Continuing with the text.
19a-19d. Well, then, a defense speech must be made, men of Athens, and an attempt must be made in this short time to take away from you this slander, which you acquired over a long time. Now I would wish that it may turn out like this, if it is in any way better both for you and for me, and that I may accomplish something by making a defense speech. But I suppose this is hard, and I am not at all unaware of what sort of thing it is. Nevertheless, let this proceed in whatever way is dear to the god, but the law must be obeyed and a defense speech must be made. So let us take up from the beginning what the accusation is, from which has arisen the slander against me—which, in fact, is what Meletus trusted in when he brought this indictment against me. Well, then. What did the slanderers say to slander me? Their sworn statement, just as though they were accusers, must be read: “Socrates does injustice and is meddlesome, by investigating the things under the earth and the heavenly things, and by making the weaker speech the stronger, and by teaching others these same things.” It is something like this. For you yourselves also used to see these things in the comedy of Aristophanes: a certain Socrates was carried around there, claiming that he was treading on air and spouting much other drivel about which I have no expertise, either much or little. And I do not say this to dishonor this sort of knowledge, if anyone is wise in such things (may I never be prosecuted with such great lawsuits by Meletus!); but in fact I, men of Athens, have no share in these things. Again, I offer the many of you as witnesses, and I maintain that you should teach and tell each other, those of you who have ever heard me conversing and there are many such among you—tell each other, then, if any of you ever heard me conversing about such things, either much or little, and from this you will recognize that the same holds also for the other things that the many say about me.
Socrates says that he does not want to dishonor the investigation of the heavens and earth, but he simply denies that he does it. As proof he says that he never talked about it, but if the jurors were too young to hear him firsthand before, how could they have heard him now?