“The custom is, sir, that those who know a situation handle it and those who don’t watch and learn, or get out of the way.”" - Meaning and context.">
Book 1, Chapter 4 (p. 34)
“

“You’ve behaved very highhandedly, Captain Mallory. Is that the custom out here?”
“The custom is, sir, that those who know a situation handle it and those who don’t watch and learn, or get out of the way.”

— C. J. Cherryh

What It Means

This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "“You’ve behaved very highhandedly, Captain Mallory. Is that the custom out here?”
“The custom is, sir, that those who know a situation handle it and those who don’t watch and learn, or get out of the way.”" in the context of "Book 1, Chapter 4 (p. 34)" to mean that wisdom is timeless.

Source: Wikiquote: "C. J. Cherryh" (Quotes, Downbelow Station (1981): All page numbers from the trade paperback edition published by Daw Books (First trade printing, December 2008) ) The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed January 18, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app
C. J. Cherryh

About C. J. Cherryh

C. J. Cherryh (born Carolyn Janice Cherry on 1 September 1942) is an American science fiction and fantasy author.