415

420

The caufey to Hell-gate: On either fide
Difparted Chaos overbuilt exclaim'd,
And with rebounding furge the bars affail'd,
That scorn'd his indignation: Through the gate,
Wide open and unguarded, Satan pass'd,
And all about found defolate; for those,
Appointed to fit there, had left their charge,
Flown to the upper world; the rest were all
Far to the inland retir'd, about the walls
Of Pandemonium; city and proud seat
Of Lucifer, fo by allufion call'd

Of that bright star to Satan paragon'd;

425

There kept their watch the legions, while the Grand

Ver. 415. The caufey] In the Comedy of Lingua, 1607, A. v. S. vii. Tactus directing Appetitus to hell, obferves

""Tis a wide caufe that conducteth thither,

"An easie tract, and downe hill all the way." TODD. Ver. 417. And with rebounding furge the bars affail'd,

161.

That fcorn'd his indignation:] Virg. Georg. ii,

"Lucrinóque addita clauftra,

"Atque indignatum magnis ftridoribus æquor." NEWTON. Ver. 426. to Satan paragon'd;] Of the

French paragonner, to be equal, to be like. HUME.

It had been common in English poetry. Thus, in Shakspeare's Othello, A. ii. S. i.

"That paragons description and wild fame."

And in Drummond's Poems, 1616, part 2d..

"To make thy body paragone thy minde." TODD.

Ver. 427

while the Grand

In council fat, folicitous what chance
Might intercept their emperour fent; fo he
Departing gave command, and they obferv'd. 430
As when the Tartar from his Ruffian foe,
By Aftracan, over the fnowy plains,
Retires; or Bactrian Sophi, from the horns
Of Turkish crefcent, leaves all wafte beyond

In council fat,] Taffo, Gier. Lib. C. i. ft. 20.

"I Grandi dell' efercito fi uniro

"Gloriofo fenato in di folenne." TODD.

Ver. 421. Appointed] This appointment is tacitly implied in Satan's fpeech, B. ii. 839, 840. BOWLE.

Ver. 432. By Aftracan, &c.] A confiderable part of the Czar's dominion, formerly a Tartarian kingdom, with a capital city of the fame name, near the mouth of the river Volga, at its fall into the Caspian fea; or Bactrian Sophi, the Persian emperour, named of Bactria, one of the greatest and richest provinces of Perfia; from the horns of Turkish crefcent, his Turkish enemies, who bear the crescent in their enfigns; leaves all wafte beyond the realm of Aladule, the Greater Armenia, called Aladule of its laft king Aladules, flain by Selymus the firft, in his retreat to Tauris, a great city of Perfia, now called Ecbatana, fometime in the hands of the Turks, but retaken in 1603 by Abas king of Perfia; or Cabeen, one of the greatest cities of Perfia, towards the Caspian sea, where the Persian monarchs made their residence after the lofs of Tauris, from which it is distant sixty-five German miles to the fouth-eaft. HUME.

Ver. 433.

thus;

-or Bactrian Sophi, from the horns Of Turkish crefcent,] Dr. Bentley fays, Better

or Bactrian Sophi fled from th' horns &c."

But from is often used by Milton without expreffing the participle, which yet is to be fupplied in the fenfe. See B. ii. 542, B. viii.' 213, and B. ix, 396. PEARCE,

435

The realm of Aladule, in his retreat
To Tauris or Cafbeen: So these, the late
Heaven-banish'd hoft, left defart utmost Hell
Many a dark league, reduc'd in careful watch
Round their metropolis; and now expecting
Each hour their great adventurer, from the search
Of foreign worlds: He through the midst un-
mark'd,

In fhow plebeian Angel militant

Of lowest order, pass'd; and from the door
Of that Plutonian hall, invisible

441

Ascended his high throne; which, under state 445

Ver. 441,

- He through the midst unmark'd, &c.] This account of Satan's paffing unmarked through the midst of the Angels, and afcending his throne invifible; and feeing there about him, himself unfeen; and then burfting forth as from a cloud, in glory; feems to be copied from a like adventure of Eneas, Virg. Æn. i. 439.

"Infert fe feptus nebulâ, mirabile dictu,

"Per medios, mifcétque viris; neque cernitur ulli.
"Diffimulant; et nube cavâ fpeculantur amicti-
"Vix ea fatus erat, quum circumfufa repente
"Scindit fe nubes, et in æthera purgat apertum.
"Reftitit Æneas, clarâque in luce refulfit,
"Os humerófque deo fimilis." NEWTON.

Pope has obferved, that Virgil here imitates the adventure of Ulyffes in the feventh Odyfey, ver. 39, &c. Mr. Stillingfleet Milton has improved upon

has made the fame remark,

both. Topd.

Ver. 445.

under ftate &c.] Under a

canopy of richest texture: for fo the word ftate was formerly underftood. See Mr. Warton's note on Arcades, v. 81. TODD,

Of richest texture spread, at the upper end
Was plac'd in regal luftre. Down a while
He fat, and round about him faw unfeen:
At last, as from a cloud, his fulgent head 449
And shape star-bright appear'd, or brighter; clad
With what permiffive glory fince his fall
Was left him, or false glitter: All amaz'd
At that fo fudden blaze the Stygian throng
Bent their aspéct, and whom they wish'd beheld,
Their mighty Chief return'd: loud was the
acclaim:

455

Forth rush'd in haste the great confulting peers, Rais'd from their dark Divan, and with like joy

Ver. 448.

and round about him faw, unfeen:] Taffo ascribes the fame to his Armida, Fairfax, B. vii. ft. 36.

"Within a tarras fat on high the queene,

"And heard and faw, and kept herself unfeene."

And Shakspeare has the fame fentiment, Hamlet, A. iii. S. i. "Her father and myself

"Will fo beftow ourselves, that feeing unfeen

"We may of their encounter frankly judge."

So Spenfer places Calidore near the Graces, F. Q. vi. x. 11. "Beholding all, yet of them unefpied." BowLE.

Ver. 449. At last, as from a cloud, his fulgent head

And Shape Star-bright appear'd,] Not without an

allufion perhaps to his favourite Apollonius, i. 239.

οἱ δὲ, φαεινοὶ

Ασέρες ὡς νεφέεσσι, μετέπρεπον, TODD.

Ver. 457.

Divan,] Divan is an Ara

bick or Turkish word, fignifying The Supreme Council. Sandys, in his Travels, calls, it the Divano, as alfo the Divan, pp. 32, and 61, edit, 1615, As the poet calls Satan" the Sultan," B. i.

Congratulant approach'd him; who with hand Silence, and with thefe words attention, won. Thrones, Dominations, Princedoms, Virtues,

Powers;

460

348, he is fuppofed, by Dr. Newton, here to denominate, by another metaphor taken from the Turks, the council of Devils "the Divan." Hume alfo thinks the refemblance pertinent. Probably Milton, however, intended no fuch reflection as is fuppofed. See note, B. i. 795. He was fond of introducing foreign words into his poetry; and in the present inftance he has been followed by his affectionate biographer, and not unsuccessful imitator, Fenton; Odysf. iv. 902.

"Swift to the queen the herald Medon ran,

"Who heard the confult of the dire Divan. TODD.

Ver. 458.

who with hand

Silence,] Thus Cefar, before addreffing his foldiers,

Lucan, Pharfal. i, 297.

66

-“ turbâ coëunte, tumultum

Compofuit vultu, dextráque filentia juffit." TODD.

Ver. 460. Thrones, Dominations, Princedoms, Virtues, Powers ;] It is common with Homer to make use of the fame verfe feveral times, and especially at the beginning of his fpeeches; but I know not whether there is not more of fimplicity in the practice, than beauty. Milton, however, has done the fame with this line: But it is curious to obferve how artfully he has managed it; and by repeating it every time gives new beauty to it. It is first made use of by God the Father, when he declares his Son the Meffiah, and appoints him Head of the Angels, B. v. 600.

Satan, after he had revolted and drawn his legions after him into the north, makes ufe of it again in allufion to the foregoing fpeech of God the Father; and questions whether these magnifick titles were not now become merely titular, B. v. 772.

The Seraph Abdiel on the other fide repeats it likewise after God the Father, and extols his goodness in having fo named the Angels, B. v. 839.