Through many a dark and dreary vale They passed, and many a region dolorous, O'er many a frozen, many a fiery Alp, Rocks, caves, lakes, fens, bogs, dens and shades of death-- A universe of death, which God by curse Created evil, for evil only good; Where all life dies, death lives, and Nature breeds, Perverse, all monstrous, all prodigious things, Abominable, inutterable and worse Than fables yet have feigned or fear conceived, Gorgons, and Hydras, and Chimaeras dire. In contrast to this resounding verse, which enables the poet to soar to lofty heights of imagination, turn to some of Milton's early work, the two beautiful classical idyls, _L'Allegro_ and _Il Penseroso_, the fine _Hymn to the Nativity_, and the mournful cadences of _Lycidas_, the poet's lament over the death of a beloved young friend. But in parting with Milton one should not neglect his sonnets, which rank with Wordsworth's as among the finest in the language. This brief notice cannot be ended more appropriately than with Milton's memorable sonnet on his blindness: When I consider how my light is spent Ere half my days in this dark world and wide, And that one talent which is death to hide Lodged with me useless, though my soul more bent To serve therewith my Maker and present My true account, lest He returning chide, "Doth God exact day-labour, light denied?" I fondly ask. But Patience, to prevent That murmur, soon replies, "God doth not need Either man's work or his own gifts. Who best Bear his mild yoke, they serve him best. His state Is kingly: thousands at his bidding speed, And post o'er land and ocean without rest; They also serve who only stand and wait." PILGRIM'S PROGRESS THE FINEST OF ALL ALLEGORIES BUNYAN'S STORY FULL OF THE SPIRIT OF THE BIBLE--THE SIMPLE TALE OF CHRISTIAN'S STRUGGLES AND TRIUMPH APPEALS TO OLD AND YOUNG. No contrast could be greater than that between Milton and John Bunyan unless it be the contrast between their masterpieces, _Paradise Lost_ and _Pilgrim's Progress_. One was born in the purple and had all the advantages that flow from wealth and liberal education; the other was the son of a tinker, who had only a common school education and who from boyhood was forced to work for a living. Milton produced a poem nearly every line of which is rich in allusions to classical literature and mythology; Bunyan wrote an allegory, as simple in style as the English Bible, but which was destined to have a sale in English-speaking countries second only to the Bible itself, from which its inspiration was drawn. [Illustration: PORTRAIT OF JOHN BUNYAN AFTER THE OIL PAINTING BY SADLER]