SOCRATES: And the wise soul guides them rightly, and the foolish soul
wrongly.

MENO: Yes.

SOCRATES: And is not this universally true of human nature? All other
things hang upon the soul, and the things of the soul herself hang upon
wisdom, if they are to be good; and so wisdom is inferred to be that which
profits--and virtue, as we say, is profitable?

MENO: Certainly.

SOCRATES: And thus we arrive at the conclusion that virtue is either
wholly or partly wisdom?

MENO: I think that what you are saying, Socrates, is very true.

SOCRATES: But if this is true, then the good are not by nature good?

MENO: I think not.

SOCRATES: If they had been, there would assuredly have been discerners of
characters among us who would have known our future great men; and on their
showing we should have adopted them, and when we had got them, we should
have kept them in the citadel out of the way of harm, and set a stamp upon
them far rather than upon a piece of gold, in order that no one might
tamper with them; and when they grew up they would have been useful to the
state?

MENO: Yes, Socrates, that would have been the right way.