nk that he will commit them to me.

Will not the Athenian people, too, entrust their affairs to you when
they see that you have wisdom enough to manage them?

Yes.

And oh! let me put another case, I said: There is the great king, and he
has an eldest son, who is the Prince of Asia;--suppose that you and I go
to him and establish to his satisfaction that we are better cooks than
his son, will he not entrust to us the prerogative of making soup, and
putting in anything that we like while the pot is boiling, rather than
to the Prince of Asia, who is his son?

To us, clearly.

And we shall be allowed to throw in salt by handfuls, whereas the son
will not be allowed to put in as much as he can take up between his
fingers?

Of course.

Or suppose again that the son has bad eyes, will he allow him, or will
he not allow him, to touch his own eyes if he thinks that he has no
knowledge of medicine?

He will not allow him.

Whereas, if he supposes us to have a knowledge of medicine, he will
allow us to do what we like with him--even to open the eyes wide and
sprinkle ashes upon them, because he supposes that we know what is best?

That is true.

And everything in which we appear to him to be wiser than himself or his
son he will commit to us?

That is very true, Socrates, he replied.

Then now, my dear Lysis, I said, you perceive that in things which
we know every one will trust us,--Hellenes and barbarians, men and
women,--and we may do as we please about them, and no one will like to
interfere with us; we shall be free, and masters of others; and these
things will be really ours, for we shall be benefited by them. But in
things of which we have no understanding, no one will trust us to do as
seems good to us--they will hinder us as far as they can; and not only
strangers, but father and mother, and the friend, if there be one, who
is dearer still, will also hinder us; and we shall be subject to others;
and these things will not be ours, for we shall not be benefited by
them. Do you agree?

He assented.

And shall we be friends to others, and will any others love us, in as
far as we are useless to them?

Certainly not.

Neither can your father or mother love you, nor can anybody love anybody
else, in so far as they are useless to them?

No.

And therefore, my boy, if you are wise, all men will be your friends
and kindred, for you will be useful and good; but if you are not wise,
neither father, nor mo