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“Now the queen sought to prove the knowledge of the king, and said,—‘Oh, Solomon, thou who hast spoken of trees, from the cedar to the hyssop—also of beasts, and of fowls, and of creeping things, and of fishes;

“‘Declare unto thy servant, which of the two is the true serpent (for one was cunningly fashioned like unto a living snake, and did move and writhe in the hands of the juggler); for, of a truth, there is but one of the two that hath life.’

“And the jugglers played with the snakes before the seat of King Solomon.

“Then the king did privily send for the ape; and when he was brought in, the king caused him to be led near unto the jugglers.

“And the ape passed one of the men who played with a snake, and took no note thereof; but as he approached the fellow who held the second snake, the ape did shake, and his hair did rise upon his skin, and he trembled exceedingly; wherefore King Solomon discovered the true snake, and all men praised the wisdom of the king.^[6]

ssss1.See Rabbinical stories for a parallel case.