100. ~Pacing toward the other goal~, etc. Comp. _Psalm_ xix. 5: "The sun
as a bridegroom cometh out of his chamber, and rejoiceth as a strong man
to run a race."
102. The spirit of lines 102-144 may be contrasted with that of
_L'Allegro_, 25-40. Both pieces are calls upon Mirth and Pleasure, and
both are therefore suitably expressed in the same tripping measure and
with many similarities of language. But the pleasures of _L'Allegro_
begin with the sun-rise and yet are "unreproved"; those of _Comus_ and
his crew begin with the darkness and are "unreproved" only if "these dun
shades will ne'er report" them. The "light fantastic toe" of the one is
not the "tipsy dance" of the other; and the laughter and liberty that
betoken the absence of "wrinkled Care" have nothing in common with the
"midnight shout and revelry" that can be enjoyed only when Rigour,
Advice, strict Age, and sour Severity have "gone to bed." The "quips and
cranks" of _L'Allegro_ have given way to the magic rites of _Comus_, and
the wreathed smiles and dimples that adorn the face of innocent Mirth
are ill replaced by the wine-dropping "rosy twine" of revelry.
104. ~jollity~: has here its modern sense of boisterous mirth. In Milton
occasionally the adjective 'jolly' (Fr. _joli_, pretty) has its primary
sense of pleasing or festive.
105. ~Braid your locks with rosy twine~; 'entwine your hair with wreaths
of roses.'