Equally free; for orders and degrees His equals if in power and splendour less, Of those imperial titles, which assert "Thus far his bold discourse, without control, Stood up, and in a flame of zeal severe ["O argument blasphémous, false, and proud! 815 That to his only Son, by right endued With regal sceptre, every soul in Heaven 799. Much less for this to be our Lord.This passage has hopelessly puzzled all commentators. Perhaps the sense is this,-Who can introduce law or edict on us, much less, can he impose a law that this, i.e., the Messiah, should be our King. So we may say, I make arrangements for him to come, i.e., that he may come. For the expression, much less, it is true, we rather expect much One over all with unsucceeded power. | Shalt thou give law to God? shalt thou dispute With him the points of liberty, who made Thee what thou art, and formed the powers of Heaven How provident he is-how far from thought 835 Equal to him, begotten Son ?) by whom, As by his word, the mighty Father made All things, even thee; | and all the Spirits of Heaven Crowned them with glory,] and, to their glory, named Cease then this impious rage, And tempt not these; but hasten to appease 821. Unsucceeded power is that to which no one can succeed, therefore eternal. 831. To grant it thee (scil. to be) unjust. This may be taken as an adjunct to the Principal Sentence. 832. Over equals (scil. as) monarch reign. 837. And all the spirits.-The sentence beginning here looks like a second adjective Sent.; but the poet forgot its subordination under by whom, which alone would justify the omission of the subject; then substituting by him to by whom understood, he carries on the sentence as a principal one, without, however, introducing a new subject, which is strictly required. 841. Supply are we before obscured. 842. Law binds the governor and the governed into one fellowship. 843. One of our number thus reduced, in Apposition with he. 850 None seconded, as out of season judged, Or singular, and rash: whereat rejoiced The Apostate, and, more haughty, thus replied: "That we were formed, then, | say'st thou and the work Of secondary hands, by task transferred 855 From Father to his Son ?] strange point, and new! Doctrine which we would know whence learned: who saw When this creation was? Remember'st thou Thy making, while the Maker gave thee being? Address, and to begirt the Almighty throne "He said; and, as the sound of waters deep, 860. Self-begot, self-raised, birth mature, ethereal sons. All in Apposition with us. 861. Fatal course.-The course of fate. 867. Supply to after intend. 869. Beseeching or besieging.-A pun unworthy of high epic style. 880. Contagion spread, governed by I see understood. No more be troubled how to quit the yoke lamenting, learn,) 895 When,) who can uncreate thee, thou shalt know.') 900 His loyalty he kept-his love—his zeal :| And, with retorted scorn, his back he turned On those proud towers to swift destruction doomed." 889. A comma must be put after threats. 890. Before lest supply I fly, evolved from the preceding clause. SECTION V. SHAKSPERE'S MERCHANT OF VENICE. In passing from Milton to Shakspere, we are going from one hemisphere of poetical genius to another. There have been hitherto two, and only two, great developments of literature, so far at least as our western civilisation is concerned, and those are the classical and the modern. The literatures of ancient Greece and Rome formed the only great educating element all through the middle ages. To these the whole mind of Europe looked back as the basis of its entire culture, and as the models to which all future literary efforts must conform. Hence we have not only in poetry, but equally also in art, in philosophy, in grammar, and in style, generally, a series of imitations, more or less successful, all based upon the productions of ancient authors, these imitations being confined, not merely to the middle ages, but coming down to the last century, and, in some respects, even to our own times. This whole class of literature we may regard as the natural fruit of the ancient civilisation. In opposition to this, we find, that from the period when the modern European nations first began to cast off the garments of barbarism, and to take their position in the plan and order of human culture, indigenous efforts at poetic and other literary productivity have sprung up from time to time, and formed an ever increasing body of purely native literature. This we find to be the case, more especially amongst the Teutonic nations of England and Germany. Grotesque as this literature at first appeared, and clothed as it was |