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From a fat meadow ground; or fleecy flock,
Ewes and their bleating lambs over the plain,
Their booty; fcarce with life the fhepherds fly, 650
But call in aid, which makes a bloody fray;
With cruel torneament the fquadrons join;
Where cattel paftur'd late, now scatter'd lies
With carcaffes and arms th' infanguin'd field
Deferted: Others to a city strong

655

Lay fiege, incamp'd; by battery, scale, and mine,
Affaulting; others from the wall defend
With dart and javelin, ftones and fulphurous fire;
On each hand flaughter and gigantic deeds.
In other part the fcepter'd heralds call

Part arable and tilth, whereon were

fheaves

New reap'd, the other part fheepwalks and folds.

Is not this Homer's description a
little contracted? ver. 550 &c.

Εν δ' ετίθει τεμενΘ βαθυληΐον
ενθα δ' εριθόν
Ημων, οξείας δρεπάνας εν χερσιν
έχοντες.

Δράγματα δ' αλλα μετ' όγμον
επήτριμα τίτλον εραζε,
Αλλα δ' αμαλλοδετηρες εν ελλά-
δανοισὶ δέοντο.

Another field rofe high with waving grain ;

With bended fickles ftand the reaper-train.

660

Το

Here ftretch'd in ranks the level'd
fwarths are found,
Sheaves heap'd on fheaves, here
thicken up the ground. Pope.
And ver. 587 &c.

Εν δε νόμον ποιησε περικλύζα
Αμφιγυήεις

Εν καλη βάση μεγαν μιων αργιν
ναων,

Σταθμόςτε, κλισιαςτε, κατήρεφέας ιδε σηκος.

Next this, the eye the art of Vulcan leads

Deep thro' fair forefts, and a length
of meads;

And ftalls, and folds, and scatter'd
cotts between,
And fleecy flocks that whiten all
the scene.

The

To council in the city gates: anon

Gray-headed men and grave, with warriors mix'd, Affemble, and harangues are heard, but foon

In factious oppofition, till at laft

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Hymen, then first to marriage rites invok'd:

With feast and mufic all the tents refound.

Is it not a moft beautiful and exact copy of Homer? ver. 491, &c.

Εν τη μεν ρα γαμοι τ' εσαν,

ειλαπίναιτε

Νύμφας δ' εκ θαλάμων, δαϊδων

υπολαμπομενάων,

Ηγινεόν ανα αςυ πολυς δ ̓ ὑμε

ναι θ ορωρεία

Κεροι δ' ορχηςήρες εδινεον, εν δ'

αρα τοισιν Αυλοί, φορμεςγεςτε βοην έχον Here facred pomp, and genial feast delight,

And folemn dance, and hymenaal rite;

Along the ftreet the new-made brides are led,

With torches flaming, to the nuptial bed:

The youthful dancers in a circle bound

To the foft flute, and cittern's fil

ver found.

Of

Οι μεν τα προϊδονίες επέδραμον, ωκα δ' έπειτα

Ταμνον αμφι βοων αγέλας και

πωτα καλά

Αργεννων οἴων· κλεινον δ' επι μηλοβοτητας.

Οι δ ̓ ὡς εν επύθοντο πολυν κελα

δεν παρα βασιν, Ιερων προπαροιθε καθημενοι, α τικ ̓ ἐφ ̓ ἵππων

ΒανΊες αερσιποδων μετεκίαθον arta ¿ixò: 7o.

Στησαμενοι δ' εμάχοντο μάχην ποταμόνο παρ' όχθας.

In arms the glitt'ring fquadron rifing round,

Rufh fudden; hills of flaughter heap
the ground,

Whole flocks and herds lie bleeding
on the plains,
And, all amidst them, dead, the
fhepherd fwains.

The bellowing oxen the befiegers
hear,

They rife, take horse, approach, and meet the war;

They fight, they fall, befide the filver flood,

The waving filver seem'd to blush
with blood.

And in like manner the driving away
of the theep and oxen from forage,
and the battel which thereupon en-
fues may be compared with the fol-
lowing paffage in Homer: ver. 527 Lay fiege, incamp'd; &c.

The reprefentation of the city be-
fieg'd here in Milton,

&c.

Others to a city strong

the

Of middle age one rifing, eminent

665

In wife deport, fpake much of right and wrong,
Of justice, of religion, truth and peace,
And judgment from above: him old and young

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On feats of ftone, within the facred place,

The rev'rend elders nodded o'er the cafe ; Alternate, each th' attesting scepter took,

And rifing folemn, each his fentence fpoke.

The defcription of the fhield of Achilles is certainly one of the finest pieces of poetry in the whole Iliad, and our author has plainly fhown his admiration and affection for it by borrowing fo many fcenes and images from it: but I think we may fay that they do not like other copies fall fhort of the originals, but generally exceed them, and receive this additional beauty, that they are moft of them made repre.

fentations of real hiftories and matters of fact.

661. To council in the city gates:] For there affemblies were anciently held, and the judges used to fit, Gen. XXXIV. 20. Deut. XVI, 18. XXI. 19. Zech. VIII. 16.

665. Of middle age one rifing,] Enoch faid to be of middle age, because he was tranflated when he was but 365 years old; a middle age then. Gen. V. 23. Richardfon. 668. And judgment from above:] appears from holy Writ, that he was not only a good man, and walked with God, Gen. V. 24. but that he A a

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Exploded and had feis'd with violent hands,

Had not a cloud defcending snatch'd him thence 670 Unseen amid the throng: fo violence

Proceeded, and oppreffion, and fword-law Through all the plain, and refuge none was found. Adam was all in tears, and to his guide

Lamenting turn'd full fad; O what are these, 675 Death's minifters, not men, who thus deal death Inhumanly to men, and multiply

Ten thoufandfold the fin of him who flew

His brother: for of whom fuch maffacre

Make they but of their brethren, men of men? 680 But who was that just man, whom had not Heaven Rescued, had in his righteousness been loft?

To whom thus Michael.

remonftrated likewife againft the wickedness of mankind, and denounc'd the heavy judgment of God upon them, Jude 14. Bebold the Lord cometh with ten thousands of bis Saints, to execute judgment upon all&c; which the poet alludes to more plainly afterwards, ver. 704.

Thefe are the product
Of

pronounce the word Michael with
two or three fyllables.

688. Such were thefe giants, men

of high renown;] Gen.VI. 4. There were giants in the earth in thofe days; and alfo after that, when the fons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare children to them: the fame became mighty men, which Some were of old, men of renown. commentators understand by the 683. To whom thus Michael. Thefe word which we translate giants, men are the product] The accent of large bulk and ftature; others upon the word product is to be varied conceive them to be no more than predu or product, according as you robbers and tyrants: Our author

that God would come To judge them with his Saints.

includes

Of those ill mated marriages thou faw'ft;

Where good with bad were match'd, who of themselves
Abhor to join; and by imprudence mix'd,

Produce prodigious births of body' or mind.
Such were these giants, men of high renown;
For in those days might only shall be' admir'd,
And valor and heroic virtue call'd;

To overcome in battel, and fubdue
Nations, and bring home spoils with infinite
Man-flaughter, fhall be held the highest pitch
Of human glory, and for glory done
Of triumph, to be ftil'd great conquerors,
Patrons of mankind, Gods, and fons of Gods,
Destroyers rightlier call'd and plagues of men.
Thus fame fhall be achiev'd, renown on earth,

includes both interpretations, and leaves the choice to the reader, prodigious births of body or mind.

691. To overcome in battel, &c.] This character drawn more masterly in Parad. Reg. III. 71.

They err who count it glorious &c.
Warburton.

694. and for glory done
Of triumph, to be fil'd great con-
querors,] Milton had faid be-
fore that it fall be held the highest
pitch of glory, to fubdue nations and
bring home their pails: and here he

686

690

695

And

adds (for this I take to be his fenfe) that it fhall be held the highest pitch of triumph for that glory obtain'd, to be fiil'd great conquerors. So that though I approve of Dr. Bentley's changing done into won, I cannot agree to his altering Of triumph to Or triumph.

Pearce.

This is one of the most difficult paffages. I am not fatisfied with the conjectures of either of these learned men, and fee no other way of underftanding it but this. To overcome, to fubdue, to spoil, fhall be held the highest pitch of glory, and fhall be

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