[25. By course commits to several government:] in due order he assigns the islands to his tributaries, giving them an island apiece.
[27. But this Isle] is so large that he has to divide it.
[29.] Consider quarters to mean nothing more than divides. his blue-haired deities. The epithet is conventional, taken from the Greek poets, and probably has no special significance in this passage.
[31. A noble Peer.] This connects the poem with actual persons and announces its occasion. The noble peer is the Earl of Bridgewater, and the event which is to be celebrated is his appointment to the Vice-royalty of Wales.
[33.] The old and haughty nation are the Welsh.
[34. his fair offspring] are two sons and a daughter, who are to play the parts of the Two Brothers and the Lady in the mask.
[37. the perplexed paths of this drear wood.] Compare Par. Lost IV 176.
[41. sovran.] See [note on Hymn on the Nativity 60].
[45. in hall or bower.] Hall and bower are conventionally coupled by the poets to signify the dwellings, respectively, of the gentry and the laboring classes.
[46.] The transformation by Bacchus of the treacherous Tuscan sailors into dolphins belongs to the established myths of that god. But Milton exercises his right as a poet to add to the classic story whatever suits his purposes.