"Truth is heavy, therefore few carry it." Justice and Honesty. "Let justice pierce the mountain." "The judge who renders a true judgment for but one brief hour, is deemed as though he shared with God in the work of creation." "Judge every man in the scale of merit." "Judge not your neighbor till you stand in his place." "Woe to the generation whose judges must be judged." "Rabbi Phineas hospitably received two strangers. On departing they accidentally left behind them a few measures of barley. They returned a year later. 'Presumably our barley is spoilt by this time: never mind.' 'Nay,' said Phineas, leading them to his barn. He gave them five hundred measures of barley, the product of their few measures, which he had sown in his fields." He who lends on usury is compared to a shedder of blood. "Thy neighbor's honor and his possessions should be as dear to thee as thine own." "Be honest in trade: if goods are damaged, acknowledge it." "Credit and mutual trust should be the foundations of commerce." A prince once made a law that a receiver of stolen property should be hanged and the thief go free. "Not the mouse but the hole is the thief." "An Israelite must not deceive even an idolater." "Go to sleep without supper, but rise without debt." "Rabbi Simon bought a camel of an Ishmaelite and later discovered diamonds under its saddle. 'The blessing of God maketh rich,' said his overjoyed servant. 'Nay,' rebuked the rabbi: 'Return those diamonds; I bought a camel, not precious stones.'" Alexander, the world conqueror, came across a simple people in Africa who knew not war. He lingered to learn their ways. Two citizens appeared before the chief with this point of dispute. One had bought a piece of land and discovered a treasure in it; he claimed that this belonged to the seller and wished to return it. The seller, on the other hand, declared that he sold the land with all it might contain. So he refused to accept the treasure. The chief, turning to the buyer, said: "Thou hast a son?" "Yes." And addressing the seller: "Thou hast a daughter?" "Yes." "Marry one to the other and make the treasure their marriage portion." They left content. "In my country," said the surprised Alexander, "the disputants would have been imprisoned and the treasure confiscated for the king." "Is your country blessed by sun and rain?" asked the chief. "Yes," replied Alexander. "Does it contain cattle?" "Yes." "Then it must be for the sake of these innocent animals that the sun shines upon it; surely its people are unworthy of such blessing." Kindness. "Whoever showeth compassion is as the seed of Abraham." "Remove from the highway what might endanger the property of others." "To deserve mercy, practice it."