Which I, her Sword-Bearer, do carry,
For Civil Deed and Military.

Nor fhall these Words of Venom base,
Which thou haft, from their Native place,
Thy Stomach, pump'd to fling on me,
Go unreveng'd, though I am free.

Thou down the fame Throat fhalt devour 'em,
Like tainted Beef, and pay dear for 'em.
Nor fhall it e'er be faid, that Wight

With Gantlet blue and Bases white,
And round blunt Truncheon by his fide,
So great a Man at Arms defy'd

With words far bitterer than Wormwood,

That would in Job or Grizel ftir Mood,
(heal;
Dogs with their Tongues their Wounds do
But Men with Hands, as thoufhalt feel.

This faid, with hafty Rage he fnatch'd
His Gun-fhot, that in Holfters watch'd;
And bending Cock, he level'd full
Against th' outside of Talgol's Skull;

Vowing that he should ne'er ftir further,
Nor henceforth Cow or Bullock murther.

But Pallas came in fhape of Ruft,
And 'twixt the Spring and Hammer thrust
Her Gorgon fhield, which made the Cock
Stand ftiff as 'twere transform'd to stock.
Mean while fierce Talgol gath'ring might,
With rugged Truncheon charg'd the Knight.
And he with Petronel upheav'd,

Inftead of Shield, the Blow receiv'd.
The Gun recoil'd, as well it might,
Not us'd to fuch a kind of fight,

And fhrunk from its great Mafter's gripe,
Knock'd down and stunn'd with mortal ftripe

Then Hudibras with furious hafte

Drew out his Sword; yet not fo faft,

But Talgol firft with hardy thwack

Twice bruis'd his Head, and twice his Back.

But when his nut-brown Sword was out,

With ftomach huge he laid about,

Wound upon

Imprinting many a

His mortal Foe the Truncheon

The trufty Cudgel did oppose
It felf against dead-doing blows,

To

To guard its Leader from fell bane,
And then reveng'd it felf again.

And though the Sword (fome understood)
In force had much the odds of Wood;
Twas nothing fo, both fides were ballanc't
So equal, none knew which was valiant'st
For Wood with Honour b'ing engag'd,
Is fo implacably enrag'd;

Though Iron hew and mangle fore,

Wood wounds and bruifes Honour more ;
And now both Knights were out of breath,
Tir'd in the hot pursuit of Death;
While all the reft amaz'd stood ftill,
Expecting which should take, or kill.
This Hudibras obferv'd, and fretting
Conqueft should be so long a getting,
He drew up all his force into
One Body, and that into one Blow.
But Talgol wifely avoided it

By cunning flight for had it hit

ら

The Upper part of him, the Blow

Had flit, as fure as that below.

Mean while th' Incomparable Colon,
To aid his Friend began to fall on 5
Him Ralph encountred, and ftraight grew..
A Difmal Combat 'twixt them two:
Th'one arm'd withMetal, th'other with Wood,
This fit for Bruife, and that for Bloud.
With many a stiff thwack, many a bang,
Hard Crab-tree and old Iron rang ;

While none that faw them could divine
To which fide Conqueft would encline,
Until Magnano, who did envy

That two fhould with fo many Men vye,
By fubtle ftratagem of Brain
Perform'd what Force conld ne'er attain ;
For he, by foul hap, having found
Where Thiftles grew on barren Ground,
In hafte he drew his Weapon out,
And having crop'd them from the Root
He clapp'd them underneath the Tail

Of Steed, with Pricks as Sharp as Nail.

The angry

Beaft did ftraight refent

The wrong done to his Fundament,

Begun

part 1, page 82.