Hudibras, Volume 1

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Page 17 - For he was of that stubborn crew Of errant saints, whom all men grant To be the true church militant ; Such as do build their faith upon The holy text of pike and gun ; Decide all controversies by Infallible artillery ; And prove their doctrine orthodox By apostolic blows and knocks...
Page 382 - ... the ears, And made them fight, like mad or drunk, For Dame Religion, as for punk; Whose honesty they all durst swear for, Though not a man of them knew wherefore: When Gospel-Trumpeter, surrounded With long-ear'd rout, to battle sounded, And pulpit, drum ecclesiastic, Was beat with fist, instead of a stick; Then did Sir Knight abandon dwelling, And out he rode a colonelling.
Page 17 - A sect whose chief devotion lies In odd perverse antipathies, In falling out with that or this And finding somewhat still amiss; More peevish, cross and splenetic Than dog distract or monkey sick: That with more care keep holyday The wrong, than others the right way; Compound for sins they are inclined to By damning those they have no mind to. Still so perverse and opposite As if they worshipped God for spite...
Page 16 - Although by woful proof we find They always leave a scar behind. He knew the seat of paradise, Could tell in what degree it lies: And, as he was disposed, could prove it, Below the moon, or else above it. What Adam dreamt of when his bride Came from her closet in his side: Whether the Devil tempted her By a High Dutch interpreter...
Page 50 - And tell what crisis does divine The rot in sheep, or mange in swine ; In men, what gives or cures the itch, What makes them cuckolds, poor or rich ; What gains or loses, hangs or saves...
Page 162 - To run from those th' hadst overcome Thus cowardly ? ' Quoth Echo, ' Mum. ' ' But what a vengeance makes thee fly From me too, as thine enemy ? Or, if thou hast no thought of me, Nor what I have endur'd for thee, Yet shame and honour might prevail To keep thee thus from turning tail : For who would grudge to spend his blood in His honour's cause 1 ' Quoth she,
Page 220 - But cannot blur my lost renown : I am not now in Fortune's power, He that is down can fall no lower. The ancient heroes were illustrious For being benign, and not blustrous Against a vanquish'd foe ; their swords Were sharp and trenchant, not their words ; And did in fight but cut work out T' employ their courtesies about.
Page 12 - He understood b' implicit faith : Whatever sceptic could inquire for, For ev'ry why he had a wherefore ; Knew more than forty of them do, As far as words and terms could go. All which he understood by rote, And, as occasion served, would quote ; No matter whether right or wrong, They might be either said or sung.
Page 10 - Th' had heard three labourers of Babel, Or Cerberus himself pronounce A leash of languages at once. This he as volubly would vent, As if his stock would ne'er be spent; And truly, to support that charge, He had supplies as vast and large; For he could coin or counterfeit New words with little or no wit...
Page 4 - t has been held by many, that As Montaigne, playing with his cat, Complains she thought him but an ass, Much more she would Sir Hudibras. (For that's the name our valiant knight To all his challenges did write.) But they're mistaken very much, 'Tis plain enough he was no such; We grant, although he had much wit, H...

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