Sagacious of his quarry from so far.
Then both from out hell-gates into the waste
Wide anarchy of Chaos damp and dark
Flew diverse; and with power, (their power was
Hovering upon the waters, what they met
Solid or slimy, as in raging sea
Tost up and down, together crowded drove
From each side shoaling towards the mouth of hell.
As when two polar winds, blowing adverse
Upon the Cronian sea, together drive
Mountains of ice, that stop th' imagin'd way
Beyond Petsora eastward, to the rich
Death with his mace petrific, cold and dry,
As with a trident smote, and fix'd as firm
As Delos floating once; the rest his look
Bound with Gorgonian rigour not to move,
And with Asphaltic slime, broad as the gate,
Deep to the roots of hell the gather'd beach
They fasten'd, and the mole immense wrought on 300
Over the foaming deep high arch'd, a bridge
Of length prodigious joining to the wall
Immoveable of this now fenceless world
Forfeit to death; from hence a passage broad,
294 mace] So Marlowe and Nash's Trag. of Dido. 1594. 'Whose memory, like pale Death's stony mace,
Beates forth my senses.'
297 Gorgonian] Claud. Rufin. i. 279.
'Rigida cum Gorgone Perseus! Pearce.
Smooth, easy, inoffensive, down to hell.
So, if great things to small may be compar'd,
Xerxes, the liberty of Greece to yoke,
From Susa his Memnonian palace high
Came to the sea, and over Hellespont
Bridging his way, Europe with Asia join'd,
And scourg❜d with many a stroke th' indignant waves.
Now had they brought the work by wondrous art
Pontifical, a ridge of pendent rock
Over the vex'd abyss, following the track
Of Satan, to the self-same place where he
First lighted from his wing, and landed safe
From out of Chaos, to the outside bare
305 inoffensive] Unobstructed. Stillingfleet notes the same Latin idiom in b. viii. 164.
'Or she [Earth] from west her silent course advance
With inoffensive pace.'
Pontifical, a ridge of pendent rock] So Sannazarii Epig. lib.
'Jucundus geminos fecit tibi, Sequana, pontes :
Jure tuum potes hunc dicere Pontificem.'
313 ridge] Bridge. Bentl. MS.
315 Of Satan] Newton has altered the pointing of the first edition, by inserting a comma after Chaos, but I think the passage would be clear, if thus read.
Now had they brought the work by wondrous art
Pontifical, a ridge of pendent rock,
Over the vex'd abyss (following the track
Of Satan, to the self-same place where he
First lighted from his wing, and landed safe
From out of Chaos) to the outside bare
Of this round world.
The part that relates to Satan's path being parenthetical.
Of this round world: with pins of adamant
And chains they made all fast, too fast they made
And durable; and now in little space
The confines met of empyrean heaven
And of this world, and on the left hand hell
With long reach interpos'd; three sev'ral ways
In sight to each of these three places led.
And now their way to earth they had descry'd,
To paradise first tending, when behold!
Satan in likeness of an angel bright
Betwixt the Centaur and the Scorpion steering
His zenith, while the sun in Aries rose:
Disguis'd he came, but those his children dear
Their parent soon discern'd, though in disguise.
He, after Eve seduc'd, unminded slunk
Into the wood fast by, and, changing shape
To observe the sequel, saw his guileful act
By Eve, though all unweeting, seconded
Upon her husband; saw their shame that sought
Vain covertures: but when he saw descend
The Son of God to judge them, terrify'd
He fled, not hoping to escape, but shun
The present, fearing guilty what his wrath
Might suddenly inflict: that past, return'd
By night, and listening where the hapless pair
Sat in their sad discourse and various plaint,
Thence gather'd his own doom, which understood
Not instant, but of future time, with joy
345 time] In Milton's own editions, and all others till those of Fenton and Bentley, a full stop was placed after Not instant, but of future time.' Newton has inserted only a comma.
And tidings fraught, to hell he now return'd,
And at the brink of Chaos, near the foot
Of this new wondrous pontifice, unhop'd
Met who to meet him came, his offspring dear.
Great joy was at their meeting, and at sight
Of that stupendous bridge his joy increas'd.
Long he admiring stood, till Sin, his fair
Inchanting daughter, thus the silence broke.
O parent, these are thy magnific deeds,
Thy trophies, which thou view'st as not thine own;
Thou art their author and prime architect:
For I no sooner in my heart divin'd,
My heart, which by a secret harmony
Still moves with thine, join'd in connexion sweet,
That thou on earth hadst prosper'd, which thy looks
Now also evidence, but straight I felt,
Though distant from thee worlds between, yet felt
That I must after thee with this thy son;
Such fatal consequence unites us three.
Hell could no longer hold us in her bounds,
Nor this unvoyageable gulf obscure
Detain from following thy illustrious track.
Thou hast achiev'd our liberty, confin'd
Within hell-gates till now; thou us impower'd
To fortify thus far, and overlay
With this portentous bridge the dark abyss.
Thine now is all this world; thy virtue hath won
What thy hands builded not; thy wisdom gain'd
364 consequence] Congruence. 247. Bentl. MS.
With odds what war hath lost, and fully aveng'd
Our foil in heaven; here thou shalt monarch reign,
There didst not; there let him still victor sway,
As battle hath adjudg'd, from this new world
Retiring, by his own doom alienated
And henceforth monarchy with thee divide
Of all things, parted by th' empyreal bounds,
His quadrature, from thy orbicular world;
Or try thee now more dangerous to his throne.
Whom thus the prince of darkness answer'd glad.
Fair daughter, and thou son and grandchild both,
High proof ye now have giv'n to be the race
Of Satan, (for I glory in the name,
Antagonist of heaven's almighty King,)
Amply have merited of me, of all
Th' infernal empire, that so near heav'n's door
Triumphal with triumphal act have met,
Mine with this glorious work, and made one realm
Hell and this world, one realm, one continent
Of easy thoroughfare. Therefore, while I
Descend through darkness on your road with ease
Το my associate powers, them to acquaint
With these successes, and with them rejoice,
You two this way, among these numerous orbs
All yours, right down to paradise descend;
390 act] arch. Bentl. MS.
391 one] one realm, one continent.' This is the genuine reading, but Fenton and Bentley read our realm,' though Bentley places 'one' in the margin, as his conjecture. Newton.
397 these] In the first edition, those.'
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