Classic Poem

CANTO XXI.

Argument.

Fifth valley of the Eighth Circle; the deceivers and cheats immersed in boiling pitch. — Fear of Dante, escorted by ten armed fiends. — Their names.

A ND now from bridge to bridge, discoursing more
Than in my Comedy I care to sing,
We went unto the point where, highest o'er
The dread abyss below, its arches spring;
And there we stopp'd to see the sorrows vain
Of Malibolgi, where deep gloom doth fling
Its wondrous mantle. As when winter rain
Is come, they boil the thick, tenacious pitch,
In the Venetian arsenal, and strain
To mend their ships; and different scope hath each;
One the new vessel builds; and one with tow
Repairs his bark that oft hath left the beach;
One mends the poop, another mends the prow;
Some form the oars, and some the ropes entwine;
The mainsail some, the topsail others sew:
Thus not by fire, but by the Art Divine,
A lake of pitch aye seeth'd in the abyss,
And with thick glue bemired the bank malign.
I saw it, yet perceived I not in this
Aught but the bubbles its fierce boiling raised,
Upheaving now, and now compress'd, I wis.
The while with fixid glance I downward gazed,
My Leader said to me: " Beware! " and drew
Me tow'rds him from the spot where I was placed.
Then turn'd I round, as one who would imbue
His eyes with that from which he needs must flee;
And then such sudden terror doth ensue,
No longer stays he in his flight to see:
For lo! behind us a black demon sped,
Swift-running on the rocky ledge. Ah me!
How hideous was he in his aspect dread!
How fierce his mien, in onward course impell'd,
On nimble feet, and with his wings outspread!
Now on his curvid shoulders I beheld
A sinner who on their sharp ridge was laid,
And him the fiend by both his ancles held.
And from our bridge, " O Malibranch, " he said,
" I here a noble of St. Zita bring;
Cast him below, till I again have sped
For others to that land where rife they spring.
All, save Bonturo, there, are rogues; and gold
Makes them put no for yes . " Then did he fling
His burden down where the foul billows roll'd;
And swifter than the unchain'd mastiff goes
To chase the thief, he fled from this dark hold.
The wretch first sank, then to the surface rose;
But from beneath the bridge the demons cried:
" This place, in sooth, no Holy Image knows.
Here swim ye not as in the Serchio's tide;
And, if thou wouldst not feel our claws, take heed
That still beneath the pitch thou dost abide. "
More than a hundred prongs now made him bleed:
And, " Cover'd must thou dance, " the demons spake;
" In secret, if thou canst, content thy greed. "
Thus, when the cauldron boils, the cook doth make
The kitchen-boys with sharp prong'd flesh-hook smite
That which they seethe, lest from the pot it break.
Then my good Master said: " From out their sight
Crouch 'neath this rock; that thou from it may wear
Some shield and shelter from their foul despite.
And whatsoe'er their wrath 'gainst me, yet fear
Thou nought; the manner of this place I know,
For here, of old, like warfare did I bear. "
Then from the bridge towards them did he go;
And, sooth, when he to the sixth margin came,
Great was his need of an undaunted brow.
For, as the dogs rush forth with eyes aflame,
In fury and fierce ire against some wretch
Who, pausing, thence doth beg; thus with the same
Wild rage they sprang from 'neath the bridge, and each
Against him turn'd their darts; then did he cry:
" Hush your ferocious wrath; and ere ye stretch
Your weapons tow'rds me, one of you draw nigh,
And to the words that I shall speak give ear:
Thereafter, with your claws to tear me try. "
All spake: " Then, Malacoda, go thou near. "
And one approach'd; the rest their footsteps stay'd,
While to my guide he cried: " What wouldst thou here? "
" Believ'st thou, Malacoda, " Virgil said,
" To see me journey through this land malign,
Secure from all your herd, without the aid
Of Fate propitious, and the Will Divine?
Stay not my course, for Heaven doth bid me show
This wild and dismal path to living eyne. "
At this discourse his fierceness sank so low,
That from his grasp there fell the sharp-tooth'd dart,
And to the rest he said: " Be silent now. "
Then Virgil unto me: " O thou who art
Hid by the bridge that spans the boiling lake,
In safety from its shelter thou mayst part. "
And quickly I came tow'rds him as he spake;
But, as I moved, the demons all drew near,
So that I trembled they their pact would break.
Thus did I once behold the soldiers fear,
When from Caprona they came forth and stood
'Mid those who did such mien ferocious wear.
I to my Leader clung in tim'rous mood,
Nor for a moment turn'd mine eyes away
From off their semblance, which had nought of good.
With lower'd weapons each to each did say:
" Dost think 'twere well to hit him on the rear? "
And answer'd: " Yes, on him thy sharp claws stay. "
But now the demon who had first drawn near
Unto my Leader, quickly turn'd and said:
" Down, Scarmiglioni! " Then to us: " Ye here
No further on this bridge of rock may tread:
For the sixth arch a shatter'd ruin lies,
Down in the valley, all in fragments shred.
And if ye would proceed, now must ye rise,
And by this upper margin ye must climb;
Near, is another ridge in the like guise.
And yesterday, five hours beyond this time,
Twelve hundred years and sixty-six did end,
Since here the way was broken. — Tow'rds the slime
Of the hot lake some of my troop I send,
To see if any from the pitch look out:
Ye may go with them; they will not offend. "
And now to them he said: " Go, for this bout,
Cagnazzo, Alichin, and Calcabrine;
And eke let Barbariccia guide the rout:
Let Libicocco march with them in line;
And long-tusk'd Ciriatto, Farfarel,
And Draghignazzo, Graffiacan malign,
And the mad Rubicanit. Seek ye well
Around the pitch; and let those voy'gers be
In safety, till they pass our dens of hell "
" Alas! my Master, what is this I see?
Said I; " ah! without escort let us go,
If that thou canst: I ask it not, for me.
If thou, in truth, thy wonted skill dost show,
Perceiv'st thou not how they do grind their teeth,
While, with fierce brows, they menace us with woe? "
" Yet fear thou not, though wrath they seem to breathe, "
He said, " and let them grind their teeth at will;
It is for those who in yon slime do seethe. "
Then to the left their course they did fulfil:
But, ere they started, each thrust forth his tongue
Unto the guiding fiend with gesture ill;
And from the rearward he their signal trump had rung.