is, their money--into some one else who is not on
his guard against them, and recover the parent sum many times over
multiplied into a family of children: and so they make drone and pauper
to abound in the State.

Yes, he said, there are plenty of them--that is certain.

The evil blazes up like a fire; and they will not extinguish it, either
by restricting a man's use of his own property, or by another remedy:

What other?

One which is the next best, and has the advantage of compelling the
citizens to look to their characters:--Let there be a general rule that
every one shall enter into voluntary contracts at his own risk, and
there will be less of this scandalous money-making, and the evils of
which we were speaking will be greatly lessened in the State.

Yes, they will be greatly lessened.

At present the governors, induced by the motives which I have named,
treat their subjects badly; while they and their adherents, especially
the young men of the governing class, are habituated to lead a life
of luxury and idleness both of body and mind; they do nothing, and are
incapable of resisting either pleasure or pain.

Very true.

They themselves care only for making money, and are as indifferent as
the pauper to the cultivation of virtue.

Yes, quite as indifferent.

Such is the state of affairs which prevails among them. And often rulers
and their subjects may come in one another's way, whether on a journey
or on some other occasion of meeting, on a pilgrimage or a march,
as fellow-soldiers or fellow-sailors; aye and they may observe the
behaviour of each other in the very moment of danger--for where danger
is, there is no fear that the poor will be despised by the rich--and
very likely the wiry sunburnt poor man may be placed in battle at the
side of a wealthy one who has never spoilt his complexion and has
plenty of superfluous flesh--when he sees such an one puffing and at his
wits'-end, how can he avoid drawing the conclusion that men like him are
only rich because no one has the courage to despoil them? And when they
meet in private will not people be saying to one another 'Our warriors
are not good for much'?

Yes, he said, I am quite aware that this is their way of talking.

And, as in a body which is diseased the addition of a touch from without
may bring on illness, and sometimes even when there is no external
provocation a commotion may arise within--in the same way wherever there
is weakness in t