' and Confufions of Chaos feen by the Dread'ful Glimmer of Hell's Ruddy Flames, Caft 'forth of her Wide Gates as from the Mouth of a Furnace.' Hoary; to denote its Age, the Ancestor of Nature, Eternal Anarchy (as it immediately follows) but never Vifited 'till of late when Hell was Created,and the Damn'd came Ruining Thither through This Difmal Empire, and Therefore Secrets. 892 Illimitable Ocean, without Bound, without Dimenfion, where Length,Breadth and Height and Time and Place are loft; 'tis impoffible to Bound it and accordingly it Has no Bound; and as 'tis Infinite in its Extent it has no Dimenfions within it Self, no Measure of Time or Place. Height here Signifies Depth, 'tis a Latinism, and This Place is Explain'd by 405. the Dark, Unbottom'd Infinite Abyss Before Hell was Prepar'd for the Rebellicus I. 70. &c. Milton Imagines All confifted of the Empyreum the Dwelling of God and his Angels, and Chaos, which Extended Underneath, as Heaven Above, Infinitely; and was alfo Eternal; Eldeft Night and Chaos the Ancestors of Nature held Eternal Anarchy 894, 911, 1002. 900 their Embryon Atoms their Imperfect, Unfinish'd, Crude Particles. 901 Clanns Tribes, as among the High-Lands in NorthBritain. 904 Barca a City, and Cyrene a Province of Lybia. ibid. Torrid Hot, Burning. 905 and poife Give weight or Ballast to. Pliny speaks of certain Birds who when a Storm arifes poise themfelves with little Stones L. XI. C. x. Virgil has the fame thought Georg. IV. 192. 906 -to whom Thefe most adhere, He rules a Moment; to Whom most of These Embryon Atoms Adhere, He of the four Champions (v. 898) Rules, He has a Momentary Victory. 907 Chaos Umpire fits, and by Decifion more Embroils the Fray Arbitrators are Chofen by the Parties in Difference to determine a Controverfy; if They Cannot Agree they Chufe One Single Perfon whofe Judgment is Final, He is call'd an Umpire. Umpire. Chaos Here Decides, but for his Own Advantage. 910 -Into this Wild Abys the next fix lines give a Farther Account of what had employ'd about twenty Lines before; he then returns and goes on. 917 Into this Wild Abyss the Wary Fiend Stood on the Brink of Hell and Look'd a while, pondering his Voyage, for, &c. Here is a Remarkable Tranfpofition of the Words, the Sense however is very clear. the Wary Fiend ftood on the Brink of Hell and Look'd a while into this Wild Abyss pondering his Voyage. 'tis Obfervable the Poet Himself feems to be Doing what he Describes, for the Period begins at 910. Then he goes not On Directly, but Lingers; giving an Idea of Chaos before he Enters into it. 'tis very Artfull! if his Stile is Somewhat Abrupt after Such Pondering it Better Paints the Image he Intended to give. 919 Narrow Frith a Streight pent in between the Lands on Either Side. 922 Bellona the Goddess of War. Ꮐ 927 927 Vannes. Wings. from Vannus (Lat.) an Instrument with which they winnow Corn which refembles a wing and which by Corruption is call'd a Fan. 929 Uplifted Spurns the Ground Satan was Now on the Borders of Hell and Chaos, Through which Laft his Way was; 'He was then to Mount Upwards (fee v. 433, '437, 645, 1013.) and Amidft the Elements in War and Confufion, Blended together ' and Varying every Moment; Fire, or Earth, or Air, or Water begins to Form it Self, Immediately Thofe Atoms are Separated, 'That Embrio is Destroyed and Another takes 'its Place, but is Loft, and Succeeded by Another, and so on Throughout the Restless Tem'peftuous, Boundless Abyfs of Darkness,Noise, and Horror. 935 Rebuff a Back-blow. Buff is a Blow. Spencer. I. 11, 24. 937 Instinct with Fire and Nitre Push'd Forward, Irritated with Fire and Nitre, an Explosion as by Gun-Powder. Much the fame as Sublim'd with Mineral Fury. I.235. 939 a Boggy Syrtis, a Soft Quick-fand, an In-draught of Sand Mud Mud and Stones, Neither Sea nor good Dry Land. 941 the Crude Confiflence the Raw, Un-Ripe, Un-Finish'd Mixture; Hot, Moist, Hard, Cold, Dry, Soft, Confounded together; the Beginning of Something, as v. 898, 912. 945 Perfues the Arimafpian the Arimafpians were a people of Scythia. Anciently they had a Fancy, as among the Egyptians and Others Now, that there were Hidden Treafures Guarded by Demons, Spirits or Monsters; a Griffon is Here one of Thefe Keepers of Gold, and who has been Rob'd. 948 Denfe or Rare. Thick or Thin. 954 be Plies he Bends, he Directs his Courfe, from Plier (Fr.) to Bend. a Sea-term. v. 642. 956 the Nethermoft Abyss Chaos is Defcrib'd to be of Infinite Extent, and Hell to be taken from it, as Afterwards the New Creation; This is the Vaft and Boundlefs Deep through which the Almighty's Thunder Wing'd with Red Lightning and Impetuous Rage, Bellow'd, I. 174. though a Part of Chaos was Above Hell, 'twas an Illimitable G 2 Ocean |