XC.
And thus, when of the tidesway he was clear,
And in the deepest sea his bark descried,
So that no longer distant signs appear
Of either shore on this or the other side,
He seized the tube, and said: “That cavalier
“May never vail through thee his knightly pride,
“Nor base be rated with a better foe,
“Down with thee to the darkest deep below!
XCI.
“O loathed, O cursed piece of enginery,
“Cast in Tartarean bottom, by the hand
“Of Beelzebub, whose foul malignity
“The ruin of this world through thee has planned!
“To hell, from whence thou came, I render thee[16].”
So said, he cast away the weapon: fanned
Meanwhile, with flowing sheet, his frigate goes,
By wind, which for the cruel island blows.
XCII.
Such was the paladin’s desire to explore
If in that place his missing lady were;
Whom he prefers the united world before,
Nor can an hour of life without her bear.
He fears, if he set foot on Ireland’s shore,
Some other chance may interrupt him there:
So that he after have in vain to say,
“Why hasted I no faster on my way?”
