hful, and eager to learn, he soon became a
favorite of Plato, who took great interest in him, and spared no pains
to make him a fine scholar and philosopher.

When Dion came back to Syracuse, he often spoke with great warmth of
his teacher. This so excited the curiosity of Dionysius, the new tyrant,
that he longed to see Plato himself. He therefore begged Dion to invite
Plato to Syracuse to teach him also.

The young man was very glad to do so. He hoped, that, under the
philosopher's wise teachings, Dionysius would learn to be good and
industrious, and thus become a blessing instead of a curse to his
people. But Plato was already an old man, and answered that he could not
undertake so long a journey at his advanced age.

Dion then wrote again such imploring letters, that the philosopher
finally decided to change his mind, and set sail for Syracuse. There he
was received at the shore by Dionysius in person, and escorted to the
palace.

For a short time the tyrant listened with great pleasure to the
philosopher's teachings. Then, growing weary of virtue as of everything
else, he suddenly began to reproach Dion for bringing such a tiresome
person to court.

All the courtiers had pretended to listen to Plato's teaching with the
greatest interest; but they liked feasting better than philosophy, and
now began to make fun of the great Athenian, and to turn him into
ridicule.

They were so afraid that the virtuous Dion would again win their fickle
master's ear, and induce him to do something really useful and
reasonable, that they made up their minds to get rid of him.

By artful slander they soon made Dionysius believe that his
brother-in-law was a traitor, and that his only wish was to take the
power, and become tyrant of Syracuse in his stead.

Now, these accusations were not true; but Dionysius believed them, and
sent Dion into exile, forbidding his wife, who loved him dearly, to go
with him, and even forcing her to take another husband instead.

The courtiers wished to revenge themselves for the weary hours they had
spent listening to Plato's beautiful talk, which they were too base to
understand, so they now said that he had helped Dion; and they had him
first put into prison, and then sold into slavery.

Happily, there were some of the philosopher's friends in town; and they,
hearing of this outrage, knew no rest until they had bought his freedom,
and sent him back to Athens to end his life in peace.

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