Food of the mind, or this sweet intercourse
Of looks and smiles; for smiles from reason flow,
To brute denied, and are of love the food;
Love, not the lowest end of human life.
For not to irksome toil, but to delight,
He made us, and delight to reason join'd.
These paths and bowers doubt not but our joint

* hands

Will keep from wilderness with ease, as wide
As we need walk; till younger hands ere long
Assist us: but if much converse, perhaps,
Thee satiate, to short absence I could yield:
For solitude sometimes is best society,
And short retirement urges sweet return.
But other doubt possesses me, lest harm
Befall thee, sever'd from me; for thou know'st
What hath been warn'd us; what malicious foe,
Envying our happiness, and of his own

Despairing, seeks to work us woe and shame
By sly assault; and somewhere, nigh at hand,
Watches, no doubt, with greedy hope to find
His wish and best advantage, us asunder;
Hopeless to circumvent us join'd, where each
To other speedy aid might lend at need;
Whether his first design be to withdraw
Our fealty from God, or to disturb
Conjugal love, than which, perhaps, no bliss
Enjoy'd by us excites his envy more:
Or this, or worse, leave not the faithful side
That gave thee being, still shades thee, and protects.
The wife, where danger or dishonour lurks,

Safest and seemliest by her husband stays,
Who guards her, or with her the worst endures."
To whom the virgin majesty of Eve,

As one who loves, and some unkindness meets,
With sweet austere composure thus replied:
"Offspring of heaven and earth, and all earth's
lord!

That such an enemy we have, who seeks
Our ruin, both by thee inform'd I learn,
And from the parting angel overheard,
As in a shady nook I stood behind,

Just then return'd at shut of evening flowers.
But that thou shouldst my firmness therefore doubt
To God or thee, because we have a foe

May tempt it, I expected not to hear.
His violence thou fear'st not; being such
As we, not capable of death or pain,
Can either not receive, or can repel.

His fraud is, then, thy fear; which plain infers
Thy equal fear, that my firm faith and love
Can by his fraud be shaken or seduced:

Thoughts, which how found they harbour in thy breast,

Adam, misthought of her to thee so dear?"

To whom, with healing words, Adam replied:
"Daughter of God and man, immortal Eve!
For such thou art, from sin and blame entire;
Not diffident of thee, do I dissuade

Thy absence from my sight; but to avoid
The attempt itself, intended by our foe.

For he who tempts, though in vain, at least asperses

The tempted with dishonour foul; supposed
Not incorruptible of faith, not proof

Against temptation: thou thyself, with scorn
And anger, wouldst resent the offer'd wrong,
Though ineffectual found: misdeem not, tl.en,
If such affront I labour to avert

From thee alone, which on us both at once
The enemy, though bold, will hardly dare;
Or daring, first on me the assault shall light.
Nor thou his malice and false guile contemn;
Subtle he needs must be, who could seduce
Angels; nor think superfluous others' aid.
I, from the influence of thy looks, receive
Access in every virtue: in thy sight
More wise, more watchful, stronger, if need were
Of outward strength; while shame, thou looking on,
Shame to be overcome or over-reach'd,

Would utmost vigour raise, and raised, unite.
Why should'st not thou like sense within thee feel
When I am present, and thy trial choose
With me, best witness of thy virtue tried?"
So spake domestic Adam in his care,
And matrimonial love; but Eve, who thought
Less attributed to her faith sincere,

Thus her reply with accent sweet renew'd:
"If this be our condition, thus to dwell
In narrow circuit straiten'd by a foe,
Subtle or violent, we not endued
Single with like defence, wherever met,
How are we happy, still in fear of harm?
But harm precedes not sin; only our foe,

Tempting, affronts us with his foul esteem
Of our integrity: his foul esteem

Sticks no dishonour on our front, but turns

Foul on himself; then wherefore shunn'd or feard
By us? who rather double honour gain

From his surmise proved false; find peace within,
Favour from Heaven, our witness, from the event.
And what is faith, love, virtue, unassay'd
Alone, without exterior help sustain'd?
Let us not, then, suspect our happy state
Left so imperfect by the Maker wise,
As not secure to single or combined.
Frail is our happiness, if this be so;
And Eden were no Eden, thus exposed."
To whom thus Adam fervently replied:

"O woman, best are all things as the will

Of God ordain'd them: his creating hand
Nothing imperfect, or deficient, left
Of all that he created; much less man,
Or aught that might his happy state secure,
Secure from outward force. Within himself
The danger lies, yet lies within his power:
Against his will he can receive no harm.
But God left free the will; for what obeys
Reason is free; and reason he made right,
But bid her well be ware, and still erect;
Lest, by some fair-appearing good surprised,
She dictate false, and misinform the will
To do what God expressly hath forbid.
Not then mistrust, but tender love, enjoins,
That I should mind thee oft; and mind thou me.

Firm we subsist, yet possible to swerve; •
Since reason not impossibly may meet
Some specious object by the foe suborn'd,

And fall into deception unaware,

Not keeping strictest watch, as she was warn'd.
Seek not temptation, then, which to avoid
Were better, and most likely if from me
Thou sever not: trial will come unsought.
Wouldst thou approve thy constancy, approve
First thy obedience; the other who can know?
Not seeing thee attempted, who attest?
But, if thou think trial unsought may find

Us both securer than thus warn'd thou seem'st,
Go; for thy stay, not free, absents thee more;
Go in thy native innocence, rely

On what thou hast of virtue; summon all:

For God towards thee hath done his part, do thine.' So spake the patriarch of mankind; but Eve Persisted; yet submiss, though last, replied:

"With thy permission, then, and thus forewarn'd
Chiefly by what thy own last reasoning words
Touch'd only, that our trial, when least sought,
May find us both, perhaps, far less prepared,
The willinger I go, nor much expect

A foe so proud will first the weaker seek;
So bent, the more shall shame him his repulse."
Thus saying, from her husband's hand her hand
Soft she withdrew, and, like a wood-nymph light,
Oread, or Dryad, or of Delia's train,

Betook her to the groves; but Delia's self,
In gait surpass'd, and goddess-like deport,