The Laughable Stories Collected by Mar Gregory John

I08 THE LAUGHABLE STORIES OF BAR-HEBRyEUS.
king he sent the poet a sack of flour, wherein were one
thousand dinars, and he wrote to him, saying, **We
''have sent thee flour to eat, together with a thousand
"dinars which thou mayest spend in purchasing other
"things that may be needed by thee."
CCCCXXni. Another man dwelt in the neighbourhood
of a certain rich man, and he wished to sell his
house. And when some one came to buy it the owner
of the house said, "And how much wilt thou give
"extra for the wealthy man who liveth in the neigh-
bourhood.'^" The would-be buyer said to him, "How canst
"thou imagine that thou oughtest to receive extra money
"because of the wealthy man in the neighbourhood.'^"
The owner of the house said, "Wilt thou not purchase
"from me [this] neighbourship? Now everything which
''thou lackest he would have supplied thee with, and
"whenever thou wert overburdened he would have
"set thee free. Go, thou art not worthy to buy my
"house." And it came to pass that when the rich man
heard [these things], he sent to the owner of the house
one thousand dinars, saying, "Spend whatsoever thou
"needest to spend, but do not sell thy house."
CCCCXXIY. Another rich man said unto a certain
needy man who had asked a gift from him, "Go and
"ask so and so, for he hath never looked upon the
"back of the man who went without a gift from him."
CCCCXXV. A certain king, wishing to go forth on
a journey of pleasure, said to one of those who desired
to go forth with him, "See what money I have in the
"treasury, and let the governors thereof allow thee to
"take some, and thou shalt come forth with us." And
the man went and took nine hundred thousand pieces
of silver and came back and kissed the king's hand,