At age 33, Bowring be­came ed­it­or of the West­min­ster Re­view. An ac­comp­lished lin­guist, it has been said he was flu­ent in over 20 lan­guages and could speak 80 more; he was known for his trans­la­tions of Dutch po­e­try. He was al­so one of the pre­em­i­nent Brit­ish states­men of his day: Com­mis­sion­er to France, Con­sul at Canton, Min­is­ter Plen­i­po­ten­ti­ary to Ch­ina, Gov­er­nor of Hong Kong, and twice a mem­ber of Par­lia­ment. Queen Vic­tor­ia knight­ed him in 1854. His works in­clude:

• Matins and Vespers, 1823
• Hymns, as a Sequel to the Matins, 1825

Sources

Hymns

1. Clay to Clay, and Dust to Dust
2. Come the Rich, and Come the Poor
3. Drop the Limpid Waters Now
4. Earth’s Transitory Things Decay
5. Father, Glorify Thy Name
6. Father and Friend! Thy Light, Thy Love
7. Father of Spirits, Humbly Bent Before Thee
8. From All Evil, All Tempta­tion
9. From the Recesses of a Lowly Spirit
10. Gather Up, O Earth, Thy Dead
11. Gently the Shades of Night Descend
12. God Is Love; His Mercy Brightens
13. Heavenly Spheres to Thee, O God, The
14. How Dark, How Desolate
15. How Shall We Praise Thee, Lord of Light?
16. How Sweetly Flowed the Gospel’s Sound
17. In the Cross of Christ I Glory
18. Lead Us with Thy Gentle Way
19. O Let My Trembling Soul Be Still
20. O Sweet It Is to Feel and Know
21. On the Dust I’m Doomed to Sleep
22. Upon the Gospel’s Sac­red Page
23. Watchman, Tell Us of the Night
24. When Before Thy Throne We Kneel
25. Where Is Thy Sting, O Death?