Useless befides; reasoning I oft admire,
How nature wise and frugal could commit

Such disproportions, with fuperfluous hand
So many nobler bodies to create,

Greater so manifold to this one use,

For ought appears, and on their orbs impose

Such restless revolution day by day

Repeated, while the sedentary earth,
That better might with far less compass move,

Serv'd by more noble than herself, attains Her end without least motion, and receives, As tribute, such a sumless journey brought

Of incorporeal speed, her warmth and light;
Speed, to describe whose swiftness number fails.
So spake our fire, and by his count'nance seem'd
Entring on studious thoughts abstruse, which Eve 40
Perceiving where she sat retir'd in fight,
With lowliness majestic from her feat,
And grace that won who saw to wish her stay,
Rose, and went forth among her fruits and flowers,
To visit how they profper'd, bud and bloom,
Her nursery; they at her coming sprung,
And touch'd by her fair tendence gladlier grew.
Yet went she not, as not with such discourse

45

De

Sic ait, ac mediis interferit oscula the Heathens supposed their Goddess verbis. of love to be.

But how much more delicate is Milton's expreffion, and more becoming the chafte conjugal affection of Eve!

- from his lip Not words alone pleas'd her.

46.-they at ber coming sprung, &c.] The same pretty thought Marino applies to his Venus, which probably Milton might have in view,

L'herbe dal sole impallidite, e gialle

Tibullus fays in praise of Sulpicia, Verdeggian tutte, ogni fior s'apre

IV. II. 7.

& alza, &c.

Adone, Cant. 3. St. 65.

In the same manner also speaking of
Adonis,

Tutto al venir d' Adon par che ri-
denti,

Rivesta il bel giardin novi colori. &c.

E 4

Ib. Cant. 6. St. 146.
Thyer.

59. With

Delighted, or not capable her ear

Of what was high: such pleasure she reserv'd, 50

Adam relating, she sole auditress;

Her husband the relator she preferr'd

Before the Angel, and of him to ask

Chose rather; he, she knew, would intermix

Grateful digressions, and solve high dispute

55

With conjugal caresses ; from his lip

Not words alone pleas'd her. O when meet now

Such pairs, in love and mutual honor join'd?
With Goddess-like demeanour forth she went,

Not unattended, for on her as queen

60

A pomp of winning graces waited still,
And from about her shot darts of defire
Into all eyes to wish her still in fight.

And

59. With Goddess-like demeanour given the sanction of an Arch-Angel forth she went,

Not unattended,] In the turn of expreffion in these two lines Milton seems to allude to Homer's description of Helen. Iliad. III. 142. Ωρματ' εκ θαλαμοιο, Τερεν κατa δακρυ χεύσα, Ουκ οιη, άμα τηνε, Thyer,

to any particular system of philosophy. The chief points in the Ptolemaic and Copernican hypothefis are described with great conciseness and perfpicuity, and at the fame time dressed in very pleasing and poetical images.

Addison.

70. This to attain,] To attain to the knowledge of this hard question, Whether Heaven or Earth move, is of no concern or consequence to thee: N'importe (French) it matters

66. To ask or fearch &c.] The Angel's returning a doubtful anfwer to Adam's inquiries, was not only proper for the moral reason which the poet afligns, but because it would not; says Mr. Hume. Mr. Richardhave been highly absurd to have fon understands it in the fame man

And Raphael now to Adam's doubt propos'd
Benevolent and facil thus reply'd.

65

To ask or fearch I blame thee not, for Heaven Is as the book of God before thee set, Wherein to read his wondrous works, and learn His seasons, hours, or days, or months, or years: This to attain, whether Heav'n move or Earth, 70 Imports not, if thou reckon right; the rest From Man or Angel the great Architect Did wifely to conceal, and not divulge His secrets to be scann'd by them who ought Rather admire; or if they lift to try Conjecture, he his fabric of the Heavens Hath left to their disputes, perhaps to move His laughter at their quaint opinions wide

ner: his words are "To attain to "know whether the fun or the earth

moves is not of use to us." But I believe that they are both mistaken in the sense of this passage, for I conceive it otherwise. This to attain is to be referred to what precedes and not to what follows; and accordingly there is only a colon before these words in Milton's own editions, and not a full stop as in fome others. This to attain, that is to attain the knowledge of seasons, bours, or days, or months, or years, It imports not, it matters not, it

75

Heareafter, when they come to model Heaven
And calculate the stars, how they will wield
The mighty frame, how build, unbuild, contrive
To save appearances, how gird the sphere
With centric and eccentric fcribled o'er,

80

85

Cycle and epicycle, orb in orb:
Already by thy reasoning this I guess,
Who art to lead thy ofspring, and supposest
That bodies bright and greater should not ferve
The less not bright, nor Heav'n such journeys run,
Earth fitting still, when she alone receives
The benefit: consider first, that great
Or bright infers not excellence: the earth
Though, in comparison of Heav'n, so small,
Nor glist'ring, may of folid good contain
More plenty than the fun that barren shines,

90

Whofe

old system especially) centric and eccentric, cycle and epicycle, and orb in orb. Pearce.

80. And calculate the stars,] The culate them is to make a computasense is, And form a judgment of tion of every thing relating to them: the stars by computing their motions, the consequence of which is (in the distance, fituation, &c, as to calculate a nativity fignifies to form a judgment of the events attending it, by computing what planets, in what motions, presided over that nativity. But Dr. Bentley takes calculating the flars here to mean counting their numbers. That might be one thing intended; but it is not all. To cal

83. With centric and eccentric] Centric or concentric are such spheres whose center is the fame with, and eccentric such whose centers are different from that of the earth. Cycle is a circle; Epicycle is a circle upon another