324
HUDIBRAS.
[PART III.
But, in a trice, advanc'd the Knight
Upon the bare ridge, bolt upright,
And, groping out for Ralpho's jade.
He found the saddle too was stray'd,
And in the place a lump of soap, 1595
On which he speedily leap'd up;
And. turning to the gate the rein,
He kick'd and cudgell'd on amain;
While Hudibras, with equal haste,
On both sides laid about as fast, 1600
And spurr'd, as jockies use, to break,
Or padders to secure, a neck:[1]
Where let us leave 'em for a time,
And to their churches turn our rhyme;
To hold forth their declining state, 1605
Which now come near an even rate.[2]
- ↑ Jockies endanger their necks by spurring their horses, and galloping very fast; and highwaymen, called padders, from the Saxon paad, highway, spur their horses to save their necks.
- ↑ The time now approached when the Presbyterians and Independents were to fall into equal disgrace, and resemble the doleful condition of the Knight and Squire.
