The Indians fought for the truth

Of th' elephant and monkey's tooth:

And many, to defend that faith,

Fought it out mordicus to death:

780

But no beast ever was so slight

For man, as for his God, to fight.
They have more wit, alas! and know
Themselves and us better than so.
But we, who only do infuse

The rage in them like boute feus;

'Tis our example that instils

785

In them th' infection of our ills.

For, as some late philosophers

Have well observ'd, beasts that converse

790

With man, take after him, as hogs

Get pigs all th' year, and bitches, dogs;

And then set dogs about their ears:

From thence no doubt th' invention came

Of this lewd antichristian game... 800

To this, quoth Ralpho, verily, The point seems very plain to me. It is an antichristian game,

Unlawful both in thing and name.

First, for the name, the word Bear-baiting

805

Quoth Hudibras, I smell a rat;

Ralpho, thou dost prevaricate;

For though the thesis which thou lay'st
Be true ad amussim, as thou say'st;

(For that bear-baiting should appear

Jure divino lawfuller

Than synods are, thou dost deny,

P

Totidem verbis, so do I:)

Yet there's a fallacy in this;

For if by sly homœosis,

Tussis pro crepitu, an art

Under a cough to slur a f--t,

Thou wouldst sophistically imply,

Both are unlawful, I deny.

And I, quoth Ralpho, do not doubt But bear-baiting may be made out,

In gospel-times, as lawful as is

Provincial or parochial classis:

825

T

And that both are so near of kin,

And like in all, as well as sin,

That put 'em in a bag, and shake 'em,

Yourself o' the sudden would mistake 'em,

And not know which is which unless

You measure by their wickedness:

For 'tis not hard t' imagine whether

O' th' two is worst, though I name neither.
Quoth Hudibras, Thou offer'st much,

But art not able to keep touch.

!་།

830

T

835

840

845

POWOX 850

Mira de lente, as 'tis i' th' adage, mom did i
Id est, to make a leek a cabbage;
Thou'lt be at best but such a bull,'q zo turku oT
Or shear swine, all cry and no wool; tu bal
For what can synods have at all, 445 Faiz 167
With bear that's analogical?

Or what relation has debating

855

Of church-affairs with bear-baiting? AE. 10

A just comparison still is

Of things ejusdem generis.

And then what genus rightly doth
Include and comprehend them both?

If animal, both of us may

As justly pass for bears as they;
For we are animals no less,

Although of diff'rent specieses.m:

But Ralpho, this is not fit place, -9712 mo2 863

Nor time to argue out the case: 70

For now the field is not far off, on al wat

Where we must give the world a proof

Of deeds, not words, and such as suit

Another manner of dispute;

A controversy that affords

Actions for arguments, not words: d

870

Which we must manage at a rate

Of prowess and conduct adequate

To what our place and fame doth promise, 875
And all the godly expect from us.

Nor shall they be deceiv'd unless
We're slurr'd and outed by success:
Success, the mark no mortal wit,

Or surest hand, can always hit:

For whatsoe'er we perpetrate,

We do but row, we're steer'd by Fate,

880

Which in success oft disinherits,

For spurious causes, noblest merits,

Great actions are not always true sons

885

Of great and mighty resolutions,

Nor do th' boldest attempts bring forth
Events still equal to their worth:

But sometimes fail, and in their stead
Fortune and cowardice succeed.

89Q

Yet we have no great cause to doubt,

Our actions still have borne us out:
Which, though they're known to be so ample,
We need not copy from example;
We're not the only persons durst

Attempt this province, nor the first.

895