ceed
to voluntary and premeditated actions. The great source of voluntary
crime is the desire of money, which is begotten by evil education;
and this arises out of the false praise of riches, common both among
Hellenes and barbarians; they think that to be the first of goods which
is really the third. For the body is not for the sake of wealth, but
wealth for the body, as the body is for the soul. If this were better
understood, the crime of murder, of which avarice is the chief cause,
would soon cease among men. Next to avarice, ambition is a source of
crime, troublesome to the ambitious man himself, as well as to the chief
men of the state. And next to ambition, base fear is a motive, which
has led many an one to commit murder in order that he may get rid of the
witnesses of his crimes. Let this be said as a prelude to all enactments
about crimes of violence; and the tradition must not be forgotten, which
tells that the murderer is punished in the world below, and that when
he returns to this world he meets the fate which he has dealt out to
others. If a man is deterred by the prelude and the fear of future
punishment, he will have no need of the law; but in case he disobey, let
the law be declared against him as follows:--He who of malice prepense
kills one of his kindred, shall in the first place be outlawed; neither
temple, harbour, nor agora shall be polluted by his presence. And if a
kinsman of the deceased refuse to proceed against his slayer, he shall
take the curse of pollution upon himself, and also be liable to be
prosecuted by any one who will avenge the dead. The prosecutor, however,
must observe the customary ceremonial before he proceeds against the
offender. The details of these observances will be best determined by a
conclave of prophets and interpreters and guardians of the law, and the
judges of the cause itself shall be the same as in cases of sacrilege.
He who is convicted shall be punished with death, and not be buried
within the country of the murdered person. He who flies from the law
shall undergo perpetual banishment; if he return, he may be put to
death with impunity by any relative of the murdered man or by any other
citizen, or bound and delivered to the magistrates. He who accuses a man
of murder shall demand satisfactory bail of the accused, and if this is
not forthcoming, the magistrate shall keep him in prison against the
day of trial. If a man commit murder by the hand of another, he sh