But at the end of the valley was another, called the Valley of the Shadow of Death.  On the right hand of this valley was a very deep ditch; it was the ditch into which the blind have led the blind in all ages, and have there miserably perished.  And on the left hand was a dangerous quagmire, into which, if even a good man falls, he finds no bottom for his foot to stand on.  The pathway here was exceeding narrow and very dark, and Christian was hard put to it to get through safely.  And right by the wayside, in the midst of the valley, was the mouth of hell, and out of it came flame and smoke in great abundance, with sparks and hideous noises.  But when the hosts of hell came at him, as he travelled on through the smoke and flame and dreadful noise, he cried out, “I will walk in the strength of the Lord God!”

Thereupon, the fiends gave over, and came no further; and suddenly the day broke, and Christian turned and saw all the hobgoblins, satyrs, and dragons of the pit far behind him, and though he was now got into the most dangerous part of the Valley of the Shadow of Death, he was no longer afraid.  The place was so set, here with snares, traps, gins and nets, and there with pits and holes, and shelvings, that, had it been dark, he would surely have perished.  But it was now clear day, and by walking warily Christian got safely to the end of the valley.  And at the end of the valley, he saw another pilgrim marching on at some distance before him.

“Ho, ho!” shouted Christian.  “Stay, and I will be your companion.”

“No, I cannot stay,” said the other pilgrim, whose name was Faithful.  “I am upon my life, and the avenger of blood is behind me.”

Putting out all his strength, Christian quickly got up with Faithful.  Then I saw in my dream they went very lovingly on together, and had sweet discourse of all things that had happened to them in their pilgrimage; for they had been neighbours in the City of Destruction, and both of them were bound for the Delectable Mountains, and the Celestial City beyond.  They were now in a great wilderness, and they walked on together till they came to the town of Vanity, at which a fair is kept all the year long, called Vanity Fair.

II.—­Vanity Fair

I saw in my dream that Christian and Faithful tried to avoid seeing Vanity Fair; but this they could not do, because the way to the Celestial City lies through the town where this lusty fair is kept.  About 5,000 years ago, Beelzebub, Apollyon, and the rest of the fiends saw by the path which the pilgrims made, that their way lay through the town of Vanity.  So they set up a fair there, in which all sorts of vanity should be sold every day in the year.  Among the merchandise sold at this fair are lands, honours, titles, lusts, pleasures, and preferments; delights of all kinds, as servants, gold, silver, and precious stones; murders and thefts; blood and bodies, yea, and lives and souls.  Moreover, at this fair, there are at all times to be seen jugglings, cheats, games, plays, fools, apes, knaves, and rogues, and that of every sort.