Read an essay _On Government_,[109] in the form of a dialogue between
Menas a patrician and Thomas a referendary.[110] The treatise is
in six books, in which is discussed a form of government, called
δικαιαρχικόν (just rule), differing from those propounded by
ancient writers. The _Republic_ of Plato is deservedly criticised.
The interlocutors hold that the constitution which they propose
should be a combination of the three forms of government--monarchy,
aristocracy, democracy. Each of these is to contribute what is
genuine and sincere to the formation of the ideal constitution.