Friends in Council | Page 4

and, without a mean
and over-solicitous introspection, knows what he is about and what he
has been about, it is a Bible to him. "And David said unto Nathan, I
have sinned before the Lord." David knew the truth about himself. But
truth to oneself is not merely truth about oneself. It consists in
maintaining an openness and justness of soul which brings a man into
relation with all truth. For this, all the senses, if you might so call them,
of the soul must be uninjured--that is, the affections and the perceptions
must be just. For a man to speak the truth to himself comprehends all
goodness; and for us mortals can only be an aim.
2. Truth to mankind in general. This is a matter which, as I read it,
concerns only the higher natures. Suffice it to say, that the withholding
large truths from the world may be a betrayal of the greatest trust.
3. Truth in social relations. Under this head come the practices of
making speech vary according to the person spoken to; of pretending to
agree with the world when you do not; of not acting according to what
is your deliberate and well-advised opinion because some mischief may
be made of it by persons whose judgment in this matter you do not
respect; of maintaining a wrong course for the sake of consistency; of
encouraging the show of intimacy with those whom you never can be

intimate with; and many things of the same kind. These practices have
elements of charity and prudence as well as fear and meanness in them.
Let those parts which correspond to fear and meanness be put aside.
Charity and prudence are not parasitical plants which require boles of
falsehood to climb up upon. It is often extremely difficult in the mixed
things of this world to act truly and kindly too; but therein lies one of
the great trials of man, that his sincerity should have kindness in it, and
his kindness truth.
4. Truth in business. The more truth you can get into any business, the
better. Let the other side know the defects of yours, let them know how
you are to be satisfied, let there be as little to be found as possible (I
should say nothing), and if your business be an honest one, it will be
best tended in this way. The talking, bargaining, and delaying that
would thus be needless, the little that would then have to be done over
again, the anxiety that would be put aside, would even in a worldly way
be "great gain." It is not, perhaps, too much to say, that the third part of
men's lives is wasted by the effect, direct or indirect, of falsehoods.
Still, let us not be swift to imagine that lies are never of any service. A
recent Prime Minister said, that he did not know about truth always
prevailing and the like; but lies had been very successful against his
government. And this was true enough. Every lie has its day. There is
no preternatural inefficacy in it by reason of its falseness. And this is
especially the case with those vague injurious reports which are no
man's lies, but all men's carelessness. But even as regards special and
unmistakable falsehood, we must admit that it has its success. A
complete being might deceive with wonderful effect; however, as
nature is always against a liar, it is great odds in the case of ordinary
mortals. Wolsey talks of
"Negligence Fit for a fool to fall by,"
when he gives Henry the wrong packet; but the Cardinal was quite
mistaken. That kind of negligence was just the thing of which far-
seeing and thoughtful men are capable; and which, if there were no
higher motive, should induce them to rely on truth alone. A very close
vulpine nature, all eyes, all ears, may succeed better in deceit. But it is
a sleepless business. Yet, strange to say, it is had recourse to in the
most spendthrift fashion, as the first and easiest thing that comes to
hand.

In connection with truth in business, it may be observed that if you are
a truthful man, you should be watchful over those whom you employ;
for your subordinate agents are often fond of lying for your interests, as
they think. Show them at once that you do not think with them, and that
you will disconcert any of their inventions by breaking in with the truth.
If you suffer the fear of seeming unkind to prevent your thrusting
well-meant inventions aside, you may get as much pledged to
falsehoods as if you had coined and uttered them yourself.
5. Truth in pleasure. Men have been said to be sincere in their pleasures;
but this