led away because he had seen in his sleep a vision, in
which it seemed to him that a man came and stood by him and counselled
him to gather together all the priests in Egypt and cut them asunder in
the midst. Having seen this dream, he said that it seemed to him that
the gods were foreshowing him this to furnish an occasion against him,
in order that he might do an impious deed with respect to religion,
and so receive some evil either from the gods or from men: he would not
however do so, but in truth (he said) the time had expired, during
which it had been prophesied to him that he should rule Egypt before
he departed thence. For when he was in Ethiopia the Oracles which the
Ethiopians consult had told him that it was fated for him to rule Egypt
fifty years: since then this time was now expiring, and the vision of
the dream also disturbed him, Sabacos departed out of Egypt of his own
free will.

Then when the Ethiopian had gone away out of Egypt, the blind man came
back from the fen-country and began to rule again, having lived there
during fifty years upon an island which he had made by heaping up ashes
and earth: for whenever any of the Egyptians visited him bringing food,
according as it had been appointed to them severally to do without the
knowledge of the Ethiopian, he bade them bring also some ashes for their
gift. This island none was able to find before Amyrtaios; that is, for
more than seven hundred years the kings who arose before Amyrtaios were
not able to find it. Now the name of this island is Elbo, and its size
is ten furlongs each way.

After him there came to the throne the priest of Hephaistos, whose name
was Sethos. This man, they said, neglected and held in no regard the
warrior class of the Egyptians, considering that he would have no need
of them; and besides other slights which he put upon them, he also
took from them the yokes of corn-land which had been given to them as
a special gift in the reigns of the former kings, twelve yokes to each
man. After this, Sanacharib king of the Arabians and of the Assyrians
marched a great host against Egypt. Then the warriors of the Egyptians
refused to come to the rescue, and the priest, being driven into a
strait, entered into the sanctuary of the temple and bewailed to the
image of the god the danger which was impending over him; and as he was
thus lamenting, sleep came upon him, and it seemed to him in his vision
that the god came and stood by him and en