It is eafy to judge, that men of the fophift's character, of which I have now poke, who were in high credit with the great, who lorded it amongst the youth of Athens, and had been long celebrated for their wit and learning, could not be attacked with impunity; and the rather, becaufe they had been taken in the two moft fenfible points, their fame, and their intereft. (z) Socrates, for having endeavoured to unmask their vices, and difcredit their falfe eloquence, experienced, from thefe corrupt and haughty men, all that could be feared or expected from the moft malignant envy, and the most envenomed hatred; to which it is now time to proceed.

SECT. VI. SOCRATES is accused of holding bad opinions in regard to the gods, and of corrupting the Athenian youth. He defends bimfelf without art or fear. He is condemned to die.

OCRATES was accufed a little before the first year of the 95th Olympiad, foon after the expulfion of the thirty tyrants out of Athens, in the fixty-ninth of his life; but the profecution had been projected long before. The oracle of Delphos, which had declared him the wifeft of mankind; the contempt into which he had brought the doctrine and morals of the fophifts of his time, who were then in high reputation; the liberty with which he attacked all vice; the fingular attachment of his difciples for his perfon and maxims, had all con curred in alienating people against him, and had drawn aбundance of envy upon him.

(x) His enemies having fworn his deftruction, and perceiving the difficulty of the attempt, prepared the way for it at distance, and at firft attacked him in the dark, and by obfcure and fecret methods. It is faid, that to found the people's difpofition in regard to Socrates, and to try whether it would ever be fafe to cite him before the judges, they engaged Ariftophanes to bring him into the theatre in a comedy, wherein the first feeds of the accufation meditated against him were fown, It is not certain whether Ariftophanes was fuborned by Anytus, and the rest of Socrates's enemies, to compofe that fatyrical piece against him. It is very likely, that the declared contempt of Socrates for all comedies in general, and for those of Aristophanes in particular, whilft he propofed an extraordinary esteem for the tragedies of Euripides, might be the poet's true motive for taking his revenge on the philofopher. However it were, Ariftophanes, to the difgrace of poetry, lent his pen to the malice

Plat. in Apolog.. p. 23.

A. M..3602. Ant. J. C. 402. Ælian. 1. ii. c. 13. Plat, in Apolog. Socrat. p. 19.

malice of Socrates's enemies, or his own refentment, and employed his whole genius and capacity to depreciate the best and most excellent man that ever the pagan world produced.

He composed a piece called The Clouds, wherein he introduced the philofopher, perched in a basket, and hoifted up amidst the air and clouds, from whence he vents maxims, or rather the most ridiculous fubtleties. A very aged debtor, who defires to escape the close purfuits of his creditors, comes to him to be taught the art of tricking them at law; to prove by unanfwerable reasons that he owes them nothing; and, in a word, of a very bad, to make a very good caufe. But finding himself incapable of any new improvements from the fublime - Jeffons of his new mafter, he brings his fon to him in his ftead. This young man foon after quits this learned school fo well inftructed, that at their first meeting he beats his father, and proves to him by fubtle, but invincible arguments, that he has reason for treating him in that manner. In every scene where Socrates appears, the poet makes him utter a thoufand impertinencies, and as many impieties against the gods; and in particular againft Jupiter. He makes him talk like a man of the greateft vanity and opinion of himfelf, with an equal contempt for all others, who out of a criminal curiofity is for penetrating what paffes in the heavens, and for diving into the abyfies of the earth; who boasts of having always the means to make injuftice triumph; and who is not contented with keepingthose secrets for his own use, but teaches them to others, and thereby corrupts youth. All this is attended with a refined raillery, and a falt, which could not fail of pleafing a people of fo quick and delicate a tafte as the Athenians, who were befides naturally invidious to all tranfcendent merit. They were fo much charmed with it, that without waiting the conclufion of the reprefentation, they ordered the name of Ariftophanes to be fet down above thofe of all his competitors.

Socrates, who had been informed that he was to be acted in the theatre, went thither upon the day to fee the comedy, contrary to his custom; for it was not common for him to go to thofe affemblies, unless when fome new tragedy of Euripides was to be performed, who was his intimate friend, and whofe pieces he esteemed, upon account of the folid principles of morality he took care to Interfperfe in them. It was however cbferved, that he had not patience to wait the conclufion of one of them, wherein the actor had began with a dangerous maxim, and went out immediately, without confidering the injury his withdrawing might do his friend's reputation. He never went to comedies, unless when Alcibiades and Critias

2

forced

him thither against his will, offended at the unbounded licence which reigned in them, and incapable of seeing the reputation of his fellow-citizens publickly torn in pieces. He was prefent at this without the leaft emotion, and without expreffing any discontent; and some strangers being in pain to know who the Socrates (2) intended by the play was, he rose up from his feat, and fhewed himself during the whole representation. He told those who were near him, and were amazed at his indifference and patience, that he imagined himself at a great entertainment, where he was agreeably laughed at, and that it was neceflary to let raillery pass.

There is no appearance, as I have already obferved, that Ariftophanes, though he was not Socrates's friend, had entered into the black confpiracy of his enemies, and had any thought of occafioning his deftruction. It is more probable, that a poet, who diverted the publick at the expence of the principal magiftrates and moft celebrated generals, was alfo willing to make them laugh at the expence of a philofopher. All the guilt was on the fide of those who envied him, and his enemies, who were in hopes of making great use of the representation of this comedy against him. The artifice was indeed profound, and conceived with skill. In acting a man upon the ftage, he is only represented on his bad, weak, or ambiguous fides. That view of him is followed with ridicule: Ridicule accustoms people to the contempt of his perfon, and contempt proceeds to injuftice. For the world are naturally bold in infulting, abufing, and injuring a man, when once he becomes the object of their contempt.

Thefe were the first blows ftruck at him, and ferved as an effay and tryal of the great affair meditated against him. It lay dormant a long while, and did not break out in twenty years afterwards. The troubles of the republick might well occafion that long delay. For it was in that interval the enterprize against Sicily happened, the event of which was fo unfortunate, that Athens was befieged and taken by Lyfander, who changed its form of government, and established the thirty tyrants, that were not expelled till a very small time before the affair we speak of.

• Melitus then appeared as accufer, and entered a process in form against Socrates. His accufation confifted of two heads. The first was, that he did not admit the gods acknowledged by the republick, and introduced new divinities: The fecond, that he corrupted the youth of Athens; and concluded with inferring, that fentence of death ought to pafs against him.

(z) Plut. de educ. liber. p. 10

Never

* A. M. 3603. Ant, J. C,403,

Never had accufation fo little probability, pretext, or foundation as this. It was now forty years, that Socrates had made it his profeffion to inftruct the Athenian youth. He had advanced no opinions in fecret, and in the dark. His lessons were given publickly and in the view of great numbers of au ditors. He had always obferved the fame conduct, and taught the fame principles. What then could be Melitus's motive for this accufation, after such a length of time? How came his zeal for the publick good, after having been languid and drowfy for fo many years, to awake on a fudden, and become fo violent? Is it pardonable, for fo warm and worthy a citizen as Melitus would appear, to have continued mute and inactive, whilft any one corrupted the whole youth of that city, by inftilling feditious maxims into them, and by infpiring them with a difgust and contempt for the established government? For he who does not prevent an evil, when it is in his power, is equally criminal with him that commits it. (6) Libanius fpeaks thus in a declamation of his called the Apology of Socrates. But, continues he, though Melitus, whether out of distraction, indifference, or real avocation of his affairs, never thought for fo many years of entering an accufation against Socrates; how it came to pafs, that in a city like Athens, which abounded with wife magiftrates, and, what is more, with bold informers, fo publick a confpiracy, as that imputed to Socrates, fhould efcape the eyes of thofe, whom either the love of their country, or invidious malignity, render fo vi gilant and attentive? Nothing was ever lefs feasible, or more void of all probability.

(c) As foon as the confpiracy broke out, the friends of Socrates prepared for his defence. Lyfias, the moft able orator of his times, brought him an elaborate difcourfe of his compofing; wherein he had fet forth the reafons and measures of Socrates in all their light, and interfperfed the whole with tender and pathetick ftrokes, (4) capable of moving the most obdurate hearts. Socrates read it with pleafure, and approved it very much; but as it was more conformable to the rules of rhetorick than the fentiments and fortitude of a philofopher, he told him frankly, that it did not fuit him. Upon which Lyfias, having afked how it was poffible to be well done, and at the fame time not fuit him; in the fame manner, faid he, wing according to his custom a vulgar comparison, that an excellent workman might bring me magnificent apparel, or fhoes embroidered with gold, to which nothing would be want

(6) Liban. in Apolog. Socrat, p. 645-648. A. 131, 233. (4) Quint, 1. xí, e, i,

ing

(6) Cicer. Li, de Orato

ing on his part, but which however would not fit me. He perfifted therefore inflexibly in the resolution, not to demean himfelf by begging fuffrages in the low abject manner common at that time. He employed neither artifice nor the glitter of eloquence. He had no recourse either to follicitation or entreaty. He brought neither his wife nor children to incline the judges in his favour by their fighs and tears. Nevertheless, though he firmly refufed to make use of any voice but his own in his defence, and to appear before his judges in the fubmiffive posture of a fuppliant, he did not behave in that manner out of pride, or contempt of the tribunal. It was from a noble and intrepid affurance, refulting from greatness of foul, and the confcioufnefs of his truth and innocence. So that his defence had nothing timorous or weak in it. His difcourfe was bold, manly, generous, without paffion, without emotion, full of the noble liberty of a philofopher, with no other ornament but that of truth, and brightened univerfally with the character and language of innocence. Plato, who was prefent, transcribed it afterwards, and without any additions compofed from it the work, which he calls The Apology of Socrates, one of the moit confummate master-pieces of antiquity. I fhall here make an extract from it.

(e) Upon the day affigned, the proceeding commenced in the ufual forms; the parties appeared before the judges, and Melitus fpoke. The worfe his caufe, and the lefs provided it was with proofs, the more occafion he had for address and art to cover its weakness. He omitted nothing that might render the adverse party odious; and instead of reasons, which could not but fail him, he substituted the delufive fhine of a lively and pompous eloquence. Socrates, in obferving that he could not tell what impreffion the difcourfe of his accufers might make upon the judges, owns, that for his part he scarce knew himfelf, they had given fuch artful colouring and likelihood to their arguments, though there was not the leaft word of truth in all they had advanced.

(f) I have already faid, that their accufation confifted of two heads. The first regards religion. Socrates enquires out of an impious curiofity into what paffes in the heavens, and in the bowels of the earth. He denies the gods adored by his country. He endeavours to introduce a new worship, and, if

he

(e) Plat. in Apolog. Socrat. Xenoph in Apolog. Socrat & in Memor. (f) Plat. in Apolog. p. 24.

His et talibus adductus Socrates, | nec patronum quæfivit ad judicium capitis, nec judicibus fupplex fuit; ad

hibuitque liberam contumaciam à magnitudine animi du&am, non à fuperbia. Cic. Tusc. Quæft, 1, i,