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552 The propriety or impropriety of male loves. Sym- women of free birth. These are the persons who bring a postum. reproach on love ; and some have been led to deny the law- Pausanias. fulness of such attachments because they see the impropriety and evil of them ; for surely nothing that is decorously and The feeling lawfully done can justly be censured. Now here and in loves differs Lacedaemon the rules about love are perplexing, but in most in tiie dif- cities they are simple and easily intelligible ; in Elis and oTneiias'" Boeotia, and in countries having no gifts of eloquence, they are very straightforward ; the law is simply in favour of these connexions, and no one, whether young or old, has anything to say to their discredit ; the reason being, as I suppose, that they are men of few words in those parts, and therefore the lovers do not like the trouble of pleading their suit. In Ionia and other places, and generally in countries which are subject to the barbarians, the custom is held to be dis- honourable ; loves of youths share the evil repute in which philosophy and gymnastics are held, because they are inimical to tyranny; for the interests of rulers require that their subjects should be poor in spirit ', and that there should be no strong bond of friendship or society among them, which love, above all other motives, is likely to inspire, as our Athenian tyrants learned by experience ; for the love of Aristogeiton and the constancy of Harmodius had a strength which undid their power. And, therefore, the ill-repute into which these attachments have fallen is to be ascribed to the evil condition of those who make them to be ill-reputed ; that is to say, to the self-seeking of the governors and the cowardice of the governed ; on the other hand, the indis- criminate honour which is given to them in some countries is attributable to the laziness of those who hold this opinion of them. In our own country a far better principle prevails, but, as I was saying, the explanation of it is rather per- plexing. For, observe that open loves are held to be more honourable than secret ones, and that the love of the noblest and highest, even if their persons are less beautiful than others, is especially honourable. Consider, too, how great is the encouragement which all the world gives to the lover ; neither is he supposed to be doing anything dishonourable ; but if he succeeds he is praised, and if he fail he is blamed. ' Cp. Arist. Politics, v. ii. 5 15.