New Britain Herald Newspaper, August 3, 1928, Page 18

L Ureatest reeces hitewashing ':{E Startling Post-Mortem Defense of Socrates by \ L) y | a Modern Athenian Attorney Which Has Stirred Up New Antagonism to “Legally Enforced Suicides.” 66 OE to him who teaches man faster than he can learn!” This morose warning has been sounded by the wise of every generation, and any contemplation of history will show that they “knew whereof they spoke.” For every generation has its martyrs who have been sacrificed for disregarding this principle. Sometimes, however, up-and-coming men of today attempt to undo the blunder- ings of their ancestors, and such an effort is now being made in Athens, Greece. Kyros Paradopoulos, a well-known attorney of that city, has announced himself counsel of record for “Socrates, deceased,” and has lr_p!l]ed the verdict rendered against his client—in 399 B. C.! Socrates, “Father of Philosophy,” was eonvicted, by a vote of 280 to 220, of “in- troducing strange gods” and leading the ‘ Boxing Mateh Staged at the Olympic Games, 7707 in Which Socrates Took Part as a Youth. b ~ “The Death of Socrates” from the Famous Engraving. The Ola Philosopher Was Executed for His “Heresies” by unst'd Being Made to Drain a Cup of Hemlock. Now, After Thousands, of Years, a Greek ""f‘" tes, - Lawyer Has Undertaken to Vindicate His “Client” in Open Court. ) 4’"I'Hll’l'"“l b Benevolent with-his-head” dictum While to some this looms as a mere techni- are aware, and not I, are the guilty and of “Alice in Wonder- cality, of little importance when considered with cause. And so, fare you well, and Intellectual, land” fame was ap- the wisdom or fallacy of a system which toler- try to bear lightly what must needs but Homely, nlied with neat pre- ates capital punishment, it is of supreme impor- be; you know my errand.” Veatures. eision. Socrates was tance to the thousands whose religious faith The errand of the jailer was to r handed a cup of hem- holds suicide an unpardonable sin, and one warn Socrates that the hour was lock (equivalent to which will send the offender to a nethermost almost at hand when he was to the modern electric corner of purgatory. drink the cup of hemlock which chair), with the re- On the other hand, the sentiment generated would kill him. Sunset was the ap- quest that he drain against capital punishment in the last few. years pointed time, and although the it, and the “Gadfly” has been of amazing proportions. When the sun hung high over the sur- 3 ceased from then on two Italians, Sacco and Vanzetti, were put to rounding rim of hills the phil- / to annoy the indig- death in Massachusetts last year the action of osopher called for the poison : nant Athcnian sages. that State shook the world. It was, of course, cup. ¥ The action of the impossible to get a pure distillate of the ac- “The sun is still high upon [ twentieth century curacy of the feeling on capital punishment. For the hilltops,” said his Greek lawyer has the case of Sacco and Vanzetti became confused friend Crito. “Many a called forth many ex- with local issues, and represent forces not pres- one has taken the ressions of opinion, ent in the average execution. draught late; and after 9 ut perhaps no as- Another example of the widespread antip- the announcement has pect of the case is of athy to the death penalty was had when Ruth been made to him he }igs more current inter- Snyder and Henry Judd Gray were executed for eaten and drunk. .. Do est than that which the murder of the former’s husband. A weighty not hasten, then; there is revives the dis- volume of protest persisted to the ' cussion of capi- last, and even after the execution tal punishment. a little group howled loud and long # This discussion against the custom of post-mortem has waged back enforced by the laws of the State and forth across of New York. With this feeling mounting higher and higher, some see, in this new legal action in Athens, more tinder to feed the bonfire against capital punishment. In the meantime, however, there is abun- dant evidence that Socrates cared little for life. He was a philoso- pher of mind over matter, and his mode of life, as well as the pur- % pose to which he addressed himself, is best revealed in the Platonic ver- sion of his “Apology,” where he says to Alcibiades: - still much time.” To this Socra- tes made his fa- mous reply which looms as one of the strongest jus- tifications for suicide: @ “Yes, Crito, and they of whom you s are right in do- ing thus, for they think that they youth of Athens astray by false and heret- 1cal teachings. As a matter of fact, the “Old Gadfly,” as Socrates called himself, was an “atheist with one God.” He scrupu- lously observed the Athenian customs which Alcible had been made into laws, but he reserved ‘ “Fellow Athenians: I love you; I i the right to serve what deity he chose. ades, am devoted to you; but I shall obey will gain by the Socrates challenged the wisdom of a Pupil God rather tham you, and while delay; but I am state which placed the reins of government and breath and strength hold out I shall right in not do- in the hands of five hundred pig-raisers and . cabbage-farmers. He pointed out that the Intimate science of government is an exact one, and Friend suggested, mildly enough, that Athens might of achieve even greater glory if a few real Socrates. thinkers were placed in the legislative halls. The democrats of Athens resorted to the same retaliative methods so successfully employed today when an American tran- wealth, and name, — scends the accepted moral code, and the “off- i ; Tess and 50 though{leas anoat wivdo e 2 7 E and truth, and the perfecting of your own soul? “And if he comtradicts me, and says that he does care about these . things, I shall question him and not - take him at his word and straight. way let him go, but I shall question him and cross-question him, and test him, and if 1 find that he is not virtuous dbut only says that he fis, I shall rebuke him for prizing least what is of :.h:t'xr‘r'xlegic’;"h’:.i;; :ou:h value and prizing most what is of less g corth. the l'tl"'s_‘ ‘““:"l v‘;;: “This service I shall render to everyome I :’:;c: .'cwn-’;:’h“ been Meet. . . . Beassured, this is God's command. pnrtic’ullrly concerned And T hold_ that no greater blessing has ever be- D e it fallen you in Athens than this my service to God. in The IIc fi;o“ who For I must spend all my time going about among chi'fl';' :{“ idtapres you, persuading yow, old and young alike, not to £ % execatedl but be so solicitous about your bodies and your pos- V\has }r;o ) d to sessions, but first of all and most earnestly to that he was force consider how to make your souls as perfect as :fif‘,fl'fi;fi'%’eafl;; possidle, and telling you that wealth does mot ing thus, for I do not think that I should gain anything by drinking the poi- son a little later; I should be spar- ing and saving a life which is al- ready gone; I could only laugh at myself for this. Please then to do as I say, and not to refuse me.” ! “Fellow Athenians, I love you; I am mlly?'. ;:?: i‘g"arr,- devoted to you—but I will serve God dered from birth rather to death, and in than you. that a life-span is asynothing compared with the Thus majesty of eons etérnal, certain _phllost_)phtn Bocrates have little trouble in stretching this sentiment, Addressed which concerned a delay of but an hour or two, His over the relatively longer period of a man's life, Country- and pointing out that suicide, after all, is the men. The sensible thing. Only man’s ignorance, they say, ' Pheto Is and his innate curiosity and hope prevent this W, doctrine from depopulating the earth. Heath's Socrates took the poison cup, and after Picture of asking directions of his_ jailer, he put it to his the Phi- lips and quaffed the hemlock serenely. His losopher friends broke out into loud lamentations, but never ccase from pursuing wisdom, or from exhorting any one of you whom I may meet, speaking frankly to him and saying in my usual fash- ion, ‘My friend, as @ citizen of Ath- ens, a city greatest and most famous for its wisdom and power, are you not ashamed to be so greedy for i . Briky wiFTREs VRtAEY, wirtie Drinps Weolil wee Sur- he reproved them with the stern injunction: :2:“:3"‘:1 h’;::'?y v:;. every other human good, private and public.” rounded “What is this strange outcry? 1 sent away jailer. Thissame inter- The death of Socrates cannot fail to send by ‘5: the women mainly in order that they might not pretation was placed a warm stream of sympathetic satisfaction Pupl offend in this way, for I have heard that a man upon the death of Ger- coursing through the veins of the student. His should die in peace. Be quiet, then, and have patience!” Thus Socrates died, and although the pres- ent Greek attorney would remove the onus of his death from the state he cannot remove the stain from mankind in general. The Greek Senate was simply the agent/in the husiness, and mankind, the same as today, rich in injus- tices and enforcing biased standards, was the real malefactor, at least, so say his Twentieth Century advisers. ald Chapman, noto- friends were gathered about him—Crito, Plato, rious bandit, when Apollodorus, and others. The jailer advanced friends claimed that and said: he was forced to take “To you, Socrates, whom I know to be the the step which sent noblest and gentlest and best of all who ever & - him plunging to death, came to this place, I will not impute the angry : 4 and therefore that the feelings of other men, who rage and swear at Pluto, God of the Dead, Kidnaping Persephone, Daughter of Demeter, State had been guilty me when, in obedience to the authorities, I bid Goddess of Grain. His Contempt for the Significance of This Legend of compelling him te them drink the poison—indeed I am sure you Was Kesponsivic 1or 1'art of ducrales’ Uisiaror wila the Auinvrities. hang himself. will not be angry with me; for others, as you Nevmeper Fosture Servies. 1938