Part V.

PLATO.
i6
7
intent of putting him to death, and agreed to fell him for a Slave. P/utarch fiith, that upon a decree ol’ the JEginetce.^ that all the Athenians ■ taken in that Illand, fhould be fold for Slaves ^ Pol/is fold him there ^ Anniceris^ a Cyrenaick Philofopher, being accidentally prefent, redeem¬ ed him for twenty, or as others, thirty and fent him to Athens to his Friends ^ they im¬ mediately return’d the Money to Anniceris but he refufed it, faying they were not the only per- fons concerned in Plato’s, tvelfare : Some fay, Dion fent the Money, which he would not ac¬ cept, but bought therewith a little Orchard in the Academy. PolHs was defeated by Chabrias^ and afterwards drowned in Elice. The report goes that an Apparition told him, he fuffer- ed thole things for the Philofophers fake- Dionyjius underltanding what had happened, writ to Plato^ to delire him not to fpeak ill of him •, Plato returned anfwer, that he had not fo much time vacant from Philofophy, as to re¬ member Dionyjtus. To fome detraftors who upbraided him, faying, Dionyjius hath call off *, no, faith he, but Plato Dionyjius.
" Dion continued to live, not according to the ordinary luxury of the Sicilians and Italiansijiux in vertue, until Dionyjius died, for which ma¬ ligned by thole who lived after Tyrannical inlf i- tutions. Then conlidering, that thele docu¬ ments were not pra£filcd by himfelf alone, but by fome others, though few, he entertained a hope, that Dionysus the younger, who fucceed- edhisFather in the Government, might become one of thofe, to the extraordinary happinefs ofhimlelf^ and the reft of the Sicilians: To this end he ufed many exhortations to invite him td Vertue, intermixed with fome Sentences of Plato., with whom Dionyjius., upon this oc- calion, became extreamly delirous to be acquain¬ ted .* To that effeft, many Letters were fent to Athens to him, fome from Dionyjius., others from Pythagoreans in Italy., defliring Plato to
to Syracufe^ who, by prudent couhfel might govern the young Man, tranfported by his own power to Luxury. Plato., as himfelf affirmeth , fearing to be thought a Perfon only of words, and not willing to engage in affion, and with¬ al, hoping,by purging one principal part, to cure the difeale of all yielded ^ Laertius upon a promife made to him by Dionyjius., of a place and People that Ihould live according to the Rules of his Commonwealth j which he made not good. Hence Athcnaus accufed Pla¬ to of Ambition. In the mean time the Enemies of Dion fearing a change in Dionyjius., perfwa ded hira to call home Ifom Banifhment PZ?i//- Jius (a perfon very rational, but educated in Ty¬ rannical Principles ) as anAntidcte againft Pla- t(?’s Philofophy *, but hoped, the coming of Plato would regulate the licentious Tyranny of Dionyjius.
Plato at his arrival in Sicily, Q||tced by A. G(?//i^x,betwixt the beginning of nnlijs Reign, four hundred years from the building of Rome, and the Charonean ^ght) was received by Dio¬ nyjius with much relpeO: ; One of the King’s • magnificent Chariots ifood ready to receive him as loon as he landed, and carried him to the Court. The King offered Sacrifice to the Gods for his coming, as a great blealfing upon his go¬
vernment. The temperance of their f eaifs, alte¬ ration of the Court, meeknels ol the King, gave the SyracuJansgiQdt hopes of Reformation: The Courtiers addided themlelves to Philofopiiy io much, that the Palace was full of Sand (wherein they drev7 Geometrical figures) not loisg altcr P late’s coming, at a Sacrifice in the (ialile, the Herald,according to theufual manner, made a folemn Prayer, that the Gods would long pre- lerve. the Kingly Government ; Dwy? •Handing by, LddJVill you never give over praying againjt me ^ This troubled Phihfius and his f iicrids,who feared Plato would inlinuate into the far our of Dionyjius fo much, as that tliey Ihould not be a- ble to oppofehim,lince in fo Ihort time, he had efteffed fo great an akelration in him : Hereup¬ on they all jointly acculedDH/2, that he wrought upon Dionyjius, % the eloquence of Flaio, to refign his Government that it might be tranf ferred to the Children of his Sifter, to quit his command for the Academy, where he Ihould be made happy by Geometry, religning his prefent happinefs to Dion, and his Nephews. With tliefe and the like Inlfigations, Dionyjius w^as fo in- cenfed,‘that he caufed Dion to be unexpecxedly carried on Shipboard in a little Bark, giving the Mariners order to Land him in Italy. This hap¬ pened four Months after Plato's coming. Plato, Plat. £;//? and the reft of Dion’s Friends, feared to be put to fome puiiilhment, as partakers of his of¬ fence. A report was raifed, that Plato was put to death by DionyJiusyiS Aathoi of all that hap¬ pened : but, on the contrary, Dionyjus doubt¬ ing, left fomething worfe might happen from their fear, treated them all kindly ,comforted Pla^ to, bid him be of good cheap, and intreated ’ him to flay with him ; t He cauled him to be lodged t Piutmh.' inhisCaftle , ^ in the Orchards adjoyning to his T
Palace, where not the Porter himfelf could, go out without his leave thusepnafog-
ly, under pretence of Kindnels, he watch’d him, that he might not retui'n into G/mT,ro giveDH- on notice of the wrong done to him. Dionyjus by frequent converfation with Plato (as wild Bealls are tamed by ule) fell into fo great liking of his difeourfe, that he became in love with him-, but, it was a Tyrannical affeffion, for, he would not that Plato Ihould love any but him, oflbring to put thc= power of the Kingdom into his hands, if he would value him above Di¬ on. With this paffion, troublefome to Plato, '
Dionyjus was fometimes ib far tranfported, as
Men jealous of their Miftrefies, that he would
upon the fudden fall out with him, and as fud-
denly be reconciled, and ask him pardon. He
had indeed a great defire oh Plato’s Philofophy-
but a great refpedf likewife on the odter lide
for thole who dilfwaded him from it, telling
him, that it would min him to be too far inga-
ged therein. ^ In the fn.ean time there hap- • PUt, Epj
pening a War, he fent Plato home, promiling,
that the next Springf as loon as there was Peace j
he would lend back for him and Dion to Syra-
cufe : But he kept not his promife, for which
he defired Plato to excufe him , protefting
the War to be the occafion thereof, and that
as foon as it were ended, he would fend for
Dion, whom he defired in the mean time to reft
fatisfied, and not attempt any thing againft him,
nor to Ipeak ill of him to the Grecians. This
Plata
lyo
PLATO.