The Vagabond (poem)

"The Vagabond"
by Henry Lawson
First published in	The Bulletin
Country	Australia
Language	English
Publication date	31 August 1895
Lines	108
Full text
The Vagabond (Lawson) at Wikisource

"The Vagabond" (1895) is a poem by Australian poet Henry Lawson. ^[1]

It was originally published in The Bulletin on 31 August 1895 ^[2] and subsequently reprinted in several of the author's collections, other periodicals and a number of Australian poetry anthologies. ^[1]

Critical reception

While reviewing the author's collection In the Days When the World was Wide and Other Verses , a reviewer in The Daily Telegraph (Sydney) commented "While there is an absence of the humor so marked a feature in Mr. Lawson's admirable prose sketches, there are equal minuteness and accuracy of delineation. The writer is at his best in 'The Vagabond'". ^[3]

Publication history

After the poem's initial publication in The Bulletin it was reprinted as follows:

• In the Days When the World was Wide and Other Verses by Henry Lawson, Angus and Robertson, 1900 ^[4]
• An Anthology of Australian Verse edited by Bertram Stevens, Angus and Robertson, 1907 ^[5]
• The Golden Treasury of Australian Verse edited by Bertram Stevens, Angus and Robertson, 1909 ^[6]
• Selected Poems of Henry Lawson by Henry Lawson, Angus and Robertson, 1918 ^[7]
• The World of Henry Lawson edited by Walter Stone, Hamlyn, 1974 ^[8]
• A Treasury of Colonial Poetry, Currawong, 1982 ^[9]
• A Campfire Yarn : Henry Lawson Complete Works 1885-1900 edited by Leonard Cronin, Lansdowne, 1984 ^[10]

See also

• 1895 in Australian literature
• 1895 in poetry

References

1. "Austlit - "The Vagabond" by Henry Lawson". Austlit. Retrieved 2 February 2026.
2. ""The Vagabond"". The Bulletin, 31 August 1895, p28. Retrieved 2 February 2026.
3. ""In the Days when the World was Wide"". The Daily Telegraph, 15 February 1896, p9. Retrieved 2 February 2026.
4. "In the Days When the World Was Wide and Other Verses by Henry Lawson". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 2 February 2026.
5. "An Anthology of Australian Verse edited by Bertram Stevens". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 2 February 2026.
6. "The Golden Treasury of Australian Verse edited by Bertram Stevens". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 2 February 2026.
7. "Selected Poems of Henry Lawson by Henry Lawson". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 2 February 2026.
8. "The World of Henry Lawson edited by Walter Stone". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 2 February 2026.
9. "A Treasury of Colonial Poetry (Currawong)". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 2 February 2026.
10. "A Campfire Yarn : Henry Lawson Complete Works 1885-1900 edited by Leonard Cronin". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 2 February 2026.