"Those rare and solitary, these in flocks

"Pasturing at once, and in broad herds up sprung.
"The grassy clods now calved; now half appeared
"The tawny lion, pawing to get free

"His hinder parts; then springs, as broke from bonds,
"And rampant shakes his brinded mane: the ounce,
"The libbard, and the tiger, as the mole

66 Rising, the crumbled earth above them threw
"In hillocks: the swift stag from underground

"Bore up his branching head: scarce from his mould, 470
"Behemoth, biggest born of Earth, upheaved
"His vastness: fleeced the flocks and bleating rose,
"As plants; ambiguous between sea and land,
"The river-horse, and scaly crocodile.

"At once came forth whatever creeps the ground,
"Insect or worm: those waved their limber fans
"For wings, and smallest lineaments exact
"In all the liveries decked of summer's pride,
"With spots of gold and purple, azure and green :
"These, as a line, their long dimension drew,

Streaking the ground with sinuous trace; not all "Minims of nature; some of serpent kind,

"Wondrous in length and corpulence, involved
"Their snaky folds, and added wings. First crept
"The parsimonious emmet, provident

"Of future; in small room large heart inclosed;
"Pattern of just equality perhaps

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"Hereafter, joined in her popular tribes

"Of commonalty: swarming next appeared

"The female bee, that feeds her husband drone

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66 Deliciously, and builds her waxen cells

"With honey stored. The rest are numberless,

"And thou their natures knowest, and gavest them names, "Needless to thee repeated; nor unknown

"The serpent, subtlest beast of all the field,

"Of huge extent sometimes, with brazen eyes
"And hairy mane terrific, though to thee
"Not noxious, but obedient at thy call.

"Now Heaven in all her glory shone, and rolled "Her motions, as the great first Mover's hand

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"First wheeled their course; Earth in her rich attire "Consummate lovely smiled! air, water, Earth,

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By fowl, fish, beast, was flown, was swum, was walked, Frequent; and of the sixth day yet remained—

"There wanted yet the master-work, the end

"Of all yet done; a creature, who, not prone
"And brute as other creatures, but endued
"With sanctity of reason, might erect

"His stature, and upright with front serene
"Govern the rest, self-knowing; and from thence
Magnanimous, to correspond with Heaven,
"But grateful to acknowledge whence his good

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66 Descends; thither with heart, and voice, and eyes, "Directed in devotion, to adore

66

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And worship God Supreme, who made him chief

"Of all his works: therefore the Omnipotent,

"Eternal Father, (for where is not he

"Present?) thus to his Son audibly spake :

"Let us make now Man in our image, Man

"In our similitude, and let them rule

"Over the fish and fowl of sea and air,

"Beast of the field, and over all the earth,

"And every creeping thing that creeps the ground.' "This said, he formed thee, Adam, thee, O Man! 'Dust of the ground, and in thy nostrils breathed

66

"The breath of life; in his own image he

"Created thee, in the image of God

'Express; and thou becamest a living soul.

"Male he created thee; but thy consort

"Female, for race; then blessed mankind, and said,
"Be fruitful, multiply, and fill the earth;
"Subdue it, and throughout dominion hold
"Over fish of the sea, and fowl of the air,

“And every living thing that moves on the earth.'
"Wherever thus created, (for no place

"Is yet distinct by name,) thence, as thou knowst,
"He brought thee into this delicious grove,
"This garden, planted with the trees of God,
"Delectable both to behold and taste;

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"And freely all their pleasant fruit for food

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"Gave thee: all sorts are here that all the Earth yields,

66

Variety without end: but of the tree,

“Which, tasted, works knowledge of good and evil, "Thou mayst not; in the day thou eatst, thou diest : "Death is the penalty imposed; beware,

"And govern well thy appetite; lest Sin

66 Surprise thee, and her black attendant, Death.
"Here finished he, and all that he had made
"Viewed, and, behold, all was entirely good;
"So even and morn accomplished the sixth day:
"Yet not till the Creator, from his work
"Desisting, though unwearied, up returned,
"Up to the Heaven of Heavens, his high abode ;
"Thence to behold this new-created world,
"The addition of his empire-how it showed
"In prospect from his throne-how good—how fair,
66 Answering his great idea. Up he rode,
"Followed with acclamation, and the sound

66 Symphonious of ten thousand harps, that tuned
"Angelic harmonies: the earth, the air
"Resounded-(thou rememberst, for thou heardst,)—
"The heavens and all the constellations rung-
"The planets in their station listening stood
"While the bright promp ascended jubilant.
"Open, ye everlasting gates!' they sung;
"Open, ye heavens! your living doors; let in
"The great Creator, from his work returned
"Magnificent, his six days' work, a world!
"Open, and henceforth oft; for God will deign
"To visit oft the dwellings of just men,
"Delighted; and with frequent intercourse
"Thither will send his wingèd messengers
"On errands of supernal grace.' So sung

"The glorious train ascending. He through Heaven,
"That opened wide her blazing portals, led
"To God's eternal house direct the way;

"A broad and ample road, whose dust is gold,
"And pavement stars, as stars to thee appear,
"Seen in the galaxy,—that milky way,

"Which nightly, as a circling zone, thou seest

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570

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"Powdered with stars.

"And now on earth the seventh

"Evening arose in Eden, for the Sun

"Was set, and Twilight from the East came on,
"Forerunning Night; when at the holy mount
"Of Heaven's high-seated top,—the imperial throne
"Of Godhead, fixed for ever firm and sure,-
"The Filial Power arrived, and sat him down
"With his great Father; for he also went
"Invisible, yet staid, (such privilege

"Hath Omnipresence,) and the work ordained,

"Author and End of all things; and, from work

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"Now resting, blessed and hallowed the seventh day,
"As resting on that day from all his work :
"But not in silence holy kept: the harp
"Had work, and rested not; the solemn pipe,
"And dulcimer, all organs of sweet stop,
"All sounds on fret, by string or golden wire,

Tempered soft tuning, intermixed with voice "Choral or unison of incense clouds,

"Fuming from golden censers, hid the mount. "Creation and the six days' acts they sung:

"Great are thy works, Jehovah ! infinite

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"Thy power! What thought can measure thee, or tongue "Relate thee? Greater now in thy return

"Than from the giant Angels; thee that day

'Thy thunders magnified; but to create

"Is greater, than created to destroy.

"Who can impair thee, Mighty King! or bound

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Thy empire? easily the proud attempt

"Of Spirits apostate, and their counsels vain,

"Thou hast repelled; while impiously they thought
"Thee to diminish, and from thee withdraw

"The number of thy worshippers. Who seeks
"To lessen thee, against his purpose serves
"To manifest the more thy might: his evil
"Thou usest, and from thence createst more good.
"Witness this new-made world, another Heaven!
"From Heaven-gate not far, founded in view
"On the clear hyaline, the glassy sea;

610

"Of amplitude almost immense, with stars

Numerous, and every star perhaps a world "Of destined habitation; but thou knowst "Their seasons: among these, the seat of Men, "Earth with her nether ocean circumfused,

"Their pleasant dwelling-place. Thrice happy Men,
"And sons of Men, whom God has thus advanced!
"Created in his image, there to dwell

"And worship him; and, in reward, to rule
"Over his works, on earth, in sea, or air,
"And multiply a race of worshippers

Holy and just thrice happy, if they know "Their happiness, and persevere upright!'

"So sung they, and the empyréan rung "With halleluiahs: thus was Sabbath kept.

"And thy request think now fulfilled, that asked "How first this world and face of things began, "And what, before thy memory, was done 'From the beginning; that posterity,

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"Informed by thee, might know: if else thou seekst "Aught, not surpassing human measure, say."

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