ΑΘ. πέφυκεν δὲ ἡ πόλεων ἐπιμειξία πόλεσιν ἤθη κεραννύναι παντοδαπά, καινοτομίας ἀλλήλοις ἐμποιούντων ξένων ξένοις· ὃ δὴ τοῖς μὲν εὖ πολιτευομένοις διὰ νόμων ὀρθῶν βλάβην ἂν φέροι μεγίστην πασῶν, ταῖς δὲ πλείσταις πόλεσιν, ἅτε οὐδαμῶς εὐνομουμέναις, οὐδὲν διαφέρει φύρεσθαι δεχομένους τε αὐτοῖς ξένους καὶ αὐτοὺς εἰς τὰς ἄλλας ἐπικωμάζοντας πόλεις, ὅταν ἐπιθυμήσῃ τις ἀποδημίας ὁπῃοῦν καὶ ὁπότε, εἴτε νέος εἴτε καὶ πρεσβύτερος ὤν. τὸ δʼ αὖ μήτε ἄλλους δέχεσθαι μήτε αὐτοὺς ἄλλοσε ἀποδημεῖν ἅμα μὲν οὐκ ἐγχωρεῖ τό γε παράπαν, ἔτι δὲ ἄγριον καὶ ἀπηνὲς φαίνοιτʼ ἂν τοῖς ἄλλοις ἀνθρώποις, ὀνόμασίν τε χαλεποῖς ταῖσιν λεγομέναις ξενηλασίαις χρωμένους καὶ τρόποις αὐθάδεσι καὶ χαλεποῖς, ὡς δοκοῖεν ἄν· χρὴ δὲ οὔποτε περὶ σμικροῦ ποιεῖσθαι τὸ δοκεῖν ἀγαθοὺς εἶναι τοῖς ἄλλοις ἢ μὴ δοκεῖν. οὐ γὰρ ὅσον οὐσίας ἀρετῆς ἀπεσφαλμένοι τυγχάνουσιν οἱ πολλοί, τοσοῦτον καὶ τοῦ κρίνειν τοὺς ἄλλους ὅσοι πονηροὶ καὶ χρηστοί, θεῖον δέ τι καὶ εὔστοχον ἔνεστι καὶ τοῖσιν κακοῖς, ὥστε πάμπολλοι καὶ τῶν σφόδρα κακῶν εὖ τοῖς λόγοις καὶ ταῖς δόξαις διαιροῦνται τοὺς ἀμείνους τῶν ἀνθρώπων καὶ τοὺς χείρονας. διὸ καλὸν ταῖς πολλαῖς πόλεσι τὸ παρακέλευμά ἐστιν, προτιμᾶν τὴν εὐδοξίαν πρὸς τῶν πολλῶν. τὸ μὲν γὰρ ὀρθότατον καὶ μέγιστον, ὄντα ἀγαθὸν ἀληθῶς οὕτω τὸν εὔδοξον βίον θηρεύειν, χωρὶς δὲ μηδαμῶς, τόν γε τέλεον ἄνδρα ἐσόμενον, καὶ δὴ καὶ τῇ κατὰ Κρήτην οἰκιζομένῃ πόλει πρέπον ἂν εἴη δόξαν πρὸς τῶν ἄλλων ἀνθρώπων ὅτι καλλίστην τε καὶ ἀρίστην παρασκευάζεσθαι πρὸς ἀρετήν· πᾶσα δʼ ἐλπὶς αὐτὴν ἐκ τῶν εἰκότων, ἄνπερ κατὰ λόγον γίγνηται, μετʼ ὀλίγων ἥλιον ὄψεσθαι καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους θεοὺς ἐν ταῖς εὐνόμοις πόλεσι καὶ χώραις. ὧδε οὖν χρὴ ποιεῖν περὶ ἀποδημίας εἰς ἄλλας χώρας καὶ τόπους καὶ περὶ ὑποδοχῆς ξένων. πρῶτον μὲν νεωτέρῳ ἐτῶν τετταράκοντα μὴ ἐξέστω ἀποδημῆσαι μηδαμῇ μηδαμῶς, ἔτι τε ἰδίᾳ μηδενί, δημοσίᾳ δʼ ἔστω κήρυξιν ἢ πρεσβείαις ἢ καί τισι θεωροῖς· τὰς δὲ κατὰ πόλεμον καὶ στρατείας ἀποδημίας οὐκ ἐν ἐκδημίαις πολιτικαῖς ἄξιον ἀγορεύειν ὡς τούτων οὔσας.
ΑΘ. The intermixture of States with States naturally results in a blending of characters of every kind, as strangers import among strangers novel customs: and this result would cause immense damage to peoples who enjoy a good polity under right laws; but the majority of States are by no means well governed, so that to them it makes no difference if their population is mixed through the citizens admitting strangers and through their own members visiting other States whenever any one of them, young or old, at any time or place, desires to go abroad. Now for the citizens to refuse altogether either to admit others or to go abroad themselves is by no means a possible policy, and, moreover, it would appear to the rest of the world to be both churlish and cross-grained, since they would get the reputation of adopting harsh language, such as that of the so-called “Aliens Expulsion Acts,” and methods both tyrannical and severe; and reputation in the eyes of others, whether for goodness or the reverse, is a thing that should never be lightly esteemed. For the majority of men, even though they be far removed from real goodness themselves, are not equally lacking in the power of judging whether others are bad or good; and even in the wicked there resides a divine and correct intuition, whereby a vast number even of the extremely wicked distinguish aright, in their speech and opinions, between the better men and the worse. Accordingly, for most States, the exhortation to value highly a good public reputation is a right exhortation. The most correct and most important rule is this,—that the man who pursues after a good reputation should himself be truly good, and that he should never pursue it without goodness (if he is to be really a perfect man); and furthermore, as regards the State we are founding in Crete, it would well become it to gain for itself in the eyes of the rest of the world the best and noblest reputation possible for goodness; and if it develop according to plan, there is every hope that, as is natural, it (and but few others) will be numbered among the well-ordered States and countries upon which the Sun and all the other gods look down. In regard, therefore, to the question of going abroad to other lands and places and of the admission of foreigners we must act as follows:—First, no man under forty years old shall be permitted to go abroad to any place whatsoever; next, no man shall be permitted to go abroad in a private capacity, but in a public capacity permission shall be granted to heralds, embassies, and certain commissions of inspection. Military expeditions in war it would be improper to reckon among official visits abroad.
ΑΘ. Πυθώδε τῷ Ἀπόλλωνι καὶ εἰς Ὀλυμπίαν τῷ Διὶ καὶ εἰς Νεμέαν καὶ εἰς Ἰσθμὸν χρὴ πέμπειν κοινωνοῦντας θυσιῶν τε καὶ ἀγώνων τούτοις τοῖς θεοῖς, πέμπειν δὲ εἰς δύναμιν ὅτι πλείστους ἅμα καὶ καλλίστους τε καὶ ἀρίστους, οἵτινες εὐδόκιμον τὴν πόλιν ἐν ἱεραῖς τε καὶ εἰρηνικαῖς συνουσίαις ποιήσουσι δοκεῖν, τοῖς περὶ τὸν πόλεμον ἀντίστροφον ἀποδιδόντες δόξης παρασκευήν, ἐλθόντες δὲ οἴκαδε διδάξουσι τοὺς νέους ὅτι δεύτερα τὰ τῶν ἄλλων ἐστὶ νόμιμα τὰ περὶ τὰς πολιτείας. θεωροὺς δὲ ἄλλους ἐκπέμπειν χρεὼν τοιούσδε τινὰς τοὺς νομοφύλακας παρεμένους· ἄν τινες ἐπιθυμῶσι τῶν πολιτῶν τὰ τῶν ἄλλων ἀνθρώπων πράγματα θεωρῆσαι κατά τινα πλείω σχολήν, ἀπειργέτω μηδεὶς τούτους νόμος. οὔτε γὰρ ἄπειρος οὖσα πόλις ἀνθρώπων κακῶν καὶ ἀγαθῶν δύναιτʼ ἄν ποτε, ἀνομίλητος οὖσα, ἥμερος ἱκανῶς εἶναι καὶ τέλεος, οὐδʼ αὖ τοὺς νόμους διαφυλάττειν ἄνευ τοῦ γνώμῃ λαβεῖν αὐτοὺς ἀλλὰ μὴ μόνον ἔθεσιν. εἰσὶ γὰρ ἐν τοῖς πολλοῖς ἄνθρωποι ἀεὶ θεῖοί τινες—οὐ πολλοί—παντὸς ἄξιοι συγγίγνεσθαι, φυόμενοι οὐδὲν μᾶλλον ἐν εὐνομουμέναις πόλεσιν ἢ καὶ μή, ὧν κατʼ ἴχνος ἀεὶ χρὴ τὸν ἐν ταῖς εὐνομουμέναις πόλεσιν οἰκοῦντα, ἐξιόντα κατὰ θάλατταν καὶ γῆν, ζητεῖν ὃς ἂν ἀδιάφθαρτος ᾖ, τὰ μὲν βεβαιούμενον τῶν νομίμων, ὅσα καλῶς αὐτοῖς κεῖται, τὰ δʼ ἐπανορθούμενον, εἴ τι παραλείπεται. ἄνευ γὰρ ταύτης τῆς θεωρίας καὶ ζητήσεως οὐ μένει ποτὲ τελέως πόλις, οὐδʼ ἂν κακῶς αὐτὴν θεωρῶσιν.
ΚΛ. πῶς οὖν ἂν γίγνοιτʼ ἀμφότερα;
ΑΘ. τῇδε. πρῶτον μὲν ὁ θεωρὸς ὁ τοιοῦτος ἡμῖν γεγονὼς ἔστω πλειόνων ἐτῶν ἢ πεντήκοντα, ἔτι δὲ τῶν εὐδοκίμων τά τε ἄλλα καὶ εἰς τὸν πόλεμον ἔστω γεγενημένος, εἰ μέλλει τὸ τῶν νομοφυλάκων δεῖγμα εἰς τὰς ἄλλας μεθήσειν πόλεις· πλέον δὲ ἑξήκοντα γεγονὼς ἐτῶν μηκέτι θεωρείτω. θεωρήσας δὲ ὁπόσʼ ἂν ἔτη βουληθῇ τῶν δέκα καὶ ἀφικόμενος οἴκαδε, εἰς τὸν σύλλογον ἴτω τὸν τῶν περὶ νόμους ἐποπτευόντων· οὗτος δʼ ἔστω νέων καὶ πρεσβυτέρων μεμειγμένος, ἑκάστης μὲν ἡμέρας συλλεγόμενος ἐξ ἀνάγκης ἀπʼ ὄρθρου μέχριπερ ἂν ἥλιος ἀνάσχῃ, πρῶτον μὲν τῶν ἱερέων τῶν τὰ ἀριστεῖα εἰληφότων, ἔπειτα τῶν νομοφυλάκων τοὺς ἀεὶ πρεσβεύοντας δέκα. ἔτι ὁ περὶ τῆς παιδείας πάσης ἐπιμελητὴς ὅ τε νέος οἵ τε ἐκ τῆς ἀρχῆς ταύτης ἀπηλλαγμένοι. ἕκαστος δὲ τούτων μὴ μόνος, ἀλλʼ ἴτω μετὰ νέου ἀπὸ τριάκοντα ἐτῶν μέχρι τετταράκοντα, τὸν ἀρέσκοντα αὑτῷ προσλαμβάνων.
ΑΘ. It is right that embassies should be sent to Apollo at Pytho and to Zeus at Olympia, and to Nemea and the Isthmus, to take part in the sacrifices and games in honor of these gods; and it is right also that the ambassadors thus sent should be, so far as is practicable, as numerous, noble and good as possible,—men who will gain for the State a high reputation in the sacred congresses of peace, and confer on it a glorious repute that will rival that of its warriors; and these men, when they return home, will teach the youth that the political institutions of other countries are inferior to their own. Also, they ought to send out other inspecting commissioners (when they have obtained leave from the Law-wardens) of the following kind:—If any of the citizens desire to survey the doings of the outside world in a leisurely way, no law shall prevent them; for a State that is without experience of bad men and good would never be able (owing to its isolation) to become fully civilized and perfect, nor would it be able to safeguard its laws unless it grasped them, not by habit only, but also by conviction. Amongst the mass of men there always exist—albeit in small numbers—men that are divinely inspired; intercourse with such men is of the greatest value, and they spring up in badly-governed States just as much as in those that are well governed. In search of these men it is always right for one who dwells in a well-ordered State to go forth on a voyage of enquiry by land and sea, if so be that he himself is incorruptible, so as to confirm thereby such of his native laws as are rightly enacted, and to amend any that are deficient. For without this inspection and enquiry a State will not permanently remain perfect, nor again if the inspection be badly conducted.
Clin. How, then, might both these objects be secured?
Ath. In this way. First, our overseas inspector shall be more than fifty years old; secondly, he shall have proved himself a man of high repute both in military and other affairs, if it is intended that he shall be despatched into other States with the approval of the Law-wardens; but when he has passed sixty years of age, he shall cease to act as inspector. When he has been inspecting for as many years out of the ten as he wishes and has returned home, he shall go to the synod of those who supervise the laws; and this synod shall be a mixed body of young men and old which is obliged to meet every day between dawn and sunrise; it shall consist, first, of the priests who have gained the award of merit, and secondly, of the ten senior Law-wardens; and it shall also include the President of Education who has been last appointed, and his predecessors in office as well. None of these members shall go alone, but each of them shall bring with him a companion—a young man, selected by himself, between thirty and forty years old.
ΑΘ. τὴν δὲ συνουσίαν εἶναι τούτοις καὶ τοὺς λόγους περὶ νόμων ἀεὶ τῆς τε οἰκείας πόλεως πέρι, καὶ ἐὰν ἄλλοθι πυνθάνωνταί τι περὶ τῶν τοιούτων διαφέρον, καὶ δὴ καὶ περὶ μαθημάτων, ὁπόσʼ ἂν ἐν ταύτῃ τῇ σκέψει δοκῇ συμφέρειν μαθοῦσι μὲν εὐαγέστερον γίγνεσθαι, μὴ μαθοῦσι δὲ σκοτωδέστερα τὰ περὶ νόμους αὐτοῖς φαίνεσθαι καὶ ἀσαφῆ. ἃ δʼ ἂν τούτων ἐγκρίνωσιν οἱ γεραίτεροι, τοὺς νεωτέρους πάσῃ σπουδῇ μανθάνειν, ἐὰν δέ τις ἀνάξιος δοκῇ τῶν παρακεκλημένων εἶναι, τῷ παρακαλοῦντι μέμφεσθαι τὸν σύλλογον ὅλον· τοὺς δʼ εὐδοκιμοῦντας τούτων τῶν νέων φυλάττειν τὴν ἄλλην πόλιν, ἀποβλέποντας εἰς αὐτοὺς διαφερόντως τε τηροῦντας, καὶ τιμᾶν μὲν κατορθοῦντας, ἀτιμάζειν δὲ μᾶλλον τῶν ἄλλων, ἐὰν ἀποβαίνωσι χείρους τῶν πολλῶν. εἰς δὴ τοῦτον τὸν σύλλογον ὁ θεωρήσας τὰ ἐν τοῖς ἄλλοις ἀνθρώποις νόμιμα ἀφικόμενος εὐθὺς πορευέσθω, καὶ εἴ τινα φήμην τινῶν περὶ θέσεως νόμων ἢ παιδείας ἢ τροφῆς ηὗρεν τινας ἔχοντας φράζειν, εἴτε καὶ αὐτὸς νενοηκὼς ἄττα ἥκοι, κοινούτω τῷ συλλόγῳ ἅπαντι· καὶ ἐάντε μηδὲν χείρων μηδέ τι βελτίων ἥκειν δόξῃ, χάριν γοῦν τῆς σφόδρα προθυμίας αἰνείσθω, ἐὰν δὲ πολὺ βελτίων, πολύ τʼ ἐπαινείσθω μᾶλλον ζῶν, τελευτήσαντά τε τιμαῖς αὐτὸν προσηκούσαις ἡ τῶν συλλεγομένων τιμάτω δύναμις. ἐὰν δὲ διεφθαρμένος ἀφικέσθαι δόξῃ, μηδενὶ συγγιγνέσθω μήτε νέῳ μήτε πρεσβυτέρῳ προσποιούμενος εἶναι σοφός· καὶ ἐὰν μὲν πείθηται τοῖς ἄρχουσιν, ἰδιώτης ζήτω, ἐὰν δὲ μή, τεθνάτω, ἐάν γʼ ἐν δικαστηρίῳ ἁλῷ πολυπραγμονῶν τι περὶ τὴν παιδείαν καὶ τοὺς νόμους. ἐὰν δὲ ἄξιον ὄντα εἰς δικαστήριον εἰσάγειν ἀρχόντων μηδεὶς εἰσάγῃ, ὄνειδος ἀποκείσθω τοῖς ἄρχουσιν εἰς τὴν τῶν ἀριστείων διαδικασίαν.ὁ μὲν οὖν ἐκδημῶν οὕτω καὶ τοιοῦτος ὢν ἐκδημείτω, τὸν δʼ εἰσεπιδημήσαντα μετὰ τοῦτον χρὴ φιλοφρονεῖσθαι. τέτταρες δʼ εἰσὶ ξένοι ὧν δεῖ πέρι λόγον τινὰ ποιεῖσθαι· ὁ μὲν δὴ πρῶτός τε καὶ διὰ τέλους ἀεὶ θερινὸς ὡς τὰ πολλὰ διατελῶν ταῖς φοιτήσεσιν, καθάπερ οἱ τῶν ὀρνίθων διαπορευόμενοι—καὶ τούτων οἱ πολλοὶ κατὰ θάλατταν ἀτεχνῶς οἷον πετόμενοι χρηματισμοῦ χάριν ἐμπορευόμενοι ἔτους ὥραν πέτονται πρὸς τὰς ἄλλας πόλεις—
Ath. Their conference and discourse shall deal always with the subject of laws and of their own State, and with anything important they may have learnt elsewhere which bears on this subject, or any branches of knowledge which are thought likely to assist in their enquiry, in that the learning of them helps towards a clearer view of legal matters, whereas ignorance of them conduces to a view that is dim and blurred. Whatsoever of these matters are approved by the elder members the younger shall learn with all diligence; and should any of the young men invited to attend be deemed unworthy, the person who has invited him shall be censured by the whole synod, but such of them as are held in good repute shall be watched over by the rest of the citizens, who shall regard and observe them with special care, honoring them when they do right, but dishonoring them more than other men if they turn out worse than most. To this synod he that has inspected the legal institutions of other peoples shall repair immediately after his return home; and if he has discovered any persons able to declare any oracle regarding legislation or education or nurture, or if he has brought back any personal observations of his own, he shall communicate them to the whole synod; and if it appear that he has come back in no respect worse (nor yet any better) than when he went, still because of his extreme zeal he shall be commended; while if it appear that he has come back much better, he shall be much more highly commended during his life, and when dead, due honors shall be paid to him by the synod’s authority. But if, on the other hand, such an inspector appear to be corrupted on his return, in spite of his pretensions to wisdom, he shall be forbidden to associate with anyone, young or old; wherein if he obeys the magistrates, he shall live as a private person, but if not, he shall be put to death—if, that is to say, he be convicted in a court of law of being a meddler in respect of education and the laws. And if, when such an one deserves to be summoned before a court, none of the magistrates summons him, the magistrates shall be censured at the adjudication of awards of merit. Such, then, shall be the character and the procedure of him that travels abroad. Next to him we must deal in friendly wise with the visitor from abroad. There are four types of stranger which call for mention. The first and inevitable immigrant is the one who chooses summer, as a rule, for his annual visits, in the fashion of migratory birds— and, like birds, the most of these cross the sea, just as if they had wings, for the sake of making gain by their trading, and fly over to foreign cities during the summer season;
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