beast from whom I have fled! My body is trembling yet with fright.”
The strange man, whose name was Virgil, told Dante that he had come to help him, but that they would have to go by another path to get out of this savage wilderness. He then explained that they must go down through a deep, bad smelling and dark hole in the ground, and must meet with many disagreeable things and crawl through much dirt and filth; but after they had gone through this close, dirty tunnel, they would again see the light, and if they had strength enough to climb, they might in the end get to a delightful spot on the top of the mountain called the Terrestrial Paradise, from which lovely place Dante could go home if he wanted to.
At first Dante was afraid to go with Virgil, although he had often read the wise and noble books which the latter had written. But when he heard that Beatrice, whom he had loved as he loved no one else on earth, had come from heaven in the form of a bright Angel to urge Virgil to come to him, his heart was so filled with joy that he at once renewed his courage, and told Virgil to go forward, promising that he would trust him as a guide.
They then began their perilous journey. The dark pit through which they were to pass was the shape of an immense funnel, or a cone turned upside down. It was so large that it reached from the surface down to the very centre of the earth; so that though it was as twilight where they entered,
and was quite wide and airy, yet as they slowly travelled down its rocky sides the place grew darker and narrower, and the air more stifling, and the smell was worse than anything of which you have ever dreamed. At times Dante nearly fainted, but Virgil put his arms around him and held him up until he revived. I will not stop to tell you of all the horrible experiences they went through. By and by, when you grow to be men and women, you can read the whole poem for yourselves.
At last they reached the bottom of the foul pit; it was the very centre of the earth, and was the darkest spot possible. Then they began to climb through a narrow opening which they saw. They wanted to get to the surface on the other side of the world, and again see the light of the sun.
Dante felt as if he were escaping from a terrible plague-stricken prison-house. The first things he looked at were four beautiful stars shining far above his head; then he knew he was where he could get fresh air and light, for he felt sure that where stars were to be seen air and light could be found. They soon discovered that they were on a large island, in the middle of which stood a great mountain. This, Virgil told Dante was the mountain which they would have to climb.
It was Easter morning!