hould feel pained; but if it be that I am bringing my life to a close
on the eve of troubles, for my part I think you ought all of you to
take heart of grace and rejoice in my good fortune."

Now there was a certain Apollodorus, [52] who was an enthusiastic lover
of the master, but for the rest a simple-minded man. He exclaimed very
innocently, "But the hardest thing of all to bear, Socrates, is to see
you put to death unjustly." [53]

Whereupon Socrates, it is said, gently stroked the young man's head:
"Would you have been better pleased, my dear one, to see me put to
death for some just reason rather than unjustly?" and as he spoke he
smiled tenderly. [54]

It is also said that, seeing Anytus [55] pass by, Socrates remarked:
"How proudly the great man steps; he thinks, no doubt, he has
performed some great and noble deed in putting me to death, and all
because, seeing him deemed worthy of the highest honours of the state,
I told him it ill became him to bring up his so in a tan-yard. [56]
What a scamp the fellow is! he appears not to know that of us two
whichever has achieved what is best and noblest for all future time is
the real victor in this suit. Well! well!" he added, "Homer [57] has
ascribed to some at the point of death a power of forecasting things
to be, and I too am minded to utter a prophecy. Once, for a brief
space, I associated with the son of Anytus, and he seemed to me not
lacking in strength of soul; and what I say is, he will not adhere
long to the slavish employment which his father has prepared for him,
but, in the absence of any earnest friend and guardian, he is like to
be led into some base passion and go to great lengths in depravity."

The prophecy proved true. The young man fell a victim to the pleasures
of wine; night and day he never ceased drinking, and at last became a
mere good-for-nothing, worthless alike to his city, his friends, and
himself. As to Anytus, even though the grave has closed upon him, his
evil reputation still survives him, due alike to his son's base
bringing-up and his own want of human feeling.

Socrates did, it is true, by his self-laudation draw down upon him the
jealousy of the court and caused his judges all the more to record
their votes against him. Yet even so I look upon the lot of destiny
which he obtained as providential, [58] chancing as he did upon the
easiest amidst the many shapes of death, [59] and escaping as he did
the one grievous portion of exi