Song lyrics, Mack Daddy, 1992
“True as the needle to the pole,
Or as the dial to the sun.”
Barton Booth (1681–1733) famous dramatic actor of the 18th century
Song, reported in Bartlett's Familiar Quotations, 10th ed. (1919). Compare: "True as the dial to the sun, Although it be not shin’d upon", Samuel Butler, Hudibras, Part iii, Canto ii, line 175.
“True as the dial to the sun,
Although it be not shin'd upon.”
Samuel Butler (poet) (1612–1680) poet and satirist
Canto II, line 175
Source: Hudibras, Part III (1678)
“Again the shadow moveth o'er
The dial-plate of time.”
John Greenleaf Whittier (1807–1892) American Quaker poet and advocate of the abolition of slavery
The New Year, reported in Bartlett's Familiar Quotations, 10th ed. (1919)
“We live in deeds, not years; in thoughts, not breaths;
In feelings, not in figures on a dial.”
Scene V, A Country Town
Festus (1839)
Context: We live in deeds, not years; in thoughts, not breaths;
In feelings, not in figures on a dial.
We should count time by heart-throbs. He most lives
Who thinks most, feels the noblest, acts the best.
Life's but a means unto an end; that end
Beginning, mean, and end to all things, — God.
The dead have all the glory of the world.
“Left alone with the dial tone… excuse me, operator, why is no one listening?”
Melina Marchetta (1965) Australian teen writer
Source: Saving Francesca
“Her wish to die was as pervasive as a dial tone: you lift the receiver, it's always there.”
Joyce Carol Oates (1938) American author
Source: Faithless
“Now all of us can talk to the NSA—just by dialing any number.”
David Letterman (1947) American comedian and actor
On the National Security Agency's eavesdropping program, on The Late Show with David Letterman, monologue (25 January 2006).
“Hide not your talents, they for use were made. What's a sun-dial in the shade? ”
Benjamin Franklin (1706–1790) American author, printer, political theorist, politician, postmaster, scientist, inventor, civic activist, …
“She’s drunk dialing contractors ” Chloe said to Tara. “Someone should stop her.”
Jill Shalvis (1963) American writer
Source: Simply Irresistible
“He sets a thief to guard his purse
Who trusts a dial with his hours”
Robertson Davies (1913–1995) Canadian journalist, playwright, professor, critic, and novelist
The Golden Ass (1999)
Context: He sets a thief to guard his purse
Who trusts a dial with his hours
Or bids a sand-glass bleed away his nights,
His days, his loves, his pleasures and his powers.
The burthen of his years
Is Time's soft footfall, Time's soft
Falling
Through his joys and tears.
