What can be then lefs in me than defire To fee thee and approach thee, whom I know. 385 Thy wifdom, and behold thy Godlike deeds? Men generally think me much a foe To all mankind: why fhould I? they to me I loft not what I loft, rather by them 390 I gain'd what I have gain'd, and with them dwell If not difpofer; lend them oft And duration of the war they were going upon, is called by Homer on, a great fign, Iliad II. 308. What were the Lacedæmonians profited before (faith Cicero De Div. II. 25.) or our own countrymen lately by the oftents and their interpreters? which, if we muft believe them to be figns fent by the Gods, why were they fo obfcure? Quid igitur aut oftenta, àut eorum interpretes, vel Lacedæmonios olim, vel nuper noltros adjuverunt? quæ fi figna Deorum putanda funt, cur tam obfcura fuerunt? This paffage of Cicero will lead us to the fenfe of the next word, which very naturally follows prefages and figns, and is con D 3 nected And answers, oracles, portents and dreams, nected with them. In Cicero we have figns and their interpreters, and here figns and their interpretations; for this I take to be the meaning of anfers. The harufpicum refponfa amongst the Romans are obvious authorities. 2. There are three fpecies of divination diftinguished from the former by figns, in Cicero's first book on that fubject, viz. dreams, vaticinations or prophecies, and oracles. Carent autem arte ii, qui non ratione, aut conjectura, obfervatis ac notatis fignis, fed concitatione quadam animi, aut foluto liberoque motu futura præfentiunt ; quod & fomniantibus fæpe contingit, & nonnunquam vaticinantibus per furorem, &c. Cujus generis oracula etiam habenda funt. De Div. I. 18. Thefe three frequently occur together; as again in this firft book. 51. Item igitur fomniis, vaticinationibus, oraculis, &c. And again in de Nat. Deor. II. 65. Multa cernunt harufpices: multa augures provident: multa oraculis declarantur, multa vaticinationibus, multa fomniis (and I will fairly add, tho' it may be thought to make againft me) multa portentis. Here portents are joined with oracula, vaticinationes, and 395 Nearer fomnia; and why might not Milton join them with oracles and dreams? In answer to this I obferve, that the word portents in our poet is not only irregularly inferted, but excludes another fpecies of divination out of a place, where the authority of Cicero himself, and in this very paffage too, would make one expect to find it; which cannot be faid of portentis. And now perhaps a conjecture may appear not void of probability, that the poet dictated, And anfwers, oracles, prophets, and dreams. . I have given this learned note at length, though I can by no means agree to the propofed alteration. My greatest objection to it is, that I conceive Milton would not have inferted prophets between oracles and dreams, any more than Cicero would have inferted vates between oracula and fomnia. Cicero has faid oracula, vaticinationes, fomnia; and Milton in like manner would have faid by prefages and figns, and anfavers, oracles, prophecies, not prophets, and dreams. But I fuppofe the poet was not willing to afcribe prophecy to the Devil; he might think, Nearer acquainted, now I feel by proof, : think, and very juftly think, that it lay not within his fphere and capacity and by portents he plainly understands something more than prefages and figns, as portenta are ranked with monftra and prodigia in the beft Latin authors. The gentleman feems apprehenfive that his last quotation from Cicero may be turned against him: and indeed that paffage and this reflects fo much light on each other, as would incline one to believe that Milton had it in mind as he was compofing. Multa cernunt harufpices: multa augures provident: these are the prefages and figns and anfwers multa oraculis declarantur, multa vaticinationibus, multa fomniis, multa portentis: here portents are annumerated with oracles and dreams: quibus cognitis, multæ fæpe res hominum fententia atque utilitate parte (or as Lambin reads, ex animi fententia atque utilitate parte) multa etiam pericula depulfa funt: the fenfe of which is very well expreffed by the following line in Milton, Whereby they may direct their in Man That fellowship in pain divides not Smart,] Our author here had his eye this line of the poet, Solamen miferis focios habuiffe doloris. Thyer. 402. Nor lightens aught each man's peculiar load.] I think it will not be cavilling to fay, that each man's peculiar load fhould not be put in the mouth of Satan, who was no man, who had confeffed to Chrift that he was the unfortunate Arch-Fiend, and who fpeaks of himself. If Milton had been aware of it, he would have corrected it thus, Nor lightens aught each one's peculiar load, or in fome other manner. Befides, the word man is repeated here too often. Nor lightens aught each man's peculiar load. Small confolation then, were man adjoin'd: This wounds me most (what can it lefs?) that man, Man fall'n fhall be reftor'd, Į Jortin. never more. 404. This wounds me moft &c.] D 4 Very Man fall'n fhall be reftor'd, I never more. ; 405 To whom our Saviour fternly thus reply'd. Defervedly thou griev'ft, compos'd of lies From the beginning, and in lies wilt end Who boaft'ft releafe from Hell, and leave to come Into the Heav'n of Heav'ns: thou com'ft indeed, 410 miferable captive thrall As a poor Comes to the place where he before had fat To all the hoft of Heav'n: the happy place 415 So one great part of his defign, that he might be able, if poffible, to counterplot and prevent it. With no lefs judgment is our Saviour reprefented in the following anfwer, taking no other notice of it than by replying Defervedly thou griev'ft &c. Thyer. 416. —the happy place &c.] The fame noble fentiment we find alfo in Paradife Loit. IX. 467. But the hot Hell that always in him burns, Though in mid Heav'n, &c. Thyer. 417. Im So never more in Hell than when in Heaven. 420 What but thy malice mov'd thee to misdeem 417. Imparts to thee] In all the editions it is printed Imports to thee, but in the Errata of the firft edition we are defired to read Imparts to thee. It is no wonder that the errors of the first edition are continued in the fubfequent ones, when thofe errors do not much difturb the fense: but even where they make downright nonfenfe of the paffage, they are still continued; and we had a moft remarkable inftance a little before in ver. 400. Never acquainted for Nearer acquainted. 430 426. With all infli&ions? but his patience won. So Mr. Fenton points this paffage in his edition, and fo it fhould be pointed. And the verb won I think is not often ufed as a verb neuter, but I find it fo in Spenfer's Faery Queen, B. 1. Cant. 6. St. 39. And he the ftoutest knight that ever won. 434. But what have been thy an fwers, what but dark,] The oracles were often fo obfcure and dubious |