O Fons Bandusae
July 5, 2023Refining Fuller, Make Me Clean
July 5, 2023“When This Old World Was New”
When this old world was new,
Before the towns were made,
Love was a shepherd too.
Clear-eyed as flowers men grew,
Of evil unafraid,
When this old world was made.
No skill had they to woo,
Who but their hearts obey’d–
Love was a shepherd too.
What need to feign or sue?
Not thus was life delay’d
When this old world was new.
Under the cloudless blue
They kiss’d their shepherd-maid–
Love was a shepherd too.
They knew but joy; they knew
No pang of Love decay’d:
When this old world was new,
Love was a shepherd too.
Austin Dobson
Austin Dobson (1840-1921) was an English poet and biographer. He is known for his works such as "The Songs of a Savoyard" (1884), "Proverbs in Porcelain" (1887), "Eighteenth Century Vignettes" (1890), and "Echoes" (1894). He was also a prolific biographer, writing about the lives of figures such as Horace Walpole, William Hogarth, and Samuel Johnson. His works are known for their wit and humor, as well as their insight into the lives of the people he wrote about.