Surely what a man does when he is taken off his guard is the best evidence for what sort of man he is. Surely what pops out before the man has time to put on a disguise is the truth. If there are rats in the cellar you are most likely to see them if you go in very suddenly. But the suddenness does not create rats; it only prevents them from hiding. In the same way the suddenness of provocation does not make me an ill-tempered man; it only shows me what an ill-tempered man I am.

Moderation in temper is always a virtue; but moderation in principle is always a vice.