The judge shall consider and determine the suitableness orunsuitableness of age in marriage; he shall make an inspection ofthe males naked, and of the women naked down to the navel. And ifthere be a lack of kinsmen in a family extending to grandchildren of abrother, or to the grandchildren of a grandfather"s children, themaiden may choose with the consent of her guardians any one of thecitizens who is willing and whom she wills, and he shall be the heirof the dead man, and the husband of his daughter. Circumstancesvary, and there may sometimes be a still greater lack of relationswithin the limits of the state; and if any maiden has no kindredliving in the city, and there is some one who has been sent out to acolony, and she is disposed to make him the heir of her father"spossessions, if he be indeed of her kindred, let him proceed to takethe lot according to the regulation of the law; but if he be not ofher kindred, she having no kinsmen within the city, and he be chosenby the daughter of the dead man, and empowered to marry by theguardians, let him return home and take the lot of him who diedintestate. And if a man has no children, either male or female, anddies without making a will, let the previous law in general hold;and let a man and a woman go forth from the family and share thedeserted house, and let the lot belong absolutely to them; and let theheiress in the first degree be a sister, and in a second degree adaughter of a brother, and in the third, a daughter of a sister, inthe fourth degree the sister of a father, and in the fifth degreethe daughter of a father"s brother, and in a sixth degree of afather"s sister; and these shall dwell with their male kinsmen,according to the degree of relationship and right, as we enactedbefore. Now we must not conceal from ourselves that such laws areapt to be oppressive and that there may sometimes be a hardship in thelawgiver commanding the kinsman of the dead man to marry his relation;be may be thought not to have considered the innumerable hindranceswhich may arise among men in the execution of such ordinances; forthere may be cases in which the parties refuse to obey, and areready to do anything rather than marry, when there is some bodily ormental malady or defect among those who are bidden to marry or bemarried. Persons may fancy that the legislator never thought ofthis, but they are mistaken; wherefore let us make a common prelude onbehalf of the lawgiver and of his subjects, the law begging the latterto forgive the legislator, in that he, having to take care of thecommon weal, cannot order at the same time the various circumstancesof individuals, and begging him to pardon them if naturally they aresometimes unable to fulfil the act which he in his ignorance imposesupon them.
Cle. And how, Stranger, can we act most fairly under thecircumstances?
Ath. There must be arbiters chosen to deal with such laws and thesubjects of them.
Cle. What do you mean?
Ath. I mean to say, that a case may occur in which the nephew,having a rich father, will be unwilling to marry the daughter of hisuncle; he will have a feeling of pride, and he will wish to lookhigher. And there are cases in which the legislator will be imposingupon him the greatest calamity, and he will be compelled to disobeythe law, if he is required, for example, to take a wife who is mad, orhas some other terrible malady of soul or body, such as makes lifeintolerable to the sufferer. Then let what we are saying concerningthese cases be embodied in a law:-If any one finds fault with theestablished laws respecting testaments, both as to other matters andespecially in what relates to marriage, and asserts that thelegislator, if he were alive and present, would not compel him toobey-that is to say, would not compel those who are by our lawrequired to marry or be given in marriage, to do either-and somekinsman or guardian dispute this, the reply is that the legislatorleft fifteen of the guardians of the law to be arbiters and fathers oforphans, male or female, and to them let the disputants have recourse,and by their aid determine any matters of the kind, admitting theirdecision to be final. But if any one thinks that too great power isthus given to the guardians of the law, let him bring hisadversaries into the court of the select judges, and there have thepoints in dispute determined. And he who loses the cause shall havecensure and blame from the legislator, which, by a man of sense, isfelt to be a penalty far heavier than a great loss of money.