The laughable stories collected by Mâr Gregory John Bar Hebræ

86 THE LAUGHABLE STORIES OF BAR-HEBR^US.
"as for the duskiness of thy belly, paint it with anti-
"mony and thou wilt be gratified therewith."
CCCLVI. When a certain jesting physician was
passing by the door of a bath he saw a naked man
coming out, and he said to him, "Why art thou going
"forth naked? go in lest, thou suffer harm." And the
man said, "They have stolen my clothes, and I am
"going out to seek for them;" and the physician said,
"Let me bleed thee, then, that thy affliction may be
"diminished."
CCCLVII. Unto another physician it was said, "What
"is the [most] convenient time for eating," and he replied,
"To him that hath anything to eat, when he is
"hungry, and to him that hath nothing, when he findeth
"[food]."
CCCLVIII. When a physician went in to visit a
certain simple man and asked him, "How dost thou
"think thou art to-day? and what dost thou wish
"for?" he replied, "I am very well, but I am longing
"for some snow to eat." The physician said to him,
"Snow is not a suitable thing for thee, for it will make
"thee cough." The sick man said to him, "Only let
"me suck the water from it, and I will throw away
"the rest of it even as I do with an apple."
CCCLIX. When a certain physician was sitting at
meat at the table of a certain sophist a servant offered
him fish and milk, and the physician began to eat one
of them. Then the sophist said unto him, "Why dost
"thou not also eat of this dish which is very good?"
and the physician replied, "I am afraid to do so, be-
"cause the two together are not wholesome." And
the sophist said, "This being so thou must, now, per-
"force solve one of the two following propositions: