Brought in their children’s’ spoons and whistles,
To purchase swords, carbines, and pistols; 780
Their husbands, cullies, and sweet-hearts,
To take the Saints and Churches’ parts;
Drew several gifted Brethren in,
That for the Bishops would have been,
And fix’d ’em constant to the party, 785
With motives powerful and hearty;
Their husbands robb’d, and made hard shifts
T’administer unto their gifts
All they cou’d rap, and rend, and pilfer,
To scraps and ends of gold and silver; 790
Rubb’d down the Teachers, tir’d and spent
With holding forth for Parliament,
Pamper’d and edify’d their zeal
With marrow-puddings many a meal;
And led them, with store of meat, 795
On controverted points to eat;
And cram’d ’em, till their guts did ake,
With cawdle, custard, and plum-cake: 
What have they done, or what left undone,
That might advance the Cause at London? 800
March’d rank and file, with drum and ensign,
T’intrench the city for defence in
Rais’d rampiers with their own soft hands,
To put the enemy to stands;
From ladies down to oyster-wenches, 805
Labour’d like pioneers in trenches;
Fell to their pick-axes, and tools,
And help’d the men to dig like moles? 
Have not the handmaids of the city
Chose of their members a committee, 810
For raising of a common purse
Out of their wages to raise horse? 
And do they not as triers sit,
To judge what officers are fit
Have they —?  At that an egg let fly, 815
Hit him directly o’er the eye,
And running down his cheek, besmear’d,
With orange tawny slime, his beard;
But beard and slime being of one hue,
The wound the less appear’d in view. 820
Then he that on the panniers rode,
Let fly on th’ other side a load,
And, quickly charg’d again, gave fully
In RALPHO’S face another volley. 
The Knight was startled with the smell, 825
And for his sword began to feel;
And Ralpho, smother’d with the stink,
Grasp’d his; when one, that bore a link,
O’ th’ sudden clapp’d his flaming cudgel,
Like linstock, to the horse’s touch-hole; 830
And straight another, with his flambeaux,
Gave RALPHO’S o’er the eye a damn’d blow. 
The beasts began to kick and fling,
And forc’d the rout to make a ring,
Through which they quickly broke their way, 835
And brought them off from further fray;
And though disorder’d in retreat,
Each of them stoutly kept his seat
For quitting both their swords and reins,
They grasp’d with all their strength the manes, 840
And, to avoid the foe’s pursuit,
With spurring put their cattle to’t;
And till all four were out of wind,
And danger too, ne’er look’d behind. 
After th’ had paus’d a while, supplying 845
Their spirits, spent with fight and flying,
And Hudibras recruited force
Of lungs, for action or discourse,