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me than this dungeon! Shall we be ruled by the Giant?

HOPEFUL COM

Hope. Indeed our present condition is dreadful, and death would be far more welcome to me, than thus for ever to abide. But yet let us consider, the Lord of the country to which we are going hath said, "Thou shalt do no murder;" no, not to another man's person: much more, then, are we forbidden to take his counsel to kill ourselves. Besides, he that kills another can but commit murder upon his body; but for one to kill himself, is to kill body and soul at once. And, moreover, my brother, thou FORTS HIM. talkest of ease in the Grave; but hast thou forgotten the Hell whither for certain the murderers go for "no murderer hath eternal life," &c. And let us consider again, that all the law is not in the hand of Giant Despair; others, so far as I can understand, have been taken by him as well as we, and yet have escaped out of his hands. Who knows but that God, who made the world, may cause that Giant Despair may die; or that, at some time or other, he may forget to lock us in; or but he may, in a short time, have another of his fits before us, and may lose the use of his limbs? and if ever that should come to pass again, for my part, I am resolved to pluck up the heart of a man, and to try my utmost to get from under his hand. I was a fool that I did not try to do it before; but, however, my brother, let's be patient, and endure a while; the time may come that may give us a happy release; but let us not be our own murderers." With these words Hopeful at present did moderate the mind of his brother; so they

continued together, in the dark, that day, in their sad and doleful condition.

Well, towards evening, the Giant goes down into the dungeon again, to see if his prisoners had taken his counsel; but, when he came there, he found them alive; and, truly, alive was all; for now, what for want of bread and water, and by reason of the wounds they received when he beat them, they could do little but breathe. But, I say, he found them alive: at which he fell into a grievous rage, and told them that, seeing they had disobeyed his counsel, it should be worse with them than if they had never been born.

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At this they trembled greatly, and I think that Christian fell into a swoon; but, coming a little to himself again, they renewed their discourse about the Giant's counsel, and whether yet they had best take

CHRISTIAN STILL it or no. Now Christian again seemed DEJECTED. for doing it; but Hopeful made his second reply as followeth :

HOPEFUL COMFORTS
HIM AGAIN BY CALL-

TO REMEMBRANCE.

My brother, said he, rememberest thou not how valiant thou hast been

ING FORMER THINGS heretofore? Apollyon could not crush thee; nor could all that thou didst hear, or see, or feel, in the Valley of the Shadow of Death. What hardship, terror, and amazement hast thou already gone through! and art thou now nothing but fears? Thou seest that I am in the dungeon with thee, a far weaker man by nature than thou art; also this Giant hath wounded me as well as thee, and hath also cut off the bread and water from my mouth, and with thee I mourn without the light. But let us exercise a little more patience. Remember how thou playedst the man at Vanity-fair, and wast neither afraid of the chain nor cage, nor yet of bloody death. Wherefore let us (at least to avoid the shame that becomes not a Christian to be found in) bear up with patience as well as we can.

Now, night being come again, and the Giant and his wife being in bed, she asked him concerning the prisoners, and if they had taken his counsel? To which he replied, they are sturdy rogues; they choose rather to bear all hardships than to make away with themselves. Then said she, Take them into the CastleYard to-morrow, and shew them the bones and skulls of those that thou hast already dispatched; and make them believe, ere a week comes to an end, thou wilt tear them in pieces, as thou hast done their fellows before them.

ON SATURDAY, THE
GIANT THREATENED
THAT SHORTLY HE
WOULD PULL THEM
IN PIECES.

So, when the morning was come, the Giant goes to them again, and takes them into the Castle-Yard, and shews them as his wife had bidden him. These, said he, were Pilgrims as you are once; and they trespassed on my grounds as you have done; and, when I thought fit, I tore them in pieces; and so within ten days I will do you. Go, get you down to your den again! and with that he beat them all the way thither. They lay, therefore, all day on Saturday, in lamentable case, as before. Now, when night was come, and when Mrs. Diffidence and her husband the Giant were got to bed, they began to renew their discourse of their prisoners; and withal the old Giant wondered that he could neither by his blows nor counsel bring them to an end. And with that his wife replied, I fear, said she, that they live in hopes that some will come to relieve them; or that they have pick-locks about them, by the means of which they hope to escape. And sayest thou so, my dear, said the Giant; I will therefore search them in the morning.

Well, on Saturday, about midnight, they began to pray, and continued in prayer till almost break of day.

Now, a little before it was day, good Christian, as one half amazed, brake out into this passionate speech: What a fool, quoth he, am I, to lie in a stinking dungeon, when I may as well walk at liberty! I have a key in my bosom, called Promise, that will, I am persuaded, open any lock

in

A KEY IN CHRISTIAN'S

BOSOM, CALLED PRO-
MISE, OPENS ANY LOCK

IN DOUBTING-CASTLE.

Doubting-castle. Then said Hopeful, That's good news good brother, pluck it out of thy bosom, and try.

Then Christian pulled it out of his bosom, and began to try at the dungeon-door, whose bolt, as he turned the key, gave back, and the door flew open with ease, and Christian and Hopeful both came out. Then he went to the outward door, that leads into the CastleYard, and with his key opened that door also. After that he went to the iron gate, for that must be opened too; but that lock went damnable hard, yet the key did open it. Then they thrust open the gate to make their escape with speed; but that gate, as it opened, made such a creaking, that it waked Giant Despair, who hastily rising to pursue his prisoners, felt his limbs to fail; for his fits took him again, so that he could by no means go after them. Then they went on, and came to the King's highway, and so were safe, because they were out of his jurisdiction.

A PILLAR ERECTED

HIS FELLOW.

Now, when they were gone over the stile, they began to contrive with themselves what they should do at that stile, to prevent those that should come after from falling into the hands of Giant Despair. So they consented to erect there a Pillar, and BY CHRISTIAN AND to engrave upon the side thereof this sentence: "Over this stile is the way to Doubting-castle, which is kept by Giant Despair, who despiseth the King of the Celestial Country, and seeks to destroy his holy Pilgrims." Many, therefore, that followed after read what was written, and escaped the danger. This done, they sang as follows:

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