Imágenes de páginas
PDF
EPUB

Days months and years, tow'ards his all-chearing lamp
Turn swift their various motions, or are turn'd
By his magnetic beam, that gently warms
The universe, and to each inward part

With gentle penetration, though unseen,

585

Shoots invifible virtue ev'n to the deep;

So wondrously was fet his station bright.
There lands the Fiend, a spot like which perhaps
Aftronomer in the fun's lucent orb

Through his glaz'd optic tube yet never faw. 590
The place he found beyond expreffion bright,

X. 675, the north being uppermoft in our globes,

-hic vertex nobis femper fublimis: Virg. Georg. I. 242. or whether it was by center, or eccentric, towards the center, or from the center, it not being determin'd whether the fun is the center of the world or not; or whether it was by longitude, that is in length, eaft or weft, as appears from IV. 539. and VII. 373.

580. in numbers] That is in measures. Richardjon.

586. Shoots invifible virtue ev'n

to the deep;] Dr. Bentley fays invifible makes mere tautology with though unfeen; but I think not; the words though unfeen relate to penetration, and invifible is the epithet to virtue, which is a diftinct

Compar'd

thing from the penetration before mention'd, and which might have been visible, though the other was invifible fpoils the meafure of the not fo. But the Doctor fays that verfe. Milton feems to have thought this no blemish to his poem, for he frequently in the beginning of a verfe chooses this artificial negligence of meafure: So in II. 30, 880. III. 358. XI. 79, 377. There is no need therefore of reading with Dr. Bentley Shoots vital virtue, &c. Pearce.

The number of fyllables in this verfe feems not ill contriv'd to exprefs the depth to which the fun's beams penetrated.

590. Through his glaz'd optic tube The fpots in the fun are visible with a telefcope: but aftronomer perhaps never yet faw through his glaz's

Compar'd with ought on earth, metal or ftone;
Not all parts like, but all alike inform'd

With radiant light, as glowing ir'on with fire;
If metal, part feem'd gold, part filver clear;
If ftone, carbuncle moft or chryfolite,
Ruby or topaz, to the twelve that shone
In Aaron's breaft-plate, and a stone befides
Imagin'd rather oft than elsewhere seen,

glaz'd optic tube, that is his telefcope, fuch a fpot as Satan now he was in the fun's orb. The poet mentions this glafs the oftner in honor of Galileo, whom he means here by the aftronomer.

592-metal or fone ;] In the first editions it is medal or stone, and Mr. Richardfon juftifies it, as the repetition of the fame word immediately after is avoided: but for that very reafon it appears that this is an error of the prefs, and that it ought to be read metal or ftone, as both metal and fone are repeated afterwards; ver. 595. If metal, fo and fo; and ver. 596. If ftone, fo

and fo.

593. Not all parts like, &c.] Ovid has given us a defcription of the palace of the fun, but few have defcribed the fun himself: and I know not whether our author has fhown more fancy or more judgment in the defcription. An or dinary poet would in all probability have infifted chiefly upon its exceffive heat but that was no

595

That

come

thing to Satan who was
from the hotter region of Hell;
and therefore Milton judiciously
omits it, and inlarges upon the
riches of the place, the gold and
filver and precious ftones which
abounded therein, and by these
means exhibits a pleafing picture
inftead of a disagreeable one.

597.- -to the twelve that hone &c.] A friend of Dr. Pearce's obferving that carbuncle and topaz were two of the twelve ftones plac'd in Aaron's breaft-plate, thinks that Milton wrote

Ruby or topaz, two o' th' twelve that fhone, &c.

th' for of the is not unfrequent in Milton: in XI. 432, we read i' th' midft, and in the mafk Queen o' th' wood. But it is not very likely that the poet fhould fay two o' th' twelve, and not intend the two laft mention'd of the four, but the first and the last. And there is very good reafon to think that not two

only,

That stone, or like to that which here below Philofophers in vain fo long have fought,

In vain, though by their pow'rful art they bind Volatil Hermes, and call up unbound

In various shapes old Proteus from the fea, Drain'd through a limbec to his native form. What wonder then if fields and regions here Breathe forth clixir pure, and rivers run

only, but four of the twelve ftones in Aaron's breaft-plate are here mention'd. For what we tranflate the Jardius, Exod. XXVIII. 17. is render'd in the margin of our Bibles the ruby: and what we call the beryl, Exod. XXVIII. 20. the Seventy, the Vulgate, and moft of the verfions, and Jofephus and many others take for a chryfolite. This alteration therefore of Dr. Pearce's friend cannot be admitted, and Mr. Fenton's reading is much worse, or the twelve, which cannot be faid after fome of the twelve have been already mention'd. The paffage may be understood thus without any alteration, Ruby or topaz to the twelve, that is, and all the reft reckoning to the twelve, that fhone in Aaron's breaft-plate. The poet had particularly mention'd fome of the ftones in Aaron's breaft-plate, and now he includes all the reit to the number twelve. Such a concife manner of speaking is not unusual with our author.

600

605

Potable

602.though by their pow'rful

art they bind &c] Tho' by their pow'rful art they bind and fix quickfilver, and change their matter, unbound, unfix'd, into as many various fhapes as Proteus, till it be reduced at laft to its first original form. Hermes, another word for Mercury or quickfilver, which is very fluid, and volatil, and hard to be fixed. Proteus, a Sea God, who could transform himself into various fhapes, till being clofely prefs'd he return'd to his own proper form. By this the Ancients understood the firft principle of things and the fubject matter of nature; and our poet therefore very fitly employs this metaphor or fimilitude to exprefs the matter, which the chemifts make experiments upon thro' all its mutations, and which they drain thro' their limbecs or ftills, till it refume its native and original form.

606. What wonder then, &c.] And if chemifts can do fo much, what wonder then if in the fun it

felf

Potable gold, when with one virtuous touch
Th' arch-chemic fun, fo far from us remote,
Produces, with terrestrial humor mix'd,
Here in the dark so many precious things
Of color glorious, and effect so rare?
Here matter new to gaze the Devil met
Undazled; far and wide his eye commands;
For fight no obftacle found here, nor shade,
But all fun-fhine, as when his beams at noon
Culminate from th' equator, as they now
Shot upward still direct, whence no way round

610

615

Shadow

[blocks in formation]

and two others which follow in the next page: but is it likely that the fame mistake fhould creep into three different places? Is it not more probable that Milton fpeaking of the fun faid bere, because he was then describing it, and expreffing its nature? This is poetical and common with Milton, as may be feen in many inftances. See my note on II. 362. where I the word bere, not meaning therefhow that Milton frequently uses by a place prefent to him when he is fpeaking, but that place only which he is then speaking of.

Pearce. 616.-as when his beams at noon Culminate from th' equator, as they

now

Shot upward fill diret,] The first as is used by way of fimilitude,

Shadow from body' opaque can fall; and th'air

No where fo clear, sharpen'd his visual ray

To objects distant far, whereby he foon

620

Saw within ken a glorious Angel stand,

The fame whom John faw alfo in the sun :
His back was turn'd, but not his brightness hid ;
Of beaming funny rays a golden tiar

Circled his head, nor less his locks behind

625

Illustrious on his shoulders fledge with wings
Lay waving round; on fome great charge employ'd
He feem'd, or fix'd in cogitation deep.

in the fenfe of like as; There was no fhadow, but all fun-fhine, like as when his beams at noon culminate from th' equator, that is are vertical and fhoot directly from the equator, which is the reason why those who live under the equator, under the line, are called Afcii, and at noon caft no fhadows. The other as is ufed by way of reason, in the fenfe of for as much as; There was no fhadow but all fun-fhine, for as much as his beams fhot now directly upward.

623. The fame whom John faw alfo in the fun: And I faw an angel ftanding in the fun, Rev. XIX. 17.

625. a gelden tiar] A golden coronet of Thining rays circled his head, yet nevertheless did not VOL. I.

Glad

hinder his lovely locks, that hung behind over his fhoulders adorn'd with wings, from waving themfelves into curls and rings. Tiar of Tiara, the Perfian word for a round cap, high and ending in a point, the ufual covering and ornament the eastern princes wore on their heads. Hume.

627. -fledge with wings] We now commonly lay fledg'd, but our author ufes fledge again in VII. 420 but feather'd foon and fledge &c. He prefers it doubtlefs as of a fofter found; and there are feveral fuch words that want mollifying in our language.

[merged small][ocr errors]

ftantly fpells this word imploy'd. but
employ'd] Milton con-
the French word from whehce it is
derived is employer.
634. But

R

« AnteriorContinuar »