Approved at Cologne by the Doctors of the Theological Faculty,
the University of
Cologne, 9 May 1487.
The city of Salamis
in the kingdom of Cyprus . . . is a seaport, and once when a vessel was
being laden with merchandise suitable for a ship which is sailing into foreign parts, and all
her company were providing themselves with victuals, one of them, a strong young man,
went to the house of a woman, and asked her if she had any eggs to sell. The woman,
seeing that he was a strong young man, and a merchant far away from his own country,
thought that on that account the people of the city would feel less suspicion if he were to
be lost, and said to him : �Wait a little, and I will get you all that you want.�
Then the woman brought some eggs and gave them to the young man, and told him to
hurry back to the ship in case he should miss it. So he hastened back to the ship, which
was anchored by the shore, and before going on board, since the full company of his
companions was not yet returned, he decided to eat the eggs there and refresh himself.
And behold! an hour later he was made dumb as if he had no power of speech; and, as he
afterwards said, he wondered what could have happened to him, but was unable to find
out. Yet when he wished to go on board, he was driven off with sticks by those who yet
remained ashore, and who all cried out : �Look what this ass is doing! Curse the beast,
you are not coming on board.� The young man being thus driven away, and
understanding from their words that they thought he was an ass, reflected and began to
suspect that he had been bewitched by the woman. . . .
And so, he ran here and there, and since everybody thought he was an ass, he was
necessarily treated as such.
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