When first on this delightful land he spreads His orient beams, on herb, tree, fruit, and flower, On this delightful land; nor herb, fruit, flower, Juvenal has obferved upon our author, that he could not find any elegant turns in him either on the words or on the thoughts. But Mr. Addifon in one of the Tatlers (N° 114,) quotes this delightful paffage in vindication of Milton, and remarks that the variety of images in it is infinitely pleafing, and the recapitulation of each particular image, with a little varying of the expreffion, makes one of the finest turns of words he had ever feen. He farther obferves, that tho' the fweetnefs of thefe verfes has fomething in it of a paftoral, yet it excels the ordinary kind, as much as the fcene of it is above an ordinary field or meadow. 648. With this her folemn bird,] The nightingale, most mufical moft melancholy, as he fays elsewhere. She is call'd the folemn nightingale, VII. 435. 660. Daughter of God and Man, accomplish'd Eve,] Mr. Pope in his excellent notes upon Homer, B. 1. ver. 97. obferves, that those appellations of praise and honor, with which the heroes in Homer This glorious fight, when fleep hath shut all eyes? To whom our general ancestor reply'd. 665 Daughter of God and Man, accomplish'd Eve, 660 fo frequently falute each other, were agreeable to the file of the ancient times, as appears from feveral of the like nature in Scripture. Milton has not been wanting to give his poem this caft of antiquity, throughout which our first parents almost always accoft each other with fome title, that expreffes 2 refpect to the dignity of human nature. 661. Thefe have their courfe] I have prefum'd to make a fmall alteration here in the text, and read Thefe, though in most other edi grow 670 Perfection tions and even in Milton's own I find Thofe; because it is faid before, ver. 657. But wherefore all night long fhine theje? and afterwards, ver. 674. Thefe then, though unbeheld in both which paffages evince that 671. Their ftellar virtue] As Milton was an univerfal fcholar, fo Perfection from the fun's more potent ray. Celestial voices to the midnight air, Sole, or refponfive each to others note, Singing their great Creator? oft in bands 684 While they keep watch, or nightly rounding walk With heav'nly touch of inftrumental founds In he had not a little affectation of fhowing his learning of all kinds, and makes Adam difcourfe here fomewhat like an adept in aftrology, which was too much the philofophy of his own times. What he fays afterwards of numberless fpiritual creatures walking the earth unfeen, and joining in praifes to their great Creator, is of a nobler ftrain, more agreeable to reafon and revelation, as well as more pleafing to the imagination, and feems to be an imitation and improvement of old Hefiod's notion of good geniufes, the guardians of mortal men, clothed with air, wand'ring every where through thẻ earth. See Hefiod, I. 120-125. 682. Celeftial voices to the mid night air,] Singing to the midnight air. So in Virg. Ecl. I. 57. -canet frondator ad auras. For as Dr. Pearce obferves there fhould be a comma after note, that the conftruction may be Singing their great Creator to the midnight air. And this notion of their finging thus by night is agreeable to the account given by Lucretius, IV. 586. Quorum In full harmonic number join'd, their fongs 690 Divide the night, and lift our thoughts to Heaven. 695 Fenc'd up the verdant wall; each beauteous flower, Iris all hues, roses, and jeffamin Rear'd high their florifh'd heads between, and wrought Mofaic; underfoot the violet, 700 Crocus, and hyacinth with rich inlay Broider'd the ground, more color'd than with stone Beaft, bird, infect, or worm durft enter none, Glad earth perceives, and from Thick new-born violets a foft carpet spread, And cluftring lotos fwell'd the And cluftring lotos fwell'd the rifing bed, And fudden hyacinths the turf beftrow, And flamy crocus made the mountain glow. Nor our author the very turn of Homer's verfes is obferved, and the cadence, and almost the words finely tranflated. 703. Of coflieft emblem:] Emblem is here in the Greek and Latin fenfe for inlaid floors of stone or wood, to make figures mathematical or pictural: Arte pavimenti atque emblemate vermiculato. Bentley. 705 In fhadier bower] So it is in the first edition; in the fewith fuch a space as is not ufual cond we read In fhadie bower, but between two words, as if the letter had occupy'd the room, and by fome accident had made no impreffion. In fhadier hover marks more ftrongly the fhadinefs as well as the retirednefs of the place, and itance of the defcription, and the the fhadinefs is a principal circum bower is feldom mention'd but it is called fady bower, III. 734. V. 367, 375. Shady lodge. IV. 720. Where Mr. Pope remarks, that in fady arborous roof, V. 137. The purport |