Thus did the Master fill me with alarm, When I beheld his forehead so disturbed, The Leader turned to me with that sweet lock For aye it seems that he provides beforehand, Saying "To that one grapple afterwards, Of the profoundest well is all inclining, Still we arrived at length upon the point My Master said; "for sitting upon down, Such vestige leaveth of himself on earth, And therefore raise thee up, o'ercome the anguish A longer stairway it behoves thee mount; 'Tis not enough from these to have departed; Then I uprose, showing myself provided And said: "Go on, for I am strong and bold." Upward we took our way along the crag, Whereat a voice from the next moat came forth, I know not what it said, though o'er the back I now was of the arch that passes there; But he seemed moved to anger who was speaking. I was bent downward, but my living eyes Could not attain the bottom, for the dark; For as from hence I hear and understand not, Where it connects itself with the eighth bank, Of serpents, and of such a monstrous kind, Let Libya boast no longer with her sand; She breeds, with Cenchri and with Amphisbæna, Nor with whatever on the Red Sea is ! Among this cruel and most dismal throng People were running naked and affrighted, They had their hands with serpents bound behind them; And head, and were in front of them entwined. And lo! at one who was upon our side There darted forth a serpent, which transfixed him Nor O so quickly e'er, nor I was written, As he took fire, and burned; and ashes wholly And when he on the ground was thus destroyed, Even thus by the great sages 'tis confessed The phoenix dies, and then is born again, When it approaches its five-hundredth year; On herb or grain it feeds not in its life, But only on tears of incense and amomum, By force of demons who to earth down drag him, When he arises and around him looks, Wholly bewildered by the mighty anguish Such was that sinner after he had risen. Justice of God! O how severe it is, That blows like these in vengeance poureth down! The Guide thereafter asked him who he was ; Whence he replied: "I rained from Tuscany Even as the mule I was; I'm Vanni Fucci, And ask what crime has thrust him here below, And the sinner, who had heard, dissembled not, And with a melancholy shame was painted. Then said: "It pains me more that thou hast caught me Than when I from the other life was taken. What thou demandest I cannot deny ; So low am I put down because I robbed And falsely once 'twas laid upon another; But that thou mayst not such a sight enjoy, If thou shalt e'er be out of the dark places, Thine ears to my announcement ope and hear: Pistoia first of Neri groweth meagre ; Then Florence doth renew her men and manners; Mars draws a vapour up from Val di Magra, Which is with turbid clouds enveloped round, Over Campo Picen shall be the battle; When it shall suddenly rend the mist asunder, So that each Bianco shall thereby be smitten. And this I've said that it may give thee pain." CANTO XXV. Ar the conclusion of his words, the thief Lifted his hands aloft with both the figs, Crying: "Take that, God, for at thee I aim them." As if it said: "I will not thou speak more;" That with them he could not a motion make Pistoia, ah, Pistoia! why resolve not To burn thyself to ashes and so perish, Not he who fell at Thebes down from the walls! Come crying out: "Where is, where is the scoffer?" Serpents as he had all along his back, With wings wide open was a dragon lying, He The mace of Hercules, who peradventure Gave him a hundred, and he felt not ten." While he was speaking thus, he had passed by, And spirits three had underneath us come, Of which nor I aware was, nor my Leader. Until what time they shouted: "Who are you?" On which account our story made a halt, And then we were intent on them alone. I did not know them; but it came to pass, As I was holding raised on them my brows, Behold! a serpent with six feet darts forth And put its tail through in between the two, Ivy was never fastened by its barbs Unto a tree so, as this horrible reptile They had been made, and intermixed their colour; E'en as proceedeth on before the flame Upward along the paper a brown colour, Which is not black as yet, and the white dies. The other two looked on, and each of them Cried out: "O me, Agnello, how thou changest! When there appeared to us two figures mingled Two and yet none did the perverted image Of days canicular, exchanging hedge, Lightning appeareth if the road it cross; Thus did appear, coming towards the bellies Of the two others, a small fiery serpent, Livid and black as is a peppercorn. |