--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: One good Man may take another's Word, if…" description: "\"One good Man may take another's Word, if they so agree, but a whole Nation ought never to trust to any Honesty, but what is built upon Necessity; for u..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/846/bernard-de-mandeville-25947_agree_one-good-man-may-take-another-s-word-if_610237.png" --- # One good Man may take another's Word, if they so agree… ![“One good Man may take another's Word, if they so agree, but a whole Nation ought never to trust to any Honesty, but what is built upon Necessity; for unhappy is the People, and their Constitution will ever be precarious, whose Welfare must depend upon the Virtuesand Consciences of Ministers and…” quote by Bernard de Mandeville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/846/bernard-de-mandeville-25947_agree_one-good-man-may-take-another-s-word-if_610237.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/846/bernard-de-mandeville-25947_agree_one-good-man-may-take-another-s-word-if_610237.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/846/bernard-de-mandeville-25947_agree_one-good-man-may-take-another-s-word-if_610237.png) > “One good Man may take another's Word, if they so agree, but a whole Nation ought never to trust to any Honesty, but what is built upon Necessity; for unhappy is the People, and their Constitution will ever be precarious, whose Welfare must depend upon the Virtuesand Consciences of Ministers and Politicians.” [Bernard de Mandeville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-de-mandeville/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A nation cannot rely on abstract honesty alone; it must be built on practical necessity and the virtues of its leaders. **In simple terms:** Society needs practical foundations and virtuous leaders. Key Takeaway Cultivate virtuous leadership and practical policies. Themes politics society leadership Mood critical thoughtful Type philosophical political When to use this quote - government - community building - policy making - public trust Key Concepts social contract virtue ethics Questions to Reflect On - How can leaders balance virtue with necessity? - What practical measures ensure societal stability? A Different Perspective Idealistic trust may ignore real constraints. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Conscience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conscience/) [Constitution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/constitution/) [Good man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-man/) [Honesty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/honesty/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Nations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nations/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Politician](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politician/) [Unhappy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unhappy/) [Virtue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/virtue/) [Welfare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/welfare/) ## Related quotes > [“Failure to observe what is in the mind of another has seldom made a man unhappy; but those who do not observe the movements…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/failure-to-observe-what-is-in-the-mind-of-another-has-seldom-made-a/) [Marcus 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Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-e-simon/) ## More by Bernard de Mandeville > [What a vast Traffick is drove, what a variety of Labour is performed in the World to the Maintenance of Thousands of Families that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-de-mandeville/what-a-vast-traffick-is-drove-what-a-variety-of-labour-is-performed/) [Bernard de Mandeville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-de-mandeville/) > [We seldom call anybody lazy, but such as we reckon inferior to us, and of whom we expect some service.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-de-mandeville/we-seldom-call-anybody-lazy-but-such-as-we-reckon-inferior-to-us-and/) [Bernard de Mandeville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-de-mandeville/) > [No habit or quality is more easily acquired than hypocrisy, nor any thing sooner learned than to deny the sentiments of our hearts and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-de-mandeville/no-habit-or-quality-is-more-easily-acquired-than-hypocrisy-nor-any/) [Bernard de Mandeville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-de-mandeville/) > [I don't believe that there is a human creature in his senses, arrived to maturity, that at some time or other has not been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-de-mandeville/i-don-t-believe-that-there-is-a-human-creature-in-his-senses-arrived/) [Bernard de Mandeville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-de-mandeville/) > [Some People are not to be persuaded to taste of any Creatures they have daily seen and been acquainted with, while they were alive;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-de-mandeville/some-people-are-not-to-be-persuaded-to-taste-of-any-creatures-they/) [Bernard de Mandeville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-de-mandeville/) > [If laying aside all worldly Greatness and Vain-Glory, I should be ask'd where I thought it was most probable that Men might enjoy true…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-de-mandeville/if-laying-aside-all-worldly-greatness-and-vain-glory-i-should-be-ask/) [Bernard de Mandeville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-de-mandeville/) > [People of substance may sin without being exposed for their stolen pleasure; but servants and the poorer sort of women have seldom an opportunity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-de-mandeville/people-of-substance-may-sin-without-being-exposed-for-their-stolen/) [Bernard de Mandeville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-de-mandeville/) > [Because impudence is a vice, it does not follow that modesty is a virtue; it is built upon shame, a passion in our nature,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-de-mandeville/because-impudence-is-a-vice-it-does-not-follow-that-modesty-is-a/) [Bernard de Mandeville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-de-mandeville/) > [Those who get their living by their daily labor . . . have nothing to stir them up to be serviceable but their wants…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-de-mandeville/those-who-get-their-living-by-their-daily-labor-have-nothing-to-stir/) [Bernard de Mandeville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-de-mandeville/) > [They that examine into the Nature of Man, abstract from Art and Education, may observe, that what renders him a Sociable Animal, consists not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-de-mandeville/they-that-examine-into-the-nature-of-man-abstract-from-art-and/) [Bernard de Mandeville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-de-mandeville/) > [The only thing of weight that can be said against modern honor is that it is directly opposite to religion. The one bids you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-de-mandeville/the-only-thing-of-weight-that-can-be-said-against-modern-honor-is/) [Bernard de Mandeville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-de-mandeville/) > [There are many examples of women that have excelled in learning, and even in war, but this is no reason we should bring em…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-de-mandeville/there-are-many-examples-of-women-that-have-excelled-in-learning-and/) [Bernard de Mandeville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-de-mandeville/) > [Knowledge both enlarges and multiplies our Desires, and the fewer things a Man wishes for, the more easily his Necessities may be supply'd.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-de-mandeville/knowledge-both-enlarges-and-multiplies-our-desires-and-the-fewer/) [Bernard de Mandeville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-de-mandeville/) > [Ye children of promise who are awaiting your call to glory, take possession of the inheritance that now is yours. 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