The Balance of Pain and Other Poems

The Balance of Pain and Other Poems

Title page for The Balance of Pain and Other Poems (1877)
Author	Emily Manning
Language	English
Genre	Poetry collection
Publisher	George Bell and Sons
Publication date	1877
Publication place	United Kingdom
Media type	Print
Pages	141 pp.

The Balance of Pain and Other Poems is a collection of poems by Australian poet Emily Manning, published by George Bell and Sons in London in 1877. ^[1]

The collection contains 33 poems from a variety of sources, mainly Australian newspapers. ^[2]

Contents

• "The Balance of Pain"
• "The Explorer's Message"
• "Two Children and Two Fates"
• "From the Clyde to Braidwood"
• "The Emigrants : A Cantata"
• "Lost in the Bush, or, The Shepherd's Blessing"
• "The Emigrant's Plaint"
• "The Sweeping Tide"
• "The Weatherboard Fall"
• "Bodalla : A Glimpse of England Amid Australian Hills"
• "The Two Beaches : Manly"
• "The Two Selves, or, The Angel and the Demon of the Soul"
• "The Beacon Child, or, The Angel of the Tempest"
• "The Quiet Dust"
• "The Rising Wind"
• "Nearly"
• "Morning, Night and Endless Morning"
• "The Angel's Call"
• "In Memoriam : Commodore Goodenough"
• "A Plea for the Ragged Schools"
• "Funereal Rites"
• "The Buddawong's Crown : A True Parable"
• "Blind Little Joe : The Unconscious Missionary"
• "Mourning and Unmourned"
• "The Old Path and the New : A Serio-Satire"
• "The King's Highway : (A Wide Paraphrase)"
• "The Army of Unknown Martyrs"
• "Evening Hymn at Sea"
• "Good Friday"
• "Easter Eve"
• "Easter Day"
• "Whitsuntide"
• "Watch and Pray"

Critical reception

A reviewer in The Illustrated Sydney News noted that the author "undoubtedly possesses the true poetic instinct" before continuing: "Her poems are characterised by great purity of tone and loftiness of purpose, while many of the pieces breathe a touching sentiment and earnest sympathy for the sufferings and trials that frequently beset the path of humanity." ^[3]

Reviewing the collection for The Queenslander, a writer commented that the poems showed "considerable power of landscape painting, and keen sensitiveness to all natural beauty." ^[4]

See also

• 1877 in Australian literature

Notes

The collection was originally published under the poet's pseudonym "Australie", ^[2] although her true identity was well-known at the time. ^[5]

References

1. "The Balance of Pain and Other Poems by Emily Manning". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 10 November 2025.
2. "The Balance of Pain and Other Poems by Emily Manning". Austlit. Retrieved 10 November 2025.
3. ""Reviews"". The Illustrated Sydney News, 18 August 1877, p18. Retrieved 10 November 2025.
4. ""The Reviewer"". The Queenslander, 28 September 1877, p11. Retrieved 10 November 2025.
5. ""Review"". The Sydney Morning Herald, 23 July 1877, p5. Retrieved 10 November 2025.