Million Book Collection - The Fishers of Men Ministries

414 THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH ANDNow Plato, it is true, did not imitate thelitical part of the Pythagorean scheme. It w>er that he set forth his ideal republic.But the same conception as to the mannerof communicating a doctrine lay in his mindas in that of Pythagoras. He did not look towriting as a primary instrument of communicatingthought. He places it himself in a relation ofdependence upon oral dialectic instruction. It isonly to serve as a reminder of what had beenotherwise_ *taught: and, moreover, it is quite sub-ordinate to his first postulate, the earnestness of alife devoted to inquiry and education.69 Theseprinciples are set forth with great lucidity in hisdialogue Phaedrus, where he introduces by themouth of Socrates the Egyptian god Thoth, theinventor of arithmetic, geometry, astronomy, draftsand dice, and also of letters. With these inventionsin his hand the god approached the thenking of Egypt Thamous, recommending him tomake them known to his subjects. But Thamouswas by no means inclined to receive these inventionsunconditionally: he praises or blames them,as he judges of them, and at last he comes to theletters.70 " This discovery," says Thoth, " 0 king,will make the Egyptians wiser, and improve theirmemory. It is of sovereign effect in both things."Most ingenious Thoth," replies the king, " onede to ive birth to art and another t69 Ueberweg, i. 115. 70 Phad. sec. 135, p. 274.