[98]
The poets will observe, therefore, amid a great
variety of characters, what is suitable and proper
for all—even for the bad. But to us Nature1
has assigned the rôles of steadfastness, temperance,
self-control, and considerateness of others; Nature
also teaches us not to be careless in our behaviour
towards our fellow-men. Hence we may clearly see
how wide is the application not only of that propriety which is essential to moral rectitude in
general, but also of the special propriety which is
displayed in each particular subdivision of virtue.
For, as physical beauty with harmonious symmetry
of the limbs engages the attention and delights the
eye, for the very reason that all the parts combine
in harmony and grace, so this propriety, which
shines out in our conduct, engages the approbation
of our fellow-men by the order, consistency, and
self-control it imposes upon every word and deed.
1 Moral propriety.
M. Tullius Cicero. De Officiis. With An English Translation. Walter Miller. Cambridge. Harvard University Press; Cambridge, Mass., London, England. 1913.
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