The mob has no ruler more potent than superstition.
Timid dogs more eagerly bark than bite.
A timid dog barks more violently than it bites. Curtius Canis timidus vehementius latrat quam mordet
Fear makes men believe the worst.
When the truth cannot be clearly made out, what is false is increased through fear.
A cowardly cur barks more fiercely than it bites.