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It is thought that desire for honour makes the mass of men wish

rather to be the objects of the feeling of Friendship than to

entertain it themselves (and for this reason they are fond of

flatterers, a flatterer being a friend inferior or at least

pretending to be such and rather to entertain towards another the

feeling of Friendship than to be himself the object of it), since

the former is thought to be nearly the same as being honoured,

which the mass of men desire. And yet men seem to choose honour,

not for its own sake, but incidentally:[6] I mean, the common run

of men delight to be honoured by those in power because of the

hope it raises; that is they think they shall get from them

anything they may happen to be in want of, so they delight in

honour as an earnest of future benefit.