XLII. The third is, because it is much more to be apprehended, that the virtue of an humble person is feigned, than that of a nobleman. The vice of hypocrisy may be said to be allied, or in a manner annexed to narrow fortune; for poor people are under a necessity of concealing their defects; and are obliged, in order to better their lot, to have recourse to the trivial expedient, of putting on the semblance of virtue. On the contrary, opulence and illustrious birth, naturally give relief and enlargement to the mind. People that are ennobled, are generally what they appear to be, because neither necessity nor fear, obliges them to make ostentation of virtues they do not possess. XLIII. The fourth and last is, that admitting there should not be the least doubt of the truth and reality of an humble man’s virtue, there is always great danger of his losing it by his exaltation. Great leaps of fortune are exceedingly perilous. Those from lofty stations downwards are very hazardous, because in consequence of them, the honour and properties of men may be dashed to pieces; but those from below upwards are more to be dreaded, for they are commonly attended with the destruction and loss of the soul. Every virtuous man, before he is raised from the dust to dignities, should find sureties for his continuing to act uprightly; for the soul by such a transition, is translated to a very different climate; and a very unwholesome one for customs and manners. Many have the seeds of various vices so deeply buried in their temperaments, as even to be concealed from their own eyes, till opportunities and occasions cause them to grow and sprout out. It is rare to find a man of low extraction, who is cruel and proud; and very rare to meet with one who is covetous; for he is so far from being excited by vices which he has no materials to supply the cravings of, that he scarce ever thinks of them; and how should he fix his attention on the superfluous, who is in want of what is precisely necessary for him? To find out whether such a person is tainted with the two first vices, you should place him in authority; and to discover whether he is infected with the third, you should give him a portion of riches. In fact, these three vices have been most frequently remarked in those, who were raised from humble to exalted fortune, although before their elevation, they did not shew the least signs of being tainted with them, or any others.