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red the largest of all the Creatures that fwim in the Ocean; (who fometimes fleeping on the GERMAN Sea, which washes NORWAY (u), GREENLAND, and ICELAND, the Pilot of fome fmall Skiff, ready to fink in the Night, mistakes for fome Ifland, and, as Mariners relate, fixes Anchor into his Scales, and moors by his Side under the Lee, while Night covers the Sea with Darkness, and keeps off the defired Morning) i fuch Manner lay SATAN, prodigiously stretched out and hung in Length, chained upon the burning Lake; nor had he ever rifen, or lifted his Head from thence, but that the Will and high Permiffion of the all-ruling Power, left him at large to his own dark Purposes and Designs that with repeated Crimes he might heap upon himself Damnation, at the fame Time that he fought to bring Evil upon others; and might be mortified to fee, how all his Malice only ferved to bring forth Grace, infinite Goodness and Mercy, fhewn to MAN, who should be feduced by him, but upon himfelf Wrath, Vengeance poured out, and threefold Confufion.

THUS permitted, he raises up his mighty Stature from off the Pool, and driving the Flames backward on each Hand, they roll in pointed Spires, and leave in the Middle an horrid Vale: Then with out-ftretched Wings he flies upward, floating along upon the dusky Air, that never before had born fuch a Weight; at length he alighted upon dry Land, if that may be pro

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perly called fo, that ever burned with folid, as the Lake did with liquid Fire; the Colour of which was as when the Force of pent-up fubterranean Wind, removes a Hill torn from PELORUS (x), or the fhattered Sides of thundering Mount ETNA (y); whofe combuftible and bituminous Entrails from thence catching Fire, working with mineral Force, affifts the Winds, and leaves a parched and finged-up Bottom, mixed with Stench and Smoak. No better Refting-place than this was found by the unbleffed Feet of SATAN, who was immediately followed by BEELZEBUB, both of them glorying to have efcaped from the burning Lake, which they imputed to their own natural and recovered Strength, and not to the Permiffion of GOD.

(x) Pelorus Lat. Gr. Heb. and Phan. A Pilot; or Gr. from Pelorus an African Pilot whom they fay Hannibal flew and buried, fuppofing he had betrayed him; but finding his Mifake, he erected a Statue for him in a high Place near the Sea, which he called Pelorus. It is one of the three Promontories of Sicily, on the North Side, about a Mile and a half from Italy, now called Capo di Faro, Ital. i. e. The Cape of the Light-Houfe. But here it is taken for the whole Hland of Sicily, which is very fubject to Earthquakes.

(y) Etna; Lat. Gr. from the Heb. Attuna, i. e. A Furnace, a Chimney, or Ætuna, i. e. A Mift; because of the perpetual Smoke afcending from the Top of it. Pindar, an antient Greek Poet, calls it a celeftial Column, from its Height, being the higheft Mountain there; on the Top of it one may fee all the Ifland,

and to Africa. A Vulcano, or burning Mountain on the East Side of Sicily, about 6 Miles in Compafs, 100 Feet perpendicular, and a Mile of Ascent s which always cafts up Smoak, Flames, Ashes, and fometimes great Stones, liquid Metal and Sulphur, which devour all Things before it. This Mountain has burnt above 3000 Years past, but is not in the least confumed; it hath Snow upon the Top, Vineyards and fruitful Paftures on the Sides, and at the Bottom. It hath had nine terrible Eruptions that we know of; the most dreadful were in A. D. 1538, 1669, and 1693. It is now cal led Gibello by the Arabs, i. e. The Mountain, by Way of Eminence. Befides this there are divers others Vulcanoes in Exrope, Asia, Africa, and Ameri ca, which are caufed by the Abundance of Sulphur in their Bowels.

Is this the Kingdom? faid the fallen Arch-angel (z). Is this the Soil, the Climate? This the Seat that we must exchange for Heaven? This dismal Gloom for that heavenly Light? Then be it fo; fince he who is now abfolute Sovereign can decree and bid what fhall be right; to be fartheft from him is beft, fince he whom Reason makes but equal, Force hath made fupreme above his Equals. Ye happy Fields where Joy dwells for ever! Farewell. Hail Horrors! Hail this infernal World! and thou profoundest Hell, fartheft from Heaven, receive me! I am thy new Poffeffor, I am one who bring a Mind which is not to be changed by Time or Place; for the Mind is its own Place, and can of itself make a Heaven of Hell, or a Hell of Heaven. What Matter is it where I am, if I am still the fame, and what I fhould be, only that I am lefs than he, whom Thunder has made greater? At least here we shall be free, the Thunderer hath not built this Place for his Envy, he will not drive us out from hence, we may reign fecure here, and if I am to make my Choice, I fhould think it worth my Ambition to reign, though but in Hell; thinking it better to reign in Hell, than to ferve in Heaven. But why do we let our faithful Friends, the numerous Compani→ ons, and Copartners of our Lofs, lie thus aftonished on the Gulph of burning Fire, and not call them to fhare with us their Part alfo in this unhappy Habitation, and with reunited Arms to try what may be yet recovered in Heaven, or what more is poffible to be loft in Hell. So fpoke SATAN, and BEELZEBUB replied:

(z) Arch Angel, Gr. i. e. An Arch or Principal Angel, who has Power over others. See Dan. iii. 16. Luk. i. 19. Rev. xii. 7.

Here Satan. And probably he is the only Arch-Angel that is out of Heaven.

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LEADER

LEADER of thofe bright Armies, which none but the Omnipotent could ever have overcome; if they but once hear that Voice, their greatest Surety of Hope in Fears, and Dangers, which they have fo often heard in the worft Extreams, and which in the hazardous Edge of Battle, and in all Affaults has been their fureft Signal, they will foon recover, take new Courage, and revive, though they now lie in extreme Mifery, and proftrate on yonder Lake of Fire, as we not long fince did, aftonifhed and confounded, which is no Wonder, confidering that we fell from fuch a dangerous Height.

He had fcarce done fpeaking when the fuperior Fiend SATAN was moving towards the Shore; his heavy Shield of heavenly Workmanship, maffy, large, and round, was caft behind him; the broad Compafs of it hung on his Shoulders like the Moon, whofe Orb the TUSCAN (a) Artist (b) views through optic

(a) Tufcan; one of the Tufci or Hetrufci; the antient People of Tuscany in Italy, that came from Phenicid; but Juftin fays from Lydia, L. 20. The Latins had long Wars with them, and at laft conquered them under Servius Tullus, the fixth King of Rome. It is now a fine Country, fubject to the Grand Duke of Tufiany, in Extent about 144 Miles. It was called Hetruria now Tuscany, and the People Tufcans or Hetrurians.

(b) Artift; Fr. Lat. One that is fkilled in any Art or Science: Milton means Galileo Galilæi, an excellent Attronomer, and Native of Florence, the Capital of Tuscany, chief Philofopher and

Mathematician to the Grand Duke of Tuscany; who invented thofe Glafles whereby he difcovered Spots in the Sun, Mountains, Rivers, &c. in the Moon; the Nature of the Milky-Way; the various Appearances of Saturn; many new Stars about Orion and Cancer; and 62,500 Stars, whereof 63 only appeared to the bare Eye. For these useful Dif. coveries he was imprifoned five Years by the Inquifition, condemned by Pope Urban VIII. forced to recantat 60, and died at 78 Years of Age, A. D. 1642. But that firft Invention wasowing to Roger Bacon, Fellow of Merton-College of Oxford, long be fore Galileo. And others a

optic Glaffee in an Evening, from the Top of FESOLE (c), or elfe in VALDARNO. (d), to difcover Mountains, Rivers, or new Lands on her Globe; the tallest Pine hewn on the Mountals of NORWAY, tó be a Mait for the Ship of fome great Admiral, were but little in Comparison of his Spear, with which he walked to fupport his uneafy Steps over the burning Sulphur, (not like his former Steps in Heaven) and the Heat of Hell fmote on him fore befides, for it was furrounded and covered with Fire; nevertheless he endured it, 'till he came to the Brink of that inflamed Sea, where he ftood and called his Legions, Angelick Forms, who lay intranced and confounded with their Fall, as thick as Leaves in Autumn, that fall into the Brooks in VALOMBROSA (e), where the Trees cover over and fhade the Stream; or like fcattered Sedge afloat, when ORION (f), attended with boifte, rous Winds, hath vexed the Coast of the RED-SEA (g), whole

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fcribe it to Mr. James Metius of Amfterdam. But Galileo brought it to vatt Perfection.

(c) Fefola; vulg. Fieffole and "Fiezzole; called Feffale by Tit. Livius, Pliny, and Silius ItaliLus. It was an antient City of Tufcany near Florence, the Refidence of the Tufcan Augurs, who taught the old Romans their fuperftitious Divinations, Sacrifices, &c. Here the great Galileo refided, and made his Aftronomial Obfervations from the Top of the Towers thereof.

(d) Valdarno; Ital. from the Lat. i. e. The Valley on the River Arnus. It is a fruitful Vale on the River Argo, which runs through Tufcany and by Florence into the Tuscan Sea.

(e) Valombroja; Ital. Lat.

i. e. A fhady Valley; a fruitful and pleafant Valley in Tuscany full of Shades and fruitful Trees.

(f) Orion; Lat. from the Gr. i. e. Urine or Tempest. An Aftron. T. It is a Southern Conftellation of 30 Stars, rifing on the 20th of March, and setting in November; and bringeth Storms and Rain with it. See

ob ix. 9. Amos v. 8. Some tall Orion, the God of the Winds.

(g) Red Sea; Heb. It is fo called from Efau or Edom, because of the red-coloured Pottage which he purchafed of Jacob; for his Dominions lay along that Sea, and from him the Country was called Idumea, i. e. Red: And fo the old Egyptians

called

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