiasm to markett and will sell it for more than all I give them, and all their Pay would have amounted to — si populus vult decipi decipiatur [if the people want to be deceived, they will be deceived].

John Adams (1735–1826) American lawyer, Founding Father, statesman, US President (1797–1801)
Letter (1785-09-10) to John Jebb
(Source)

Spelling as written by Adams.

Bible, Vol. 2. New Testament -- Acts 5: 1-5 [JB (1966)]

Dave — Tue, 21 Oct 2025 15:09:46 +0000

There was another man, however, called Ananias. He and his wife, Sapphira, agreed to sell a property; but with his wife’s connivance he kept back part of the proceeds, and brought the rest and presented it to the apostles.
“Ananias,” Peter said “how can Satan have so possessed you that you should lie to the Holy Spirit and keep back part of the money from the land? While you still owned the land, wasn’t it yours to keep, and after you had sold it wasn’t the money yours to do with as you liked? What put this scheme into your mind? It is not to men that you have lied, but to God.”
When he heard this Ananias fell down dead. This made a profound impression on everyone present.

[Ἀνὴρ δέ τις Ἁνανίας ὀνόματι σὺν Σαπφίρῃ τῇ γυναικὶ αὐτοῦ ἐπώλησεν κτῆμα καὶ ἐνοσφίσατο ἀπὸ τῆς τιμῆς, συνειδυίης καὶ τῆς γυναικός, καὶ ἐνέγκας μέρος τι παρὰ τοὺς πόδας τῶν ἀποστόλων ἔθηκεν.
εἶπεν δὲ ὁ Πέτρος, Ἁνανία, διὰ τί ἐπλήρωσεν ὁ Σατανᾶς τὴν καρδίαν σου, ψεύσασθαί σε τὸ πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον καὶ νοσφίσασθαι ἀπὸ τῆς τιμῆς τοῦ χωρίου; οὐχὶ μένον σοὶ ἔμενεν καὶ πραθὲν ἐν τῇ σῇ ἐξουσίᾳ ὑπῆρχεν; τί ὅτι ἔθου ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ σου τὸ πρᾶγμα τοῦτο; οὐκ ἐψεύσω ἀνθρώποις ἀλλὰ τῷ θεῷ.
ἀκούων δὲ ὁ Ἁνανίας τοὺς λόγους τούτους πεσὼν ἐξέψυξεν, καὶ ἐγένετο φόβος μέγας ἐπὶ πάντας τοὺς ἀκούοντας.]

The Bible (The New Testament) (AD 1st - 2nd C) Christian sacred scripture
Acts 5: 1-5 [JB (1966)]
(Source)

In verses 6-11, Peter asks Sapphira about the proceeds, and she backs Ananias' story, at which point, confronted with the truth, she drops dead, too, also impressing everyone present.

(Source (Greek)). Alternate translations:

But a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a possession, and kept back part of the price, his wife also being privy to it, and brought a certain part, and laid it at the apostles’ feet.
But Peter said, Ananias, why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost, and to keep back part of the price of the land? Whiles it remained, was it not thine own? and after it was sold, was it not in thine own power? why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart? thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God.
And Ananias hearing these words fell down, and gave up the ghost: and great fear came on all them that heard these things.
[KJV (1611)]

There was also a man called Ananias. He and his wife, Sapphira, agreed to sell a property; but with his wife's connivance he kept back part of the price and brought the rest and presented it to the apostles.
Peter said, 'Ananias, how can Satan have so possessed you that you should lie to the Holy Spirit and keep back part of the price of the land? While you still owned the land, wasn't it yours to keep, and after you had sold it wasn't the money yours to do with as you liked? What put this scheme into your mind? You have been lying not to men, but to God.'
When he heard this Ananias fell down dead. And a great fear came upon everyone present.
[NJB (1985)]

But there was a man named Ananias, who with his wife Sapphira sold some property that belonged to them. But with his wife's agreement he kept part of the money for himself and turned the rest over to the apostles.
Peter said to him, “Ananias, why did you let Satan take control of you and make you lie to the Holy Spirit by keeping part of the money you received for the property? Before you sold the property, it belonged to you; and after you sold it, the money was yours. Why, then, did you decide to do such a thing? You have not lied to people -- you have lied to God!”
As soon as Ananias heard this, he fell down dead; and all who heard about it were terrified.
[GNT (1992 ed.)]

However, a man named Ananias, along with his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of property. With his wife’s knowledge, he withheld some of the proceeds from the sale. He brought the rest and placed it in the care and under the authority of the apostles.
Peter asked, “Ananias, how is it that Satan has influenced you to lie to the Holy Spirit by withholding some of the proceeds from the sale of your land? Wasn’t that property yours to keep? After you sold it, wasn’t the money yours to do with whatever you wanted? What made you think of such a thing? You haven’t lied to other people but to God!”
When Ananias heard these words, he dropped dead. Everyone who heard this conversation was terrified.
[CEB (2011)]

But a man named Ananias, with the consent of his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of property; with his wife’s knowledge, he kept back some of the proceeds and brought only a part and laid it at the apostles’ feet.
“Ananias,” Peter asked, “why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back part of the proceeds of the land? While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, were not the proceeds at your disposal? How is it that you have contrived this deed in your heart? You did not lie to us but to God!”
Now when Ananias heard these words, he fell down and died. And great fear seized all who heard of it.
[NRSV (2021 ed.)]

Watterson, Bill -- Calvin and Hobbes (1987-06-03)

Dave — Thu, 28 Aug 2025 00:03:26 +0000

CALVIN: Hey Dad, how does a carburetor work?

CALVIN’S DAD: I can’t tell you.

CALVIN: Why not?

CALVIN’S DAD: It’s a secret.

CALVIN: No it isn’t! You just don’t know!

Bill Watterson (b. 1958) American cartoonist
Calvin and Hobbes (1987-06-03)
(Source)

Milne, A. A. -- House at Pooh Corner, ch. 4 “Tiggers Don’t Climb Trees” (1928)

Dave — Tue, 19 Aug 2025 16:49:49 +0000

Piglet still felt that to be underneath a Very Good Dropper would be a Mistake, and he was just going to hurry back for something which he had forgotten when the Jagular called out to them. “Help! Help!” it called.
“That’s what Jagular’s always do”, said Pooh, much interested. “They call ‘Help! Help!’ and then when you look up, they’ll drop on you.”

A. A. Milne (1882-1956) English poet and playwright [Alan Alexander Milne]
House at Pooh Corner, ch. 4 “Tiggers Don’t Climb Trees” (1928)
(Source)

Franklin, Benjamin -- Poor Richard (1740 ed.)

Dave — Thu, 10 Jul 2025 15:18:18 +0000

Tricks and Treachery are the Practice of Fools, that have not Wit enough to be honest.

Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) American statesman, scientist, philosopher, aphorist
Poor Richard (1740 ed.)
(Source)

Borrowed without attribution from La Rochefoucauld (1665).

Adams, John -- Diary (1772, Spring), “Notes for a Oration at Braintree”

Dave — Mon, 30 Jun 2025 18:54:20 +0000

But this is an unalterable Truth, that the People can never be enslaved but by their own Tameness, Pusillanimity, Sloth or Corruption. They may be deceived, and their Symplicity, Ignorance, and Docility render them frequently liable to deception. And of this, the aspiring, designing, ambitious few are very sensible. He is the Statesman qualifyed by Nature to scatter Ruin and Destruction in his Path who by deceiving a Nation can render Despotism desirable in their Eyes and make himself popular in Undoing.

John Adams (1735–1826) American lawyer, Founding Father, statesman, US President (1797–1801)
Diary (1772, Spring), “Notes for a Oration at Braintree”
(Source)

Franklin, Benjamin -- Poor Richard (1740 ed.) [borrowed]

Dave — Thu, 26 Jun 2025 15:36:31 +0000

An open Foe may prove a curse;
But a pretended friend is worse.

Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) American statesman, scientist, philosopher, aphorist
Poor Richard (1740 ed.) [borrowed]
(Source)

Borrowed by Franklin from John Gay (1727).

Hoffer, Eric -- Passionate State of Mind, Aphorism 61 (1955)

Dave — Thu, 10 Apr 2025 17:21:46 +0000

The weakness of a soul is proportionate to the number of truths that must be kept from it.

Eric Hoffer (1902-1983) American writer, philosopher, longshoreman
Passionate State of Mind, Aphorism 61 (1955)
(Source)

La Rochefoucauld, Francois -- Réflexions ou sentences et maximes morales [Reflections; or Sentences and Moral Maxims], ¶127 (1665-1678) [tr. FitzGibbon (1957), ¶127]

Dave — Sat, 08 Feb 2025 00:58:28 +0000

The surest method of being deceived is to believe that one is cleverer than others.

[Le vrai moyen d’être trompé, c’est de se croire plus fin que les autres]

On est fort sujet à être trompé quand on croit être plus fin que les autres.

[We are very liable to be deceived when we believe ourselves to be more subtle than others.]

(Source (French)). Alternate translations:

The sure way to be cheated is, to fancy ourselves more cunning than others.
[pub. Donaldson (1783), ¶81; ed. Lepoittevin-Lacroix (1797), ¶123; ed. Carvill (1835), ¶69]

The true method of being deceived is to think oneself more cunning than others.
[ed. Gowens (1851), ¶130]

The true way to be deceived is to think oneself more knowing than others.
[tr. Bund/Friswell (1871), ¶127]

The surest way to be deceived is to think one's self cleverer than one's neighbor.
[tr. Heard (1917), ¶127]

The best way to be outwitted is to believe ourselves cleverer than others.
[tr. Stevens (1939), ¶127]

The surest way to be outwitted is to suppose yourself sharper than others.
[tr. Kronenberger (1959), ¶127]

The surest way to be taken in is to think oneself craftier than other people.
[tr. Tancock (1959), ¶127]

The best way to be deceived is to think ourselves more cunning than others.
[tr. Whichello (2016) ¶127]

Antrim, Minna -- Naked Truth and Veiled Allusions (1902)

Dave — Fri, 01 Nov 2024 14:52:45 +0000

He should die young who says he has neither erred, strayed or been deceived.

Minna Antrim (1861-1950) American epigrammatist, writer
Naked Truth and Veiled Allusions (1902)
(Source)

Shakespeare, William -- Macbeth, Act 1, sc. 5, l. 75ff (1.5.75-76) (1606)

Dave — Thu, 12 Sep 2024 14:30:05 +0000

LADY MACBETH: Look like th’ innocent flower,
But be the serpent under ‘t.

William Shakespeare (1564-1616) English dramatist and poet
Macbeth, Act 1, sc. 5, l. 75ff (1.5.75-76) (1606)
(Source)

La Rochefoucauld, Francois -- Réflexions ou sentences et maximes morales [Reflections; or Sentences and Moral Maxims], ¶84 (1665-1678) [tr. Heard (1917)]

Dave — Mon, 22 Jul 2024 21:45:29 +0000

We should be more ashamed to distrust our friends than to be deceived by them.

[Il est plus honteux de se défier de ses amis que d’en être trompé.]

François VI, duc de La Rochefoucauld (1613-1680) French epigrammatist, memoirist, noble
Réflexions ou sentences et maximes morales [Reflections; or Sentences and Moral Maxims], ¶84 (1665-1678) [tr. Heard (1917)]
(Source)

First appeared in the second (1666) edition. Compare to Maxim 86, also from that edition: "Our distrust justifies the deception of others [Notre défiance justifie la tromperie d’autrui.]"

(Source (French)). Alternate translations:

It is much less for a Man's Honour to distrust his Friends, than to be deceived by them.
[tr. Stanhope (1694), ¶85]

It is more dishonourable to distrust a friend, than to be deceived by him.
[pub. Donaldson (1783), ¶171; ed. Lepoittevin-Lacroix (1797), ¶81; ed. Carvill (1835), ¶151]

It is more disgraceful to distrust; one's friends than to be deceived by them.
[ed. Gowens (1851), ¶87]

It is more disgraceful to distrust than to be deceived by our friends.
[tr. Bund/Friswell (1871), ¶84]

It is more disgraceful to mistrust one's friends than to be the victim of their treachery.
[tr. Stevens (1939), ¶84]

It is more shameful to distrust one's friends than to be deceived by them.
[tr. FitzGibbon (1957), ¶84; tr. Tancock (1959), ¶84]

It is more shameful to distrust our friends than to be deceived by them.
[tr. Kronenberger (1959), ¶84; tr. Whichello (2016), ¶84]

Nietzsche, Friedrich -- The Gay Science [Die fröhliche Wissenschaft], Book 4, § 282 (1882) [tr. Kaufmann (1974)]

Dave — Fri, 03 May 2024 16:39:22 +0000

There is something laughable about the sight of authors who enjoy the rustling folds of long and involved sentences: they are trying to cover up their feet.

[Man hat Etwas zum Lachen, diese Schriftsteller zu sehen, welche die faltigen Gewänder der Periode um sich rauschen machen: sie wollen so ihre Füsse verdecken.]

Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900) German philosopher and poet
The Gay Science [Die fröhliche Wissenschaft], Book 4, § 282 (1882) [tr. Kaufmann (1974)]
(Source)

Also known as La Gaya Scienza, The Joyful Wisdom, or The Joyous Science.

(Source (German)). Alternate translations:

It is something laughable to see those writers who make the folding robes of their periods rustle around them: they want to cover their feet.
[tr. Common (1911)]

There is something laughable about those writers who make the folded drapery of their period rustle around them; they want to hide their feet.
[tr. Hill (2018)]

Shakespeare, William -- Much Ado About Nothing, Act 4, sc. 1, l. 35ff (4.1.35-36) (1598)

Dave — Mon, 22 Apr 2024 20:24:42 +0000

CLAUDIO: O, what authority and show of truth
Can cunning sin cover itself withal!

William Shakespeare (1564-1616) English dramatist and poet
Much Ado About Nothing, Act 4, sc. 1, l. 35ff (4.1.35-36) (1598)
(Source)

Gordon, Ruth -- The Leading Lady, Act 2 (1948)

Dave — Mon, 29 Jan 2024 19:46:07 +0000

BENJY: The kiss. There are all sorts of kisses, lad, from the sticky confection to the kiss of death. Of them all, the kiss of an actress is the most unnerving. How can we tell if she means it or if she’s just practicing?

Ruth Gordon (1896-1985) American actress, screenwriter, playwright
The Leading Lady, Act 2 (1948)
(Source)

Baudelaire, Charles -- Le Spleen de Paris (Petits Poèmes en Prose), No. 29 “The Generous Gambler [Le Joueur généreux]” (1869) [tr. Kaplan (1989)]

Dave — Tue, 03 Oct 2023 00:09:23 +0000

My dear brothers, when you hear the progress of enlightenment extolled, never forget that the devil’s cleverest trick is to persuade you that he does not exist!

[Mes chers frères, n’oubliez jamais, quand vous entendrez vanter le progrès des lumières, que la plus belle des ruses du diable est de vous persuader qu’il n’existe pas!]

Charles Baudelaire (1821-1867) French poet, essayist, art critic
Le Spleen de Paris (Petits Poèmes en Prose), No. 29 “The Generous Gambler [Le Joueur généreux]” (1869) [tr. Kaplan (1989)]
(Source)

A warning by a Parisian preacher, as reported by the Devil himself. Used in movie The Usual Suspects (1995) as "The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist."

(Source (French)). Alternate translations:

My dear brethren, never forget, when you hear the progress of wisdom vaunted, that the cleverest ruse of the Devil is to persuade you he does not exist!
[tr. Shipley (<1919) "The Generous Player"]

My dear brethren, never forget, when you hear boasts about the progress of enlightenment, that the finest ruse of the devil is to persuade you that he does not exist!
[tr. Hamburger (1946) "The Generous Gamester"]

My dear brothers, never forget when you hear people boast of our progress in enlightenment, that one of the devil's best ruses is to persuade you that he does not exist!
[tr. Varèse (1970)]

The Devil's subtlest ruse is to convince us that he doesn't exist.
[tr. McGowan (1993)]

Dear brethren, never forget that the finest of all the devil's tricks is to persuade you that he doesn't exist.
[tr. Lerner (2003)]

My dear brethren, do not ever forget, when you hear the progress of lights praised, that the loveliest trick of the Devil is to persuade you that he does not exist!
[Source]

Monroe, Marilyn -- My Story, ch. 24 “Another Love Affair Ends” (1974) [with Ben Hecht]

Dave — Wed, 30 Aug 2023 17:05:40 +0000

The truth is I’ve never fooled anyone. I’ve let men sometimes fool themselves. Men sometimes didn’t bother to find out who and what I was. Instead they would invent a character for me. I wouldn’t argue with them. They were obviously loving somebody I wasn’t. When they found this out, they would blame me for disillusioning them — and fooling them.

Marilyn Monroe (1926-1962) American actress, sex symbol
My Story, ch. 24 “Another Love Affair Ends” (1974) [with Ben Hecht]
(Source)

Pratchett, Terry -- Discworld No. 20, Hogfather (1996)

Dave — Fri, 31 Mar 2023 19:08:35 +0000

The truth may be out there, but lies are inside your head.

Terry Pratchett (1948-2015) English author
Discworld No. 20, Hogfather (1996)
(Source)

Cox, Marcelene -- “Ask Any Woman” column, Ladies’ Home Journal (1948-02)

Dave — Mon, 14 Nov 2022 17:26:05 +0000

No one is ever warmed by wool pulled over their eyes.

Marcelene Cox (1900-1998) American writer, columnist, aphorist
“Ask Any Woman” column, Ladies’ Home Journal (1948-02)
(Source)

Cox, Marcelene -- “Ask Any Woman” column, Ladies’ Home Journal (1948-02)

Dave — Tue, 25 Oct 2022 14:44:03 +0000

No one is ever warmed by wool pulled over their eyes.

Marcelene Cox (1900-1998) American writer, columnist, aphorist
“Ask Any Woman” column, Ladies’ Home Journal (1948-02)
(Source)

Jefferson, Thomas -- Letter (1807-06-11) to John Norvell

Dave — Mon, 22 Aug 2022 14:33:39 +0000

It is a melancholy truth that a suppression of the press could not more compleatly deprive the nation of its benefits, than is done by its abandoned prostitution to falsehood. Nothing can now be believed which is seen in a newspaper. Truth itself becomes suspicious by being put into that polluted vehicle. […] I will add that the man who never looks into a newspaper is better informed than he who reads them; inasmuch as he who knows nothing is nearer to truth than he whose mind is filled with falsehoods & errors. He who reads nothing will still learn the great facts, and the details are all false.

Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826) American political philosopher, polymath, statesman, US President (1801-09)
Letter (1807-06-11) to John Norvell
(Source)

Cicero, Marcus Tullius -- De Officiis [On Duties; On Moral Duty; The Offices], Book 1, ch. 13 (1.13) / sec. 41 (44 BC) [tr. Cockman (1699)]

Dave — Thu, 11 Aug 2022 16:07:54 +0000

But of all injustice, theirs is certainly of the deepest die, who make it their business to appear honest men, even whilst they are practising the greatest of villainies.

[Totius autem iniustitiae nulla capitalior quam eorum, qui tum, cum maxime fallunt, id agunt, ut viri boni esse videantur.]

Marcus Tullius Cicero (106-43 BC) Roman orator, statesman, philosopher
De Officiis [On Duties; On Moral Duty; The Offices], Book 1, ch. 13 (1.13) / sec. 41 (44 BC) [tr. Cockman (1699)]
(Source)

(Source (Latin)). Alternate translations:

No act of injustice is more pernicious than theirs, who while they are attempting the greatest deceit, labor to appear good men.
[tr. McCartney (1798)]

But in the whole system of villainy, none is more capital than that of the men, who, when they most deceive, so manage as that they may seem to be virtuous men.
[tr. Edmonds (1865)]

But of all forms of injustice, none is more heinous than that of the men who, while they practise fraud to the utmost of their ability, do it in such a way that they appear to be good men.
[tr. Peabody (1883)]

The most criminal injustice is that of the hypocrite who hides an act of treachery under the cloak of virtue.
[tr. Gardiner (1899)]

No iniquity is more deadly than that of those who, when they are most at fault, so behave as to seem men of integrity.
[ed. Harbottle (1906)]

But of all forms of injustice, none is more flagrant than that of the hypocrite who, at the very moment when he is most false, makes it his business to appear virtuous.
[tr. Miller (1913)]

Taking all forms of injustice into account, none is more deadly than that practiced by people who act as if they are good men when they are being most treacherous.
[tr. Edinger (1974)]

Shakespeare, William -- Cymbeline, Act 1, sc. 1, l. 97ff (1.1.97-99) (1611)

Dave — Mon, 18 Jul 2022 14:52:03 +0000

IMOGEN:O,
Dissembling courtesy! How fine this tyrant
Can tickle where she wounds!

William Shakespeare (1564-1616) English dramatist and poet
Cymbeline, Act 1, sc. 1, l. 97ff (1.1.97-99) (1611)
(Source)

Gracián, Baltasar -- The Art of Worldly Wisdom [Oráculo Manual y Arte de Prudencia], § 175 (1647) [tr. Jacobs (1892)]

Dave — Mon, 25 Apr 2022 16:48:02 +0000

Only Truth can give true reputation: only reality can be of real profit. One deceit needs many others and so the whole house is built in the air and must soon come to the ground.

[Sola la verdad puede dar reputación verdadera, y la substancia entra en provecho. Un embeleco ha menester otros muchos, y así toda la fábrica es quimera, y como se funda en el aire es preciso venir a tierra.]

Baltasar Gracián y Morales (1601-1658) Spanish Jesuit priest, writer, philosopher
The Art of Worldly Wisdom [Oráculo Manual y Arte de Prudencia], § 175 (1647) [tr. Jacobs (1892)]
(Source)

(Source (Spanish)). Alternate translations:

Nothing but truth can give a true Reputation; and nothing but substance turns to account. One cheat stands in need of a great many others, and by consequent, the whole building is but imaginary: and seeing it is founded in the air, it must of necessity fall to the ground.
[Flesher ed. (1685)]

Only truth can bestow a true reputation, and only solid character prove profitable; one fraud makes necessary another and more; and so the whole of what is built up is flimsy, and as it rests upon air, it is destined to return to earth.
[tr. Fischer (1937)]

Only the truth can give you a true reputation, and only substance is profitable. One act of deceit begets many others, and soon the whole ghastly construction, which is founded in the air, comes tumbling down.
[tr. Maurer (1992)]

Lippmann, Walter -- A Preface to Politics, ch. 4 (1913)

Dave — Mon, 26 Jul 2021 14:53:31 +0000

Ours is a problem in which deception has become organized and strong; where truth is poisoned at its source; one in which the skill of the shrewdest brains is devoted to misleading a bewildered people.

Walter Lippmann (1889-1974) American journalist and author
A Preface to Politics, ch. 4 (1913)
(Source)

Masson, Jeffrey Moussaieff -- The Nine Emotional Lives of Cats, ch. 3 (2002)

Dave — Tue, 13 Jul 2021 14:41:15 +0000

Unlike a human smile, purring cannot be, as far as anyone knows, faked.

Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson (b. 1941) American author
The Nine Emotional Lives of Cats, ch. 3 (2002)
(Source)

Mosteller, Frederick -- (Attributed)

Dave — Wed, 23 Jun 2021 17:30:41 +0000

While it is easy to lie with statistics, it is even easier to lie without them.

Frederick Mosteller (1916-2006) American statistician, academic
(Attributed)

Aeschylus -- (Misattributed)

Dave — Tue, 09 Mar 2021 18:06:32 +0000

Truth is the first casualty in war.

Aeschylus (525-456 BC) Greek dramatist (Æschylus)
(Misattributed)

Variant: "Truth is the first casualty of war."

Not found, as such, in Aeschylus' works. The closest (Fragm. Incert, xi.) is his phrase "God is not averse to deceit in a just cause." Attribution to of the subject phrase to Aeschylus dates only back to 1965. The first recorded use of the phrase as such is from 1915, but even there it is offered as a quotation from an unnamed source.

More discussion of the history of this phrase can be found here and here.

Evans, Harold -- Pictures on a Page (1978)

Dave — Mon, 01 Mar 2021 17:57:55 +0000

The camera cannot lie. But it can be an accessory to untruth.

Harold Evans (1928-2020) Anglo-American journalist, editor, writer
Pictures on a Page (1978)

Homer -- The Iliad [Ἰλιάς], Book 9, l. 312ff (9.312-313) [Achilles to Odysseus] (c. 750 BC) [tr. Pope (1715-20)]

Dave — Wed, 04 Nov 2020 20:11:25 +0000

Who dares think one thing, and another tell,
My heart detests him as the gates of hell.

[Ἐχθρὸς γάρ μοι κεῖνος ὁμῶς Ἀΐδαο πύλῃσιν
ὅς χ’ ἕτερον μὲν κεύθῃ ἐνὶ φρεσίν, ἄλλο δὲ εἴπῃ.]

Homer (fl. 7th-8th C. BC) Greek author
The Iliad [Ἰλιάς], Book 9, l. 312ff (9.312-313) [Achilles to Odysseus] (c. 750 BC) [tr. Pope (1715-20)]
(Source)

Original Greek. Alt. trans.:

For, like hell mouth I loath, Who holds not in his words and thoughts one indistinguish’d troth. [tr. Chapman (1611), ll. 300-01]

For I abhor the man, not more the gates Of hell itself, whose words belie his heart. [tr. Cowper (1791), ll. 385-86]

Hateful to me as the gates of Hades is he who conceals one thing in his mind and utters another. [tr. Buckley (1860)]

Him as the gates of hell my soul abhors,
Whose outward words his inmost thoughts conceal.
[tr. Derby (1864), ll. 373-74]

For hateful to me even as the gates of hell is he that hideth one thing in his heart and uttereth another. [tr. Leaf/Lang/Myers (1891)]

Him do I hate even as the gates of hell who says one thing while he hides another in his heart.
[tr. Butler (1898)]

I hate
as I hate Hell's own gate that man who hides
one thought within him while he speaks another.
[tr. Fitzgerald (1974), l. 381ff]

I hate that man like the very Gates of Death
who says one thing but hides another in his heart.
[tr. Fagles (1990), ll. 378-79]

Twain, Mark -- Dictation (1906-12-02), The Autobiography of Mark Twain, Vol. 2 (2013)

Dave — Thu, 29 Oct 2020 18:34:02 +0000

How easy it is to make people believe a lie, and how hard it is to undo that work again!

Mark Twain (1835-1910) American writer [pseud. of Samuel Clemens]
Dictation (1906-12-02), The Autobiography of Mark Twain, Vol. 2 (2013)
(Source)

A phrase that may be the origin the spurious Twain quotation, "It's easier to fool people than to convince them that they have been fooled."

Brault, Robert -- (Attributed)

Dave — Tue, 08 Sep 2020 21:36:10 +0000

Today I bent the truth to be kind, and I have no regret, for I am far surer of what is kind than I am of what is true.

Robert Brault (b. c. 1945) American aphorist, programmer
(Attributed)

Arendt, Hannah -- The Origins of Totalitarianism, Part 3, ch. 11 “The Totalitarian Movement,” sec. 2 (1951)

Dave — Tue, 19 May 2020 16:09:29 +0000

Mass propaganda discovered that its audience was ready at all times to believe the worst, no matter how absurd, and did not particularly object to being deceived because it held every statement to be a lie anyhow. The totalitarian mass leaders based their propaganda on the correct psychological assumption that, under such conditions, one could make people believe the most fantastic statements one day, and trust if the next day they were given irrefutable proof of their falsehood, they would take refuge in cynicism; instead of deserting the leaders who had lied to them, they would protest that they had known all along the statement was a lie and would admire the leaders for their superior tactical cleverness.

Hannah Arendt (1906-1975) German-American philosopher, political theorist
The Origins of Totalitarianism, Part 3, ch. 11 “The Totalitarian Movement,” sec. 2 (1951)
(Source)

Nietzsche, Friedrich -- The Gay Science [Die fröhliche Wissenschaft], Book 3, § 173 (1882) [tr. Kaufmann (1974)]

Dave — Sat, 15 Apr 2017 21:31:45 +0000

Those who know they are profound strive for clarity. Those who would like to seem profound strive for obscurity. For the crowd believes that if it cannot see to the bottom of something it must be profound. It is timid and dislikes going into the water.

[Tief sein und tief scheinen. — Wer sich tief weiss, bemüht sich um Klarheit; wer der Menge tief scheinen möchte, bemüht sich um Dunkelheit. Denn die Menge hält Alles für tief, dessen Grund sie nicht sehen kann: sie ist so furchtsam und geht so ungern in’s Wasser.]

Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900) German philosopher and poet
The Gay Science [Die fröhliche Wissenschaft], Book 3, § 173 (1882) [tr. Kaufmann (1974)]
(Source)

Also known as La Gaya Scienza, The Joyful Wisdom, or The Joyous Science. (Source (German)). Alternate translations:

To Be Profound and to Appear Profound. -- He who knows that he is profound strives for clearness; he who would like to appear profound to the multitude strives for obscurity. The multitude thinks everything profound of which it cannot see the bottom; it is so timid and goes so unwillingly into the water.
[tr. Common (1911)]

Being Deep and Seeming Deep. -- Those who know they are deep strive for clarity. Those who would like to seem deep to the crowd strive for obscurity. For the crowd takes everything whose ground it cannot see to be deep; it is so timid and so reluctant to go into the water.
[tr. Nauckhoff (2001)]

Being Profound and Being Thought Profound -- Whoever knows that he is profound strives for clarity; whoever would like the crowd to think he is profound strives for obscurity. The reason for this is that the crowd thinks something is profound whenever it cannot see to the bottom of it; it is afraid of the water and hates to get its feet wet.
[tr. Hill (2018)]

Being Deep and Appearing Deep -- Whoever knows he is deep, strives for clarity; whoever would like to appear deep to the crowd, strives for obscurity. For the crowd considers anything deep if only it cannot see to the bottom: the crowd is so timid and afraid of going into the water.
[Source]

Whoever knows himself to be deep strives for clarity; whoever wants to appear deep to the masses strives for obscurity. For the masses consider anything to be deep that they cannot see the bottom of.
[Source]

Nietzsche, Friedrich -- Beyond Good and Evil, 169 (1886) [tr. Kaufmann (1966)]

Dave — Thu, 06 Apr 2017 17:21:15 +0000

Talking much about oneself can also be a means to conceal oneself.

Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900) German philosopher and poet
Beyond Good and Evil, 169 (1886) [tr. Kaufmann (1966)]

Adams, John -- Letter (1819-03-31) to J. H. Tiffany

Dave — Thu, 16 Feb 2017 00:25:21 +0000

As I have always been convinced that abuse of Words, has been the great instrument of Sophistry and Chicanery — of party, faction and Division in Society.

John Adams (1735–1826) American lawyer, Founding Father, statesman, US President (1797–1801)
Letter (1819-03-31) to J. H. Tiffany
(Source)

Gandhi, Mohandas -- In Young India (22 Sep 1920)

Dave — Tue, 29 Nov 2016 05:32:43 +0000

Terrorism and deception are weapons not of the strong but of the weak.

Mohandas Gandhi (1869-1948) Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist, political ethicist [Mahatma Gandhi]
In Young India (22 Sep 1920)

Rich, Adrienne -- “Women and Honor: Some Notes on Lying” (1975)

Dave — Wed, 21 Oct 2015 14:49:19 +0000

Lying is done with words, and also with silence.

Adrienne Rich (1929-2012) American poet, essayist, feminist
“Women and Honor: Some Notes on Lying” (1975)

Twain, Mark -- (Spurious)

Dave — Fri, 16 Oct 2015 13:00:11 +0000

It’s easier to fool people than to convince them that they have been fooled.

Mark Twain (1835-1910) American writer [pseud. of Samuel Clemens]
(Spurious)

Not found in Twain's writings. The earliest attribution to him appears to be in 2011. The connection to Twain may be his (authentic) comment, "How easy it is to make people believe a lie, and how hard it is to undo that work again!"

For more discussion of this quotation, see Quote Origin: It’s Easier To Fool People Than To Convince Them That They’ve Been Fooled – Quote Investigator®.

Disraeli, Benjamin -- (Attributed)

Dave — Wed, 14 Oct 2015 14:35:28 +0000

There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics.

Benjamin Disraeli (1804-1881) English politician and author
(Attributed)
(Source)

Attributed by Mark Twain in "Chapters from My Autobiography" (Apr 1904), North American Review (7 Sep 1906): "Figures often beguile me, particularly when I have the arranging of them myself; in which case the remark attributed to Disraeli would often apply with justice and force: 'There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics.'"

The phrase has not been found in any of Disraeli's works, and he is considered unlikely to be the originator. Variants of the phrase date back a century or more from Twain's reference. More discussion about this quotation here:

Swift, Jonathan -- Essay (1720-01-09), “Letter to a Young Clergyman”

Dave — Thu, 20 Aug 2015 13:01:18 +0000

Reasoning will never make a Man correct an ill Opinion, which by Reasoning he never acquired.

Jonathan Swift (1667-1745) English writer and churchman
Essay (1720-01-09), “Letter to a Young Clergyman”
(Source)

Earliest version of this general sentiment, which has been attributed to (or at times borrowed by) figures such as Mark Twain, Sydney Smith, Fisher Ames, and Lyman Beecher.

Variants:

Reasoning will never make a man correct an opinion that they have not reasoned themselves into.
Men are not to be reasoned out of an opinion that they have not reasoned themselves into.
Reasoning will never make a man correct an opinion, which by reasoning he never acquired.
It is useless to attempt to reason a man out of a thing he never was reasoned into.
We may never reason a man out of an opinion which he was never reasoned into.
You cannot reason a man out of what he never reasoned himself into.
You can’t reason someone out of something they weren’t reasoned into.
He cannot be reasoned out of error, if he was not at first reasoned into it.
What has not been reasoned in, cannot be reasoned out.
Never try to reason the prejudice out of a man. It was never reasoned into him and it never can be reasoned out of him.
It is useless to attempt to reason a man out of anything he was never reasoned into.

For more information about this quotation: You Cannot Reason People Out of Something They Were Not Reasoned Into – Quote Investigator.

Lewin, Ronald -- Ultra Goes to War, ch. 10 (1978)

Dave — Tue, 11 Aug 2015 15:58:38 +0000

Nearly always, the best deception trades on the enemy’s own preconceptions. If he already believes what you want him to believe, you have merely to confirm his own ideas rather than to undertake the more difficult task of inserting new ones into his mind.

Ronald Lewin (1914-1984) British military historian, radio producer publishing editor
Ultra Goes to War, ch. 10 (1978)

Sun-Tzu -- The Art of War, “Estimates” (18) [tr. Griffith (1963)]

Dave — Thu, 16 Oct 2014 12:12:26 +0000

When capable, feign incapacity; when active, inactivity.

Sun-Tzu (fl. 6th C. AD) Chinese general and philosopher [a.k.a. Sun Wu]
The Art of War, “Estimates” (18) [tr. Griffith (1963)]

Johnson, Samuel -- Essay (1758-10-07), The Idler, No. 25

Dave — Mon, 25 Aug 2014 12:40:50 +0000

He that applauds him who does not deserve praise, is endeavoring to deceive the public; he that hisses in malice or sport, is an oppressor and a robber.

Samuel Johnson (1709-1784) English writer, lexicographer, critic
Essay (1758-10-07), The Idler, No. 25
(Source)

Franklin, Benjamin -- Autobiography, Virtue #7 “Sincerity,” 1784 (1798)

Dave — Wed, 02 Jul 2014 12:50:54 +0000

Use no hurtful deceit; think innocently and justly and, if you speak, speak accordingly.

Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) American statesman, scientist, philosopher, aphorist
Autobiography, Virtue #7 “Sincerity,” 1784 (1798)

Johnson, Samuel -- Essay (1758-08-05), The Idler, No. 17

Dave — Fri, 20 Jun 2014 13:48:10 +0000

To be idle and to be poor have always been reproaches, and therefore every man endeavours with his utmost care to hide his poverty from others, and his idleness from himself.

Samuel Johnson (1709-1784) English writer, lexicographer, critic
Essay (1758-08-05), The Idler, No. 17
(Source)

Aesop -- Fables [Aesopica], “The Wolf in Sheep Clothing” (6th C BC) [tr. Jacobs (1894)]

Dave — Fri, 14 Mar 2014 12:06:54 +0000

Appearances are deceptive.

Aesop (620?-560? BC) Legendary Greek storyteller
Fables [Aesopica], “The Wolf in Sheep Clothing” (6th C BC) [tr. Jacobs (1894)]
(Source)

Alternately, "Appearances often are deceiving." Versified by Gaius Julius Phaedrus, Fables bk. 4, as "Things are not always what they seem."

Note that there are two fables by this name. In this one, a wolf prospers by wearing a sheepskin he finds and drawing other sheep away to be eaten. In other versions, the wolf sneaks into the sheepfold wearing the skin, and then is killed and eaten by the farmer who wants sheep for dinner.

Kant, Immanuel -- Metaphysics of Morals [Metaphysik der Sitten], “The Doctrine of Virtue [Tugendlehre]” (1797) [tr. Gregor (1964)]

Dave — Thu, 13 Feb 2014 14:20:10 +0000

By a lie a man throws away and, as it were, annihilates his dignity as a man.

Immanuel Kant (1724-1804) German philosopher
Metaphysics of Morals [Metaphysik der Sitten], “The Doctrine of Virtue [Tugendlehre]” (1797) [tr. Gregor (1964)]

Alterman, Eric -- Sound and Fury: The Washington Punditocracy and the Collapse of American Politics, Introduction (1992)

Dave — Tue, 07 Jan 2014 13:53:12 +0000

We begin by fooling others and end up fooling ourselves.

Eric Alterman (b. 1960) American historian, journalist, author
Sound and Fury: The Washington Punditocracy and the Collapse of American Politics, Introduction (1992)

Emerson, Ralph Waldo -- Journal (1852)

Dave — Tue, 26 Nov 2013 14:05:38 +0000

Nor can a man dupe others long, who has not duped himself first.

Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882) American essayist, lecturer, poet
Journal (1852)
(Source)

Often rendered: "A man cannot dupe others long, who has not duped himself first."

Carlyle, Thomas -- Lecture (1840-05-22), “The Hero as King,” Home House, Portman Square, London

Dave — Tue, 12 Nov 2013 13:45:31 +0000

Self-deception once yielded to, all other deceptions follow naturally more and more.

Bolt, Robert -- Lawrence of Arabia, Part 2, sc. 189 (1962) [with Michael Wilson]

Dave — Fri, 02 Nov 2012 11:59:18 +0000

DRYDEN: If we’ve told lies you’ve told half-lies … And a man who tells lies — like me — merely hides the truth. (softly) But a man who tells half-lies … has forgotten where he put it.

Robert Bolt (1924-1995) English dramatist
Lawrence of Arabia, Part 2, sc. 189 (1962) [with Michael Wilson]
(Source)

Speaking to Lawrence about the Sykes-Picot Agreement, dividing the Turkish Empire between French and English interests, and its betrayal of their Arab allies.

Bible, Vol. 2. New Testament -- Matthew 7: 15-20 (Jesus) [GNT (1976)]

Dave — Tue, 09 Oct 2012 12:41:39 +0000

Be on your guard against false prophets; they come to you looking like sheep on the outside, but on the inside they are really like wild wolves. You will know them by what they do. Thorn bushes do not bear grapes, and briers do not bear figs. A healthy tree bears good fruit, but a poor tree bears bad fruit. A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a poor tree cannot bear good fruit. And any tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown in the fire. So then, you will know the false prophets by what they do.

[Προσέχετε ἀπὸ τῶν ψευδοπροφητῶν, οἵτινες ἔρχονται πρὸς ὑμᾶς ἐν ἐνδύμασιν προβάτων, ἔσωθεν δέ εἰσιν λύκοι ἅρπαγες. ἀπὸ τῶν καρπῶν αὐτῶν ἐπιγνώσεσθε αὐτούς. μήτι συλλέγουσιν ἀπὸ ἀκανθῶν σταφυλὰς ἢ ἀπὸ τριβόλων σῦκα; οὕτως πᾶν δένδρον ἀγαθὸν καρποὺς καλοὺς ποιεῖ, τὸ δὲ σαπρὸν δένδρον καρποὺς πονηροὺς ποιεῖ. οὐ δύναται δένδρον ἀγαθὸν καρποὺς πονηροὺς ποιεῖν οὐδὲ δένδρον σαπρὸν καρποὺς καλοὺς ποιεῖν. πᾶν δένδρον μὴ ποιοῦν καρπὸν καλὸν ἐκκόπτεται καὶ εἰς πῦρ βάλλεται. ἄρα γε ἀπὸ τῶν καρπῶν αὐτῶν ἐπιγνώσεσθε αὐτούς.]

The Bible (The New Testament) (AD 1st - 2nd C) Christian sacred scripture
Matthew 7: 15-20 (Jesus) [GNT (1976)]
(Source)

The fruit/tree part of the passage is paralleled in Luke 6:43-44, and echoed in Matthew 12:33.

(Source (Greek)). Alternate translations:

Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.
[KJV (1611)]

Beware of false prophets who come to you disguised as sheep but underneath are ravenous wolves. You will be able to tell them by their fruits. Can people pick grapes from thorns, or figs from thistles? In the same way, a sound tree produces good fruit but a rotten tree bad fruit. A sound tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor a rotten tree bear good fruit. Any tree that does not produce good fruit is cut down and thrown on the fire. I repeat, you will be able to tell them by their fruits.
[JB (1966)]

Beware of false prophets who come to you disguised as sheep but underneath are ravenous wolves. You will be able to tell them by their fruits. Can people pick grapes from thorns, or figs from thistles? In the same way, a sound tree produces good fruit but a rotten tree bad fruit. A sound tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor a rotten tree bear good fruit. Any tree that does not produce good fruit is cut down and thrown on the fire. I repeat, you will be able to tell them by their fruits.
[NJB (1985)]

Watch out for false prophets. They come to you dressed like sheep, but inside they are vicious wolves. You will know them by their fruit. Do people get bunches of grapes from thorny weeds, or do they get figs from thistles? In the same way, every good tree produces good fruit, and every rotten tree produces bad fruit. A good tree can’t produce bad fruit. And a rotten tree can’t produce good fruit. Every tree that doesn’t produce good fruit is chopped down and thrown into the fire. Therefore, you will know them by their fruit.
[CEB (2011)]

Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thorns or figs from thistles? In the same way, every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus you will know them by their fruits.
[NRSV (2021 ed.)]

Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.
[NIV (2011 ed.)]

Colton, Charles Caleb -- Lacon: Or, Many Things in Few Words, Vol. 2, § 25 (1822)

Dave — Mon, 09 Jul 2012 12:32:31 +0000

Power multiplies flatterers, and flatterers multiply our delusions by hiding us from ourselves.

Charles Caleb "C. C." Colton (1780-1832) English cleric, writer, aphorist
Lacon: Or, Many Things in Few Words, Vol. 2, § 25 (1822)
(Source)

Billings, Josh -- Everybody’s Friend, Or; Josh Billing’s Encyclopedia and Proverbial Philosophy of Wit and Humor, “Sollum Thoughts” (1874)

Dave — Wed, 26 Jan 2011 06:28:31 +0000

I honestly beleave it iz better tew know nothing than two know what ain’t so.

[I honestly believe it is better to know nothing than to know what ain’t so.]

Josh Billings (1818-1885) American humorist, aphorist [pseud. of Henry Wheeler Shaw]
Everybody’s Friend, Or; Josh Billing’s Encyclopedia and Proverbial Philosophy of Wit and Humor, “Sollum Thoughts” (1874)
(Source)

This was Billings signature aphorism, and he used variations on multiple occasions. Variants and evolutions have also been misattributed to Will Rogers, Mark Twain, and Artemus Ward, sometimes from their own paraphrases of Billings. Some variations (usually without specific citations) include:

"The trouble with people is not that they don't know but that they know so much that ain't so."
"It ain't what you don't know that gets you into trouble. It's what you know for sure that just ain't so."
"You’d better not know so much, than know so many things that ain’t so."

In a similar vein, Billings wrote, "Wisdum don't konsist in knowing more that iz new, but in knowing less that iz false. [Wisdom doesn't consist in knowing more that is new, but in knowing less than is false.]" [Source]

More discussion about this quotation:

It Ain’t What You Don’t Know That Gets You Into Trouble. It’s What You Know for Sure That Just Ain’t So – Quote Investigator
Ralph Keyes, The Quote Verifier (2006)
Ralph Keyes, Nice Guys Finish Seventh (1992)
James Billington, Respectfully Yours (1993)
Daniel Levitin, A Field Guide to Lies, Deluxe Ed. (2016)

Einstein, Albert -- “Albert Einstein on Israeli-Arab Relations,” New Outlook (Jul 1957)

Dave — Tue, 02 Nov 2010 16:45:21 +0000

When the issue is one of Truth and Justice, there can be no differentiating between small problems and great ones. For the general viewpoints on human behaviour are indivisible. People who fail to regard the truth seriously in small matters, cannot be trusted in matters that are great.

[Wenn es sich um Wahrheit und Gerechtigkeit handelt, gibt es nicht die Unterscheidung zwischen kleinen und grossen Problemen. Denn die allgemeinen Gesichtspunkte, die das Handeln der Menschen betreffen, sind unteilbar. Wer es in kleinen Dingen mit der Wahrheit nicht ernst nimmt, dem kann man auch in grossen Dingen nicht vertrauen …]

Albert Einstein (1879-1955) German-American physicist
“Albert Einstein on Israeli-Arab Relations,” New Outlook (Jul 1957)
(Source)

Often paraphrased / translated, "Anyone who doesn't take truth seriously in small matters cannot be trusted in large ones either." See here for more discussion.

Herbert, George -- Jacula Prudentum, or Outlandish Proverbs, Sentences, &c. (compiler), # 105 (1640 ed.)

Dave — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 13:42:32 +0000

Deceive not thy Physitian, Confessor, nor Lawyer.

George Herbert (1593-1633) Welsh priest, orator, poet.
Jacula Prudentum, or Outlandish Proverbs, Sentences, &c. (compiler), # 105 (1640 ed.)
(Source)

Carlyle, Thomas -- Journal (1870-06-23)

Dave — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 14:03:04 +0000

The beginning of all is to have done with Falsity — to eschew Falsity as Death Eternal.

Thomas Carlyle (1795-1881) Scottish essayist and historian
Journal (1870-06-23)
(Source)

Montaigne, Michel de -- Essays, Book 1, ch. 9 (1.9), “Of Liars [Des Menteurs]” (1572) [tr. Ives (1925)]

Dave — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 13:16:27 +0000

If falsehood, like truth, had but one face, we should be better off, for we should take for certain the contrary of what the liar said. But the opposite of truth has a hundred thousand shapes and a limitless field.

[Si comme la verité, le mensonge n’avoit qu’un visage, nous serions en meilleurs termes : car nous prendrions pour certain l’opposé de ce que diroit le menteur. Mais le revers de la verité a cent mille figures, et un champ indefiny.]

Michel de Montaigne (1533-1592) French essayist
Essays, Book 1, ch. 9 (1.9), “Of Liars [Des Menteurs]” (1572) [tr. Ives (1925)]
(Source)

(Source (French)). Alternate translations:

If a lie had no more faces but one, as truth hath; we should be in farre better termes then we are: For, whatsoever a lier should say, we would take it in a contrarie sense. But the opposite of truth hath many-many shapes, and an undefinite field.
[tr. Florio (1603)]

If Falshood had, like Truth, but one Face only, we should be upon better Terms; for we should then take the contrary to what the Lyer says for certain Truth; but the Reverse of Truth has a hundred thousand Figures, and a Field indefinite without Bound or Limit.
[tr. Cotton (1686)]

If Falsehood had, like Truth, only one face, we should be upon better terms; for we should then take the contrary of what the liar should say for certain truth; but the reverse of truth has a hundred thousand forms, and a field without limits.
[tr. Friswell (1868)]

If falsehood had, like truth, but one face only, we should be upon better terms; for we should then take for certain the contrary to what the liar says: but the reverse of truth has a hundred thousand forms, and a field indefinite, without bound or limit.
[tr. Cotton/Hazlitt (1877)]

If falsehood, like truth, had only one face, we would be in better shape. For we would take as certain the opposite of what the liar said. But the reverse of truth has a hundred thousand shapes and a limitless field.
[tr. Frame (1943)]

If a lie, like truth, had only one face we could be on better terms, for certainty would be the reverse of what the liar said. But the reverse side of truth has a hundred thousand shapes and no defined limits.
[tr. Screech (1987)]

If, like truth, falsehood had only one face, we would be better off. We could trust that the opposite of whatever a liar says is true. But the flip side of the truth is endless and has a hundred thousand faces.
[tr. HyperEssays (2023)]

Murrow, Edward R. -- Speech, The Family of Man Award, The Protestant Council of New York (Oct 1964)

Dave — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 10:52:12 +0000

The speed of communications is wondrous to behold. It is also true that speed can multiply the distribution of information that we know to be untrue. The most sophisticated satellite has no conscience. The newest computer can merely compound, at speed, the oldest problem in the relations between human beings and in the end the communicator will be confronted with the old problem of what to say and how to say it.

Edward R. Murrow (1908-1965) American journalist
Speech, The Family of Man Award, The Protestant Council of New York (Oct 1964)
(Source)

His last public speech. Reprinted in Alexander Kendrick, Prime Time: The Life of Edward R. Murrow (1969).

Gay, John -- “The Shepherd’s Dog and the Wolf,” pt. 1, ll. 33-34 (1727)

Dave — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 10:29:28 +0000

An open foe may prove a curse,
But a pretended friend is worse.

John Gay (1685-1732) English poet and playwright
“The Shepherd’s Dog and the Wolf,” pt. 1, ll. 33-34 (1727)
(Source)

See Franklin (1740).

Johnson, Samuel -- Essay (1758-11-11), The Idler, No. 30

Dave — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 09:48:15 +0000

Among the calamities of war, may be justly numbered the diminution of the love of truth, by the falsehoods which interest dictates, and credulity encourages.

Samuel Johnson (1709-1784) English writer, lexicographer, critic
Essay (1758-11-11), The Idler, No. 30
(Source)

Lincoln, Abraham -- (Attributed)

Dave — Thu, 13 Sep 2007 11:55:26 +0000

You may fool all the people some of the time; you can even fool some of the people all the time; but you can’t fool all of the people all the time.

Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865) American lawyer, politician, US President (1861-65)
(Attributed)

A possible precursor to this quote is the widely-republished Jacques Abbadie, "Treatise on the Truth of the Christian Religion [Traité de la Vérité de la Religion Chrétienne]," ch. 2 (1684):

… ont pû tromper quelques hommes, ou les tromper tous dans certains lieux & en certains tems, mais non pas tous les hommes, dans tous les lieux & dans tous les siécles.

[One can fool some men, or fool all men in some places and times, but one cannot fool all men in all places and ages.]

A similar passage was used in Denis Diderot and Jean le Rond d’Alembert, ed., Encyclopédie: ou Dictionnaire Raisonné des Sciences, des Arts et des Métiers, Vol. 4 (1754).

An early English version came from a speech by William J. Groo to a convention of Prohibitionists; the newspaper recording of it does not include any attribution by Groo to anyone else:

You can fool all the people part of the time, or you can fool some people all the time, but you cannot fool all people all the time.

First attributed to Lincoln by Fred F. Wheeler, interviewed in the Albany Times (1886-03-08): "You can fool part of the people some of the time, you can fool some of the people all of the time, but you cannot fool all the people all of the time."

First cited in detail in Alexander K. McClure, “Abe” Lincoln’s Yarns and Stories, (1904), in the above form; it was cited as a Lincoln speech in Clinton, Ill. (1858-09-02), but the passage is not found in any surviving Lincoln documents. No Lincoln reference is found in contemporary writings.

Also attributed to P.T. Barnum and Bob Dylan. See also Lawrence J. Peter.

More detailed discussion of the quotation and its origins can be found here:

Paine, Thomas -- “Letter Addressed to the Addressers on the Late Proclamation” (1791)

Dave — Sun, 12 Aug 2007 21:47:20 +0000

Those words, “temperate and moderate,” are words either of political cowardice, or of cunning, or seduction. A thing moderately good, is not so good as it ought to be. Moderation in temper, is always a virtue; but moderation in principle, is a species of vice.

Thomas Paine (1737-1809) American political philosopher and writer
“Letter Addressed to the Addressers on the Late Proclamation” (1791)
(Source)

Orwell, George -- Essay (1946-04), “Politics and the English Language,” Horizon Magazine

Dave — Fri, 10 Aug 2007 15:53:23 +0000

The great enemy of clear language is insincerity. When there is a gap between one’s real and one’s declared aims, one turns as it were instinctively to long words and exhausted idioms, like a cuttlefish spurting out ink.

George Orwell (1903-1950) English journalist, essayist, writer [pseud. of Eric Arthur Blair]
Essay (1946-04), “Politics and the English Language,” Horizon Magazine
(Source)

Shakespeare, William -- Henry IV, Part 1, Act 5, sc. 4, l. 148 (5.4.148) (1597)

Dave — Wed, 12 May 2004 19:37:42 +0000

FALSTAFF: Lord, Lord, how this world is given to lying!

William Shakespeare (1564-1616) English dramatist and poet
Henry IV, Part 1, Act 5, sc. 4, l. 148 (5.4.148) (1597)
(Source)

Twain, Mark -- In More Maxims of Mark [ed. M. Johnson (1925)]

Dave — Sun, 01 Feb 2004 19:00:00 +0000

Always acknowledge a fault. This will throw those in authority off their guard and give you an opportunity to commit more.

Mark Twain (1835-1910) American writer [pseud. of Samuel Clemens]
In More Maxims of Mark [ed. M. Johnson (1925)]

Cosby, Bill -- Fatherhood, ch. 5 (1986)

Dave — Sun, 01 Feb 2004 16:00:00 +0000

The childless experts on child raising also bring tears of laughter to my eyes when they say, “I love children because they’re so honest.” There is not an agent in the CIA or the KGB who knows how to conceal the theft of food, how to fake being asleep, or how to forge a parent’s signature like a child.

Bill Cosby (b. 1937) American comedian
Fatherhood, ch. 5 (1986)
(Source)

La Bruyere, Jean de -- The Characters [Les Caractères], ch. 8 “Of the Court [De la Cour],” § 85 (8.85) (1688) [tr. Stewart (1970)]

Dave — Sun, 01 Feb 2004 19:00:00 +0000

It’s a sign of considerable shrewdness to be able to make others think one is not exceptionally shrewd.

[C’est avoir fait un grand pas dans la finesse, que de faire penser de soi que l’on n’est que médiocrement fin.]

Jean de La Bruyère (1645-1696) French essayist, moralist
The Characters [Les Caractères], ch. 8 “Of the Court [De la Cour],” § 85 (8.85) (1688) [tr. Stewart (1970)]

(Source (French)). Alternate translations:

He is far gone in politicks, who begins to find he is but indifferently politick.
[Bullord ed. (1696)]

He is far gone in Cunning, who makes other People believe he is but indifferently Cunning.
[Curll ed. (1713)]

He is thorough-paced in Cunning, who makes others believe that he is no Conjurer.
[Browne ed. (1752)]

A man must be very shrewd to make other people believe that he is not so sharp after all.
[tr. Van Laun (1885)]

A man has made great progress in cunning when he does not seem too clever to others.
[Common Translation, e.g.]

La Rochefoucauld, Francois -- Réflexions ou sentences et maximes morales [Reflections; or Sentences and Moral Maxims], ¶115 (1665-1678) [ed. Gowens (1851), ¶118]

Dave — Sun, 01 Feb 2004 18:00:00 +0000

It is as easy to deceive oneself without perceiving it, as it is difficult to deceive others without their perceiving it.

[Il est aussi facile de se tromper soi-même sans s’en apercevoir qu’il est difficile de tromper les autres sans qu’ils s’en aperçoivent.]

François VI, duc de La Rochefoucauld (1613-1680) French epigrammatist, memoirist, noble
Réflexions ou sentences et maximes morales [Reflections; or Sentences and Moral Maxims], ¶115 (1665-1678) [ed. Gowens (1851), ¶118]
(Source)

Present in 1st edition (1665). (Source (French)). Alternate translations:

It is as easie for a man to be self-deceiv'd, without being sensible of it, as it is hard to deceive others, without their perceiving it.
[tr. Davies (1669), ¶18]

It is as easie a matter to deceive a Mans self, and not be sensible of it, as it is hard to impose upon others, and yet for them not to be sensible of it.
[tr. Stanhope (1694), ¶116]

It is as easy to deceive ourselves without our perceivng it, as it is difficult to deceive others without their perceiving it.
[pub. Donaldson (1783), ¶90; ed. Lepoittevin-Lacroix (1797), ¶112]

It is as easy to deceive ourselves; without perceiving it, as it is difficult to deceive others without being perceived.
[ed. Carvill (1835), ¶78]

It is as easy unwittingly to deceive oneself as to deceive others.
[tr. Bund/Friswell (1871), ¶115]

It is as easy to deceive ourselves without realizing it, as it is hard to avoid detection in our deception of others.
[tr. Heard (1917), ¶115]

It is as easy to delude ourselves unknowingly, as it is difficult to delude others without their knowing it.
[tr. Stevens (1939), ¶115]

It is as easy to deceive oneself without noticing it as it is difficult to deceive others without their realizing the deception.
[tr. FitzGibbon (1957), ¶115]

It is as easy to deceive ourselves without knowing it as it is hard to deceive others without their finding it out.
[tr. Kronenberger (1959), ¶115]

It is as easy to deceive ourselves without noticing it as it is hard to deceive others without their noticing.
[tr. Tancock (1959), ¶115]

It is as easy to deceive ourselves without our perceiving it, as it is difficult to deceive others without their perceiving it.
[tr. Whichello (2016) ¶115]

La Rochefoucauld, Francois -- Réflexions ou sentences et maximes morales [Reflections; or Sentences and Moral Maxims], ¶119 (1665-1678) [tr. Bund/Friswell (1871)]

Dave — Sun, 01 Feb 2004 16:00:00 +0000

We become so accustomed to disguise ourselves to others that at last we are disguised to ourselves.

[Nous sommes si accoutumés à nous déguiser aux autres qu’enfin nous nous déguisons à nous-mêmes.]

François VI, duc de La Rochefoucauld (1613-1680) French epigrammatist, memoirist, noble
Réflexions ou sentences et maximes morales [Reflections; or Sentences and Moral Maxims], ¶119 (1665-1678) [tr. Bund/Friswell (1871)]
(Source)

Appeared in the 1st edition (1665). Another 1665 variant began "La coutume que nous avons de nous déguiser aux autres, pour acquérir leur estime, fait qu’enfin … [The custom we have of disguising ourselves to others, in order to gain their esteem, means that finally…]"

(Source (French)). Alternate translations:

We are so used to dissemble with other People, that in time we come to Deceive and Dissemble with our selves.
[tr. Stanhope (1694), ¶120]

We were so used to disguise ourselves to others, that at last we become disguised even to ourselves.
[pub. Donaldson (1783), ¶102; ed. Lepoittevin-Lacroix (1797), ¶116]

We are so used to disguise ourselves to others, that at last we become disguised to ourselves.
[ed. Carvill (1835), ¶91]

We are so much accustomed to disguise ourselves to others, that at length we disguise ourselves to ourselves
[ed. Gowens (1851), ¶122]

We spend so much time deceiving others that we end by deceiving ourselves.
[tr. Heard (1917), ¶119]

We are so accustomed to adopting a mask before others that we end by being unable to recognize ourselves.
[tr. FitzGibbon (1957), ¶119]

We get so much in the habit of wearing a disguise before others that we finally appear disguised before ourselves.
[tr. Kronenberger (1959), ¶119]

We are so used to disguising ourselves from others that we end by disguising ourselves from ourselves.
[tr. Tancock (1959), ¶119]

So accustomed do we become to disguising ourselves from others that, at length, we disguise ourselves from ourselves.
[tr. Whichello (2016) ¶119]

Compare this to ¶373:

We sometimes shed tears which at first deceive only others, but in the end deceive ourselves also. [tr. Stevens (1939), ¶373]

Mencken, H. L. -- A Little Book in C Major, ch. 2, § 15 (1916)

Dave — Sun, 01 Feb 2004 16:00:00 +0000

It is hard to believe that a man is telling you the truth when you know you would lie if you were in his place.

H. L. Mencken (1880-1956) American writer and journalist [Henry Lewis Mencken]
A Little Book in C Major, ch. 2, § 15 (1916)
(Source)

Variants:

CONFIDENCE. The feeling that makes one believe a man, even when one knows that one would lie in his place.
[A Book of Burlesques, "The Jazz Webster" (1924)]

La Rochefoucauld, Francois -- Réflexions ou sentences et maximes morales [Reflections; or Sentences and Moral Maxims], ¶120 (1665-1678) [tr. Tancock (1959)]

Dave — Sun, 01 Feb 2004 18:00:00 +0000

We betray more often through weakness than through deliberate intention to betray.

[L’on fait plus souvent des trahisons par foiblesse que par un dessein formé de trahir.]

La foiblesse fait commettre plus de trahisons que le véritable dessein de trahir.

[Weakness makes one commit more betrayals than the real intention to betray.]

(Source (French)). Alternate translations:

Weakness occasions the committing of more treacherous actions, than the real design of being treacherous.
[tr. Davies (1669), ¶178]

Treachery is oftner the Effect of Weakness, than of a fixed Design.
[tr. Stanhope (1694), ¶121]

Treachery is oftner the Effect of Weakness than of a form'd Design.
[tr. Stanhope (1706), ¶121]

Men are oftener treacherous through weakness than design.
[pub. Donaldson (1783), ¶425; ed. Lepoittevin-Lacroix (1797), ¶117]

Men are treacherous oftener through weakness than design.
[ed. Carvill (1835), ¶402]

Men are more often guilty of treachery from weakness of character than from any settled design to betray.
[ed. Gowens (1851), ¶123]

We often act treacherously more from weakness than from a fixed motive.
[tr. Bund/Friswell (1871), ¶120]

Deception is more often the fruit of weakness than of an intent to deceive.
[tr. Heard (1917), ¶120]

Treachery is the result of weakness more often than of a deliberate intention to betray.
[tr. Stevens (1939), ¶120]

Treason is more often the result of weakness than of a deliberate plan to betray.
[tr. FitzGibbon (1957), ¶120]

We are oftener treacherous through weakness than through calculation.
[tr. Kronenberger (1959), ¶120]

We betray more often from weakness than out of a resolute intention to betray.
[tr. Whichello (2016) ¶120]

Marcus Aurelius -- Meditations [To Himself; Τὰ εἰς ἑαυτόν], Book 11, ch. 15 (11.15) (AD 161-180) [tr. Staniforth (1964)]

Dave — Sun, 01 Feb 2004 16:00:00 +0000

A candor affected is a dagger concealed.

[ἐπιτήδευσις δὲ ἁπλότητος σκάλμη ἐστίν.]

Marcus Aurelius (AD 121-180) Roman emperor (161-180), Stoic philosopher
Meditations [To Himself; Τὰ εἰς ἑαυτόν], Book 11, ch. 15 (11.15) (AD 161-180) [tr. Staniforth (1964)]
(Source)

Depending on the source material, the weapon reference is either from a native Thracian (foreign) weapon (σκάλμη) -- thus translators who use "stiletto," etc. -- or a proverbial "crooked stick" (σκαμβή), referring to a Greek proverb "You can't make a crooked stick straight." See 1, 2, 3, 4 for more details.

(Source (Greek)). Alternate translations:

But the affectation of simplicity is nowise laudable.
[tr. Casaubon (1634), 11.14]

But on the other side, an Affectation of being Real, is an untoward pretence.
[tr. Collier (1701)]

The ostentation of simplicity is like a dagger for insidious designs.
[tr. Hutcheson/Moor (1742)]

In short, the affectation of simplicity is often a concealed dagger.
[tr. Graves (1792)]

But the affectation of simplicity is like a crooked stick.
[tr. Long (1862)]

An affectation of sincerity is a very dagger.
[tr. Collier/Zimmern (1887)]

But the affectation of simpleness is a dagger in the sleeve.
[tr. Rendall (1898)]

The ostentation of straightforwardness is the knife under the cloak.
[tr. Hutcheson/Chrystal (1902)]

A calculated simplicity is a stiletto.
[tr. Haines (Loeb) (1916)]

But the affectation of simplicity is like a razor.
[tr. Farquharson (1944)]

But the mere pretence of simplicity is like an open blade.
[tr. Hard (1997 ed.), (2011 ed.)]

But false straightforwardness is like a knife in the back.
[tr. Hays (2003)]

Calculated honesty is a stiletto.
[tr. Hammond (2006)]

A contrived simplicity is like a dagger.
[tr. Needleman/Piazza (2008)]

Disraeli, Benjamin -- Sybil, “The Gentleman in Downing Street,” bk 6, ch 1 (1845)

Dave — Sun, 01 Feb 2004 16:00:00 +0000

Frank and explicit: That is the right line to take when you wish to conceal your mind and confuse the minds of others.

Benjamin Disraeli (1804-1881) English politician and author
Sybil, “The Gentleman in Downing Street,” bk 6, ch 1 (1845)

La Rochefoucauld, Francois -- Réflexions ou sentences et maximes morales [Reflections; or Sentences and Moral Maxims], ¶126 (1665-1678) [tr. Stanhope (1694), ¶127]

Dave — Sun, 01 Feb 2004 18:00:00 +0000

Tricks and Treachery are the practice of Fools that have not Wit enough to be Honest.

[Les finesses et les trahisons ne viennent que de manque d’habileté.]

Si on étoit toujours assez habile, on ne ferait jamais de finesses ni de trahisons.

[If one were sufficiently able, one would never do tricks or treasons]

Borrowed by Franklin (1740). (Source (French)). Alternate translations:

Cunning and treachery proceed from want of capacity.
[pub. Donaldson (1783), ¶80; ed. Lepoittevin-Lacroix (1797), ¶122]

Cunning and treachery proceed often from want of capacity.
[ed. Carvill (1835), ¶68]

Treacheries and acts of artifice only originate in the want of ability.
[ed. Gowens (1851), ¶129]

Cunning and treachery are the offspring of incapacity.
[tr. Bund/Friswell (1871), ¶126]

Trickery and treachery are a mark of stupidity.
[tr. Heard (1917), ¶126]

Guile and treachery are merely the result of want of talent.
[tr. Stevens (1939), ¶126]

Cunning and treachery come solely from a lack of skill.
[tr. FitzGibbon (1957), ¶126]

Tricks and treachery are merely proof of lack of skill.
[tr. Kronenberger (1959), ¶126]

Intrigues and treasons simply come from lack of adroitness.
[tr. Tancock (1959), ¶126]

Cunning and treachery are given rise to by mere incompetence.
[tr. Whichello (2016)]

McQuarrie, Christopher -- The Usual Suspects [Kint] (1995)

Dave — Sun, 01 Feb 2004 16:00:00 +0000

The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist.

Christopher McQuarrie (b. 1968) American screenwriter, director
The Usual Suspects [Kint] (1995)

Kint gives this line twice: first about an hour into the movie, and second as one of its final lines.

See Baudelaire.

Bierce, Ambrose -- “Diplomacy,” The Cynic’s Word Book (1906)

Dave — Sun, 01 Feb 2004 18:00:00 +0000

DIPLOMACY, n. The patriotic art of lying for one’s country.

Ambrose Bierce (1842-1914?) American writer and journalist
“Diplomacy,” The Cynic’s Word Book (1906)
(Source)

Included in The Devil's Dictionary (1911). Originally published in the "Devil's Dictionary" column in the San Francisco Wasp (1882-03-24).