Deep to the roots of hell the gather'd beach
They fasten'd, and the mole immense wrought on,.
Over the foaming deep high arch'd; a bridge
Of length prodigious, joining to the wall
Immoveable of this now fenceless world
Forfeit to Death; from hence a passage broad,.
Smooth, easy, inoffensive, down to hell.
So, if great things to small may be compar'd,
Xerxes, the liberty of Greece to yoke,
From Susa his Memnonian palace high
Came to the sea, and over Hellespont
Bridging his way, Europe with Asia join'd,

And scourg'd with many a stroke th' indignant waves.
Now had they brought the work by wond'rous art
Pontifical, a ridge of pendant rock,

Over the vex'd abyss, following the track
Of Satan, to the self-same place where he
First lighted from his wing, and landed safe
From out of Chaos, to the outside bare

Of this round world: with pins of adamant,.
And chains they made all fast; too fast they made,
And durable; and now in little space
The confines met of empyrean heav'n,

And of this world and on the left hand hell
With long reach interpos'd; three several ways
In sight to each of these three places led.
And now their way to earth they had descry'd,
To Paradise first tending; when behold
Satan, in likeness of an Angel bright,
Betwixt the Centaur and the Scorpion steering
Ilis zenith, while the sun in Aries rose:
Disguis'd he came; but those his children dear
Their parent soon discern'd, though in disguise.
Ile, after Eve seduc'd, unminded slunk
Into the wood fast by, and changing shape,
To observe the sequel, saw his guileful act
By Eve, though all unweeting, seconded
Upon her husband, saw their shame that sought
Vain overtures; but when he saw descend

The Son of God to judge them, terrify'd
He fled, not hoping to escape, but shun
The present, fearing guilty what his wrath
Might suddenly inflict; that pass'd, return'd
By night, and list'ning where the hapless pair
Sat in their sad discourse, and various plaint,
Thence gather'd his own doom; which understood
Not instant, but of future time with joy

And tidings fraught, to Hell he now return'd;
And at the brink of Chaos, near the foot
Of this new wond'rous pontifice, unhop'd
Met, who to meet him came, his offspring dear.
Great joy was at their meeting, and at sight
Of that stupendous bridge his joy increas'd.
Long he admiring stood, till Sin, his fair
Enchanting daughter, thus the silence broke:
O parent, these are thy magnific deeds,
Thy trophies, which thou view'st as not thine own;
Thou art their author and prime architect:

For I no sooner in my heart divin'd,

My heart, which by a secret harmony

Still moves with thine, join'd in connection sweet, That thou on earth hadst prosper'd, which thy looks Now also evidence, but straight I felt

Though distant from thee worlds between, yet felt That I must after thee with this thy son;

Such fatal consequence unites us there.

Hell could no longer hold us in her bounds,

Nor this unvoyageable gulf obscure

Detain from following thy illustrious track.
Thou hast atchiev'd our liberty, confin'd
Within hell gates till now; thou us impower'd
To fortify thus far, and overlay

With this portentous bridge the dark abyss.
Thine now is all this world; thy virtue hath won
What thy hands builded not, thy wisdom gain'd
With odds what war hath lost, and fully aveng'd
Our foil in Heav'n; here thou shalt monarch reign,
There didst not: there let him still victor sway

As battle hath adjudg'd, from this new world
Retiring, by his own doom alienated,
And henceforth monarchy with thee divide
Of all things parted by th' empyreal bounds
His quadrature, from thy orbicular world,
Or try thee now more dang'rous to his throne.
Whom thus the prince of darkness answer'd glad:
Fair daughter, and thou son and grandchild both,
High proof ye now have giv'n to be the race
Of Satan, (for I glory in the name,
Antagonist of Heav'n's almighty king),
Amply have merited of me, of all

Th' infernal empire, that so near heav'n's door
Triumphal with triumphal act have met,

Mine with this glorious work, and made one realm
Hell and this world, one realm, one continent
Of easy thoroughfare. Therefore, while I
Descend through darkness, on your road with ease,
To my associate pow'rs, them to acquaint
With these successes, and with them rejoice;
You two this way, among these numerous orbs
All yours, right down to Paradise descend,
There dwell, and reign in bliss; thence on the earth
Dominion exercise, and in the air,

Chiefly on Man, sole lord of all declar'd;
Him first make sure your thrall, and lastly kill.
My substitutes I send ye, and create
Plenipotent on earth, of matchless might
Issuing from me: on your joint vigour now
My hold of this new kingdom all depends,
Through sin to death expos'd by my exploit.
If your joint pow'r prevail, th' affairs of hell
No detriment need fear; go, and be strong.

So saying, he dismiss'd them; they with speed
Their course through thickest constellations held
Spreading their bane; the blasted stars look'd wan,
And planets, planet-struck, real eclipse
Then suffer'd. Th' other way Satan went down
The causey to hell gate; on either side

Disparted Chaos over built exclaim'd,

And with rebounding surge the bars assail'd,
That scorn'd his indignation: through the gate,
Wide open and unguarded, Satan pass'd,
And all about found desolate; for those
Appointed to sit there had left their charge,
Flown to the upper world; the rest were all
Far to th' inland retir'd about the walls
Of Pandemonium, city and proud seat
Of Lucifer, so by allusion call'd,

Of that bright star to Satan paragon'd.

There kept their watch the legions, while the grand
In council sat, solicitous what chance
Might intercept their emp'ror sent; so he
Departing gave command, and they observ'd.
As when the Tartar from his Russian foe,
By Astracan, over the snowy plains
Retires; or Bactrian Sophi from the horns
Of Turkish crescent, leaves all waste beyond
The realm of Aladule, in his retreat

To Tauris or Casbeen; so these, the late
Heav'n-banish'd host, left desert utmost heli
Many a dark league, reduc'd in careful watch
Round their metropolis, and now expecting
Each hour their great advent'rer from the search
Of foreign worlds. He through the midst unmark'd,
In show plebeian Angel militant

Of lowest order pass'd; and from the door
Of that Plutonian hall, invisible

Ascended his high throne, which under state
Of richest texture spread, at th' upper end
Was plac'd in regal lustre. Down awhile
He sat, and round about him saw unseen
At last, as from a cloud, Iris fulgent head
And shape star bright appear'd, or brighter, clad
With what permissive glory since his fall
Was left him, or false glitter. All amaz'd
At that so sudden blaze the Stygian throng
Bent their aspect; and whom they wish'd beheld

Their mighty chief return'd: loud was th' acclaim:
Forth rush'd in haste the great consulting peers,
Rais'd from their dark divan, and with like joy
Congratulant approach'd him, who with hand
Silence, and with these words attention won:
Thrones, dominations, princedoms, virtues, pow'rs,
For, in possession such, not only of right
I call ye and declare ye now, return'd
Successful beyond hope, to lead ye forth
Triumphant out of this infernal pit
Abominable, accurs'd, the house of woe,
And dungeon of our tyrant; now possess,
As lords, a spacious world, to our native heav'n
Little inferior, by my adventure hard

With peril great atchiev'd. Long were to tell
What I have done, what suffer'd, with what pain
Voyag'd th' unreal, vast, unbounded deep
Of horrible confusion, over which

By Sin and Death a broad way now is pav'd
To expedite your glorious march; but I
Toil'd out my uncouth passage, forc'd to ride
Th' untractable abyss, plung'd in the womb
Of unoriginal Night and Chaos wild,

That, jealous of their secrets, fiercely oppos'd
My journey strange, with clamorous uproar
Protesting fate supreme; thence how I found
The new-created world, which same in heav'n
Long had foretold, a fabric wonderful'
Of absolute perfection, therein man
Plac'd in a Paradise, by our exile

Made happy: him by fraud I have seduc'd
From his Creator, and the more to increase
Your wonder, with an apple; he thereat
Offended, worth your laughter, hath giv❜n up
Both his beloved man and all his world,
To Sin and Death a prey, and so to us,
Without our hazard, labour, or alarm,
To range in, and to dwell, and over man
To rule, as over all he should have rul'd.