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The SECOND EDITION
With NOTES of various AUTHOR s,
By THOMAS NEWTON, D. D.

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Printed for 7. and R. Tonfon and S. Draper; and for
T. Longman, S. Birt, C. Hitch, R. Ware, f. Hodges,
C. Corbet, J. Brindley, and J. Ward.

M DCC LIII.

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T hath been recommended to me by fome great perfons, as well as by feveral friends, to complete the edition of Milton's poetical works: for tho' the Paradife Loft be the flower of epic poefy, and the noblest effort of genius; yet here are other poems which are no less excellent in their kind, and if they have not that fublimity and majefty, are at least equally beautiful and pleafing to the imagination. And the fame method that was taken in the publication of the Paradise Loft, is pursued in this edition of the Paradife Regain'd and other poems, first to exhibit the true and genuin text according to Milton's own editions, and then to illustrate it with notes critical and explanatory of various authors. Of the Paradise Regain'd and Samfon Agonistes there was only one edition in Milton's life-time, in the year 1671; and this we have made our standard, correcting only what the author himself would have corrected. Dr. Bentley pronounces it to be without faults, but there is a large table of Errata at the end, which instead of being emended have rather been augmented in the following editions, and were never corrected in any edition that I have feen before the present. Of the other poems there were two editions in Milton's lifetime, the first in 1645 before he was blind, and the other with some additions in 1673. Of the Mafk there was likewise an edition publish'd by Mr. Henry Lawes in 1637: and of the Mask and several other poems there are extant copies in Milton's own hand writing, preferved in the library of Trinity College in Cambridge and all these copies and editions have been

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