Pagina 198 van 734

but for doing so in great matters: that is to say, the

Magnificent man is liberal, but the liberal is not thereby

Magnificent. The falling short of such a state is called

Meanness, the exceeding it Vulgar Profusion, Want of Taste, and

so on; which are faulty, not because they are on an excessive

scale in respect of right objects but, because they show off in

improper objects, and in improper manner: of these we will speak

presently. The Magnificent man is like a man of skill, because he

can see what is fitting, and can spend largely in good taste;

for, as we said at the commencement, the confirmed habit is

determined by the separate acts of working, and by its

object-matter.