130 But silently a gentle tear let fall

From either eye,] and wiped them with her hair :]
Two other precious drops,) that ready stood,
Each in their crystal sluice, he) ere they fell |
Kissed, as the gracious signs of sweet remorse,
135 And pious awe,) that feared to have offended. |
So all was cleared, and to the field they haste.
But first,) from under shady arborous roof

Soon as they forth were come to open sight

Of day-spring, and the Sun, who, scarce uprisen,
140 With wheels yet hovering o'er the ocean-brim,
Shot parallel to the earth his dewy ray,
Discovering in wide landskip all the east
Of Paradise and Eden's happy plains,
Lowly they bowed adoring ;) and began
145 Their orisons, each morning duly paid

In various style :] for neither various style,
Nor holy rapture wanted they to praise
Their Maker, in fit strains pronounced, or sung,
Unmeditated; such prompt eloquence

150 Flowed from their lips, in prose or numerous verse ;-
More tunable than needed lute or harp

To add more sweetness ;]—and they thus began :
"These are thy glorious works, Parent of good!

the same origin; in German it is schaft, from schaffen, to shape, make, create.

146. Milton was no friend of set forms of prayer, and embraces this opportunity for showing his predilection for extempore prayer.

150. Numerous verse, is a tautological expression, for a verse which has no numbers, i.e., rhythm, is no verse. Milton perhaps had in his mind the expression of Cicero, "numerosa oratio," rhythmical language, which is unobjectionable. In iii. 38, he speaks with more accuracy of "harmonious numbers."

as.

151. An ellipsis. After than supply such

Almighty! Thine this universal frame,

155 Thus wondrous fair; thyself how wondrous then!
Unspeakable! who sitt'st above these heavens,
To us invisible, or dimly seen

160

In these thy lowest works; yet these declare
Thy goodness beyond thought, and power divine.
"Speak, ye who best can tell, ye sons of light,
Angels for ye behold him, and with songs
And choral symphonies, day without night,
Circle his throne rejoicing :-ye in Heaven;
On Earth join all ye creatures to extol

165 Him first, him last, him midst, and without end!
"Fairest of stars! last in the train of night,)

If better thou belong not to the dawn,— |

Sure pledge of day,) that crown'st the smiling Morn With thy bright circlet; praise him in thy sphere,) 170 While day arises, that sweet hour of prime. |

"Thou Sun! of this great world both eye and soul,
Acknowledge him thy greater; sound his praise

In thy eternal course, both when thou climb'st,
And when high noon hast gained, and when thou fall'st.

162. Day without night.-Day is an accusative of time, adverbially used. Such accusatives are generally accompanied by adjectives, as "every day," or they are repeated, as "day by day," or varied, as "day and night." The addition "without night" has the same effect here, it is equivalent to the Adj. "endless."

Whether from inadvertency or design, Milton represents Adam as ignorant of the fact, which the Archangel communicates, v. 627 and 642, that there is both evening and night in heaven. Comp. also vi. 8.

163. Ye in Heaven, scil. speak.

165. Him first, him midst, him last, an imitation of Theocritus, which, in the opinion of Bishop Newton, Milton has improved by adding and without end. The improvement seems questionable. At least, it does not stand the test of logical analysis; for the term last clearly implies an end.

166. Fairest of stars, i.e., the planet Venus.

170. That sweet hour of prime cannot stand in apposition to day; for the whole day is not the hour of prime it refers to while day arises, which is the hour of prime.

171. Of this great world both eye and soul. Ovid calls the sun the world's eye, and Pliny, the whole world's soul. Both conceptions are highly poetical. But it may be questioned, if Milton has done well in combining two images, which are incompatible; for we cannot conceive of the eye as the soul, or of the soul as an eye.

172. Thy greater, an expression analogous to my senior, my betters, and others similar, in which, however, the comparative is always a substantive, not, as in the present case, an adjective.

175

180

185

"Moon!) that now meet'st the orient Sun, | now fliest,
With the fixed stars,-fixed in their orb] that flies; |
And ye five other wandering fires !) that move
In mystic dance, not without song, resound
His praise,) who out of darkness called up light. |
"Air, and ye elements! the eldest birth

Of Nature's womb, that in quaternion run
Perpetual circle, multiform, and mix

And nourish all things; let your ceaseless change
Vary to our great Maker still new praise.

"Ye mists and exhalations!) that now rise
From hill or steaming lake, dusky or grey,
Till the Sun paint your fleecy skirts with gold,
In honour to the world's great Author rise ;)
Whether to deck with clouds the uncoloured sky,
190 Or wet the thirsty earth with falling showers,
Rising or falling still advance his praise.]

"His praise, ye winds! that from four quarters blow,

176. With, i.e., together with the stars resound His praise.

176. Fixed in their orb that flies.-The fixed stars were called so because they appear fixed in an orb, or hollow sphere. The whole of this orb was supposed to revolve, to fly round the earth. The word fly is consequently used in the two successive lines in two different significations.

177. Five other wandering fires.-The five planets, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. Adam forgets, or does not know, that he has already addressed one of them, Venus, v. 166.

178. Mystic is that which belongs to those initiated in mysteries. Their ceremonies, processions, and dances have a certain meaning, unintelligible to the uninitiated. The moveinents of the planets are thus represented here as a ritual dance, full of meaning, though incomprehensible to man. Compare v. 620

178. Not without song.-This has reference to the Pythagorean idea, that the

revolution of the planets is accompanied by music.

180. Air, and ye, scil., OTHER elements. 181. In quaternion—in a set of four. 181. Run perpetual circle.-Run with the accusative, as in to run a race. See i. 668, Note.

183. Nourish.-Comp. v. 415, "of elements the grosser feeds the purer."

184. Vary. This, in the common acceptation of the term, is "to alter, change." But here, and 431, it is (as variare is often used in Latin) to make various or of various kinds; it is not to alter something which already exists, but to make something, which from the beginning is variegated.

184. Still-ever.

186. Steaming.-Comp. v. 6, fuming rills. 188. Rise.-Imperative.

189. Uncoloured.-Nothing is absolutely without colour; but as colours are perceptible only by contrast, the sky, which has no variety of colour, but is one sheet of grey, is here called uncoloured.

195

200

205

Breathe soft or loud; and wave your tops, ye pines,
With every plant, in sign of worship, wave.

"Fountains and ye) that warble,) as ye flow, |
Melodious murmurs,) warbling tune his praise.)

"Join voices, all ye living souls! ye birds,
That singing up to Heaven-gate ascend,

Bear on your wings, and in your notes, his praise.
"Ye that in waters glide, and ye that walk
The earth, and stately tread, or lowly creep!
Witness if I be silent, morn or even,
To hill or valley, fountain or fresh shade,
Made vocal by my song, and taught his praise.
"Hail, universal Lord! be bounteous still
To give us only good; and, if the night
Have gathered aught of evil, or concealed,
Disperse it, as now light dispels the dark!"

So prayed they innocent, and to their thoughts 210 Firm peace recovered soon, and wonted calm.

On to their morning's rural work they haste,
Among sweet dews and flowers, | where any row
Of fruit-trees over woody reached too far

Their pampered boughs, and needed hands to check 215 Fruitless embraces :] or they led the vine

To wed her elm; she, spoused, about him twines
Her marriageable arms, and with her brings
Her dower, the adopted clusters, to adorn

His barren leaves.

Them, thus employed, beheld

198. Up to Heaven-gate.-Shakspere, Cymb. ii. 3., has the more correct expression, heaven's gate.

200. Walk the earth.-An Intrans. verb with an objective case. Compare to walk a deck.

202. If I be silent.-Not Adam alone, but Adam and Eve were praying, as appears from 152, "and THEY thus began;" 184, "OUB great Maker," and 206, "to give us only good." It is difficult to see why Milton did not say we instead of I in 202, and our instead of my in 204. Is it an oversight?

212. Row of fruit-trees reached their boughs. The logical Subj. of the sentence is not row, but fruit-trees, to which their refers. This construction is very common, e.g., "a range of mountains were seen."

"There are a sort of men."-Shakspere, Merchant of Venice, i. 1.

215. It was a favourite conceit of the ancient writers to represent the union of the vine and a tree as a marriage. See Horace, Epod. ii. 9

220 With pity Heaven's high King, and to him called
Raphael, the sociable spirit, that deigned
To travel with Tobias, and secured

His marriage with the seven-times-wedded maid. "Raphael,") [said he,]" thou hear'st) what stir on Earth 225 Satan, from Hell scaped through the darksome gulf, Hath raised in Paradise; and how disturbed This night the human pair ;] how he designs, In them at once, to ruin all mankind. |

Go therefore,] half this day, as friend with friend,
230 Converse with Adam,] in what bower or shade
Thou find'st him, from the heat of noon retired
To respite his day-labour with repast,

Or with repose; and such discourse bring on,|
As may advise him of his happy state;
235 Happiness in his power left free to will,

Left to his own free will, his will though free,
Yet mutable; whence warn him to beware]
He swerve not, too secure. Tell him withal
His danger,] and from whom ;] what enemy,
240 Late fallen himself from Heaven, is plotting now
The fall of others from like state of bliss ; |
By violence?] no,] for that shall be withstood; |
But by deceit and lies :] this let him know,]
Lest, wilfully transgressing, he pretend
245 Surprisal, unadmonished, unforewarned." |

So spake the Eternal Father, and fulfilled
All justice: nor delayed the wingèd saint
After his charge received; but from among
Thousand celestial ardours, where he stood

222. Tobias.-See book of Tobit.

235. Happiness-Used in apposition with happy state.

Left, in lines 235 and 236, agrees with him involved in the Possessive Pronoun his. 236. His will though free, yet [being] mutable.-Nominative Absolute.

238. Withal=moreover.

247. Saint is the Subject.

248. After his charge received.-A Latinism, post mandatum acceptum. In Latin the participle is used instead of a verbal Substantive, as urbs condita, the foundation of the city; hostes victi, the defeat of the enemies. See i. 573, 636, notes.

249. Ardours, i.e., seraphim.