ur former admissions are to stand:--is any other inference
consistent with them?

POLUS: To that, Socrates, there can be but one answer.

SOCRATES: Then rhetoric is of no use to us, Polus, in helping a man to
excuse his own injustice, that of his parents or friends, or children or
country; but may be of use to any one who holds that instead of excusing
he ought to accuse--himself above all, and in the next degree his family
or any of his friends who may be doing wrong; he should bring to light
the iniquity and not conceal it, that so the wrong-doer may suffer
and be made whole; and he should even force himself and others not to
shrink, but with closed eyes like brave men to let the physician operate
with knife or searing iron, not regarding the pain, in the hope of
attaining the good and the honourable; let him who has done things
worthy of stripes, allow himself to be scourged, if of bonds, to be
bound, if of a fine, to be fined, if of exile, to be exiled, if of
death, to die, himself being the first to accuse himself and his own
relations, and using rhetoric to this end, that his and their unjust
actions may be made manifest, and that they themselves may be delivered
from injustice, which is the greatest evil. Then, Polus, rhetoric would
indeed be useful. Do you say 'Yes' or 'No' to that?

POLUS: To me, Socrates, what you are saying appears very strange, though
probably in agreement with your premises.

SOCRATES: Is not this the conclusion, if the premises are not disproven?

POLUS: Yes; it certainly is.

SOCRATES: And from the opposite point of view, if indeed it be our
duty to harm another, whether an enemy or not--I except the case of
self-defence--then I have to be upon my guard--but if my enemy injures
a third person, then in every sort of way, by word as well as deed, I
should try to prevent his being punished, or appearing before the judge;
and if he appears, I should contrive that he should escape, and not
suffer punishment: if he has stolen a sum of money, let him keep what
he has stolen and spend it on him and his, regardless of religion and
justice; and if he have done things worthy of death, let him not die,
but rather be immortal in his wickedness; or, if this is not possible,
let him at any rate be allowed to live as long as he can. For such
purposes, Polus, rhetoric may be useful, but is of small if of any use
to him who is not intending to commit injustice; at least, there was no
such use discove