He is only a man; your coward and rash being but tame and savage beasts.
His courage is still the same, and drink cannot make him more valiant,
nor danger less. His valour is enough to leaven whole armies; he is an
army himself, worth an army of other men. His sword is not always out
like children's daggers, but he is always last in beginning quarrels,
though first in ending them. He holds honour, though delicate as
crystal, yet not so slight and brittle to be broke and cracked with
every touch; therefore, though most wary of it, is not querulous nor
punctilious. He is never troubled with passion, as knowing no degree
beyond clear courage; and is always valiant, but never furious. He is
the more gentle in the chamber, more fierce he's in the field, holding
boast (the coward's valour), and cruelty (the beast's), unworthy a
valiant man. He is only coward in this, that he dares not do an
unhandsome action. In fine, he can only be overcome by discourtesy, and
has but one defect--he cannot talk much--to recompense which he does
the more.
_In 1673 there was published "The Character of a Coffee House, with the
symptoms of a Town Wit;" and in the same year, "Essays of Love and
Marriage ... with some Characters and other Passages of Wit;" in 1675,
"The Character of a Fanatick. By a Person of Quality;" a set of eleven
Characters appeared in 1675; "A Whip for a Jockey, or a Character of an
Horse-Courser," in 1677; "Four for a Penny, or Poor Robin's Character of
an unconscionable Pawnbroker and Ear-mark of an oppressing Tally-man,
with a friendly description of a Bum-bailey, and his merciless setting
cur or Follower," appeared in 1678; and in the same year the Duke of
Buckingham's "Character of an Ugly Woman." In 1681 appeared the
"Character of a Disbanded Courtier," and in 1684 Oldham's "Character of
a certain ugly old P----." In 1686 followed "Twelve ingenious
Characters, or pleasant Descriptions of the Properties of sundry Persons
and Things." Sir William Coventry's "Character of a Trimmer," published
in 1689, had been written before 1659, when it had been answered by a
"Character of a Tory," not printed at the time, but included (1721) in
the works of George Villiers, second Duke of Buckingham. In 1689
appeared "Characters addressed to Ladies of Age," and also "The
Ceremony-Monger his Character, in Six Chapters, by E. Hickeringill,
Rector of All Saints, Colchester." Ohe! Enough, enough!_