The works of Francis Bacon, lord chancellor of England.

30 ESSAYS CIVIL AND MORAL.
in front, and no hold taken; or, at least, turneth discourse, that he be not too much awake to make
the handle of the bottle first to be received, and objections. I knew a counsellor and secretary, that
after the belly, which is hard to clasp. There is never came to Queen Elizabeth of England with
surely no greater wisdom than well to time the be- bills to sign, but he would always first put her
ginnings and onsets of things. Dangers are no into some discourse of estate, that she might the
more light, if they once seem light; and more dan- less mind the bills.
gers have deceived men than forced them; nay, it The like surprise may be made by moving things
were better to meet some dangers half way, though when the party is in haste, and cannot stay to conthey come nothing near, than to keep too long a sider advisedly of that is moved.
watch upon their approaches; for if a man watch If a man would cross a business that he doubts
too long it is odds he will fall asleep. On the other some other would handsomely and effectually
side, to be deceived with too long shadows, (as move, let him pretend to wish it well, and move it
some have been when the moon was low and shone himself, in such sort as may foil it.
on their enemies' back,) and so to shoot off before The breaking off in the midst of that, one was
the time; or to teach dangers to come on by over about to say, as if he took himself up, breeds a
early buckling towards them, is another extreme. greater appetite in him, with whom you confer, to
The ripeness or unripeness of the occasion (as we know more.
said) must ever be well weighed; and generally it And because it works better when any thing
is good to commit the beginnings of all great actions seemeth to be gotten from you by question, than
to Argos with his hundred eyes, and the ends to if you offer it of yourself, you may lay a bait for a
Briareus with his hundred hands: first to watch, question, by showing another visage and counteand then to speed; for the helmet of Pluto, which nance than you are wont; to the end, to give occamaketh the politic man go invisible, is secrecy sion for the party to ask what the matter is of the
in the council, and celerity in the execution; for change, as Nehemiah did, " And I had not before
when things are once come to the execution, there that time been sad before the king."
is no secrecy comparable to celerity; like the mo- In things that are tender and unpleasing, it is
tion of a bullet in the air, which flieth so swift as good to break the ice by some whose words are of
it outruns the eye. less weight, and to reserve the more weighty voice
to come in as by chance, so that he may be asked
XXII. OF CUNNING. the question upon the other's speech; as Narcissus
did, in relating to Claudius the marriage of MessaWE take cunning for a sinister, or crooked wis- lina and Silius.
dom: and certainly there is a great difference be- In things that a man would not be seen in himtween a cunning man and a wise man, not only in self, it is a point of cunning to borrow the name
point of honesty, but in point of ability. There be of the world; as to say, " The world says," or
that can pack the cards, and yet-cannot play well;, There is a speech abroad."
so there are some that are good in canvasses and I knew one that, when he wrote a letter, he
factions, that are otherwise weak men. Again, it would put that which was most material in the
is one thing to understand persons, and another postscript as if it had been a bye matter.
thing to understand matters; for many are per- I knew another that, when he came to have
feet in men's humours, that are not greatly capa- speech, he would pass over that that he intendble of the real part of business, which is the con- ed most: and go forth and come back again,
stitution of one that hath studied men more than and speak of it as of a thing that he had almost
books. Such men are fitter for practice than for forgot.
counsel, and they are good but in their own alley: Some procure themselves to be surprised at
turn them to new men, and they have lost their such times as it is like the party that they work
aim; so as the old rule, to know a fool from a wise upon, will suddenly come upon them, and to be
man, ", Mitte ambos nudos ad ignotos, et videbis," found with a letter in their hand, or doing somedoth scarce hold for them; and, because these cun- what which they are not accustomed, to the end
ning men are like haberdashers of small wares, it they may be opposed of those things which of
is not amiss to set forth their shop. themselves they are desirous to utter.
It is a point of cunning to wait upon him with It is a point of cunning to let fall those words in
whom you speak with your eye, as the Jesuits a man's own name which he would have another
give it in precept; for there be many wise men man learn and use, and thereupon take advantage.
that have secret hearts and transparent counte- I knew two that were competitors for the secrenances; yet this would be done with a demure tary's place, in Queen Elizabeth's time, and yet
abasing of your eye sometimes, as the Jesuits kept good quarter between themselves, and would
also do use. confer one with another upon the business; and the
Another is, that when you have any thing to ob- one of them said, that to be a secretary in the detain of present despatch, you entertain and amuse clination of a monarchy was a ticklish thing, and
the party with whom you deal with some other that he did not affect it: the other straight caught