Source: Galateo: Or, A Treatise on Politeness and Delicacy of Manners, p. 6
“Always, Sir, set a high value on spontaneous kindness. He whose inclination prompts him to cultivate your friendship of his own accord, will love you more than one whom you have been at pains to attach to you.”
1781, p. 479
Life of Samuel Johnson (1791), Vol IV
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Samuel Johnson 362
English writer 1709–1784Related quotes
Source: How to Become President (1940), Ch. 6 : How not to offend anybody
Franklin himself calls this an "old maxim" when he repeats it at page 48 http://www.ushistory.org/franklin/autobiography/page48.htm of his autobiography.
Franklin's recognition of this effect caused it to be named after him. Wikipedia, Ben Franklin Effect https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ben_Franklin_effect.
Misattributed
Where Is God (2009, Thomas Nelson publishers)
“I am his Highness' dog at Kew;
Pray tell me, sir, whose dog are you?”
"On the Collar of a Dog".
“If you set a high value on liberty, you must set a low value on everything else.”
Epistulae Morales ad Lucilium (Moral Letters to Lucilius), Letter CIV: On Care of Health and Peace of Mind