Her penfile house the feather'd artist builds- The rocking winds moleft her not; for fee, With fuch due poize the wond'rous fabrick's hung, That, like the compass in the bark, it keeps True to itself and stedfast even in ftorms. Thou ideot, that afferts there is no God, View, and be dumb for ever.
Innumerable are the beauties of this agreeable kind that might be drawn from the poets, both ancient and modern. Those who would see more of these descriptive beauties, may abundantly gratify their curiofity in our volume of Rhetoric, where many are inferted to illuftrate the figures in that science. It is to be observed, however, that those where the tender paffions are concern'd, are not only more affecting, but often more pleafing than others, as may be seen by this fpeech of Eve to Adam, in Milton's Paradise Loft.; and by other paffages which we shall insert from that ever to be admired poem.
With thee converfing, I forget all time,
All feasons and their change, all please alike: Sweet is the breath of morn, her rifing sweet With charm of earlieft birds, pleasant the fun When first on this delightful land he spreads His orient beams, on herb, tree, fruit, and flow'r, Glift'ring with dew; fragrant the fertile earth After soft showers, and fweet the coming on Of grateful evening mild: then filent night With this her folemn bird, and this fair moon, And these the gems of heaven, her ftarry train. But neither breath of morn, when the afcends With charm of earliest birds; nor rifing fun On this delightful land, nor herb, fruit, flow'r, Glift'ring with dew, nor fragrance after showers, Nor grateful evening mild, nor filent night With this her folemn bird; nor walk by moon, Or glittering star-light, without thee is sweet.
Adam on feeing Eve afleep with unufual difcomposure in her looks, regards her, as Mr. Addifon obferves, with a tenderness not to be expreffed, and awakens her with the lofteft whisper that ever was conveyed to a lover's ear, 5808
His wonder was to find unwaken'd Eve With treffes difcompos'd, and glowing cheek As though unquiet reft: he on his fide Leaning half-rais'd, with looks of cordial love Hung over her enamour'd, and beheld Beauty, which whether waking or asleep, Shot forth peculiar graces: then with voice Mild, as when Zephyrus on Flora breathes, Her hand foft touching, whifper'd thus; awake My faireft, my efpoused, my latest found, Heav'ns laft beft gift, my ever new delight, Awake; the morning fhines, and the fresh field Calls us, we lose the prime to mark how spring Our tender plants, how blows the citron grove, What drops the myrtle, what the balmy reed How nature paints her colours, how the bee Sits on the bloom, extracting liquid fweet. Such whifp'ring wak'd her, but with startled eye On Adam, whom embracing, thus fhe spoke- O fole, in whom my thoughts find all repofe, My glory, my perfection, glad I fee
Thy face, and morn return'd
The paffage relating to Eve's dream, where fhe fancies herself awakened by Adam, is extremely beautiful; and will appear the more fo, when we confider that it was a dream in which the devil is fuppofed to have tainted her imagination by inftilling into her mind thofe high conceits engendering pride.
Close at mine ear, one call'd me forth to walk With gentle voice, I thought it thine; it faid, Why fleep'ft thou Eve? now is the pleasant time, The cool, the filent, fave where filence yields To the night-warbling bird, that now awake Tunes fweetest his love-labour'd fong; now reigns Full orb'd the moon, and with more pleafing light Shadowy fets off the face of things; in vain, If none regard; heav'n wakes with all his eyes, Whom to behold but thee, nature's defire? In whofe fight all things joy, with ravishment Attracted by thy beauty ftill to gaze!
That part of the narration, where Adam is faid to hav
cheared and inftructed Eve, is amazingly beautiful; and the effect his admonition produced in her, and his behaviour on that occafion, is finely conceived, and most exquifitely described.
So chear'd he his fair spouse, and she was chear'd, But filently a gentle tear let fall
From either eye, and wip'd them with her hair. Two other precious drops that ready flood, Each in their crystal fluice, he ere they fell Kifs'd, as the gracious figns of fweet remorfe And pious awe, that fear'd to have offended.
In that part of the Episode where Adam relates to the angel the circumstances he found himself in upon his creation, the author has raised our curiofity, and he has abundantly gratified it; for nothing could on that occafion have been better conceived, or better exprefled, especially the account Adam gives of the pofture he found himself in, the landscape round him, his addrefs to the fun, and of the dream in which he beheld the formation of Eve.
-As new wak'd from foundest sleep, Soft on the flow'ry herb I found me laid In balmy fweat, which with his beams the fun Soon dry'd, and on the reaking moisture fed. Strait toward heav'n my wand'ring eyes I turn'd, And gaz'd a while the ample sky, till rais'd By quick instinctive motion up I fprung, As thitherward endeavouring, and upright Stood on my feet: about me round I faw
Hill, dale, and fhady woods, and funny plains, And liquid lapfe of murm'ring ftreams; by thefe, Creatures that liv'd, and mov'd, and walk'd, or flew, Birds on the branches warbling; all things fmil'd: With fragrance and with joy my heart o'erflow'd. -Thou fun, faid I, fair light,
And thou enlighten'd earth, so fresh and gay, Ye hills and dales, ye rivers, woods, and plains, And ye that live and move, fair creatures tell, Tell if you faw, how came I thus, how here?
Under his forming hands a creature grew, Man like, but different fex: So lovely fair, That what feem'd fair in all the world, seem'd now
Mean, or in her fumm'd up, in her contain'd, And in her looks, which from that time infus'd Sweetness into my heart, unfelt before, And into all things from her air inspir❜d The fpirit of love and amorous delight.
After receiving fome admonitions from the angel, Adam explains himself on the subject of his love for Eve, in order to prove that his paffion was founded on reason, and therefore, though violent, not improper for Paradise.
Neither her out fide form fo fair, nor ought In procreation common to all kinds (Though higher of the genial bed by far, And with myfterious reverence I deem) So much delights me as thofe graceful acts, Those thousand decencies that daily flow From all her words and actions mixt with love And sweet compliance, which declare unfeign'd Union of mind, or in us both one foul.
The force of Adam's love, which we have already been defcribing, is exemplify'd towards the latter end of the work in many beautiful paffages; and the difpute that arifes between our two first parents, proceeds, as Mr. Addison justly .obferves, from a difference of judgment, not of paffion; it is managed with reafon, not with heat; and is fuch a difpute as we may fuppofe might have happened in Paradife, when man was happy and innocent. His parting with Eve is remarkably natural and affectionate.
Her long with ardent look his eye purfued Delighted, but defiring more her stay. Oft he to her his charge of quick return Repeated; fhe to him as oft engag'd
To be return'd by noon amid the bow'r.
His impatience for her return, and his employment dur. ing her abfence, are most beautifully expreffed.
Waiting defirous her return, had wove Of choiceft flow'rs a garland to adorn Her treffes, and her royal labours crown, As reapers oft are wont their harvest queen.
Great joy he promis'd to his thoughts, and new Solace in her return, so long delay'd.
But his affection is more particularly and emphatically expreffed in the speech he makes on feeing her irrecoverably loft.
Of enemy hath beguil'd thee, yet unknown, And me with thee hath ruin'd, for with thee Certain my refolution is to die;
How can I live without thee, how forego 'Thy sweet converfe, and love fo dearly join'd, To live again in these wild woods forlorn ? Should God create another Eve, and I Another rib afford, yet lofs of thee Would never from my heart: no, no, I feel The link of nature draw me: flesh of flesh, Bone of my bone thou art, and from thy state Mine never shall be parted, bliss or woe.
After this determination, Adam is reprefented as partak ing of the forbidden fruit, the effects of which rash action are thus defcribed; though rather in the fublime than the agreeable.
-He fcrupled not to eat
Against his better knowledge, not deceiv'd, But fondly overcome with female charm. Earth trembled from her entrails, as again
In pangs, and nature gave a fecond
Sky lour'd, and muttering thunder, fome fad drops Wept at compleating of the mortal fin.
Adam, whofe paffions had now gained the dominion over him, is reprefented as upbraiding Eve for the lofs of Paradife, whom he fpurns from him with indignation. This paffage, in which the renews her addreffes to him, is, in the opi. nion of the best judges, extremely pathetic and affecting.
He added not, and from her turn'd; but Eve Not fo repuls'd, with tears that ceas'd not flowing, And treffes all diforder'd, at his feet Fell humble; and embracing them, befought His peace, and thus proceeded in her plaint. Forfake me not thus, Adam! Witnefs heav'n
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