Counsellors
Holo. They are the counsellors of the king.
Soph. Those whom the prince calls to his council. It behoves them to be the most prudent of men, of great experience, of the greatest weight and moderation in their discernment.
Agri. Why so?
Soph. Because they are the eyes and ears of the prince, and so of the whole kingdom, and so much the more if the king should be blind or deaf, enslaved by his senses, or by ignorance, or by enjoyment of pleasure.
Agri. Are that one-eyed man and that other deaf man eyes and ears of the king?
Soph. Worse still is blindness and deafness of the heart!