Budge_Ethiopic_Alexander

THE MIRACULOUS GRAPES. 259
"that thou wilt help me when I depart from thee.
"Moreover, I desire thee to give me of thine own
"food to eat on the way, for I have twelve days
"and twelve nights to journey, and I have eaten
"nothing." The angel said unto him, "Go to thine Alexander
"own place, for thou art not able to eat here."food.
The Two-horned said unto him, "I wished thee
"to give me [to eat] of thine own food, for be-
"hold, thou hast already given unto me spiritual
"food, and of the food of the body there is still
"some left unto me."
And it came to pass that when the angel heard
these words from him, he stretched out his hand The angei
to the top of the mountain and took therefrom trnc^h ""of
the similitude of a bunch of grapes, and he gave ^''^p''^'
them unto the Two-horned, saying, "Keep these
"with thee, and when thou comest to thy friends,
"[p. 149] whom thou wilt find fasting and hungry,
"give unto each of them one grape, for this bunch
"will never come to an end if thou dost not mingle
"other kind of food therewith.'" Then the Two-
^ In an Arabic Life of Alexander published by Lidzbars-
ki (Bezold's ZeitscJirift, Bd. viii, p. 303) we again meet this
story. The angel tells Alexander to go back and, without
being asked, gives him a bunch of grapes for provision by
the way, ordering him at the same time to give some of
the grapes , to the soldiers, for they will enable them to reach
the country of men and of genii 3^^ ^.y° ^ i_r^*-:^ £^^^
.^L\^ .jr^"^' JfJ^
According to Mas'udi, torn. i. p. 268,
'Amran, the son of Jabir, went up the Nile to its source, and