Yes, it is always the best policy to speak the truth — unless, of course, you are an exceptionally good liar.
Jerome K. Jerome (1859-1927) English writer, humorist [Jerome Klapka Jerome]
Idler Magazine, “The Idler’s Club” column (1892-02)
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Quotations about:
guideline
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We all have a pretty clear understanding of goodness, but it seldom applies to the situation we’re in at the moment.
Mignon McLaughlin (1913-1983) American journalist and author
The Neurotic’s Notebook, ch. 5 (1963)
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Maxims are to the intellect what laws are to actions; they do not enlighten, but they guide and direct; and although themselves blind, are protective. They are like the clue in the labyrinth, or the compass in the night.
[Les maximes sont à l’intelligence ce que les lois sont aux actions : elles n’éclairent pas, mais elles guident, elles dirigent, elles sauvent aveuglément. C’est le fil dans le labyrinthe, la boussole pendant la nuit.]
Joseph Joubert (1754-1824) French moralist, philosopher, essayist, poet
Pensées [Thoughts], ch. 9 “De la Sagesse, de la Vertu, etc. [On Wisdom and Virtue],” ¶ 44 (1850 ed.) [tr. Attwell (1896), ¶ 138]
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(Source (French)). Alternate translations:Maxims are to the intelligence what laws are to conduct; they do not enlighten, but they guide, they direct, they save us insensibly. It is the thread in the labyrinth, the compass during the night.
[tr. Lyttelton (1899), ch. 8, ¶ 32]Maxims are to the intelligence what laws are to action: they do not illuminate, but they guide, they control, they rescue blindly. They are the clue in the labyrinth, the ship's compass in the night.
[tr. Collins (1928), ch. 8]