For us his ofspring dear? It cannot be
But that success attends him; if mishap,
Ere this he had return'd, with fury driven
By his avengers, fince no place like this
Can fit his punishment, or their revenge.
Methinks I feel new strength within me rife,
Wings growing, and dominion giv'n me large

that dreadful circumftance, Before him went the Peftilence. It is certain this imaginary perfon might have been described in all her purple fpots. The Fever might have marched before her, Pain might have ftood at her right hand, Phrenzy on her left, and Death in her rear. She might have been introduced as gliding down from the tail of a comet, or darted upon the earth in a flash of lightning: She might have tainted the atmosphere with her breath; the very glaring of her eyes might have scatter'd infection. But I believe every reader will think, that in fuch fublime writings the mentioning of her as it is done in Scripture, has fomething in it more juft, as well as great, than all that the most fanciful poet could have bestowed upon her in the richness of his imagination. Addison. I have been inform'd, that there has lately been publish'd in High Dutch a Critical Differtation on the marvelous in poetry, and its connexion with the probable, in a defense of Milton's Paradife Loft against several objections of Mon

240

Beyond

fieur Voltaire and other critics, wherein likewife the characters and actions of Sin and Death are vindicated in answer to Mr. Addison. It is hoped that some skilful hand or other will tranflate this piece for the benefit of the English reader. Milton may rather be juftified for introducing fuch imaginary beings as Sin and Death, because a great part of his poem lies in the invifible world, and fuch fictitious beings may better have a place there; and the actions of Sin and Death are at leaft as probable as those ascribed to the good or evil Angels. Befides as Milton's fubject neceffarily admitted fo few real perfons, he was in a manner obliged to fupply that defect by introducing imaginary ones: and the characters of Sin and Death are perfectly agreeable to the hints and sketches, which are given of them in Scripture. The Scripture had made perfons of them before in feveral places; only the Scripture has represented them as I may fay in miniature, and he has drawn them in their full length and proportions,

245-whas

Beyond this deep; whatever draws me on,
Or fympathy, or fome connatural force
Pow'rful at greatest distance to unite

With fecret amity things of like kind
By fecreteft conveyance. Thou my fhade
Infeparable must with me along:

For Death from Sin no pow'r can separate.
But left the difficulty of paffing back

Stay his return perhaps over this gulf
Impaffable, impervious, let us try

245

250

Adventrous work, yet to thy pow'r and mine 255 Not unagreeable, to found a path

Over this main from Hell to that new world

Where Satan now prevails, a monument

Of merit high to all th' infernal host,

locus eft et pluribus umbris.

But it has a farther propriety and beauty in this place, as Death feem'd a fhadow, II. 669. and was the infeparable companion as well as offpring of Sin. Shakespear in the fame manner uses shadow as the

Eafing their paffage hence, for intercourse,

Or transmigration, as their lot shall lead.
Nor can I miss the way, fo ftrongly drawn
By this new felt attraction and instinct.

260

Whom thus the meager Shadow answer'd foon.

Go whither fate and inclination strong

Leads thee; I fhall not lag behind, nor err
The way, thou leading, fuch a fent I draw
Of carnage, prey innumerable, and taste

265

The favor of Death from all things there that live:
Nor fhall I to the work thou enterprisest

Be wanting, but afford thee equal aid.

So faying, with delight he fnuff'd the smell Of mortal change on earth. As when a flock Of ravenous fowl, though many a league remote,

270

Against

Against the day of battel, to a field,

Where armies lie incamp'd, come flying, lur'd
With fent of living carcaffes defign'd

For death, the following day, in bloody fight:
So fented the grim Feature, and upturn'd
His noftril wide into the murky air,

275

280

Sagacious of his quarry from fo far.

Then both from out Hell gates into the wafte
Wide anarchy of Chaos damp and dark

Flew diverfe, and with pow'r (their pow'r was great)
Hovering upon the waters, what they met

cœlum

285 Solid

diebus ante ea loca circumvolent, in quibus cadavera futura funt, ineptè fanè ad odorandi facultatem refer. tur, cum eorum, quæ necdum funt, cadaverum nullus odor effe poffit, Senfus enim præfentium eft. Quare ad quandam augurandi vim, fi fic loqui poffumus, id pertinere putandum eft. Ridicule igitur Georgius Pictorius,

Hanc volucrem narrant luces tres noffe cadaver

Venturum, olfa&tu tam viget hæc volucris.

Aldrov. Ornith. Lib. z.

Induit, aut plures prefferunt aera I fhall not undertake abfolutely to

pennæ.

And to this let me add, what Mr. Thyer has quoted from Aldrovandus. Quod autem aliqui addunt, tam fagaciter odorari vultures, ut biduo triduove, imo feptenis, ut alii,

defend Milton's introducing a fabulous story by way of fimile; yet I think in this place it may be pardon'd, fince no other illuftration could have been found fo pat to the prefent cafe.

280. His

Solid or flimy, as in raging fea

Toft up

and down, together crouded drové

290

From each fide fhoaling towards the mouth of Hell:
As when two polar winds, blowing adverse
Upon the Cronian fea, together drive
Mountains of ice, that stop th' imagin'd way
Beyond Petfora eastward, to the rich
Cathaian coaft. The aggregated foil
Death with his mace petrific, cold and dry,
As with a trident fmote, and fix'd as firm
As Delos floting once; the reft his look

295

Bound

280. His noftril wide into the different parts of Chaos, and driv

murky air,] Et patulis captavit naribus auras.

Virg. Georg. I. 376. Murky air, black tainted air. Spenfer has mirksome air. Fairy Queen, B. 1. C. 5. St. 28.

Through mirksome air her ready way the makes.

And the Gloffary to Spenfer ex-
plains mirkfome by obfcure, filthy. I
find Shakefpear too ufes the word
murky. Lady Macbeth fays in her
fleep Hell is murky, A&. V.
281. Sagacious] Quick of fent.
Sagire enim, fentire acute eft; ex
quo fagaces diéti canes. Cic. de
Divinat. A fit comparison for the
Hume.
chief Hell-bound.

289. As when two polar winds, &c. Sin and Death, flying into

ing all the matter they meet with
there in fhoals towards the mouth
of Hell, are compar'd to two polar
winds, north and fouth, blowing ad-
verfe upon the Cronian fea, the nor-
thern frozen fea, (A Thule unius
diei navigatione mare concretum,
a nonnullis Cronium appellatur.
Plin. Nat. Hift. Lib. 4. cap. 16.)
and driving together mountains of
ice, that top th' imagin'd way, the
north-eaft paffage as it is call'd,
which fo many have attempted to
difcover, beyond Petfora eastward,
the most north-eaftern province of
Mufcovy, to the rich Cathaian coaft,
Cathay or Catay, a country of Afia
and the northern part of China.

296. As Delos floting once; ] An iland in the Archipelago faid to have floted about in the fea, till it became the birth place of Apollo. Q2

Calli