Upon the wing, as when men wont to watch
On duty, Дleeping found by whom they dread,
Rouse and beftir themselves ere well awake.
Nor did they not perceive the evil plight

335

In which they were, or the fierce pains not feel; Yet to their general's voice they foon obey'd Innumerable. As when the potent rod

Of Amram's fon, in Egypt's evil day,

Wav'd round the coaft, up call'd a pitchy cloud 349
Of locufts, warping on the eastern wind,
That o'er the realm of impious Pharaoh hung
Like night, and darken'd all the land of Nile:
So numberless were those bad Angels feen
Hovering on wing under the

cope of Hell
'Twixt upper, nether, and furrounding fires;
Till, as a fignal giv'n, th' up-lifted spear
Of their great Sultan waving to direct

Their course, in even balance down they light
On the firm brimftone, and fill all the plain;

Stanza 18, will find our author has feen him, tho' borrow'd little of him. Hume.

338. As when the potent rod &c.] See Exod. X. 13. Mofes ftretched forth his rod over the land of Egypt, and the Lord brought an caft-wind

345

350

A

upon the land, and the east-wind brought the locufts: and the locufts went up over all the land of Egyptfo that the land was darkened.

341-warping] Working them. felves forward, a fea term.

Hume and Richardson.

A multitude, like which the populous north
Pour'd never from her frozen loins, to pass
Rhene or the Danaw, when her barbarous fons
Came like a deluge on the fouth, and spread
Beneath Gibraltar to the Lybian fands.
Forthwith from every fquadron and each band
The heads and leaders thither hafte where ftood
Their great commander; Godlike shapes and forms
Excelling human, princely Dignities,

355

And Pow'rs that erft in Heaven fat on thrones; 360 Though of their names in heav'nly records now

351. A multitude, like which &c.] This comparifon doth not fall below the reit, as fome have imagin'd. They were thick as the leaves, and numberless as the lecufts, but fuch a multitude the north never pour'd forth; and we may obferve that the fubject of this comparifon rifes very much above the others, leaves and locufts. The populous north, as the northern parts of the world are obferved to be more fruitful of people, than the hotter countries: Sir William Temple calls it the northern hive. Pour'd never, a very proper word to exprefs the inundations of

these northern nations. From her frozen loins, it is the Scripture expreffion of children and defcendents coming out of the loins, as Gen. XXXV. 11. Kings fhall come out of thy loins; and thefe are called frozen loins only on account of the coldness of the climate. To pafs

Be

Rhene or the Danaw. He might have faid confiftently with his verse The Rhine or Danube, but he chofe the more uncommon names Rhene of the Latin, and Danaw of the German, both which words are ufed too in Spenfer. When her barbarous jons &c. They were truly barbarous; for befides exercifing feveral cruelties, they deftroy'd all the monuments of learning and politenefs wherever they came. Came like a deluge. Spenfer defcribing the fame people has the fame fimile. Faery Queen. B. 2. Cant. 10. St. 15.

And overflow'd all countries far

Be no memorial, blotted out and ras'd

By their rebellion from the books of life.
Nor had they yet among the fons of Eve

364

Got them new names, till wand'ring o'er the earth,
Through God's high fufferance for the tri'al of man,
By falfities and lies the greatest part

Of mankind they corrupted to forfake
God their creator, and th' invifible
Glory of him that made them to transform
Oft to the image of a brute, adorn'd
With gay religions full of pomp and gold,

fouthern provinces of Europe, and croffing the Mediterranean beneath Gibraltar landed in Africa, and spread themselves as far as the fandy country of Libya. Beneath Gibraltar that is more fouthward, the north being uppermoft in the globe.

363. the books of life,] Dr. Bentley reads the book of life, that being the fcripture expreffion. And Shakespear fays likewife blotted from the book of life, Richard II. Act. 1.

My name be blotted from the book of life.

But the author might write books in the plural as well as records juft before; and the plural agrees better with the idea that he would give of the great number of Angels.

367. By falfities and lies] That is, as Mr. Upton obferves, by falfe

379

And

And Devils to adore for Deities:

Then were they known to men by various names,
And various idols through the Heathen world. 375
Say, Mufe, their names then known,who firft, wholaft,
Rous'd from the flumber on that fiery couch,
At their great emp'ror's call, as next in worth
Came fingly where he ftood on the bare ftrand,
While the promiscuous croud ftood yet aloof. 380
The chief were those who from the pit of Hell
Roaming to seek their prey on earth, durst fix

Their

advantage over the catalogues he has imitated, for Milton's becomes thereby a neceffary part of the work, as the original of fuperftition, an effential part of a religious epic, could not have been shown without it. Had Virgil's or Homer's been omitted, their poems would not have fuffered materially, becaufe in their relations of the following actions we find the foldiers, who were before catalogued; but by no following hiftory of fuperftition that Milton could have brought in, could we find out thefe Devils agency, it was therefore neceffary he fhould inform us of the fact.

Warburton.

Say, Mufe, &c. Homer at the beginning of his catalogue invokes his Mufe afresh in a very pompous manner. Virgil does the like, and Milton follows both fo far as to make a fresh invocation, though fhort; because he had already made

385

Their feats long after next the feat of God,
Their altars by his altar, Gods ador'd
Among the nations round, and durft abide
Jehovah thund'ring out of Sion, thron'd
Between the Cherubim; yea, often plac'd
Within his fanctuary itself their shrines,
Abominations; and with cursed things
His holy rites and folemn feafts profan'd,
And with their darkness durft affront his light.
First Moloch, horrid king, befmear'd with blood

a large and folemn addrefs in this very book, at the beginning of his poem.

376.—their names then known,] When they had got them new names. Milton finely confider'd that the names he was obliged to apply to thefe evil Angels carry a bad fignification, and therefore could not be thofe they had in their state of innocence and glory; he has therefore faid their former names are now loft, ras'd from amongst thofe of their old affociates who retain their purity and happiness. Richardson.

376.—who first, who last,] Quem telo primum, quem poftremum &c. Virg. Æn. XI. 664. 386.

thron'd

Between the Cherubim ;] This relates to the ark being placed between the two golden Cherubim, 1 Kings VI. 23. 1 Kings VIII. 6.

390

Of

and 7. See alfo 2 Kings XIX. 15. O Lord God of Ifrael, which dwelleft between the Cherubim. Hezekiah's prayer. Hume.

387. yea, often plac'd Within his fanctuary itself their Shrines,

Abominations;] This is complain'd of by the prophet Jeremiah VII. 30. For the children of Judah have done evil in my fight, faith the Lord; they have fet their abominations in the house which is called by my name, to pollute it. And we read of Manaffeh, 2 Kings XXI. 4 and 5. that He built altars in the house of the Lord, of which the Lord faid, In Jerufalem will I put my name: And he built altars for courts of the house of the Lord. See all the hoft of Heaven, in the two

alfo Ezek. VII. 20. and VIII. 5, 6.

392. First Moloch, borrid king,] First after Satan and Beelzebub.

The