Bear thine own first, ill able to sustain

950

His full wrath, 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 expos'd.

But rise, let us no more contend, nor blame
Each other, blam'd enough elsewhere, but strive,
In offices of love, how we may lighten

Each other's burden, in our share of woe;
Since this day's death denounc'd, if ought I see,
Will prove no sudden, but a slow-pac'd evil,
A long day's dying to augment our pain,
And to our seed (O hapless seed!) deriv'd."

To whom thus Eve, recovering heart, reply'd. "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,
Restor❜d 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

958

967

What thoughts in my unquiet breast are risen, 975

Tending to some relief of our extremes,

Or end, though sharp and sad, yet tolerable,
As in our evils, and of easier choice,

If care of our descent perplex us most,
Which must be born to certain woe, devour'd
By Death at last; and miserable it is

To be to others cause of misery,

Our own begott❜en, and of our loins to bring
Into this cursed world a woeful race,
That after wretched life must be at last
Food for so foul a monster; in thy power
It lies, yet ere conception to prevent
The race unblest, to be'ing yet unbegot.
Childless thou art, childless remain: so Death
Shall be deceiv'd his glut, and with us two
Be forc'd to satisfy his ravenous maw.
But if thou judge it hard and difficult,
Conversing, looking, loving, to abstain

From love's due rites, nuptial embraces sweet,
And with desire to languish without hope,
Before the present object languishing
With like desire, which would be misery
And torment less than none of what we dread;
Then, both ourselves and seed at once to free
From what we fear for both, let us make short,
Let us seek Death, or he not found, supply

976

984

993

1001

With our own hands his office on ourselves.

Why stand we longer shivering under fears,

1002

That shew no end but death, and have the power, Of many ways to die the shortest choosing, Destruction with destruction to destroy?"

She ended here, or vehement despair

Broke off the rest; so much of death her thoughts
Had entertain'd, as dy'd her cheeks with pale,
But Adam, with such counsel nothing sway'd, 1010
To better hopes his more attentive mind

Lab'ring had rais'd, and thus to Eve reply'd.

"Eve, thy contempt of life and pleasure seems
To argue in thee something more sublime
And excellent than what thy mind contemns;
But self-destruction therefore sought, refutes
That excellence thought in thee, and implies,
Not thy contempt, but anguish and regret
For loss of life and pleasure overlov'd,
Or if thou covet death, as utmost end
Of misery, so thinking to evade

The penalty pronounc'd, doubt not but God
Hath wiselier arm'd his vengeful ire than so
To be forestall'd; much more I fear lest death
So snatch'd will not exempt us from the pain
We are by doom to pay; rather such acts
Of contumacy' will provoke the Highest

1019

1027

To make death in us live. Then let us seek
Some safer resolution, which methinks

1028

I have in view, calling to mind with heed
Part of our sentence, that thy seed shall bruise
The Serpent's head; piteous amends, unless
Be meant, whom I conjecture, our grand foe
Satan, who in the serpent hath contriv'd
Against us this deceit: to crush his head
Would be revenge indeed; which will be lost
By death brought on ourselves, or childless days
Resolv'd as thou proposest; so our foe
Shall 'scape his punishment ordain'd, and we
Instead shall double ours upon our heads.
No more be mention'd then of violence
Against ourselves, and wilful barrenness,
That cuts us off from hope, and savours only
Rancour and pride, impatience and despite,
Reluctance against God and his just yoke
Laid on our necks. Remember with what mild
And gracious temper he both heard and judg'd
Without wrath or reviling; we expected
Immediate dissolution, which we thought
Was meant by death that day, when lo, to thee
Pains only in child-bearing were foretold,
And bringing forth, soon recompens'd with joy,
Fruit of thy womb: on me the curse aslope

1036

1045

1053

Glanc'd on the ground; with labour I must earn 1054
My bread; what harm? Idleness had been worse;
My labour will sustain me; and lest cold
Or heat should injure us, his timely care
Hath unbesought provided, and his hands
Cloth'd us unworthy, pitying while he judg'd;
How much more, if we pray him, will his ear
Be open, and his heart to pity' incline,
And teach us further by what means to shun
Th' inclement seasons, rain, ice, hail, and snow?
Which now the sky with various face begins
To shew us in this mountain, while the winds
Blow moist and keen, shattering the graceful locks
Of these fair spreading trees; which bids us seek
Some better shroud, some better warmth to cherish
Our limbs benumb'd, ere this diurnal star

Leave cold the night, how we, his gather'd beams
Reflected, may with matter sere foment,

Or by collision of two bodies grind

The air attrite to fire, as late the clouds

1062

1071

Justling or push'd with winds rude in their shock Tine the slant lightning, whose thwart flame, driv'n

down,

Kindles the gummy bark of fir or pine,

And sends a comfortable heat from far,

Which might supply the sun: such fire to use, 1078