rving and taking care of the
household and bringing up the children, in which they will observe a
sort of mean, not participating in the toils of war; and if there were
any necessity that they should fight for their city and families, unlike
the Amazons, they would be unable to take part in archery or any other
skilled use of missiles, nor could they, after the example of the
Goddess, carry shield or spear, or stand up nobly for their country when
it was being destroyed, and strike terror into their enemies, if only
because they were seen in regular order? Living as they do, they would
never dare at all to imitate the Sauromatides, who, when compared with
ordinary women, would appear to be like men. Let him who will, praise
your legislators, but I must say what I think. The legislator ought to
be whole and perfect, and not half a man only; he ought not to let the
female sex live softly and waste money and have no order of life, while
he takes the utmost care of the male sex, and leaves half of life only
blest with happiness, when he might have made the whole state happy.

MEGILLUS: What shall we do, Cleinias? Shall we allow a stranger to run
down Sparta in this fashion?

CLEINIAS: Yes; for as we have given him liberty of speech we must let
him go on until we have perfected the work of legislation.

MEGILLUS: Very true.

ATHENIAN: Then now I may proceed?

CLEINIAS: By all means.

ATHENIAN: What will be the manner of life among men who may be supposed
to have their food and clothing provided for them in moderation, and who
have entrusted the practice of the arts to others, and whose husbandry
committed to slaves paying a part of the produce, brings them a return
sufficient for men living temperately; who, moreover, have common tables
in which the men are placed apart, and near them are the common tables
of their families, of their daughters and mothers, which day by day,
the officers, male and female, are to inspect--they shall see to the
behaviour of the company, and so dismiss them; after which the presiding
magistrate and his attendants shall honour with libations those Gods to
whom that day and night are dedicated, and then go home? To men whose
lives are thus ordered, is there no work remaining to be done which is
necessary and fitting, but shall each one of them live fattening like a
beast? Such a life is neither just nor honourable, nor can he who lives
it fail of meeting his due; and the due reward of the id