ProverbHuman Nature
English origin
English originFoolish pity spoils a city.
Meaning: Indiscriminate compassion toward the undeserving undermines social order and justice.
Origin: Recorded in A Dictionary of English Proverbs and Proverbial Phrases, an undated collection published in London by Whittaker & Co. around 1880 and credited to Thomas Preston. Its earlier history hasn't been traced.
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