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by Alfred Edward Housman (1859 - 1936)

When I was one‑and‑twenty
NOTE: the footnotes have been removed from this text; return to general view
Language: English 
Our translations:  FRE GER HEB
When I was one-and-twenty
 I heard a wise man say,
"Give crowns and pounds and guineas
 But not your heart away;
Give pearls away and rubies
 But keep your fancy free."
But I was one-and-twenty,
 No use to talk to me.

When I was one-and-twenty
 I heard him say again,
"The heart out of the bosom
 Was never given in vain;
'Tis paid with sighs a plenty
 And sold for endless rue."
And I am two-and-twenty,
 And oh, 'tis true, 'tis true.

Available sung texts:   ← What is this?

•   D. Steele 

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Text Authorship:

  • by Alfred Edward Housman (1859 - 1936), no title, appears in A Shropshire Lad, no. 13, first published 1896 [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]

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Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 16
Word count: 83

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