And in such cases almost all men take to saying something ridiculous about their opponent,and there is no man who is in the habit of laughing at another who does not miss virtue and earnestness altogether,or lose the better half of greatness.Wherefore let no one utter any taunting word at a temple,or at the public sacrifices,or at games,or in the agora,or in a court of justice,or in any public assembly.And let the magistrate who presides on these occasions chastise an offender,and he shall be blameless;but if he fails in doing so,he shall not claim the prize of virtue;for he is one who heeds not the laws,and does not do what the legislator commands.And if in any other place any one indulges in these sort of revilings,whether he has begun the quarrel or is only retaliating,let any elder who is present support the law,and control with blows those who indulge in passion,which is another great evil;and if he do not,let him be liable to pay the appointed penalty.And we say now,that he who deals in reproaches against others cannot reproach them without attempting to ridicule them;and this,when done in a moment of anger,is what we make matter of reproach against him.But then,do we admit into our state the comic writers who are so fond of ****** mankind ridiculous,if they attempt in a good-natured manner to turn the laugh against our citizens?or do we draw the distinction of jest and earnest,and allow a man to make use of ridicule in jest and without anger about any thing or person;though as we were saying,not if he be angry have a set purpose?We forbid earnest-that is unalterably fixed;but we have still to say who are to be sanctioned or not to be sanctioned by the law in the employment of innocent humour.A comic poet,or maker of iambic or satirical lyric verse,shall not be permitted to ridicule any of the citizens,either by word or likeness,either in anger or without anger.And if any one is disobedient,the judges shall either at once expel him from the country,or he shall pay a fine of three minae,which shall be dedicated to the God who presides over the contests.Those only who have received permission shall be allowed to write verses at one another,but they shall be without anger and in jest;in anger and in serious earnest they shall not be allowed.The decision of this matter shall be left to the superintendent of the general education of the young,and whatever he may license,the writer shall be allowed to produce,and whatever he rejects let not the poet himself exhibit,or ever teach anybody else,slave or freeman,under the penalty of being dishonoured,and held disobedient to the laws.
Now he is not to be pitied who is hungry,or who suffers any bodily pain,but he who is temperate,or has some other virtue,or part of a virtue,and at the same time suffers from misfortune;it would be an extraordinary thing if such an one,whether slave or freeman,were utterly forsaken and fell into the extremes of poverty in any tolerably well-ordered city or government.Wherefore the legislator may safely make a law applicable to such cases in the following terms:-Let there be no beggars in our state;and if anybody begs,seeking to pick up a livelihood by unavailing prayers,let the wardens of the agora turn him out of the agora,and the wardens of the city out of the city,and the wardens of the country send him out of any other parts of the land across the border,in order that the land may be cleared of this sort of animal.
