likewise," replied Socrates, "to keep a man who were able to drive away
all those that trouble you without cause?" "I would with all my heart,"
said Crito, "but that I fear that in the end he, too, would turn against
me." "Why so?" said Socrates; "is it not better to serve a man like you,
and to receive favours from him, than to have him for an enemy? You may
be certain that there are in this city many men who would think
themselves very happy to be honoured with your friendship."

After this they happened to see a certain person name Archedemus, who was
a man of very good parts, eloquent, and extremely skilful in the
management of affairs; but withal very poor and in a low condition, for
he was not of that sordid disposition to take all he could get, by what
means soever, but he was a lover of justice and of honest men, and
abhorred to make rich, or to raise himself by informing and backbiting;
for he held that nothing was more base than that wretched practice of
those miscreants called sycophants or informers. Crito cast an eye upon
him, and as often as they brought him any corn, or wine, or oil, or any
other thing from his country-houses, he sent him some of it; when he
offered sacrifices he invited him to the feasts, and showed him many
civilities of the like nature. Archedemus, seeing the doors of that
house open to him at all times, and that he always found so favourable a
reception, laid aside all his former dependences, and trusted himself
wholly to Crito; then he made it his business immediately to inquire into
the characters of those sycophants who had slandered Crito or informed
against him, and found them to be guilty of many crimes, and that they
had a great number of enemies. This encouraged him to take them to task,
and he prosecuted one of them for a crime which would have subjected him
to a corporal punishment, or at least to a pecuniary mulct. This fellow,
who knew his case to be bad, and that he could not justify himself,
employed all sorts of stratagems to get rid of Archedemus, who