THE PALACE BEAUTIFUL.
SO I saw in my dream that he made haste and went forth, that, if so
be, he might get a place to lodge there. Now ere he had gone far, he
saw two wild beasts in the way. (The beasts were made fast, but he saw
not the chains.) Then he took fright, and thought to go back; for he
thought death of a truth did face him. But when the man at the lodge,
whose name is Watchful, saw that Christian made a halt, he did cry to
him and say, "Is thy strength so small? Fear not the wild beasts, for
they are in chains, and are put there for test of faith where it is,
and to make known those that have none: keep in the midst of the path,
and no hurt shall come to thee."
Then did he clap his hands, and went on till he came and stood in front
of the gate where the Porter was. Then said Christian to the Porter,
"Sir, what house is this? and may I lodge here this night?" The Porter
said, "This house was built by the Lord of the hill, and he built it to
aid and guard such as speed this way." The Porter, in like way, sought
to know whence he was; and to what place he was bound?
[Illustration: This is Mistrust, whom Christian met going the wrong
way.--Page 29.
_Pilgrim's Progress._]
_Chr._--"I am come from the City of Destruction; and am on my way to
Mount Zion; but as the sun is now set, I wish, if I may, to lodge here
this night."
_Por._--"But how doth it hap that you come so late? The sun is set."
_Chr._--"I had been here ere this, but that, mean man that I am, I
slept in the nook that stands on the side of the hill."
_Por._--"Well, I will call out one of the maids of this place, who
will, if she likes your talk, bring you in to the rest of the folk, as
such are the rules of the house."
So Watchful rang a bell, at the sound of which came out at the door of
the house a grave and fair maid, whose name was Discretion, who would
know why she had got a call.
The Porter said, "This man is in the way from the City of Destruction
to Mount Zion, but as he doth tire, and as night came on, he sought to
know if he might lodge here for the night: so I told him I would call
for thee, who, when thou dost speak with him, may do as seems to thee
good, and act up to the law of the house."
Then she would know whence he was, and to what place he was bound, and
his name. So he said, "It is Christian." So a smile sat on her lips,
but the tears stood in her eyes; and, when she gave a short pause, she
said, "I will call forth two or three more of those who dwell here."
So she ran to the door, and did call out Prudence, Piety, and Charity;
and when she had held more speech with him, he was brought in, and made
known to all who dwelt in the house, some of whom met him at the porch,
and said, "Come in, thou whom the Lord doth bless; this house was built
by the Lord of the hill, to give good cheer to such who, like you, grow
faint by the way." Then he bent his head, and went in with them to the
house. So when he was come in and set down, they gave him to drink, and
then they thought that till the last meal was brought up, some of them
should have some wise talk with Christian, so as to make good use of
time.
[Illustration: CHRISTIAN IS QUESTIONED BY DISCRETION.]
_Pi._--"Come, good Christian, since we have shown such love for you as
to make you our guest this night, let us, if so be we may each get good
by it, talk with you of all things that you have met with on your way."
[Illustration: This is Formalist, whom Christian saw roll from the top
of a wall, as if to go to Zion.--Page 33.
_Pilgrim's Progress._]
_Chr._--"With a right good will; and I am glad your mind is so well
bent."
_Pi._--"How was it that you came out of your land in this way?"
_Chr._--"It was as God would have it; for when I was full of the fears
of doom, I did not know where to go; but by chance there came a man
then to me, whilst I shook and wept, whose name is Evangelist, and
he told me how to reach the small gate, which else I should not have
found, and so set me in the way that hath led me straight to this
house."
_Pi._--"But did you not come by the house of the Interpreter?"
_Chr._--"Yes, and did see such things there, the thoughts of which will
stick by me as long as I live; in chief, three things; to wit, how
Christ, in spite of the Foe of Man, keeps up his work of grace in the
heart; how the man, through sin, had got quite out of hopes of God's
ruth; and, in like way, the dream of him that thought in his sleep the
day of doom was come."
_Pi._--"And what saw you else in the way?"
_Chr._--"Saw! Why, I went but a wee way and I saw One, as I thought in
my mind, hang and bleed on a tree; and the sheer sight of him made my
load fall off my back; for I did groan through the great weight, but
then it fell down from off me."
_Pi._--"But you saw more than this, did you not?"
_Chr._--"The things that I have told you were the best; yet some more
things I saw, as, first of all, I saw three men, Simple, Sloth, and
Presumption, lie in sleep, not far out of the way as I came, with gyves
on their heels; but do you think I could rouse them? I saw, in like
way, Formalist and Hypocrisy come and roll from the top of a wall, to
go, as they fain would have me think, to Zion; but they were lost in a
trice, just as I did tell them; but they would not heed my words."
_Pr._--"Do you think at times of the land from whence you came?"
_Chr._--"Yes, but with much shame and hate."
_Pr._--"Do you not yet bear hence with you some of the things that you
well knew there?"
_Chr._--"Yes, but much in strife with my will; the more so the crass
thoughts of my heart, with which all the folk of my land, as well as
I, would find joy; but now all those things are my grief, and might I
but choose mine own things, I would choose not to think of those things
more; but when I would do that which is best, that which is worst is
with me."
_Pr._--"And what is it that makes you so long to go to Mount Zion?"
_Chr._--"Why, there I hope to see Him live that did hang dead on the
cross; and there I hope to be rid of all those things that to this day
are in me and do vex me: there they say there is no death; and there I
shall dwell with such folk as I like best."
Then said Charity to Christian, "Have you bairns, and have you a wife?"
_Chr._--"I have a wife and four small bairns."
_Char._--"And why did you not bring them on with you?"
Then Christian wept and said, "Oh, fain would I have done it! but they
were all of them loath to let me leave them."
_Char._--"But you should have sought to show them the risks they ran
when they held back."
[Illustration: Hypocrisy would fain have Christian think he was on the
way to Zion.--Page 34.
_Pilgrim's Progress._]
_Chr._--"So I did; and told them, too, that God had shown to me how
that our town would come to wrack; but they thought I did but mock, and
they put no faith in what I said."
_Char._--"But what could they say to show cause why they came not?"
[Illustration: CHRISTIAN TELLS CHARITY AND HER SISTERS ABOUT HIS
FAMILY.]
_Chr._--"Why, my wife was loath to lose this world; and my bairns were
bent on the rash joys of youth; so, what by this thing, and what by
that thing, they left me to roam in this lone way."
_Char._--"But did you not with your vain life damp all that you by
words made use of as force to bring them off with you?"
_Chr._--"In sooth, I must not say aught for my life, as I know full
well what blurs there are in it. I know, too, that a man by his deeds
may soon set at naught what by sound speech and wit of words he doth
strive to fix on some for their good. Yet this I can say, I took heed
not to give them cause, by a false act, to shirk the step I took, and
not set out with me. Yea, for this sole thing they would tell me I was
too nice; and that I would not touch of things in which they saw no
guile."
_Char._--"In truth, Cain did hate him who came of the same blood, for
that his works were bad, and Abel's not so; and if thy wife and bairns
have thought ill of thee for this, they show by it that they are foes
to good; and thou hast set free thy soul from their blood."
Now I saw in my dream that thus they sat and spoke each to each till
the meal was laid on the board; and all their talk while they ate was
of the Lord of the hill; as, in sooth, of what he had done, and why it
was he did what he did, and why he had built that house.
They, in like way, gave prompt proof of what they said, and that was,
he had stript him of his rich robes, that he might do this for the
poor; and that they heard him say, with stern stress, that he would not
dwell in the Mount of Zion in a lone way. They said, too, that he made
a host of poor ones kings, though by the law of their birth they were
born to live on bare alms, and their first state had been low and bad.
Thus they spoke, this one to that one, till late at night; and when
they had put them in the Lord's care they went to rest.
[Illustration: Then he set forth: but Discretion, Piety, Charity, and
Prudence would go with him down to the foot of the hill.
(_Page 38_) (_The Pilgrim's Progress._)]
The next day they took him and had him in the place in which arms were
kept, where he was shown all sorts of things which their Lord had put
there for such as he, as sword, shield, casque, plate for breast,
_All-prayer_, and shoes that would not wear out. And there was here as
much of this as would fit out a host of men to serve the Lord.
In like way did they show him some of the means with which some of his
friends had done things that strike one with awe. He was shown the
jaw-bone of the ass with which Samson did such great feats. More than
this, he was shown the sling and stone with which David slew Goliath
of Gath. But more things still were shown to him, in all of which
Christian felt much joy. This done, they went to their rest once more.
Then I saw in my dream that on the morn he got up to go forth, but they
fain would have him stay till the next day; "and then," said they, "we
will, if the day be clear, show you the Delectable Mountains, which,"
they said, "would yet the more add to his bliss, for that they were yet
more nigh the port than the place where at that time he was." So he
thought it well to stay.
When the morn was up, they had him to the top of the house, and bid
him look south; so he did, and lo, a long way off, he saw a fair land,
full of high hills, clad with woods, vine grounds, fruits of all sorts,
plants as well, with springs and founts, most bright to look on. They
said it was Immanuel's Land; "and it is as free," said they, "as this
hill is to and for all that are in the way. And when thou dost come
there from thence," said they, "thou canst see to the gate of the
Celestial City, as those who watch their flocks and live there will
show thee."
Now he thought it was due time to set forth, and they were glad that he
should. "But first," said they, "let us go once more to where the arms
are kept." So they did. And when he came there they clad him in coat of
mail, which was of proof, from head to foot, lest he should chance meet
with foes in the way.
He then, in this gear, came out with his friends to the gate, and there
he would know of the Porter "if he saw one pass by?"
Then the Porter said "Yes."
_Chr._--"Pray did you know him?"
_Por._--"I did ask his name, and he told me it was Faithful."
"Oh," said Christian, "I know him: he is from the same town, and lives
nigh to where I dwell: he comes from the place where I was born. How
far do you think he may be on the road?"
_Por._--"He has got by this time more than to the foot of the hill."
Then he set forth: but Discretion, Piety, Charity, and Prudence would
go with him down to the foot of the hill. Then said Christian, "As it
was _hard_ to come up, so, so far as I can see, it is a _risk_ to go
down." "Yes," said Prudence, "so it is; for it is a hard thing for a
man to go down in the Vale of Humiliation, as thou art now, and to
catch no slip by the way; hence," said they, "we are come out to see
thee safe down the hill." So he strove to go down, but with great heed;
yet he caught a slip or two.
Then I saw in my dream that these good friends, when Christian was gone
down to the foot of the hill, gave him a loaf of bread, a flask of
wine, and a bunch of dry grapes; and then he went on his way.