Be courteous to all, but intimate with few, and let those few be well tried before you give them your confidence; true friendship is a plant of slow growth, and must undergo and withstand the shocks of adversity before it is entitled to the appellation.


Letter to Bushrod Washington (15 January 1783)


Be courteous to all, but intimate with few, and let those few be well tried before you give them your confidence; true friendship is a plant of slow...

Be courteous to all, but intimate with few, and let those few be well tried before you give them your confidence; true friendship is a plant of slow...

Be courteous to all, but intimate with few, and let those few be well tried before you give them your confidence; true friendship is a plant of slow...

Be courteous to all, but intimate with few, and let those few be well tried before you give them your confidence; true friendship is a plant of slow...