effc'B his argument had produced upon him , and in what opinion he was
likely to remain . Decked with all the attraBions o f Toutb rendered in-
terejiing , when accompanied with a mild difpofition , and with that noble
air , which gain'd him the love o f all the Athenians, Alcibiades ( z ) , whofe
features were very like thofe o f the God Mercury , was drefs’d as a Warriour
; one might perceive however , that nothing had been negleBed to
render that drefs agreable ; ' be feem’d as ambitious to pleafe , as to
command . B j bis unßeadj pofture, by the little inclination o f bis bead,
for which Archippus the Poet has reproached hint ; by a fort of Ejfemina^
cy , confpkuous in his whole deportment { tbd upright , one leg crof
fed the other , so that , his body which feem’d to be unfteady as his
mind , bore upon one foot , one o f bis ' hands refted upon the hilt o f his
Sword, wbilft the other held bis Garment ) , l'on would imagine , that at
each queftion , he forefees the condemnation o f bis way o f thinking , and that
be would be obliged at lajl to reform bis opinion , and adopt that o f Socrates
. Phedon , who founded the School o f E lis , wrapt up in his Cloak, was
' examining Alcibiades attentively, and feem’d pleafed at the progrefs , the
reafoning o f their common Friend, made upon him. I t was plain to he feen,
that it was not by vain Sopbifms , that Socrates was endeavouring to
eftablish new ideas ; but th a t, by very firnple argument, thd well combined
, and dependent upon one another , be fought with an' art , peculiar
to himfelf , to make the very perfon be was inftruBing, unravell
his ideas; This brings to my mind, what he faid o f himfelf, that, be was
the midwife o f the mind , alluding to the Trade , his mother profeffed
all her life . The thoughts and the opinions o f thefe Philofophers, their peculiar
charaBe-rs , and i f I may be permitted to fay so , that of their Pbilofophy
, was so clearly exprejfed , by their employments , attitudes , and
aBions, tha t, without bearing their voices, I thought I beard their very
difcourfe . I faw likewife the Severe Zenon, the Doubtfull Arcefilaus, and
many others whom I shall pafs over. However a few paces from this place,
which I quitted with regret, I found myfelf, in a manner, many ages
down
(2 ) Les Sculpteurs des temps d’A Ic ib ia d e ,& de ion v iià g e , pour repréfcnter le Dieu Mercure.
X qui vinrent après l u i , se ièrvirenc des traits Clem. Alex . Cohort. ad Geni. f>. 47. Ub. 22.
é to it a r r iv é ; les deux doigts voifins en se rapprochant l ’im de l’autre,
marquolent évidemment les prop o fition s, q u ’il v en oit de faire accorder
à fon illuftre auditeur ; il le regardoit fixemeut entre les y e u x , comme
un homme qui vo iidro it pénétrer ce qu’un autre p en fe , quel effet produit
fu r lu i ce q u ’on v ien t de lu i d ire , enfin à quel p a rti il s’arrêtera
. Paré de tous les attraits de la jeuneffe , a vec cet inté rê t qu’elle
e x c ite , lo r fq u ’elle eft accompagnée d’un beau n a tu r e l, & cet air de no-
bleffe qui lu i concilia l ’amour de tous les A th é n ie n s , A lc ibiad e dont les
traits (2) reffembloient à ceux du Dieu M e r c u r e , é toit habillé en G u e r rie
r : on v o y o it à sa p a ru r e , que non moins flatté de p la ir e , que de
com mand e r, il n’a v o it rien n é g lig é , de ce qui p o u v o it le rendre agréable
& brillant to u t à la fo is . A fon attitude ch ancelante, à fa tête un
peu in c lin é e , comme la lu i reproche le Poëte A r ç h ip p u s , à une forte
de moleffe qu’on ob fe rvo it dans tou t fon maintien, ( car bien que droit,
fes jambes étoient croifées l ’une fur l’autre , de forte que fon corp qui
pa roilfoit v a c illan t comme fon e fp r i t , ne p o r to it que fur un pied ; &
l ’une de fes mains se repofoit fur la Poignée de fon ép é e , tandis que
l ’autre s’a tta cho it à fon v ê tem e n t ) : V o u s diriez qu’à chaque queltion
qu’on lu i f a i t , il p r é v o it la condamnation de ce q u ’il p en fe , &• qu’enfin
ob ligé pa r degrés de reformer fon o p in io n , il fera contraint d’adopter
celle de S o c ra te . Phédon qui étab lit l ’école d’Elide , enveloppé de fon
m an te au , exarainoit profondément A lc ib ia d e , & se p la ifo it à v o ir les
p r o g r è s , que les raifons de leur ami commun faifoient fur l u i . Vous
enfliez v u c la irem en t, que ce n’ é to it point par de vains Sophifmes
que Socrates tentoit d’établir des idées nouvelles ; mais que par des
raifonemens très fimples , qu o iqu ’intimement liés & dépendans les uns
des autres, il faifoit d é v e lo p p e r , a vec un a r t qui lu i é to it particulier,
les propres idées de ceux mêmes qu’il in f t ru ifo it . C e c i me r a p p e lla ,
q u ’il se v an to it en bad in an t, d’être l ’a ccoucheur de l ’e fprit ; faifant al-
lufion au métier d’ accoucheufe que sa niere a v o it fait toute sa v ie .
Les penfées , les fentimens de ces p h ilo fo p h e s , leur caraéleres pa rticuliers
, & , fi j’ofe le d i r e , celui de leur p h ilo fo p h ie , étoient fi clairement
e xp r im és , dans leur m ain tien , & par leurs g e fte s , que fans entendre
leurs v o i x , je croyois entendre leurs difcours . Je vis aufli le
Fol. I I . d Sé