Let me give you an illustration of what I mean:--You may suppose a person to be praising wheat as a good kind of food, whereupon another person instantly blames wheat, without ever enquiring into its effect or use, or in what way, or to whom, or with what, or in what state and how, wheat is to be given.

And that is just what we are doing in this discussion.

At the very mention of the word intoxication, one side is ready with their praises and the other with their censures; which is absurd.

For either side adduce their witnesses and approvers, and some of us think that we speak with authority because we have many witnesses; and others because they see those who abstain conquering in battle, and this again is disputed by us.

Now I cannot say that I shall be satisfied, if we go on discussing each of the remaining laws in the same way.