232 OF THE ADVANCEMENT OF LEARNING, | XXIII. 19. — 
with whom they discourse most. General fame is light, 
and the opinions conceived by superiors or equals are 
deceitful; for to such men are more masked: Verzor 
Jama e domesticis emanat. 
20. But the soundest disclosing and expounding of 
men is by their natures and ends, wherein the weakest 
sort of men are best interpreted by their natures, and the 
wisest by their ends. For it was both pleasantly and 
wisely said (though I think very untruly) by a nuncio 
of the pope, returning from a certain nation where he 
served as lidger; whose opinion being asked touching 
the appointment of one to go in his place, he wished 
that in any case they did not send one that was too wise; ~ 
because no very wise man would ever imagine what they 
in that country were like to do. And certainly it is an 
error frequent for men to shoot over, and to suppose 
deeper ends, and more compass reaches than are: the 
Italian proverb being elegant, and for the most part true: 
Di danari, di senno, e di fede, 
C’e ne manco che non credi: 
There is commonly less money, less wisdom, and less 
good faith than men do account upon. 
21. But princes, upon a far other reason, are best 
interpreted by their natures, and private persons by their 
ends. For princes being at the top of human desires, 
they have for the most part no particular ends whereto 
they aspire, by distance from which a man mought take 
measure and scale of the rest of their actions and desires; 
which is one of the causes that maketh their hearts more 
inscrutable. Neither is it sufficient to inform ourselves 
in men’s ends and natures of the variety of them only, 
but also of the predominancy, what humour reigneth 
