Athenian:  Our citizens should not allow pleasures to strengthen with indulgence, but should by toil divert the aliment and exuberance of them into other parts of the body; and this will happen if no immodesty be allowed in the practice of love.  Then they will be ashamed of frequent intercourse, and they will find pleasure, if seldom enjoyed, to be a less imperious mistress.  They should not be found out doing anything of the sort.  Concealment shall be honourable, and sanctioned by custom and made law by unwritten prescription; on the other hand, to be detected shall be esteemed dishonourable, but not, to abstain wholly.  In this way there will be a second legal standard of honourable and dishonourable, involving a second notion of right.  Three principles will comprehend all those corrupt natures whom we call inferior to themselves, and who form but one class, and will compel them not to transgress.

Cleinias:  What are they?

Athenian:  The principle of piety, the love of honour, and the desire of beauty, not in the body but in the soul.  These are, perhaps, romantic aspirations; but they are the noblest of aspirations, if they could only be realised in all states, and, God willing, in the matter of love we may be able to enforce one of two things—­either that no one shall venture to touch any person of the freeborn or noble class except his wedded wife, or sow the unconsecrated and bastard seed among harlots, or in barren and unnatural lusts; or at least we may abolish altogether the connection of men with men; and as to women, if any man has to do with any but those who come into his house duly married by sacred rites, whether they be bought or acquired in any other way, and he offends publicly in the face of all mankind, we shall be right in enacting that he be deprived of civic honours and privileges, and be deemed to be, as he truly is, a stranger.  Let this law, then, whether it is one, or ought rather to be called two, be laid down respecting love in general, and the intercourse of the sexes which arises out of the desires, whether rightly or wrongly indulged.

Megillus:  I, for my part, Stranger, would gladly receive this law.  Cleinias shall speak for himself, and tell you what is his opinion.

Cleinias:  I will, Megillus, when an opportunity offers; at present, I think that we had better allow the Stranger to proceed with his laws.

Megillus:  Very good.

Athenian:  We had got about as far as the establishment of the common tables, which in most places would be difficult, but in Crete no one would think of introducing any other custom.  There might arise a question about the manner of them—­whether they shall be such as they are here in Crete, or such as they are in Lacedaemon—­or is there a third kind which may be better than either of them?  The answer to this question might be easily discovered, but the discovery would do no great good, for at present they are very well ordered.