434. When I was One-and-Twenty by AE Housman
AE Housman read by Classic Poetry Aloud: Giving voice to the poetry of the past.\nwww.classicpoetryaloud.com\n\n--------------------------------------------\n\nWhen I was One-and-Twenty\nby AE Housman (1859 \u2013 1936)\n\nWhen I was one-and-twenty \n I heard a wise man say, \n\u2018Give crowns and pounds and guineas \n But not your heart away; \n \nGive pearls away and rubies \n But keep your fancy free.\u2019 \nBut I was one-and-twenty, \n No use to talk to me. \n \nWhen I was one-and-twenty \n I heard him say again, \n\u2018The heart out of the bosom \n Was never given in vain; \n\u2019Tis paid with sighs a plenty \n And sold for endless rue.\u2019 \nAnd I am two-and-twenty, \n And oh, \u2019tis true, \u2019tis true. \n\n\nFirst aired: 15 January 2008\n\nFor hundreds more poetry readings, visit the Classic Poetry Aloud index.\n\nReading \xa9 Classic Poetry Aloud 2009