Thick over-head with verdant roof imbowr'd, He led her nothing loth: flow'rs were the couch, Panties, and Violets, and Asphodel, And Hyacinth, earth's freshest softest lap. There they their fill of love, and love's disport Took largely; of their mutual guilt the feal, The folace of their fin: till dewy fleep Oppress'd them, wearied with their amorous play:
Soon as the force of that fallacious fruit,
That with exhilarating vapor bland About their spirits had plaid, and inmost pow'rs Made err, was now exhal'd; and grosser sleep, Bred of unkindly fumes, with confcious dreams 1050 Incumber'd, now had left them; up they rofe As from un-reft, and each the other viewing, Soon found their eyes how open'd, and their minds How darken'd! Innocence, that (as a veil) Had shadow'd them from knowing ill, was gone: Just confidence, and native righteousness And honor from about them, naked left To guilty shame: he cover'd, but his robe Uncover'd more: fo rose the DANITE strong, HERCULEAN SAMPSON, from the harlot-lap побо OF PHILISTEAN DALILAH, and wak'd Shorn of his ftrength: they, destitute, and bare Of all their virtue: filent, and in face Confounded, long they fate, as strucken mute: Till ADAM, though no less than Eve abash'd, 1065 At length gave utterance to these words conftrain'd.
O EVE! in evil hour thou didst give ear To that false worm, of whomsoever taught To counterfeit man's voice; true in our fall, False in our promis'd rifing: 'fince our eyes Open'd we find indeed, and find we know Both Good and Evil; Good loft, and Evil got. Bad fruit of knowledge, if this be to know,
Which leaves us naked thus, of honour void, Of innocence, of faith, of purity, Our wonted ornaments, now foil'd and stain'd! And in our faces evident the figns
Of foul concupifcence; whence evil store;
Ev'n shame, the last of evils; of the first
How shall I behold the face 1080
Henceforth of God or Angel, erst with joy And rapture so oft beheld? those heav'nly shapes Will dazle now this earthly, with their blaze
Infufferably bright. O, might I here
In folitude live savage, in some glade Obfcur'd, where highest woods impenetrable To star or fun-light, spread their umbrage broad And brown as evening! Cover me, ye Pines! Ye Cedars, with innumerable boughs
Hide me, where I may never fee them more! 1090 But let us now, as in bad plight, devise What best may for the present serve to hide The parts of each from other, that seem most To shame obnoxious, and unfeemliest seen: Some tree, whose broad smooth leaves together sow'd, And girded on our loins, may cover round 1096 Those middle parts, that this new comer, Shame, There fit not, and reproach us as unclean.
So counsel'd he, and both together went Into the thickest wood; there soon they chose 1100 The Fig-tree, not that kind for fruit renown'd; But fuch as at this day (to INDIANS known In MALABAR, OF DECAN) spreads her arms Branching fo broad, and long, that in the ground The bended twigs take root, & daughters groW 1105 About the mother tree, a pillar'd shade High over-arch'd, and echoing walks between: There oft the INDIAN herdiman shunning heat, Shelters in cool, and tends his pasturing herds At loopholes cut thro' thickest shade: those leaves
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They gather'd, broad as AMAZONIAN targe And with what skill they had, together sow'd, To gird their waist; vain covering, if to hide Their guilt, and dreaded shame! O, how unlike To that first naked glory! (fuch of late COLUMBUS found th' AMERICAN, so girt With feather'd cincture; naked elfe, and wild Among the trees, on ifles and woody shores.) Thus fenc'd, and, as they thought, their shame in part Cover'd, but not at reft or ease of mind, They fat them down to weep: nor only tears Rain'd at their eyes; but high winds worse within Began to rife, high paffions, anger, hate, Miftruft, fufpicion, discord, and hook fore Their in ward state of mind; calm region once, 1125 And full of peace; now tost, and turbulent! For understanding rul'd not; and the will Heard not her lore; but in fubjection now To fenfual appetite, who from beneath Usurping, over sov'reign reason claim'd, Superior sway: from thus distemper'd breast, ADAM estrang'd in look and alter'd style, Speech intermitted thus to Eve renew'd.
Would thou hadst hearken'd to my words, & stay'd With me, as I befought thee, when that strange 1135 Defire of wand'ring this unhappy morn, I know not whence poffefss'd thee! We had then Remain'd still happy; not, as now, despoil'd Of all our good, sham'd, naked, miferable. Let none henceforth seek needless cause t'approve The faith they owe; when earnestly they feek 1141 Such proof, conclude, they then begin to fail.
To whom, foon mov'd with touch of blame, thus Eve, What words have pass'd thy lips, ADAM severe! Imput'st thou that to my default, or will
Of wand'ring (as thou call'ft it) which, who knows
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