Philip Stanhope, 4th Earl of Chesterfield Quotes

How is it possible for those who are men of honor in their persons, thus to become notorious liars in their party

I think the greatest of all human virtues is loyalty. It embraces all the best of the human character: courage, faith, love and charity.

Of all the properties which belong to honorable men, not one is so highly prized as that of character.

Reputation is rarely proportioned to virtue.

Outside show is a poor substitute for inner worth.

A blue dog, you know, is the opposite of a yellow dog. And a yellow dog was somebody who was willing to follow his party even when he knew it was wrong.

Character is property. It is the noblest of possessions.

Virtue itself scapes not calumnious strokes.

My husband Rhashan reminds me of my father because he's got great strength of character.

This mode of electioneering suited neither my taste nor my principles. I though it equally unsuitable to my personal character and to the station in which I am placed.

In public politics as in private life, character is better than brains, and loyalty more valuable than either.

Character is the only secure foundation of the state.

The reputation of a man as a member of a party may not be homogeneous with his character in his personal relations. We have in our mind instances of persons who have been for years hard workers for the cause, whose party-character is unimpeachable, but who are nevertheless sometimes difficult to get on with in private life. And, conversely, we know some whom we would personally trust to the uttermost, but politically as far as we could see them and no farther. The former, we believe, can often, and the latter seldom, be used in the interests of the party.

...it's so hard to find men of a so high type of morals that they'll stay bought.

Friendship is held to be the severest test of character.

I look for officers who are strong in character – we can teach the skills necessary to do the job but it’s more challenging to find those who are there for the right reasons.

I think you can tell by the people who surround me the type of person that I am, and the people I rely on in my close circle are trusted, respected, experienced.

Any time your life is at stake and you can't find even one woman to come forward and say, 'This is a good man,' your problem isn't what kind of woman THEY are. Your problem is what kind of men YOU are.

Good name in man and woman is the immediate jewel of their souls.

When values, thoughts, feelings, and actions are in alignment, a person becomes focused and character is strengthened.

Loyalty is a feature in a boy's character that inspires boundless hope.

All the gold upon the earth and all the gold beneath it, does not compensate for lack of virtue.

A man's character is the reality of himself; his reputation, the opinion others have formed about him; character resides in him, reputation in other people; that is the substance, this is the shadow.

In war, three-quarters turns on personal character and relations; the balance of manpower and materials counts only for the remaining quarter.

I admire men of character and I judge character not by how men deal with their superiors, but mostly how they deal with their subordinates. And that, to me, is where you find out what the character of a man is.