A los ladrones se les cuelgan cruces.
A play upon words is at all times a hopeless task to transfer to another language; nevertheless, for the benefit of those who are unacquainted with Spanish, I will convey the idea as well as I can in English;—
Hang the thief on the cross was the ancient decree;
But the cross on the thief now suspended we see.
The idea is of very ancient date, and equally well known in Italy and Spain; but I believe the Spanish verses given above are original.
The following was written upon a wealthy man who lived like a hermit, and was reported to be very averse to paying for anything. He had, to the astonishment of everybody, given a grand entertainment the night before. On his door appeared—
"El Marquis de C---- Hace lo que debe
Y debe por lo que hace."
It is useless to try and carry this into Saxon. In drawing it from the Spanish well, the bottom must come out of the translationary bucket. The best version I can offer is—
"He gives a party, which he ought to do,