Hugeft of living creatures, on the deep
Stretch'd like a promontory sleeps or swims
And feems a moving land, and at his gills
Draws in, and at his trunk spouts out a fea.
Mean while the tepid caves, and fens and shores
Their brood as numerous hatch, from th' egg that foon
Bursting with kindly rupture forth difclos'd
Their callow young, but feather'd soon and fledge 420
They fumm'd their pens, and foaring th' air fublime
With clang defpis'd the ground, under a cloud
In profpect; there the eagle and the ftork
On cliffs and cedar tops their eyries build:
Part loofly wing the region, part more wife
In common, rang'd in figure wedge their way,
Intelligent of feafons, and fet forth
Their aery caravan high over feas
Flying, and over lands with mutual wing
Eafing their flight; fo fteers the prudent crane
Her annual voyage, borne on winds; the air
Flotes, as they país, fann'd with unnumber'd plumes:
From branch to branch the fmaller birds with fong
Solac'd the woods, and fpread their painted wings
Till ev'n, nor then the folemn nightingale
Ceas'd warbling, but all night tun'd her soft lays:
Others on filver lakes and rivers bath'd
Their downy breaft; the fwan with arched neck
Between her white wings mantling proudly, rows
Her ftate with oary feet; yet oft they quit
The dank, and rising on stiff pennons, tower
The mid aereal sky: Others on ground
Walk'd firm; the crefted cock whofe clarion founds
The filent hours, and th' other whofe gay train
Adorns him, color'd with the florid hue
Of rainbows and ftarry' eyes. The waters thus
With fish replenish'd, and the air with fowl,
Evening and morn folemniz'd the fifth day.
The fixth, and of creation last arofe
With evening harps and matin, when God faid, 450
Let th' earth bring forth foul living in her kind,
Cattle and creeping things, and beast of th' earth,
Each in their kind. The earth obey'd, and ftrait
Opening her fertil womb teem'd at a birth
Innumerous living creatures, perfect forms,
Limb'd and full grown out of the ground up rofe
As from his lair the wild beaft where he wons
In foreft wild, in thicket, brake, or den;
Among the trees in pairs they rofe, they walk'd:
The cattel in the fields and meadows green:
Those rare and folitary, thefe in flocks
Pafturing at once, and in broad herds upfprung.
The graffy clods now calv'd, now half appear'd
The tawny lion, pawing to get free
His hinder parts, then springs as broke from bonds, And rampant shakes his brinded mane; the ounce, The libbard, and the tiger, as the mole
Rifing, the crumbled earth above them threw
In hillocs: the fwift ftag from under ground
Bore up his branching head: fcarce from his mold 470 Behemoth biggest born of earth upheav'd
His vaftnefs: fleec'd the flocks and bleating rofe,
As plants: ambiguous between sea and land
The river horfe and fcaly crocodile.
At once came forth whatever creeps the ground, 475
Infect or worm: thofe wav'd their limber fans
For wings, and smallest lineaments exact
In all the liveries deck'd of fummer's pride
With spots of gold and purple', azure and green:
These as a line their long dimension drew,
Streaking the ground with finuous trace; not all
Minims of nature; fome of ferpent kind,
Wondrous in length and corpulence, involv'd
Their fnaky folds, and added wings. First crept
The parfimonious emmet, provident
Of future, in fmall room large heart inclos'd,
Pattern of juft equality perhaps
And thou their natures know'ft, and gave them names, Needless to thee repeated; nor unknown
The serpent subtlest beast of all the field,
Of huge extent fometimes, with brazen eyes
And hairy mane terrific, though to thee
Not noxious, but obedient at thy call.
Now Heav'n in all her glory fhone, and roll'd
Her motions, as the great first Mover's hand
First wheel'd their courfe; earth in her rich attire
Confummate lovely fmil'd; air, water, earth,
By fowl, fish, beast, was flown, was swum, was walk'd
Frequent; and of the fixth day yet remain'd;
There wanted yet the mafter work, the end
Of all yet done; a creature who not prone
And brute as other creatures, but indued
With fanctity of reafon, might erect
His ftature, and upright with front ferene
Govern the reft, felf-knowing, and from thence 510
Magnanimous to correfpond with Heaven,
But grateful to acknowledge whence his good
Defcends, thither with heart and voice and eyes
Directed in devotion, to adore
And worship God fupreme, who made him chief 515
Of all his works: therefore th' Omnipotent
Eternal Father (for where is not he
Prefent?) thus to his Son audibly spake.
Let us make now Man in our image, Man In our fimilitude, and let them rule
Over the fish and fowl of fea and air,
Beaft of the field, and over all the earth,
And every creeping thing that creeps the ground.
This faid, he form'd thee, Adam, thee, O Man,
Duft of the ground, and in thy noftrils breath'd
The breath of life; in his own image he
Created thee, in the image of God
Exprefs, and thou becam'ft a living foul.
Male he created thee, but thy confort
Female for race; then blefs'd mankind, and faid, 530 Be fruitful, multiply, and fill the earth,
Subdue it, and throughout dominion hold
Over fish of the fea, and fowl of th' air,
And every living thing that moves on th' earth.
Wherever thus created, for no place
Is yet diftinct by name, thence, as thou know'st,
He brought thee into this delicious grove,
This garden, planted with the trees of God,
Delectable both to behold and tafte;
And freely all their pleasant fruit for food
Gave thee; all forts are here that all th' earth yields
Variety without end; but of the tree,
Which tafted works knowledge of good and evil,
Thou may'ft not; in the day thou eat'ft, thou dy'st; Death is the penalty impos'd, beware,
And govern well thy appetite, left Sin
Surprise thee, and her black attendent Death.
Here finish'd he, and all that he had made
View'd, and behold all was entirely good;
So ev❜n and morn accomplish'd the fixth day:
Yet not till the Creator from his work
Defifting, though unwearied, up return'd,
Up to the Heav'n of Heav'ns his high abode,
Thence to behold this new created world
Th' addition of his empire, how it show'd
In profpect from his throne, how good, how fair,
Anfwering his great idea. Up he rode
Follow'd with acclamation and the found
Symphonious of ten thousand harps that tun'd
Angelic harmonies: the earth, the air
Refounded, (thou remember'ft, for thou heardft)
The Heav'ns and all the conftellations rung,
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