12 Jun A man shows his character by the way he deals with unimportant things (ARTHUR SCHOPENHAUER)
In any case it is well to take care not to form a highly lavorable opinion of a person whose acquaintance you have only recently made, for otherwise you are very likely to be disappointed; and then you will be ashamed of yourself and perhaps even suffer some injury. And while I am on the subject, there is another fact that deserves mention. It is this. A man shows his character just in the way in which he deals with trifles, for then he is off his guard. This will often afford a good opportunity of observing the boundless egoism of man’s nature, and his total lack of consideration for others; and if these defects show themselves in small things, or merely in his general demeanor, you will find that they also understand his action in matters of importance, although he may disguise the fact. This is an opportunity which should not be missed. If in the little affairs of every day,-the trifles of life, those matters to which the nile de minimis non applies,-a man is inconsiderate and seeks only what is advantageous or convenient to himself, to the prejudice of others’ rights; if he appropriates to himself that which belongs to all alike, you may be sure there is no justice in his heart, and that he would be a scoundrel on a wholesale scale, only that law and compulsion bind his hands.
ARTHUR SCHOPENHAUER
