242 HE IS ATTACKED AND RETREATS. Now the monster at first was very rampant, and looked upon these enemies with great disdain; but they so belaboured him, How he is engaged. being sturdy men at arms, that they made him nake a retreat: so they came home to Mr Mnason's house again. The monster, you must know, had his certain seasons to come out in, and to make his attempts upon the children of the people of the town. At these seasons did these valiant worthies watch him in, and did still continually assault him; insomuch that in process of time he became not only wounded, but lame. Also he has not made that havoc of the townsmen's children as formerly he had done; and it is verily believed by some, that this beast will die of his wounds. This therefore made Mr Great-heart and his fellows of great fame in this town; so that many of the people that wanted their taste of things, yet had a reverent esteem and respect for them. Upon this account therefore it was, that these pilgrims got not much hurt here. True, there were some of the baser sort, that could see no more than a mole, nor understand any more than a beast; these had no reverence for these men, and took no notice of their valour and adventures. Well, the time grew on that the pilgrims must go on their way; wherefore they prepared for their journey. They sent for their friends; they conferred with them; they had some time set apart therein to THE PILGRIMS LEAVE VANITY FAIR. 243 commit each other to the protection of their Prince. There were again that brought them of such things as they had, that were fit for the weak and the strong, for the women and the men, and so laded them with such things as were necessary, Acts xxviii. 10. Then they set forward on their way; and their friends accompanying them so far as was convenient, they again committed each other to the protection of their King, and parted. They therefore that were of the pilgrims' company went on, and Mr Great-heart went before them. Now the women and children being weakly, they were forced to go as they could bear; by which means Mr Ready-to-halt and Mr Feeble-mind had more to sympathise with their condition. When they were gone from the townsmen, and when their friends had bid them farewell, they quickly came to the place where Faithful was put to death. Therefore they made a stand, and thanked Him that had enabled him to bear his cross so well; and the rather, because they now found that they had a benefit by such manly sufferings as his were. They went on therefore after this a good way further, talking of Christian and Faithful, and how Hopeful joined himself to Christian after that Faithful was dead. Now they were come up with the hill Lucre, where the silver mine was which took Demas off his pilgrimage, and into which, as some think, By-ends fell and perished; wherefore they considered that. But when they were come to the old monument that stood over against the hill Lucre, to wit, to the pillar of salt, that stood also within view of Sodom and its stinking lake, they marvelled, as did Christian before, that men of that knowledge and ripeness of wit as they were should be so blind as to turn aside here. Only they considered again, that nature is not affected with the harms that others have met with, especially if that thing upon which they look has an attracting virtue upon the foolish eye. I saw now that they went on till they came to the river that was on this side of the Delectable Mountains;-to the river (f) where the fine trees grow on both sides, and whose leaves, if taken inwardly, are good against surfeits where the meadows are green all the year long; and where they might lie down safely, Psa. xxiii. 2. By this river side, in the meadows, there were cotes and folds for sheep, and a house built for the nourishing and bringing up of those lambs, the babes of those women that go on pilgrimage. Also there was here one that was intrusted with them, who could have compassion; and that could gather these lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and gently lead those that are with young, Heb. v. 2; The river. "There is a river deep and broad, Its course no mortal knows: It fills with joy the church of God, The waves with every blessing team, 244 THEY RESOLVE TO ATTACK GIANT DESPAIR. Isa. xl. 11. Now to the care of this man Christiana admonished her four daughters to commit their little ones, that by these waters they might be housed, harboured, succoured, and nourished, and that none of them might be lacking in time to come. This man, if any of them go astray, or be lost, he will bring them again; he will also bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen them that are sick, Jer. xxiii. 4; Ezek. xxxiv. 11-16. Here they will never want meat, drink, and clothing; here they will be kept from thieves and robbers; for this man will die before one of those committed to his trust shall be lost. Besides, here they shall be sure to have good nurture and admonition, and shall be taught to walk in right paths, and that you know is a favour of no small account. Also here, as you see, are delicate waters, pleasant meadows, dainty flowers, variety of trees, and such as bear wholesome fruit;-fruit, not like that which Matthew ate of, that fell over the wall out of Beelzebub's garden; but fruit that procureth health where there is none, and that continueth and increaseth it where it is. So they were content to commit their little ones to him; and that which was also an encouragement to them so to do, was, for that all this was to be at the charge of the King, and so was an hospital for young children and orphans. to They being come have a mind to have Despair. Now they went on. And when they were come to By-path meadow, to the stile over which Christian went with his fellow By-path stile, Hopeful, when they were taken by Giant Despair, and a pluck with Giant put into Doubting-castle, they sat down, and consulted what was best to be done: to wit, now that they were so strong, and had got such a man as Mr Great-heart for their conductor, whether they had not best to make an attempt upon the giant, demolish his castle, and if there were any pilgrims in it, to set them at liberty, before they went any further. So one said one thing, and another said the contrary. One questioned if it was lawful to go upon unconsecrated ground; another said they might, provided their end was good; but Mr Great-heart said, Though that assertion offered last cannot be universally true, yet I have a commandment to resist sin, to evercome evil, to fight the good fight of faith: and I pray, with whom should I fight this good fight, if not with Giant Despair? I will therefore attempt the taking away of his life and the demolishing of Doubting-castle. Then said he, Who will go with me? Then said old Honest, I will. And so will we too, said Christiana's four sons, Matthew, Samuel, Joseph, and James; for they were young men and strong, 1 John ii. 13, 14. So they left the women in the road, and with them Mr Feeble-mind, and Mr Ready-to-halt with his crutches, to be their guard, until they came back; for in that place Giant Despair dwelt so near, they, keeping in the road, a little child might lead them, Isa. xi. 6. So Mr Great-heart, old Honest, and the four young men, went to go up to Doubting-castle, to look for Giant Despair. When they came at the castle gate, they knocked for entrance with an unusual noise. At that the old giant comes to the gate, and Diffidence his wife follows. Then said he, Who and what is he that is so hardy, as after this manner to molest the Giant Despair! Mr Great-heart replied, It is I, 246 THE GIANT KILLED; DOUBTING-CASTLE DEMOLISHED. Great-heart, one of the King of the celestial country's conductors of pilgrims to their place; and I demand of thee that thou open thy gates for my entrance: prepare thyself also to fight, for I am come to take away thy head, and to demolish Doubting-castle. come angels. die. Despair is loth to Now giant Despair, because he was a giant, thought no man could Despair has over Overcome him: and again thought he, Since heretofore I have made a conquest of angels, shall Great-heart make me afraid? So he harnessed himself, and went out. He had a cap of steel upon his head, a breastplate of fire girded to him, and he came out in iron shoes, with a great club in his hand. Then these six men made up to him, and beset him behind and before: also when Diffidence the giantess came up to help him, old Mr Honest cut her down at one blow. Then they fought for their lives, and Giant Despair was brought down to the ground, but was very loth to die. He struggled hard, and had, as they say, as many lives as a cat; but Great-heart was his death, for he left him not till he had severed his head from his shoulders (g). Then they fell to demolishing Doubting-castle, and that you know might with ease be done, since Giant Despair was dead. They were seven days in destroying of that; and in it of pilgrims they found one Mr Despondency, almost starved to death, and one Much-afraid, his daughter: these two they saved alive. But it would have made you wonder to have seen the dead bodies that lay here and there in the castle yard, and how full of dead men's bones the dungeon was. Doubting-castle demolished. When Mr Great-heart and his companions had performed this exploit, they took Mr Despondency, and his daughter Much-afraid. into their protection; for they were honest people, though they were prisoners in Doubting-castle to that tyrant Giant Despair. They, therefore, I say, took with them the head of the giant (for his body they had buried under a heap of stones), and down to the road and to their companions they came, and showed them what they had done. Now when Feeble-mind and Ready-to-halt saw that it was the head of Giant Despair indeed, they were very jocund and merry. Now Christiana, if need was, could play upon the viol, and and dancing for joy. her daughter Mercy upon the lute: so since they were so merry disposed, she played them a lesson, and Ready-to-halt would dance. So he took Despondency's daughter, Much-afraid, by the hand, and to dancing they went in the road. True, he could not dance without one crutch in his hand, but I promise you, he footed it well; also the girl was to be commended, for she answered the music handsomely (h). They have music (g) Despair slain.-"The attack upon Doubting-castle," says Montgomery, "and the slaughtering of its tremendous inmates, are executed with genuine martial spirit. The description of Giant Despair arming himself and coming forth to the fight, is worthy of Ariosto himself. But this achievement, however dazzling, is unnatural, even in allegory, because impossible as reality. Despair is an abstract personification, and, like Death, Hope. Fear, cannot be slain by less than Omnipotence; and Doubting-castle, being equally shadowy, is equally indestructible." (h) The Dancing.-The humorous description of the rejoicing is scarcely in keeping |