“How now, Israel; some sorcery?”
“No—yet, may be, yes. I’ll picture a world without women.”
The Jew outlined the Egyptian deity, “Kneph.”
“What have we, man or beast?”
“Truly, I think partly both. The knight has described his Elysium and I have here pictured a fit king for it. Behold thy god, sworn celibate. Egypt’s adored Kneph. Is this hideous enough?”
“A god! well he’s not handsome; a ram’s head; four horns; two up, two down; armed as both ram and goat?”
“Both were sacred to him in Egypt; also the horned snake with which Cleopatra put out her life; poor, unfortunate man-wrecked beauty.”
“But, Jew, thou dost dawdle! What of this play?”
“Oh, nothing, only Kneph would do well for a sailor, at Rome, under Claudius, in famine time!”