Page:The Complete Poetical Works of John Milton.djvu/264

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��PARADISE LOST

��To a fell adversary, his hate or shame: Which infinite calamity shall cause To human life, and household peace con- found." He added not, and from her turned; but

Eve,

Not so repulsed, with tears that ceased not flowing, 910

And tresses all disordered, at his feet Fell humble, and, imbracing them, be- sought His peace, and thus proceeded in her

plaint: " Forsake me not thus, Adam ! witness

Heaven What love sincere and reverence in my

heart

I bear thee, and unweeting have offended, Unhappily deceived ! Thy suppliant I beg, and clasp thy knees; bereave me

not

Whereon I live, thy gentle looks, thy aid, Thy counsel in this uttermost distress, 920 My only strength and stay. Forlorn of

thee,

Whither shall I betake me, where subsist ? While yet we live, scarce one short hour

perhaps, Between us two let there be peace; both

joining,

As joined in injuries, one enmity Against a Foe by doom express assigned

us,

That cruel Serpent. On me exercise not Thy hatred for this misery befallen On me already lost, me than thyself More miserable. Both have sinned; but thou 930

Against God only; I against God and thee, And to the place of judgment will return, There with my cries impor'tune Heaven,

that all The sentence, from thy head removed, mav

light

On me, sole cause to thee of all this woe, Me, me only, just object of His ire."

She ended, weeping; and her lowly

plight.

Immovable till peace obtained from fault Acknowledged and deplored, in Adam

wraught

Commiseration. Soon his heart relented Towards her, his life so late, and sole de- light, 941 Now at his feet submissive in distress

��Creature so fair his reconcilement seeking, His counsel whom she had displeased, his

aid.

As one disarmed, his anger all he lost, And thus with peaceful words upraised her

soon :

" Unwary, and too desirous, as before So now, of what thou know'st not, who

desir'st

The punishment all on thyself ! Alas ! Bear thine own first, ill able to sustain 950 His full wrauth whose thou feel'st as yet

least part, And my displeasure bear'st so ill. If

prayers

Could alter high decrees, I to that place Would speed before thee, and be louder

heard,

That on my head all might be visited, Thy frailty and infirmer sex forgiven, To me committed, and by me exposed. But rise; let us no more contend, nor

blame Each other, blamed enough elsewhere, but

strive

In offices of love how we may lighten 960 Each other's burden in our share of woe; Since this day's death denounced, if aught

I see, Will prove no sudden, but a slow-paced

evil,

A long day's dying, to augment our pain, And to our seed (O hapless seed !) de- rived."

To whom thus Eve, recovering heart, re- plied :

" Adam, by sad experiment I know How little weight my words with thee can

find,

Found so erroneous, thence by just event Found so unfortunate. Nevertheless, 970 Restored by thee, vile as I am, to place Of new acceptance, hopeful to regain Thy love, the sole contentment of my

heart,

Living or dying from thee I will not hide What thoughts in my unquiet breast are

risen,

Tending to some relief of our extremes, Or end, though sharp and sad, yet toler- able,

As in our evils, and of easier choice. If care of our descent perplex us most, Which must be born to certain woe, de- voured 980

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