Page:Paradise lost by Milton, John.djvu/389

Rh To withered, weak, and gray; thy senses then, Obtuse, all taste of pleasure must forgo, To what thou hast; and, for the air of youth, Hopeful and cheerful, in thy blood will reign A melancholy damp of cold and dry To weigh thy spirits down, and last consume The balm of life."—To whom our ancestor:
 * "Henceforth I fly not death, nor would prolong

Life much; bent rather, how I may be quit, Fairest and easiest, of this cumbrous charge, Which I must keep till my appointed day Of rendering up, and patiently attend My dissolution." Michaël replied:
 * "Nor love thy life, nor hate; but what thou livest

Live well; how long or short, permit to Heaven. And now prepare thee for another sight."
 * He looked, and saw a spacious plain, whereon

Were tents of various hue. By some were herds Of cattle grazing; others, whence the sound Of instruments, that made the melodious chime, Was heard, of harp and organ, and who moved Their stops and chords were seen; his volent touch Instinct, through all proportions low and high, Fled, and pursued transverse the resonant fugue. In other part stood one, who at the forge