plants and trees, and thus the place becomes clothed with
verdure and fit for habitation." This is the _Shameer_ (Lev. xi.
19), Nagger Tura, which the Targum renders Mountain Splitter.

They therefore searched for the nest of the wild cock, which
they found contained a young brood. This they covered with a
glass, that the bird might see its young, but not be able to get
at them. When accordingly the bird came and found his nest
impenetrably glazed over, he went and fetched the Shameer. Just
as he was about to apply it to the glass in order to cut it,
Solomon's messenger gave a startling shout, and this so agitated
the bird that he dropped the Shameer, and Solomon's messenger
caught it up and made off with it. The cock thereupon went and
strangled himself, because he was unable to keep the oath by
which he had bound himself to return the Shameer.

Benaiah asked Ashmedai why, when he saw the blind man straying,
he so promptly interfered to guide him? "Because," he replied,
"it was proclaimed in heaven that that man was perfectly
righteous, and that whosoever did him a good turn would earn a
title to a place in the world of the future." "And when thou
sawest the man overcome with wine wandering out of his way, why
didst thou put him right again?" Ashmedai said, "Because it was
made known in heaven that that man was thoroughly bad, and I
have done him a good service that he might not lose all, but
receive some good in the world that now is." "Well, and why
didst thou weep when thou sawest the merry wedding-party pass?"
"Because," said he, "the bridegroom was fated to die within
thirty days and the bride must needs wait thirteen years for her
husband's brother, who is now but an infant" (see Deut. xxv.
5-10). "Why didst thou laugh so when the man ordered a pair of
shoes that would last him seven years?" Ashmedai replied,
"Because the man himself was not sure of living seven days."
"And why," asked Benaiah, "didst thou jeer when thou sawest the
conjuror at his tricks?" "Because," said Ashmedai, "the man was
at that very time sitting on a princely treasure, and he did
not, with all his pretension, know that it was under him."

Having once acquired a power over Ashmedai, Solomon detained him
till the building of the Temple was completed. One day after
this, when they were alone,