37. Then joy suffus'd Mohareb's cheek, And Thalaba beheld The blue blade gleam, descending to destroy. 38. The undefended youth Sprung forward, and he seiz'd Mohareb in his grasp, And grappled with him breast to breast. Sinewy and large of limb Mohareb was, Knit firm, and in the strife Of danger practis'd well. Time had not thus matur'd young Thalaba: The inspiration of his soul Of madness through his frame. Mohareb reels before him! he right on, Presses the staggering foe! And now upon the brink Of that tremendous spring,... There with fresh impulse, and a rush of force, The upwhirling flood receiv'd Engulph'd him in the abyss. 39. Thalaba's breath came fast, And, panting, he breath'd out A broken prayer of thankfulness. "Haruth and Maruth! are ye here? "Or has that evil guide misled my search? "I, Thalaba, the Servant of the Lord, "Invoke you. Hear me, Angels! so may Heaven "Accept and mitigate your penitence. "I go to root from earth the Sorcerer brood, "Tell me the needful Talisman!" 40. Thus as he spake, recumbent on the rock Beyond the black abyss, Their forms grew visible. A settled sorrow sate upon their brows, Sorrow alone, for trace of guilt and shame Now nought remained; and gradual as by prayer The sin was purged away, Their robe of glory, purified of stain, 41. In awe the youth receiv'd the answering voice, "Son of Hodeirah! thou hast prov'd it here; "The Talisman is Faith." NOTES TO BOOK V. Laps the cool wave, &c. P. 225. The Pelican makes choice of dry and desert places to lay her eggs; when her young are hatched, she is obliged to bring water to them from great distances. To enable her to perform this necessary office, Nature has provided her with a large sack, which extends from the tip of the under mandible of her bill to the throat, and holds as much water as will supply her brood for several days. This water she pours into the nest, to cool her young, to allay their thirst, and to teach them to swim. Lions, Tygers, and other rapacious animals, resort to these nests, and drink the water, and are said not to injure the young. - Smellie's Philosophy of Natural History. On It is perhaps from this power of carrying a supply of water that the pelican is called Jimmel el Bahar, the Camel of the River. Bruce notices a curious blunder upon this subject in the translation of Norden's Travels. looking into Mr. Norden's Voyage, says he, I was struck at first sight with this paragraph: "We saw, this day, abundance of camels; but they did not come near enough |