1LAELIUS. 1I for my part would not be reluctant, if I had confidence in myself, for it is a noble subject and we are, as Fannius said, at leisure. 1But who am I, or what ability is there in me? 1That is the practice of learned men, and Greeks at that, to have a subject set before them to discuss, however suddenly. 1It is a great task and needs no small practice. 1Therefore what can be said in discussion about friendship I advise you to seek from those who profess such things; 1I can only urge you to put friendship before all human things; 1for nothing is so suited to our nature, so fitting in prosperity or adversity.
18But this I feel first of all, that friendship cannot exist except among good men; 18nor do I pare this down to the quick, as those do who discuss these matters more subtly, truly perhaps, but to little common profit; 18for they say that no one is a good man unless he is wise. 18Let it be so, by all means: but they define that wisdom as one which no mortal has yet attained. 18We, however, ought to look at the things that exist in practice and in everyday life, not those that are imagined or wished for. 18I shall never say that Gaius Fabricius, Manius Curius and Tiberius Coruncanius, whom our ancestors judged wise, were wise by the standard of these men.
18So let them keep to themselves the name of wisdom, both invidious and obscure, and grant that these were good men. 18They will not do even that; 18they will say that this cannot be granted except to the wise man. 19Let us proceed, then, with a 'plain wit', as the saying goes. 19Those who so conduct themselves, so live, that their good faith, integrity, fairness and generosity are approved, and that there is in them no greed, lust or recklessness, and that they are of great steadfastness, as were the men I have just named, these let us consider worthy to be called good men, as they were held to be, because they follow, as far as men can, nature, the best guide to living well.
19For I seem to see clearly that we were born so that there should be a certain fellowship among all, but a greater one as each comes nearer to us. 19And so fellow citizens are preferred to foreigners, kinsmen to strangers; 19for with these nature herself has created friendship, but it does not have enough firmness. 19For friendship surpasses kinship in this, that goodwill can be taken away from kinship but not from friendship; 19for when goodwill is taken away the name of friendship is removed, while that of kinship remains. 20How great the power of friendship is can best be understood from this, that out of the boundless fellowship of the human race, which nature herself has brought together, the matter is so contracted and drawn into narrow bounds that all affection is joined either between two or among a few.