Minos

which people call laws, 317b writings of kings and good men.—Comp. What you say is true.

Soc. Then surely those who know how will not write different things at different times about the same things?—Comp. No.—Soc. Nor ever change their lawful usages about the same things, now to some and now to others?—Comp. No indeed.—Soc. So if we see some people anywhere doing this, shall we say that those who do it have knowledge or are without knowledge?—Comp. Without knowledge.—Soc. Then whatever is right, we shall say it is lawful for each, whether that of medicine or that of cookery or that of gardening?—Comp. 317c Yes.—Soc. And whatever is not right, we shall no longer say it is lawful?—Comp. No longer.—Soc. Then it becomes lawless.—Comp. Necessarily.—Soc. Then in the writings too about just things and unjust and, in general, about the arrangement of a city and how a city should be ordered, what is right is kingly law, and what is not right, which seems to be law to those who do not know, is not; for it is lawless.—Comp. Yes.—Soc. 317d Rightly, then, we agreed that law is the finding of what is.—Comp. It appears so.

Soc. And let us go on to view this in it as well.¹ Who has the knowledge to distribute seeds on the soil?—Comp. A farmer.—Soc. And he distributes to each soil the seeds that are due to it?—Comp. Yes.—Soc. Then the farmer is a good distributor of these, and his laws and distributions in these matters are right?²—Comp. Yes.—Soc. And who is a good distributor of strokes for the tunes, and good at distributing what is due? And whose laws are right?—Comp. The 317e flute-player’s and the cithara-player’s.—Soc. Then the one most skilled in law in these things is the most skilled flute-player.³—Comp. Yes.—Soc. And who