... “Cast down thine eyes;
’Twere well for thee, to alleviate the way,
To look upon the bed beneath thy feet.
* * * * *
So saw I there, but of a better semblance
In point of artifice, with figures covered
Whate’er as pathway from the mount projects.
* * * * *
Who e’er of pencil master was or stile,
That could portray the shades and traits which there
Would cause each subtile genius to admire?
Dead seemed the dead, the living seemed alive;
Better than I saw not who saw the truth,
All that I trod upon while bowed I went.
“La Divina Commedia” of Dante Alighieri,
translated by H. W. Longfellow.
* * * * *
... Volgi gli occhi in giue;
Buon ti sarà, per alleggiar la via,
Veder lo letto delle piante tue.
* * * * *
Si vid’ io li, ma di miglior sembianza
Secondo l’ artificio, figurato
Quanto per via di fuor dal monte avanza.