The laughable stories collected by Mâr Gregory John Bar Hebræ

STORIES OF DREAMS AND DIVINATIONS. 97
to the villagers, "Behold, a camel hath strayed away
"from us: give us a man that he may search for
"him." And when they brought out a man to them to
look for the camel, he saw ravens flying about, and he
made his escape, and went into the village and said,
"In very truth, these are devils and not men; further-
"more they have lost no camel." And it came to pass
at these words that these men vanished, and they never
appeared again.
CCCXCII. A certain ruler had a diviner whose words
he wished to prove false. And it came to pass on a
certain day that the sheep which he possessed strayed
into the wilderness; and he told his diviner to make
divination concerning them; and he also commanded his
servant, saying, "Whilst I am speaking with the diviner,
"do thou emit a croak like that of a raven on the roof"
Now when the diviner heard the croak he said, "In
very truth highway robbers have stolen the sheep."
Thereupon the governor laughed and said, "Thou
"hast made a mistake, for it was not a raven which
"croaked, but my servant." The diviner answered,
"Now therefore, if it was thy servant who croaked and
"not a raven, in very truth the shepherd is slain and
"the flocks are carried off." And when they went to
enquire they found that the matter was thus.
CCCXCIII. A certain king said unto a man who used
divination on the Sabbath day, "Look [and tell me]
"if my kingdom shall endure for my son after me, or
"not;" and he took him by his hand and squeezed it.
And the diviner made answer to him, saying, "Thy son
"will demand overmuch from the people, and his king-
"dom shall come to an end, for the pressure of my hand
"by thee indicateth the oppressive demand for money