# 14. Men often make the Mistake of supposing that Pride is overcome by Humility

There are to be found numerous cases in which humility is not only no help, but is a hindrance, especially when used in dealing with arrogant men who, either out of envy or for some other cause, have come to hate you. This, our historian assures us, was the cause of the war between the Romans and the Latins. For, when the Samnites complained to the Romans that the Latins had attacked them, the Romans were unwilling to forbid the Latins to make war on them, because they did not wish to annoy them. Yet, by so doing, they not only annoyed them, but intensified their animosity and caused them the sooner to become open enemies. This is borne out by what the prefect, Annius, the Latin praetor, said to the aforementioned council of the allies: ‘You have tried their patience, by refusing them troops. Who can doubt that this has made them angry? Yet they have put up with it. They have heard that we have an army ready to attack their allies, the Samnites, yet they have not stirred from the city. To what is this marked modesty due if it be not that they are aware of the strength of our respective forces, ours and their own?’ This shows very clearly how much the patience of the Romans intensified the arrogance of the Latins.

A ruler, therefore, should never forget his dignity, nor, if he cares for his honour, should he ever waive a point agreed upon unless he can enforce it, or thinks he can enforce it. For it is almost always better, when your position is such that you cannot in this way make the concession, to let it be extracted by force rather than by the threat of force; because, if you yield to a threat, you do so in order to avoid war, and more often than not, you do not avoid war. For those before whom you have thus openly demeaned yourself by yielding, will not stop there, but will seek to extort further concessions, and the less they esteem you the more incensed will they become against you. On the other hand, you will find your supporters growing cooler towards you, since they will look upon you as weak or pusillanimous. But if, as soon as you become aware of your adversary’s intentions, you prepare to use force, even though your forces be inferior to his, he will begin to respect you, and, since those with which you were allied will now esteem you, they will be ready to help when you begin to arm, which they would never have done had you given up.

This applies where you have but one enemy. If you have more, the wiser course is to hand over some of your possessions to one of them so as to win him to your side even after war has been declared, and that you may detach a member of the confederation which is hostile to you.