# CHAPTER 41 — To Jump from Humility to Arrogance and from Mercy to Cruelty Without the Appropriate Measures Is an Imprudent and Unprofitable Affair

Among the other ill-advised methods Appius used to maintain his tyranny, that of jumping too soon from one state of mind to another was of no little importance. His shrewdness in deceiving the plebeians by pretending to be a man of the people was well used; well used also were the methods that he used in having the decemvirs reappointed; also well used was his audacity in appointing himself against the wishes of the nobility. His shrewdness was well used to appoint associates of his liking; but it was not at all well used, once he had accomplished all of this, following what I said above, in that sudden change of nature from being a friend of the plebeians to being their enemy, from being humane to being arrogant, from being easygoing to being difficult, and to do all of this in such a brief period of time and without any excuse whatsoever so that everyone had to recognize the deceptiveness of his intentions. Thus, anyone who has appeared to be good for a time and intends for his own advantage to become evil must do so through the appropriate measures and in such a manner that he allows himself to be governed by circumstances, so that before your new nature deprives you of old favours, it will have provided you with so many new ones that your authority will not be diminished; otherwise, finding yourself exposed and without friends, you will come to ruin.