Solicitous and blank he thus began. 120 Princes, Heav'n's ancient Sons, ethereal Thrones, Demonian Spirits now, from th' element Each of his reign allotted, rightlier call'd Is risen to invade us, who no less Threatens than our expulfion down to Hell; from whence Milton borrowed fome of his notions of Spirits, (as we observed in a note upon the Paradife Loft I. 423.) fpeaks to the fame purpose, that there are many kinds of Demons, and of all forts of forms and bodies, fo that the air above us and around us is full, the earth and the fea are full, and the inmoit and deepest receffes: πολλά δαιμόνων γενη, και παντο δαπα τας ιδέας και τα σωματα w's eval wanon μEV.Tor deg, Toy τε ὑπερθεν ἡμων και τον περι ἡpas wanen de yalav, nas da λατίαν, και τις μυχαίτατος και Budins [BUGINS] Tows, p. 41. and he divides them into fix kinds, the fiery, the aery, the earthy, the watry, the fubterraneous, and the Jucifugous : το διαπυρον, το αεμονα το χθόνιον, το ύδριον το 130 Have Have found him, view'd him, tafted him, but find Far other labor to be undergone Than when I dealt with Adam first of Men, Though Adam by his wife's allurement fell, If he be man by mother's fide at least, 135 With more than human gifts from Heav'n adorn'd, And amplitude of mind to greatest deeds. Of my fuccefs with Eve in Paradife 140 Deceive clar'd from Heaven, and knew him to be the Son of God; and now after the trial that he had made of him, he questions whether he be man even by the mother's fide, If he be man by mother's fide at leaft. And it is the purport of Satan in this fpeech not to fay any thing to the evil Spirits that may leffen, but every thing that may raise their idea of his antagonist. 139. And amplitude of mind to greateft deeds.] There is a great deal of dignity as well as fignificancy in this expreffion, and none certainly could have been better felected to exprefs the idea which the poet intended to convey. borrowed it very probably from He the Deceive ye to perfuafion over-fure Of like fucceeding here; I fummon all Or counsel to affift; left I who erft 145 Thought none my equal, now be over-match'd. At his command; when from amidst them rofe 150 the following paffage in Tully's Set jected to as harsh and inharmonious, but in my opinion the very objection points out a remarkable beauty in them. It is true, they don't run very smoothly off the tongue, but then they are with much better judgment fo contriv'd, that the reader is oblig'd to lay a particular emphafis, and to dwell as it were for fome time upon that word in each verfe which moft ftrongly expreffes the character defcrib'd, viz. diffoluteft, fenfu alleft, fiefblieft. This has a very good effect by impreffing the idea more ftrongly upon the mind, and contributes even in fome measure to increase our averfion to the odious character of Belial by giving an air of deteftation to the Set women in his eye, and in his walk, Among daughters of men the fairest found; 155 As the noon sky; more like to Goddeffes very tone of voice with which these verfes muft necessarily be read. Thyer. 153. Set women in his eye, &c.] As this temptation is not mention'd, nor any hint given of it in the gospels, it could not fo well have been proposed to our Saviour, it is much more fitly made the fubject of debate among the wicked Spirits themselves. All that can be faid in commendation of the power of beauty, and all that can be alledged to depreciate it, is here fumm'd up with greater force and elegance, than I ever remember to have seen it in any other author. And the character of Belial in the Paradife Loft, and the part that he furtains there, fufficiently fhow how properly he is introduced upon the prefent occafion. He is faid to be the fleshlieft Incubus after Afmodai, or Afmadai as it ist written Paradife Loft VI. 365, or Afmodeus IV. 168. the luftful Angel, who loved Sarah the daughter of 160 Skill'd Skill'd to retire, and in retiring draw Hearts after them tangled in amorous nets. amorous rather in the fenfe of the Italian amoroso, which is applied to any thing relating to the paffion of love, than in its common Englith acceptation, in which it generally expreflies fomething of the paffion itself. Thyer. 166. Draw out with credulous defire,] This beautiful expreffion was form'd partly upon the Spes animi credula mutui of Horace. Od. IV. I. 30. fond hope of mutual fire, The ftill-believing, ftill-renew'd defire, as Mr. Pope paraphrases it. And as Mr. Thyer thinks, it is partly an allufion to Terence. Andria. IV. I. 23. - Non tibi fatis effe hoc vifum folidum eft gaudium Women, mile in his Imagines Vol. 2. p. 2. Nifi me lactaffes amantem, et and ufes it as the fubftantive. Mr. Thyer wishes fome authority could very |