heart of every man among them was wiser than that of his neighbour, and the arm of each was stronger than that of his neighbour; there was not one weak man among them.  Nevertheless it blew a gale of wind whilst we were still on the sea and before we could make the land.  A gale rose, which continued to increase in violence, and with it there came upon [us] a wave eight cubits [high].  A plank of wood was driven towards me by this wave, and I seized it; and as for the ship, those who were therein perished and not one of them escaped alive [except] myself.  And now behold me by thy side!  It was a wave of the sea that brought me to this island.”

And the serpent said unto me, “Have no fear, have no fear, O little one, and let not thy face be sad, now that thou hast arrived at the place where I am.  Verily, God hath spared thy life, and thou hast been brought to this island where there is food.  There is no kind of food that is not here, and it is filled with good things of every kind.  Verily, thou shalt pass month after month on this island, until thou hast come to the end of four months, and then a ship shall come, and there shall be therein sailors who are acquaintances of thine, and thou shalt go with them to thy country, and thou shalt die in thy native town.” [And the serpent continued,] “What a joyful thing it is for the man who hath experienced evil fortunes, and hath passed safely through them, to declare them!  I will now describe unto thee some of the things that have happened unto me on this island.  I used to live here with my brethren, and with my children who dwelt among them; now my children and my brethren together numbered seventy-five.  I do not make mention of a little maiden who had been brought to me by fate.  And a star fell [from heaven], and these (i.e. his children, and his brethren, and the maiden) came into the fire which fell with it.  I myself was not with those who were burnt in the fire, and I was not in their midst, but I [well-nigh] died [of grief] for them.  And I found a place wherein I buried them all together.  Now, if thou art strong, and thy heart flourisheth, thou shalt fill both thy arms (i.e. embrace) with thy children, and thou shalt kiss thy wife, and thou shalt see thine own house, which is the most beautiful thing of all, and thou shalt reach thy country, and thou shalt live therein again together with thy brethren, and dwell therein.”

Then I cast myself down flat upon my stomach, and I pressed the ground before the serpent with my forehead, saying, “I will describe thy power to the King, and I will make him to understand thy greatness.  I will cause to be brought unto thee the unguent and spices called aba, and hekenu, and inteneb, and khasait, and the incense that is offered up in the temples, whereby every god is propitiated.  I will relate [unto him] the things that have happened unto me, and declare the things that have been seen by me through thy power, and praise and thanksgiving