Is this the dismal gloom exchanged
For that celestial light?
Be it so, since he who now reigns
Can bid what shall be right.
Farewell ye fields, celestial light,
Where joys forever dwell;
Hail horrors, hail infernal sight,
And thou profoundest bell,
Receive us, thor, who bring a mind
Forever fixed in hate,
Not to be changed by place or time
Whatever be our fate:
Here though in pain we shall be free,
And may securely reign,
We'd better our own sovereigns be,
Whate'er it cost of pain;
Who would not rather reign in Hell
Than humbly serve in Heaven,
And here in penal fire e'er dwell,
Than plead to be forgiv❜n:
But let us haste and call our friends,
Th' associates of our loss,
From off the pool, where racked with pains, By surging billows tost."
He said, and hasted to the shore
Of that inflamed sea,
With voice of anger belching tore.
All Hell's profoundity.
"Princes, Potentates and Powers,
Warriors, valiant in field,
The flower of highest heav'n, once ours,
Now lost, to thunder yield'd;
Mammon ahead their leader went,
Who ere from Heav'n he fell,
His tho'ts and looks e'er downwards bent,
Peaking in ev'ry cell,
Riches or hidden stores to find,
But vain and paltry things,
And less admir'd the things divine
Than what the deep mine brings,
Or Heaven's pavements, trodden gold,
And more the splendid throne
Than him who sits thereon and holds
All pow'r o'er all his own :
Soon had his hasty num'rous crew
Opened a spacious hole
Into the hill where treasures grew
And digg'd out ribs of gold.
A second crew, nigh on the plains,
In cells prepared before,
That underneath had fi'ry veins,
Malleated the ore
A third as soon had from the ground
Formed a various mould,
And from the cells conveyance found
That fill'd it up with gold:
Anon out of the earth arose
Sudden a fabric great,
With pillars Doric many rows
O'erlaid with golden plate. Meanwhile the heralds by command Proclaim to cv'ry one
A council to be held at hand
At Pandemonium.*
Their summons called and they anon
Trooping by thousands came,
And all access completely throng'd,
No vacancy remain'd;
So thickly swarm'd the num'rous crew,
Until the signal shown,
Their giant statues smaller grew,
Till less than dwarf's become;
Numberless throng'd in narrow bound
Like that pygmean race,
Beyond the Indian mount is found
By forest fount or waste.
Thus when gigantic forms they'd shed
Sat numberless within:
After short pause and summons read
The great consult begin.
High on a throne of royal state
Satan exalted sat,
And to his fallen legions spake,
Proud speech, and erring that.
"Ye heav'nly pow'rs and Deities,
Though fallen and oppress'd;
Since now resolv'd our wo to ease,
I give not Heav'n for lost;
Since now tri'd in arms our pow'r known,
And known our weakness too,
That yet no less, this better shown
Will but our strength renew;
So what if now we try again
The tow'ring height of Heav'n,
With sword in hand and fi'ry flame,
Such as we here have giv'n,
And justly claim our native seat,
Our old inheritance,
Surer to prosper than retreat,
By more experience;
Or by some milder subtle means,
By fraud or false pretence,
If by arms it dang'rous seems
And costly the expense;
By what best way we now debate,
The better since we seek,
By war or guile this bondage break;
Who can advise, may speak."
He ceas'd, and Moloch next upstood,
The fiercest spirit there,
The fiercest while in Heav'n he stood,
Now fiercer by despair:
His trust was to be equal deem'd
In strength to the Eternal,
And rather than be less esteem'd
Cared not to be at all.
"My sentence is for open war
And not wiles less expert,
Then let those contrive who need, or
When, now things more alert,
For while they sit contriving thus
Shall armed millions wait
The signal to ascend and rush
Through Heaven's bar'd gate?
No, let us armed with flames of hell
Force our resistless way
O'er Heav'n's high tow'rs our foes compel By harsh and bold essay:
Why should we waste our virtues here
In this approbious den,
And calmly thus submit, or fear
To claim our right again;
Let us firm united all ascend,
Nor hard is the ascent,
Our proper motions upward tend;
Hard forc'd was our descent."
With indignation these pronounc'd,
Advising to avenge,
Then ended, and his looks denounc'd
A desperate revenge.
On the other side Belial rose
More graceful and humane
In act, but fix'd in hate, as those
Who plead for war again;
He seem'd for dignity compos'd:
And his tongue Manna dropt.
Much reason in his speech he shows ;
A fairer one fell not.
"I should be much for open war,
As not behind in hate,
If what was urg'd main reason for,
Of reason did partake;
By force of arms what can we hope
Against our great high foe,
Who once our ranks so easy broke
And wrought our overthrow;
With armed watch Heav'n's tow'rs are fill'd,
That shut up all access,
And thus the gates of heav'n are held
Ever since our egress;
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