" Pressures were just as intense in Newton's day, and more personal. It was cutthroat competition, literally."
Heck, he might have been jailed for his work in alchemy alone. (Though alchemy became legal again in his lifetime.)
Those were tough times in Jolly Old England. The King was beheaded and all his cronies were in danger. It was nearly every man for himself. Newton was tough and used every available tool to keep his position, rode roughshod over competitors.