"Me, already, as the tragic poet would say, the voice of fate calls.
Soon I must drink the poison; and I think that I had better repair to
the bath first, in order that the women may not have the trouble of
washing my body after I am dead."
When he had done speaking, Crito said: "And have you any commands for
us, Socrates--anything to say about your children or any other matter
in which we can serve you?"
"Nothing particular," he said; "only, as I have always told you, I
would have you to look to yourselves; that is a service which you may
always be doing to me and mine as well as to yourselves. And you need
not make professions; for if you take no thought for yourselves, and
walk not according to the precepts which I have given you, not now for
the first time, the warmth of your professions will be of no avail."
"We will do our best," said Crito. "But in what way would you have us
bury you?"
"In any way that you like; only you must get hold of me, and take care
that I do not walk away from you." Then he turned to us, and added
with a smile: "I can not make Crito believe that I am the same
Socrates who has been talking and conducting the argument; he fancies
that I am the other Socrates whom he will soon see a dead body--and he
asks, How shall he bury me? And tho I have spoken many words in the
endeavor to show that when I have drunk the poison I shall leave you
and go to the joys of the blest--these words of mine, with which I
comforted you and myself, have had, as I perceive, no effect upon
Crito. And therefore I want you to be surety for me now, as he was
surety for me at the trial: but let the promise be of another sort;
for he was my surety to the judges that I would remain, but you must
be my surety to him that I shall not remain, but go away and depart;
and then he will suffer less at my death, and not be grieved when he
sees my body being burned or buried. I would not have him sorrow at my
hard lot, or say at the burial, 'Thus we lay out Socrates,' or, 'Thus
we follow him to the grave or bury him'; for false words are not only
evil in themselves, but they infect the soul with evil. Be of good
cheer then, my dear Crito, and say that you are burying my body only,
and do with that as is usual, and as you think best."
When he had spoken these words, he arose and told us to wait until he
went into the bath-chamber with Crito; and we waited, talking and
thinking of the subject of discourse, and also of the greatness of
our sorrow: he was like a father of whom we were being bereaved, and
we were about to pass the rest of our lives as orphans. When he had
taken the bath, his children were brought to him--(he had two young
sons and an elder one); and the women of his family also came, and he
talked to them and gave them a few directions in the presence of
Crito; and he then dismissed them and returned to us.
Now the hour of sunset was near, for a good deal of time had passed
while he was within. When he came out, he sat down with us again after
his bath, but not much was said. Soon the jailer, who was the servant
of the eleven, entered and stood by him, saying: "To you, Socrates,
whom I know to be the noblest and gentlest and best of all who ever
came to this place, I will not impute the angry feelings of other men,
who rage and swear at me when, in obedience to the authorities, I bid
them drink the poison--indeed, I am sure that you will not be angry
with me; for others, as you are aware, and not I, are the guilty
cause. And so fare you well, and try to bear lightly what must needs
be; you know my errand." Then bursting into tears, he went out.
Socrates looked at him and said, "I return your good wishes, and will
do as you bid." Then turning to us, he said, "How charming the man is;
since I have been in prison he has always been coming to see me, and
at times he would talk to me, and was as good as could be, and now see
how generously he sorrows for me. But we must do as he says, Crito;
let the cup be brought if the poison is prepared; if not, let the
attendant prepare some."
"Yet," said Crito, "the sun is still upon the hilltops, and I know
that many a one has taken the draft late; and after the announcement
had been made to him, he has eaten and drunk, and enjoyed the society
of his beloved; do not hasten then; there is still time."
Socrates said: "Yes, Crito, and they of whom you speak are right in
doing thus, for they think that they will gain by the delay; but I am
right in not doing thus, for I do not think that I should gain
anything by drinking the poison a little later; I should be sparing
and saving a life which is already gone; I could only laugh at myself
for this. Please then to do as I say, and not to refuse me."
Crito made a sign to the servant, who was standing by; and he went
out, and after being absent for some time returned with the jailer
carrying the cup of poison. Socrates said: "You, my good friend, who
are experienced in these matters, shall give me the directions how I
am to proceed." The man answered: "You have only to walk about until
your legs are heavy, and then to lie down, and the poison will act."
At the same time he handed the cup to Socrates, who in the easiest and
gentlest manner, without the least fear or change of color or feature,
looking at the man with all his eyes, Echecrates,[73] as his manner
was, took the cup and said: "What do you say about making a libation
out of this cup to any god? May I or not?" The man answered: "We only
prepare, Socrates, just so much as we deem enough." "I understand,"
he said; "yet I may and must ask the gods to prosper my journey from
this to that other world--even so--and so be it according to my
prayer." Then holding the cup to his lips, quite readily and
cheerfully he drank off the poison. And hitherto most of us had been
able to control our sorrow; but now when we saw him drinking, and saw
too that he had finished the draft, we could no longer forbear, and in
spite of myself my own tears were flowing fast; so that I covered my
face and wept over myself, for certainly I was not weeping over him,
but at the thought of my own calamity in having lost such a friend.
Nor was I the first, for Crito, when he found himself unable to
restrain his tears, had got up and moved away, and I followed; and at
that moment, Apollodorus, who had been weeping all the time, broke out
into a loud and passionate cry which made cowards of us all. Socrates
alone retained his calmness: "What is this strange outcry?" he said.
"I sent away the women mainly in order that they might not offend in
this way, for I have heard that a man should die in peace. Be quiet
then, and have patience." When we heard that, we were ashamed, and
refrained our tears; and he walked about until, as he said, his legs
began to fail, and then he lay on his back, according to the
directions, and the man who gave him the poison now and then looked at
his feet and legs; and after a while he prest his foot hard and asked
him if he could feel; and he said, "No"; and then his leg, and so
upward and upward, and showed us that he was cold and stiff. And he
felt them himself, and said: "When the poison reaches the heart, that
will be the end." He was beginning to grow cold about the groin, when
he uncovered his face, for he had covered himself up, and said (they
were his last words)--"Crito, I owe a cock to Asclepius; will you
remember to pay the debt?" "The debt shall be paid," said Crito; "is
there anything else?" There was no answer to this question; but in a
minute or two a movement was heard, and the attendants uncovered him;
his eyes were set, and Crito closed his eyes and mouth.
Such was the end, Echecrates, of our friend, whom I may truly call the
wisest, and justest, and best of all the men whom I have ever known.