How They Bought the Sibylline Books

The Wall Street bailout was rejected when the dollar amount was estimated at $700 Billion. Now the new bill, 2 days later, has an $850 Billion price tag. While not the same scenario as the Sibylline Books, the increase in price for the same problem reminds me of this ancient Roman legend:

A woman from Cumae, a Greek colony, came to [Tarquinius Superbus, last king of Rome], and offered for sale nine books of oracles and prophecies; but the price seemed exorbitant, and he refused to purchase them. The sibyl then burned three, and, returning, asked the same price for the remaining six. The king again refused. She burned three more, and obtained from the monarch for her last three the original price. These books were preserved in the Capitol, and held in great respect.
Ancient Rome from the Earliest Times Down to 476 A.D.