BIBLICAL LIBRARIES
king, was now endeavoring, if it were possible, to gather together all the books that were in the habitable earth, and buying whatsoever was anywhere valuable, or agreeable to the king's inclination (who was very earnestly set upon collecting of books); to which inclination of his Demetrius was zealously subservient. And when once Ptolemy asked him, how many ten thousands of books he has collected he replied, that he had already about twenty times ten thousand, but that, in a little time, he should have fifty times ten thousand. But he said he had been informed, that there were books of law among the Jews, worthy of inquiring after, and worthy of the king's library, but which ... will cause no small pains in getting them translated into the Greek tongue. ... Wherefore he said that nothing hindered why they might not get those books to be translated also, for while nothing is wanting that is neces-
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