19. OBJECTION II

But yet, perhaps, I may inquire for him,

Of those that wish him damned, life and limb.

What shall I do, when I at such a door

For Pilgrims ask, and they shall rage the more?

ANSWER.

Fright not thyself, my book, for such bugbears

Are nothing else but ground for groundless fears.

My Pilgrim's book has travel'd sea and land,

Yet could I never come to understand

That it was slighted, or turn'd out of door

By any kingdom, were they rich or poor.

In France and Flanders, where men kill each other,

My Pilgrim is esteem'd a friend, a brother.

In Holland too, 'tis said, as I am told,

My Pilgrim is with some worth more than gold.

Highlanders and wild Irish can agree

My Pilgrim should familiar with them be.

'Tis in New England under such advance,

Receives there so much loving countenance,

As to be trimm'd, new cloth'd, and deck'd with gems That it may show its features and its limbs,

Yet more, so comely doth my Pilgrim walk,

That of him thousands daily sing and talk.'

If you draw nearer home, it will appear,

My Pilgrim knows no ground of shame or fear;

City and country will him entertain

With, Welcome Pilgrim; yea, they can't refrain

From smiling, if my Pilgrim be but by,

Or shows his head in any company.

Brave gallants do my Pilgrim bug and love,

Esteem it much, yea, value it above

Things of a greater bulk: yea, with delight,

Say, My lark's leg is better than a kite.

Young ladies, and young gentlewomen too,

Do no small kindness to my Pilgrim show.

Their cabinets, their bosoms, and their hearts,

My Pilgrim has, 'cause he to them imparts

1 While the corral heart is in a state of such bitter cunning against the gospel, it requires wisdom to introduce the subject of religion. Still we have a duty to perform, even if the truth should prove a savour of death unto death. We must live the gospel in the sight of such, and not be daunted from inviting them to become pilgrims to the Celestial City.—(ED.) 2 I went over the Tract House in New York, and was delighted to see there six steam-presses. During the last year, they printed SEVENTH THOUSAND COPIES of Benigno's

'Pilgrim's Progress'—(American Screen, by Eben. Davies, London, 1849, p. 299.)

His pretty riddles in such wholesome strains,

As yields them profit double to their pains

Of reading, yea, I think, I may be bold

To say, some prize him far above their gold.

The very children that do walk the street,

If they do but my holy Pilgrim meet,

Salute him will, will wish him well, and say,

He is the only stripping of the day.

They that have never seen him, yet admire

What they have heard of him, and much desire

To have his company, and hear him tell

Those pilgrim stories which he knows so well.

Yea, some who did not love him at the first,

But call'd him fool and noddy, say they must,

Now they have seen and heard him, him commend

And to those whom they love, they do him send.

Wherefore, my Second Part, thou need'st not be

Afraid to show thy head; none can hurt thee,

That wish but well to him that went before,

'Cause thou com'st after with a second store

Of things as good, as rich, as profitable,

For young, for old, for stagg'ring, and for stable. OBJECTION III.

But some there be that say, He laughs too loud;

And some do say, His head is in a cloud.

Some say, His words and stories are so dark,

They know not how, by them, to find his mark.

ANSWER.

One may, I think, say, Both his laughs and cries,

May well be guess'd at by his wat'ry eyes.

Some things are of that nature, as to make

One's fancy chuckle, while his heart doth ache.

When Jacob saw his Rachel with the sheep,

He did at the same time both kiss and weep.

Whereas some say, A cloud is in his head,

That doth but show how wisdom's covered

With its own mantles, and to stir the mind

To a search after what it fain would find.

Things that seem to be hid in words obscure,

Do but the godly mind the more allure

To study what those sayings should contain,

That speak to us in such a cloudy strain.

I also know a dark similitude

Will on the fancy more itself intrude,

And will stick faster in the heart and head,

Than things from similes not borrowed.

3 This poem was written within six years of the first publication of the First Part. In that short period it had become so wonderfully popular as to have been extensively circulated in the languages which the author names, and to have had a large circulation in America. After another four years, namely in 1685, upwards of one hundred thousand copies had been issued in English, and to the person, that it has been steadily increasing in popularity, so that, after one hundred and seventy years have elapsed, it is more popular than ever. This is a fact without parallel in the annals of literature.—(ED.) THE AUTHOR'S WAY OF SENDING FORTH HIS SECOND PART.

Wherefore, my book, let no discouragement

Hinder thy travels. Behold, thou art sent

To friends, not foes; to friends that will give place To thee, thy Pilgrims, and thy words embrace.

Besides, what my first Pilgrim left conceal'd:

Thou, my brave second Pilgrim, hast reveal'd;

What CHRISTIAN left look'd up, and went his way,

Sweet CHRISTIANA opens with her key.