"On a lotus, he is glorified with the blue of the sky.
"Is this to say that his nature changes to the point of modifying his natural color?
"No; he does not cease to possess that which recalls the color of the ground, and the ephemeral color which he appropriates is only a semblance, in order that he may be more easily mistaken for the objects themselves.
"The man who boasts of possessing common sense, altho preserving his personality, ought not to fail, if he wants to succeed, to reflect that of the person whom he wishes to aid him in succeeding."
Let it not be understood for a moment, that we advise any one to act contrary to the impulses of justice.
But cleverness is a part of common sense in business, and assimilation is essential to success.
It is not necessary to abandon one's convictions in order to reflect principles which, without contradicting them, give them a favorable color.
Common sense can remain intact and be differently colored, according as it is applied to the arts, politics, or science.
It would not deserve its name if it did not know how to yield to circumstances, in order to adorn the momentary caprice with flowers of reason.
In the primitive ages, common sense consisted in keeping oneself in a perpetual state of defense; attack was also at times prescribed, by virtue of the principle that it is pernicious to allow one's rights to be imperiled.