4 As a god he knows her, begets Alexander, beshields her.

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to the city's camp in a desert spot, tore up herbs, and ground
them, and took their juice, and wrought spells and other like
things of the fiend, that in that same night Olympia might
[4] behold the god Hamon lying beside her, and saying to her
thereafter, ' Woman, thou hast conceived him who shall beshield
thee.' And, on the morrow, Olympia awoke from her slumbers,
and called Anectanabus to her, and told him of the dream she
[8] had beheld. Then Anectanabus said : ' If thou wilt give me
room in the palace, thou shalt see the god himself, face to face.
For that god shall come to thee in the shape of a great snake,
and soon after, taking on a manlike body, he shall seem to be in
[12] my likeness.' And to this Olympia said : ' As thou hast spoken,
master, do. Take to thyself a bed in the palace, and canst thou
make good the truth thereof, I will deem thee to be the father
of the boy.' And, about the first watch of the night, Anectanabus
[16] took on him, through spells and wizardry to be changed into
the shape of a great snake, and whistling on to the bedchamber
of Olympia, to fly through. And he entered her room, and rose
on to her bed, and with great love began to kiss her, and the
[20] kisses betokened to her who he was. And when he rose up
from the bed, he smote her on the womb, and spake : ' This
begetting be thy avenging, and in no wise may it be upbraided
of men.'

[24] On such a fashion was Olympia cheated, who had lain with
a man as though he had been a god. And in the morning,
Anectanabus went down from the palace, and the queen was
with child.

[28] And when she began to be big, she called unto her Anec-
tanabus, saying : ' Master, tell me, what doom will Philip
wreak on me, when he shall come back?' And Anectanabus
said to her, ' Be not afraid : god Hamon will champion thee.'
[32] And with these words he left the palace, and went outside the
town, to a barren spot. And, uprooting grasses, rubbed them,
and grated them, and took their sap. And he caught a sea-bird,
and began to sing over the herbs, and anoint the herbs with the
[36] sap. This he did in fellowship with the fiends, that he might
betray King Philip through a dream. And this was brought
about. That same night the god Hamon appeared to Philip, in
a dream, lying with his wife Olympia, and, the night ended, he

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