To steale the Hog, and give the feet for almes. [To steal the hog, and give the feet to alms.]

This quote essentially refers to the act of taking something that doesn’t belong to you, benefiting from it, and then giving away a small part of it in an attempt to appear generous or charitable. In this context, the hog represents something valuable or substantial and the feet represent a smaller, less significant portion of that value.

The metaphor is quite vivid: imagine someone stealing a whole hog (a valuable asset in Herbert’s time), using most of it for their own gain, but then donating the feet (the least valuable part) as alms or charity. The person might feel they are doing something good by giving away part of their ill-gotten gains, but fundamentally they have acted dishonestly by taking what wasn’t theirs in the first place.

In today’s world, this idea could apply to various situations where people try to mask unethical actions with superficial generosity. For example, someone might illegally download music or movies (stealing the hog), but then donate a small amount to an artists’ fund (giving away the feet). Or a corporation might exploit workers or damage environments in other countries for profit (stealing the hog), but then make high-profile donations to social causes at home (giving away the feet).

In terms of personal development, this quote can serve as a reminder about true integrity and honesty. It suggests that real generosity isn’t about giving away what we don’t need or want; instead it’s about respecting others’ rights and contributions from start. So rather than trying to compensate for unethical actions with token gestures afterwards, we should aim for fairness and respect in all our dealings.