ound that we approached the _Grotto of Grief_. It was a wide, hollow,
and melancholy Cave, sunk deep in a Dale, and watered by Rivulets that
had a Colour between Red and Black. These crept slow and half congealed
amongst its Windings, and mixed their heavy Murmur with the Echo of
Groans that rolled through all the Passages. In the most retired Part of
it sat the _Doleful Being_ her self; the Path to her was strowed with
Goads, Stings and Thorns; and her Throne on which she sat was broken
into a Rock, with ragged Pieces pointing upwards for her to lean upon. A
heavy Mist hung above her, her Head oppressed with it reclined upon her
Arm: Thus did she reign over her disconsolate Subjects, full of her self
to stupidity, in eternal Pensiveness, and the profoundest Silence. On
one side of her stood _Dejection_ just dropping into a Swoon, and
_Paleness_ wasting to a Skeleton; on the other side were _Care_ inwardly
tormented with Imaginations, and _Anguish_ suffering outward _Troubles_
to suck the Blood from her Heart in the shape of _Vultures_. The whole
Vault had a genuine Dismalness in it, which a few scattered Lamps, whose
bluish Flames arose and sunk in their Urns, discovered to our Eyes with
Encrease. Some of us fell down, overcome and spent with what they
suffered in the way, and were given over to those Tormentors that stood
on either hand of the Presence; others, galled and mortified with Pain,
recover'd the Entrance, where _Patience_, whom we had left behind, was
still waiting to receive us.

With her (whose Company was now become more grateful to us by the want
we had found of her) we winded round the Grotto, and ascended at the
back of it, out of the mournful Dale in whose Bottom it lay. On this
Eminence we halted, by her Advice, to pant for Breath; and lifting our
Eyes, which till then were fixed downwards, felt a sullen sort of
Satisfaction, in observing through the Shades what Numbers had entred
the Island. The Satisfaction, which appears to have Ill-nature in it,
was excusable, because it happened at a time when we were too much taken
up with our own concern, to have respect to that of others; and
therefore we did not consider them as suffering, but ourselves as not
suffering in the most forlorn Estate. It had also the Ground-work of
Humanity and Compassion in it, tho' the Mind was then too dark and too
deeply engaged to perceive it; but as we proceeded onwards, it began to
discover it self, and from observing tha