not be from want of due attention on her part." See "Hellenica
Essays," "Xenophon," p. 356 foll.

Soc. Pray narrate to me, Ischomachus, I beg of you, what you first
essayed to teach her. To hear that story would please me more than any
description of the most splendid gymnastic contest or horse-race you
could give me.

Why, Socrates (he answered), when after a time she had become
accustomed to my hand, that is, was tamed[11] sufficiently to play her
part in a discussion, I put to her this question: "Did it ever strike
you to consider, dear wife,[12] what led me to choose you as my wife
among all women, and your parents to entrust you to me of all men? It
was certainly not from any difficulty that might beset either of us to
find another bedfellow. That I am sure is evident to you. No! it was
with deliberate intent to discover, I for myself and your parents in
behalf of you, the best partner of house and children we could find,
that I sought you out, and your parents, acting to the best of their
ability, made choice of me. If at some future time God grant us to
have children born to us, we will take counsel together how best to
bring them up, for that too will be a common interest,[13] and a
common blessing if haply they shall live to fight our battles and we
find in them hereafter support and succour when ourselves are old.[14]
But at present there is our house here, which belongs like to both. It
is common property, for all that I possess goes by my will into the
common fund, and in the same way all that you deposited[15] was placed
by you to the common fund.[16] We need not stop to calculate in
figures which of us contributed most, but rather let us lay to heart
this fact that whichever of us proves the better partner, he or she at
once contributes what is most worth having."