Towards the end of the third century of our era, or possibly at an earlier epoch,[48] the throne of Ma’rib was temporarily occupied by ‘Amr b. ‘Ámir Má’ al-Samá, surnamed Muzayqiyá.[49] His wife, Ẓarífa, was skilled in the art of divination. She dreamed dreams and saw visions which announced the impending calamity. "Go to the Dyke," she said to her husband, who doubted her clairvoyance, "and if thou see a rat digging holes in the Dyke with its paws and moving huge boulders with its hind-legs, be assured that the woe hath come upon us." So ‘Amr went to the Dyke and looked carefully, and lo, there was a rat moving an enormous rock which fifty men could not have rolled from its place. Convinced by this and other prodigies that the Dyke would soon burst and the land be laid waste, he resolved to sell his possessions and depart with his family; and, lest conduct so extraordinary should arouse suspicion, he had recourse to the following stratagem. He invited the chief men of the city to a splendid feast, which, in accordance with a preconcerted plan, was interrupted by a violent altercation between himself and his son (or, as others relate, an orphan who had been brought up in his house). Blows were exchanged, and ‘Amr cried out, "O shame! on the day of my glory a stripling has insulted me and struck my face." He swore that he would put his son to death, but the guests entreated him to show mercy, until at last he gave way. "But by God," he exclaimed, "I will no longer remain in a city where I have suffered this indignity. I will sell my lands and my stock." Having successfully got rid of his encumbrances--for there was no lack of buyers eager to take him at his word--‘Amr informed the people of the danger with which they were threatened, and set out from Ma’rib at the head of a great multitude. Gradually the waters made a breach in the Dyke and swept over the country, spreading devastation far and wide. Hence the proverb _Dhahabú_ (or _tafarraqú_) _aydí Saba_, "They departed" (or "dispersed") "like the people of Saba."[50] [Sidenote: Fall of the Sabæan Empire.] This deluge marks an epoch in the history of South Arabia. The waters subside, the land returns to cultivation and prosperity, but Ma’rib lies desolate, and the Sabæans have disappeared for ever, except "to point a moral or adorn a tale." Al-A‘shá sang:-- ⌣| ⌣| ⌣| Metre _Mutaqárib_: (⌣ - -|⌣ - -|⌣ - -|⌣ -). "Let this warn whoever a warning will take-- And Ma’rib withal, which the Dam fortified. Of marble did Ḥimyar construct it, so high, The waters recoiled when to reach it they tried. It watered their acres and vineyards, and hour By hour, did a portion among them divide. So lived they in fortune and plenty until Therefrom turned away by a ravaging tide. Then wandered their princes and noblemen through Mirage-shrouded deserts that baffle the guide."[51]