Upon the wing, as when Men wont to watch In which they were, or the fierce pains not feel; Of Amram's fon, in Egypt's evil day, 335 Wav'd round the coaft, up call'd a pitchy cloud 340 Hovering on wing under the cope of Hell Their course, in even balance down they light him. 345 350 A Stanza 18, will find our author has upon the land, and the caft-wind feen him, tho' borrow'd little of brought the locufts: and the locufts Hume. went up over all the land of Egypt338. As when the potent rod &c.] fo that the land was darken'd. See Exod. X. 13. Mofes firetched 341-warping] Working themforth bis rod over the land of Egypt, felves forward, a fea term. and the Lord brought an caft wind VOL. I. M Hume and Richardson. 351.4 A multitude, like which the populous north And Pow'rs that erft in Heaven fat on thrones; Though of their names in heav'nly records now 351. A multitude, like which &c.] This comparifon doth not fall below the reft, as fome have imagin'd. They were thick as the leaves, and numberless as the locufts, 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 locufs. 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 leins, as Gen. XXXV. 11. Kings fall come out of thy loins; and these are call'd frozen lains only on ac 355 360 Be count of the coldness of the climate. To pafs Rhene or the Danaw, He might have faid confiftently with his verfe The Rhine or Danube, but he chose the more uncommon names Rhene of the Latin, and Danaw of the German, both which words are ufed too in Spenfer. When her barbarous fons &c. They were truly barbarous; for befides exercising 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. Fairy Queen. B. 2. Cant. 10. St. 15. And overflow'd all countries far Be no memorial, blotted out and ras'd Got them new names, till wand'ring o'er the earth, Of mankind they corrupted to forfake Glory of him that made them to transform and Vandals, who overrun all the fouthern provinces of Europe, and croffing the Mediterranean beneath Gibraltar landed in Africa, and fpread themfelves as far as the fandy country of Libya. Beneath Gibraltar that is more fouthward, the north being uppermoft in the globe. 363-the backs of life.] Dr. Bentley reads the book of life, that being the Scripture expreffion. And Shakespear fays likewife blotted from the book of life, Richard II. A&. I. My name be blotted from the book of life. But the author might write books in the plural as well as records just 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 1 379 And is, as Mr. Upton obferves, by falfe 369. Oft to the image of a brute,] Alluding to Rom. I. 23. And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God, into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and four-footed beafts, and creeping things. 372. With gay religions full of pomp and gold,] By religions M 2 Milton And Devils to adore for Deities: 375 Then were they known to men by various names, 376. Say, Mufe, &c.] The catalogue of evil Spirits has abundance of learning in it, and a very agreeable turn of poetry, which rifes in a great measure from its defcribing the places where they were worshipped, by thofe beautiful marks of rivers, fo frequent among the ancient poets. The author had doubtlefs in this place Homer's catalogue of fhips, and Virgil's lift of warriors in his view. Addifon. Dr. Bentley fays that this is not the fineft part of the poem: but I think it is, in the defign and drawing, if not in the coloring for the Paradife Loft being a religious epic, nothing could be more artful than thus deducing the original of 380 Their fuperftition. This gives it a great advantage over the catalogues, he has imitated, for Milton's becomes thereby a neceffary part of the work, as the original of fuperfti. tion, 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, because in their relations of the following actions we find the foldiers, who were before catalogued: but by no following history of fu perftition 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; Their feats long after next the feat of God, short; because he had already made 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 these 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 those of their old affos ciates who retain their purity and happiness. Richardfon. 376. who firft, who loft,] Quem telo primum, quem poftremum &c. Virg. Æn. X1.664. 386. - thron'd Between the Cherubim ;] This relates to the ark being placed between the two golden Cherubim, 385 399 Of 1 Kings VI. 23. 1 Kings VIII. 6 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 forines, Abominations;] This is complain'd of by the prophet Jeremiah VII. 30. For the children of Judab 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, z Kings XXI. 4 and 5. that He built altars in the boufe of the Lord, of which the Lord faid, In Ferufalem will I put my name: And he built altars for all the hoft of Heaven, in the two courts of the houfe of the Lord. See alfo Ezek. VII. 20. and VIII. 5, 6. 392. First Moloch, borrid king] Firft after Satan and Beelzebub. M 3 The |