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To follow imperfect, uncertain, or corrupted traditions, in order to avoid erring in our own judgment, is but to exchange one danger for another.

Richard Whately

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Richard Whately
Age: 76 †
Born: 1787
Born: February 1
Died: 1863
Died: October 8
Economist
Philosopher
Priest
Theologian
London
England
Another
Exchange
Order
Uncertain
Imperfect
Avoid
Tradition
Judgment
Erring
Follow
Corrupted
Danger
Traditions

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It is a remarkable circumstance in reference to cunning persons that they are often deficient not only in comprehensive, far-sighted wisdom, but even in prudent, cautious circumspection.
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As the flower is before the fruit, so is faith before good works.
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Men are like sheep, of which a flock is more easily driven than a single one.
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As there are dim-sighted people who live in a sort of perpetual twilight, so there are some who, having neither much clearness of head nor a very elevated tone of morality, are perpetually haunted by suspicions of everybody and everything.
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It is generally true that all that is required to make men unmindful of what they owe to God for any blessing, is, that they should receive that blessing often and regularly.
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Honesty is the best policy but he who is governed by that maxim is not an honest man.
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The first requisite of style, not only in rhetoric, but in all compositions, is perspicuity.
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The love of admiration leads to fraud, much more than the love of commendation but, on the other hand, the latter is much more likely to spoil our: good actions by the substitution of an inferior motive.
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A man is called selfish not for pursuing his own good, but for neglecting his neighbor's.
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Falsehood is difficult to be maintained. When the materials of a building are solid blocks of stone, very rude architecture will suffice but a structure of rotten materials needs the most careful adjustment to make it stand at all.
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It is also important to guard against mistaking for good-nature what is properly good-humor,--a cheerful flow of spirits and easy temper not readily annoyed, which is compatible with great selfishness.
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He that is not open to conviction is not qualified for discussion.
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It is worth noticing that those who assume an imposing demeanor and seek to pass themselves off for something beyond what they are, are not unfrequently as much underrated by some as overrated by others.
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One way in which fools succeed where wise men fail is that through ignorance of the danger they sometimes go coolly about a hazardous business.
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Of metaphors, those generally conduce most to energy or vivacity of style which illustrate an intellectual by a sensible object.
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When men have become heartily wearied of licentious anarchy, their eagerness has been proportionately great to embrace the opposite extreme of rigorous despotism.
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Nothing but the right can ever be expedient, since that can never be true expediency which would sacrifice a great good to a less.
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It is folly to expect men to do all that they may reasonably be expected to do.
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Everyone wishes to have truth on his side, but not everyone wishes to be on the side of truth.
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Better too much form than too little.
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