mbitious will suffer for honour's sake, or
those who are desirous of praise on account of glory, or lovers to gratify
their lust. Life is full of such instances.

XXVIII. But let us not dwell too much on these questions, but rather let
us return to our subject. I say, and say again, that happiness will submit
even to be tormented; and that in pursuit of justice, and temperance, and
still more especially and principally fortitude, and greatness of soul,
and patience, it will not stop short at sight of the executioner; and when
all other virtues proceed calmly to the torture, that one will never halt,
as I said, on the outside and threshold of the prison: for what can be
baser, what can carry a worse appearance, than to be left alone, separated
from those beautiful attendants? not however that this is by any means
possible: for neither can the virtues hold together without happiness, nor
happiness without the virtues: so that they will not suffer her to desert
them, but will carry her along with them, to whatever torments, to
whatever pain they are led. For it is the peculiar quality of a wise man
to do nothing that he may repent of, nothing against his inclination: but
always to act nobly, with constancy, gravity, and honesty: to depend on
nothing as certainty: to wonder at nothing, when it falls out, as if it
appeared strange and unexpected to him: to be independent of every one,
and abide by his own opinion. For my part, I cannot form an idea of
anything happier than this. The conclusion of the Stoics is indeed easy;
for since they are persuaded that the end of good is to live agreeably to
nature, and to be consistent with that,--as a wise man should do so, not
only because it is his duty, but because it is in his power, it must of
course follow, that whoever has the chief good in his power, has his
happiness so too. And thus the life of a wise man is always happy. You
have here what I think may be confidently said of a happy life, and as
things now stand, very truly also, unless you can advance something
better.

XXIX. _A._ Indeed I cannot; but I should be glad to prevail on you, unless
it is troublesome (as you are under no confinement from obligations to any
particular sect, but gather from all of them whatever strikes you most as
having the appearance of probability), as you just now seemed to advise
the Peripatetics and the Old Academy, boldly to speak out without reserve,
"that wise men are always the happiest,"-