434. When I was One-and-Twenty by AE Housman

Published: Feb. 23, 2009, 10:20 a.m.

b'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'