Meanwhile fierce Talgol, gathering might,
With rugged truncheon charg'd the Knight;
But he, with petronel up-heav'd,
Inftead of fhield, the blow receiv'd;
The gun recoil'd, as well it might,
Not us'd to fuch a kind of fight,

785

790

Twice bruis'd his head, and twice his back;
But when his nut-brown fword was out,
With ftomach huge he laid about,
Imprinting many a wound upon
His mortal foe, the truncheon:
The trufty cudgel did oppofe
Itself against dead-doing blows,

To guard his leader from fell bane,

800

And then reveng'd itself again.

And

Ver. 786.] Smote the Knight. In the two editions

of 1664.

Ver. 787, 788.]

And he with rufty pistol held

To take the blow on like a fhield.

Thus altered 1674, 1684, 1689, 1694, 1700. Reftored 1704.

Ver. 797.] But when his rugged fword was out. In the two first editions of 1663.

Ver. 798.] Courageously. 1674 to 1704, inclufive,

And though the fword (fome understood)
In force had much the odds of wood,
'Twas nothing fo; both fides were balanc't
So equal, none knew which was val'ant'st:
For wood, with honour being engag'd,

Is fo implacably enrag'd,

805

810

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 pursuits of death,

815

Whilft all the rest amaz'd stood still,
Expecting which should take or kill.
This Hudibras obferv'd; and fretting
Conqueft fhould be fo long a-getting,
He drew up all his force into
One body, and that into one blow;
But Talgol wifely avoided it
By cunning fleight; for had it hit
The

upper part of him, the blow Had flit, as fure as that below.

Mean while the incomparable Colon,
To aid his friend, began to fall on;

Him Ralph encounter'd, and straight grew
A difmal combat 'twixt them two;

Ver. 825.]

820

825

Th' one

But now fierce Colon 'gan draw on,

To aid the distress'd champion.

In the two first editions of 1663.

Ver. 828.] A fierce difpute. 1674 to 1704, inclufive.

Th' one arm'd with metal, th' other with wood,

This fit for bruife, and that for blood.

830

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 incline;
Until Magnano, who did envy

That two should with fo many men vy,
By subtle ftratagem of brain

Perform'd what force could 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 cropt them from the root,
He clapp'd them underneath the tail
Of steed, with pricks as sharp as nail;
The angry beast did straight resent
The wrong done to his fundament,
Began to kick, and fling, and wince,
As if he 'ad been befide his fenfe,
Striving to difengage from thistle,
That gall'd him forely under his tail ;
Inftead of which, he threw the pack,
Of Squire and baggage, from his back;

835

.840

845

859

And

Ver. 844.] With prickles fharper than a nail. Edit. 1674, to 1704, inclufive.

Ver. 846.] And feel regret on fundament. In the two first editions of 1663.

And blundering ftill, with fmarting rump,
He gave the Knight's steed such a thump
As made him reel. The Knight did stoop,
And fat on further fide aflope.

This Talgol viewing, who had now
By fleight escap'd the fatal blow,

855

He rally'd, and again fell to 't;

For, catching foe by nearer foot,

He lifted with fuch might and ftrength,

As would have hurl'd him thrice his length,

And dash'd his brains (if any) out;

860

But Mars, that still protects the stout,
In pudding-time came to his aid,
And under him the Bear convey'd;

865

The

Ver. 855.] That stagger'd him. Edit. 1674, to 1700, inclufive.

Ver. 864, 865.] I would here obferve the judgment of the Poet: Mars is introduced to the Knight's advantage, as Pallas had been before to his difappointment. It was reafonable that the God of War fhould come in to his affiftance, fince a Goddess had interested herself on the fide of his enemies (agreeably to Homer and Virgil). Had the Knight directly fallen to the ground, he had been probably difabled from future action; and confequently, the battle would too foon have been determined: befides, we may observe a beautiful gradation, to the honour of the hero; he falls upon the Bear, the Bear breaks loofe, and the fpectators run: fo that the Knight's fall is the primary caufe of this rout, and he might juftly, as he afterwards did, afcribe the honour of the victory to him. felf.

And had no hurt, our's far'd as well
In body, though his mighty spirit,
Being heavy, did not fo well bear it.
The Bear was in a greater fright,
Beat down, and worsted by the Knight;
He roar'd, and rag'd, and flung about,
To shake off bondage from his fnout:

His wrath inflam'd, boil'd o'er, and from.
His jaws of death he threw the foam;

875

880

Fury in stranger poftures threw him,

And more than ever herald drew him ::

He tore the earth, which he had fav'd

885

From fquelch of Knight, and storm'd and rav'd,

And vex'd the more, because the harms

He felt were 'gainst the law of arms:

Who never fo much hurt had done him,
As his own fide did falling on him:
It griev'd him to the guts that they,

For whom he 'ad fought fo many a fray,
And ferv'd with lofs of blood fo long,
Should offer fuch inhuman wrong;

GA

8951

Wrong