that, chofe not to be at all; but having loft that Hope he loft all Fear: He made no Account of GoD, or Hell, or worse, and spoke as follows:

My Sentence is altogether for open War; I boast not of Stratagems, for in them I am not skilful; let thofe contrive them who have no better Means to ufe, and when there may be Occafion for them, not now: For while they fit inventing, fhall the reft, so many Millions that ftand in Arms and impatiently wait the Signal to afcend, fit lingering here; Hea ven's Fugitives, and accept for their Dwelling-Place this dark and fhameful Pit, which is the Prifon of his Tyranny, who reigns only by our Delay? No, let us chuse rather, arm'd with Fury and Hell Flames, all at once to force refiftlefs Way over the high Towers of Heaven, turning our Tortures into horrible Arms against him who tortures us; when he fhall hear, to meet the Noife of his almighty Thunder, infernal Thunder, and for Lightning, fee black Fire and Horror fhot with as great Rage among His Angels; and fee His Throne itfelf, mix'd with burning Sulphur and strange Fire, Torments which He himself invented. -----But, perhaps, the Way feems hard and steep, to scale upward upon the Wing, against a Foe above us.-----If the fleepy Drench of that Lake does not fill ftupify, let fuch bethink them, that we afcend in our proper Motion, up to our native Seats; Defcent and Sinking is contrary to our celestial Natures. Who were there of late, when our fierce Foe purfu'd us closely thro' the Deep, but felt with what Compulfion and Labour we funk thus low? The Afcent then is eafy, but the Event is fear'd: It is objected, that if we should again provoke HIM, who is stronger than us, His Wrath may find fome worfe Way to our Destruction; as if those who are already in Hell could fear to be worfe deftroy'd. What can be worfe F

than

than to dwell here, driven out from Blifs, and condemn'd in this abhorr'd Prison to utter Woe; where Pain of unquencheable Fire muft torment us, without any Hope of End? We are the Objects of His eternal Wrath, whenever His unmerciful Scourge and the Hour of Torture calls us to Punishment: If we were to be more deftroy'd than this, we should be quite annihilated and expire. What do we fear then? What Doubts do we raife, to inflame His utmost Rage which rais'd to the Height, will either confume us quite, and reduce thefe Effences of ours to nothing; (which is happier far, than to be miferable and have eternal Being) or if our Natures be indeed immortal, and we cannot cease to be, then, at worst, we are on this Side nothing; and we feel by Proof, that our Power is fufficient to difturb His Heaven, and with continual Affaults to allarm His fatal Throne, altho' it may be inacceffible; which, if it is not Victory, it is nevertheless Revenge.

HE concluded frowning, and his Look threaten'd defperate Revenge and dangerous Battle, to any who were lefs than Gods. On the other Side BELIAL rofe up, more graceful and humane in his Carriage; a fairer Perfon did not lose Heaven; he feem'd compos'd for Dignity, and for high Exploits; but all was falfe and hollow; tho' his Tongue was eloquent, and could make the worse Reafon appear the better, to perplex and confound the wifeft Councils: For his Thoughts were low, induftrious to Vice, but timorous and slothful to nobler Deeds; yet he pleas'd the Ear, and with moving and perfuafive Oratory began thus:

.. I SHOULD, O Peers! be very much for open War, (as not the leaft behind in Hate) if what was the main Reafon infifted upon to perfwade me to it, did not diffwade me from it, and feem to caft an ill-boding Conjecture upon the Succefs of the whole; when he,

who

who excells most in valiant Deeds, fufpicious of the Event, builds his Courage upon Despair, and confiders utter Diffolution as the Scope of all his Aim, after fome fatal Revenge. First, what Revenge? The Towers of Heaven are always fill'd with armed Watch, which takes off the Poffibility of all Accefs: Nay, the Legions of the holy Angels do often encamp upon the bordering Deep, or with darken'd Wings fcout far and wide into the Regions of Night, and fcorn all Surprize. Or could we by Force break our Way, and all Hell fhould rife at our Heels with blackeft Rebellion, to confound Heaven's pure Light; yet our great Enemy would remain unpolluted and incorruptible on his Throne, and the heavenly Subftance not subject to any Blot or Stain, would foon expel all Mischief, and victoriously purge off all our ineffectual Fires. Thus repuls'd, our final Hope would indeed be flat Despair; we fhould thus exafperate the Almighty Conqueror to spend all his Rage upon us, and that muft end us; that at last must be our Cure, to be no more.-----A fad Cure! for who, tho' full of Pain, would lose this wife and understanding Nature of ours; thefe Thoughts, that can wander thro' Eternity; and rather chufe to perish, to be fwallow'd up, and loft in everlasting Darkness, without Senfe and Motion? And fuppofing this to be a Good, and to be chofe before our prefent Pain, who knows whether our angry Foe can give it, or ever will? How he can is quite doubtful, but that he never will is very fure. Will he, who is fo very wife, at once let loose his Anger; belike through Want of Power to curb his Paffions, or at unawares, to give his Enemies their Wish, and put an End to them in his Anger, whom his Anger faves only to punish for ever?------ Wherefore then say they who counsel War, why do we cease? We are predeftinated, referv'd, and deftin'd to eternal Mifery; let us do what we will, what can we fuffer more, what can we fuffer

worfe? Is this then worst, thus in Arms, fitting and confulting? What! when we fled fwiftly, and the afflicting Thunder of Heaven purfu'd and ftruck us, and we befought the Deep to fhelter us? This Hell, fcorching as it is, then feem'd a Refuge from those Wounds. Or when we lay chain'd upon the burning Lake? That furely was worfe. What if the fame Breath that kindled thofe Fires, again provok'd, fhould blow them seven Times hotter, and plunge us in the Flames; or if from above the God of Vengeance, who has abated for a little Space, fhould arm again his incensed Right-Hand to plague us; what if all Heaven were open'd, and this Firmament of Hell fhould fpout out its Cataracts (c) of Fire ? Impending Horrors! threatning hideous Fall upon our Heads: While we, perhaps, defigning or confulting glorious War, fhall be caught in a fiery Tempeft, and each of us be transfix'd on fome Rock, the Sport and Prey of continual and racking Whirlwinds; to converse there with everlafting Groans, without any Intermiffion, unpitied and unrepriev'd, and this for Ages without End? This would be worfe, therefore I de-. clare against War, either open or conceal'd: For what can Force or Fraud do against him? Or who can pretend to deceive his Mind, who views all Things at one View? HE from high Heaven fees and derides all

(c) Cataracs; Ital. Span. Fr. Lat. from the Gr. i. e. Falling down with Force, rushing violently downwards. Water-Falls in Rivers from high Rocks, as thofe of the Danube and Nile, which makes the Inhabitants deaf for three Leagues, through the hideous Noife of their Fall. Many fuch are in the great River Tornea in Lapland, and in moft Rivers that defcend from high rocky Mountains. But the

Cataract of Nigaria near NewYork in North America, is the greatest in the World, being heard above thirty Miles off; for the Fall of it is feveral hundred Feet deep. Mr. Cockburn faw one in South America 600 Feet high, and heard the Noise of it two Days before they came to it, Journey, P. 224. Here the Sluices of Hell Fire let out upon the Fallen Angels.

all these our vain Motions: Nor is he more almighty to refift us, than he is wife to fruftrate all our Plots and Stratagems. But it will be faid, fhall we then live here thus vile, who are the Race of Heaven, thus trampled on, thus expell'd, to fuffer Chains and thefe Torments? By my Advice, better thefe than worse, fince inevitable Fate fubdues us, and an omnipotent Decree; which is the Will of our Conqueror. Our Strength is equal to fuffer, or to act, nor is the Law unjust that ordains it fo; thus, if we were wife, we refolv'd at firft, contending against fo great an Enemy, and being fo uncertain what might happen. I laugh, when thofe who are bold and adventerous at the Spear, if that fail them, fhrink, and are afraid of what they knew muft follow; that is, to undergo Banishment, Ignominy, or Bonds, or Pain; if the Victor pass fuch Sentence upon them. This is now what we are doom'd to! which if we can fupport and fuftain, our fupreme Foe may in Time abate of his An ger; and perhaps now we are thus far remov'd, not mind us, if we offend no more, but be fatisfy'd with what is punish'd; and then these raging Fires will flacken, if his Breath does not blow up their Flames: Our pure Effence will at length overcome their noxious Vapour, or elfe being long inur'd to it, at last we fhall not feel it; or chang'd and conform'd to the Place, in Temper and in Nature, we fhall receive the fierce Heat familiar, and without Pain: What seems horrid now will grow mild, and this Darkness grow more like Light; befides what Hope the never-ending Course of future Time may bring, what Chance, what Change worth waiting for; fince our prefent Lot, thinking of Happinefs is but ill, yet though ill, not worst of all, except we become our own Enemies, and bring more Mifery upon ourselves.

THUS BELIAL, in Words which appear'd to flow from Reason, counfell'd difhonourable Eafe and