The xli Chapitre.
THE EXTREME BARBAROUSE countrye of Ethyope broughte furthe Nicaula, whiche is so muche the more to be cowmendyd that, beynge borne in so rude and barbarouse a countrye, she had in hyr so exellent vertues. For it is euydent, if we shall gyue credyte to the auncyenty, that after the names of the Pharaose and theyr succession faylede, that thys woman was not oonely Quene of Ethyope, but also of Egypte and of Arraby, and by the greate ile of Meroe ther to be inhabytede, hauynge so infenyte of golde and syluer and ryches that it is thoughte theryn she passed all other creatures in thys present lyfe. She dyd not wantonly vse hyr substaunce in pleasures and playse as other do, but vnto suche knowledge of the thynges naturall that, all thoughe we knowe not hyr maister that taughte hyr, that it was a woundre to se it. And, to thys, Holy Scryptur berythe wytnes that thys is that woman whiche the Byble nameth Saba. Herynge the wysdome of Salomon, in hyr tyme of so greate a fame that he was spoken of thorow the worlde, thys woman dyd not, as fooles do, sett lyghte by wysdome, but, meruelynge at it, leuynge hyr kyngedome of Meroe, sett in an angle of the worlde, and goynge by Ethyopia and by the Egyptiens vnto the Reede See, with a greate and a tryhumphaunte company of lordes and seruauntes came to Jherusalem, to se and to lerne of Salomon knowledge and cunnynge, to hys greate meruell also to beholde the womans magnyficence and ordre. Whiche, honourably receyuyde, and she puttynge certeyn questiones to Salomon, and he assoylynge theym to the verey truethe, she confessyde playnely that hys wysdome was more then the fame that wentt of it, farr excedynge mans capacyte, oonely geuyne to hym of Gode. And then, gyuynge hym many ryche gyftes, speciall certeyn gryftes whiche berythe the perfyte bawme (Salomon, perceyuyng the greate vertue therof, causede theym to be graftyde not farr frome Assaltys and diligently to be kepte), and he of hys parte gyuynge to hyr iewelles of an infynyte pryce, with greate ioy she retumyde home into hyr countrye. Sum do beleue thys to be that high quene callede Candase, that in lyke wyse as the Kynges of Egypte were callede Pharaose, after hyr, many yeres they were callede of hyr name Candases.