A dictionary of Proverbs (Oxford Paperback Reference)

CLERGYMEN’S sons always turn out badly

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  1885 E. J. HARDY How to be Happy though Married xix. The Proverb says that ‘Clergymen’s sons always turn out badly’. . because the children are surfeited with severe religion, not with the true religion of Christ. 1922 W. R. INGE Outspoken Essays 2nd Ser. vii. An Eton boy.. when asked why the sons of Eli turned out badly, replied ‘The sons of clergymen always turn out badly’. 1982 B. PYM Unsuitable Attachment iii. Yes, sons of the clergy often go to the bad, and daughters, too. ■ children and parents
  

clerk see the DEVIL makes his Christmas pies of lawyers’ tongues and clerks’ fingers.
A CLEVER hawk hides its claws
Japanese proverb.

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  1994 S. NISON Beyond Candlesticks i. There is a Japanese saying, ‘A clever hawk hides its claws.’ For over a century, the claws of Japanese technical analysis, that is candlestick charts, were a secret hidden from the western world. 1999 Medical Education XXXIII. ii. 150 No-one appears eager to reduce medical costs, and people are inclined to devote their efforts to other fields. This is encapsulated in a famous Japanese proverb: A wise hawk feigns incapacity by hiding his sharp claws. 2007 J. HUIZENGA ‘Ten Tips for Teaching English as a Foreign Language’ on www.transitionsabroad.com In classrooms outside the U.S., however, showing solidarity with classmates.. is often more important than looking good for the teacher.. This holds true in Japan and China.. where proverbs express the cultural idea in a nutshell:.. ‘The clever hawk hides its claws’. "guile
  

client see a man who is his own LAWYER has a fool for his client.
climb see he that would EAT the fruit must climb the tree; the HIGHER the monkey climbs the more he shows his tail.
Hasty CLIMBERS have sudden falls

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  a 1439 J. LYDGATE Fall of Princes (EETS) III. 953 The wheel of Fortune tourneth as a ball; Sodeyn clymbyng axeth a sodeyn fall. c 1511 S. HAWES Comfort of Lovers (1975) A4 Clymbe not to fast, lest sodenlye ye slyde. 1592 R. GREENE Repentance in Works XII. 158 For a yong man led on by selfe will. .. Hee forseath not that such as clime hastely fall sodainely. 1605 Capt. Thomas Stukeley D1 But there are many daungers by the way, and hastie climers quicklie catch a fall. 1616 N. BRETON Crossing of Proverbs II. A4 Hasty climbers haue sodaine falls...Not if they sit fast. 1869 C. H. SPURGEON John Ploughman’s Talk xix. Hints as to thriving. .. Hasty climbers have sudden falls. 1987 Daily Telegraph 27 Apr. 12 The ambition to send spaceships to the red planet reminds me of the old saying: ‘Hasty climbers quickly catch a fall.’ ■ ambition