Physical Description: number of leaves unknown, handwritten
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Content:
A brief list, which Grier suggests could be trial titles for "Calamus.". However, this manuscript is specifically suggestive of "Roots and Leaves Themselves Alone," in which Whitman writes about "Breast-sorrel and pinks of love"—both phrases which can be linked to this manuscript. First published as "Calamus. 13" in
Leaves of Grass
(1860), this poem appeared in later editions of
Leaves of Grass
as "Roots and Leaves Themselves Alone", and with slight changes in the text. This manuscript is known only from a transcription published by Richard Maurice Bucke in
Notes and Fragments
(London, Ontario: A. Talbot & Co., printers, 1899), 164.
Content:
Thirty-three manuscript leaves numbered consecutively by Whitman in the lower left
corner. "Premonition" was
published as the introductory poem to the 1860 edition of
Leaves of Grass
under the title "Proto-Leaf." In the 1867 and
later editions it appeared directly after the opening poem "Inscription" as "Starting from Paumanok." On the
verso of leaf 15 and part of leaf 16 appears a draft of what would become section
11 of "Calamus" in the 1860
Leaves of Grass
.
Whitman Archive Title: [These I, singing in spring]
Content:
These leaves comprise four sections of a poem inscribed on the first and third
sides of two folded half-sheets (20 x 16 cm) of the same white wove paper used for
1:3:1 and 1:3:2, in the same light brown ink and, like them, with only minor
revisions. The pages were folded and pinned together to form a small pamphlet.
Pinholes mostly at center-top and in what was the left margin of the pamphlet. The
lines on page 1 became verses 1-8 of section 4 of "Calamus." in 1860; page 2 ("Solitary, smelling the
earthy/ smell,...") became verses 9-14; page 3 ("Here lilac with a branch of/
pine,") became verses 15-22; and page 4 ("And stems of currants, and/
plum-blows,") became verses 23-28. From 1867 on the poem was titled "These I, Singing in Spring."
Whitman Archive Title: [Long I thought that knowledge]
Content:
On three pieces of white wove paper (the first two 15 x 9.5 cm, the third 6.5 x
9.5 cm), in black ink, with revisions in the same ink and in pencil. Whitman also
penciled in the numbers 7, 8, and 8 1/2 in the lower-left corner of each page.
Pinholes at the head and in the center of each page. This was the fifth poem of
the original sequence "Live Oak, with
Moss"; the poem number is inscribed ornamentally, as with the Roman
numerals Whitman used for other "Live
Oak" poems, and a wavy line appears after the last verse. The lines on
the first leaf became verses 1-5 of section 8 of "Calamus" in 1860; the second leaf's lines ("Take
notice, you Kanuck woods") became verses 6-10; and the lines on the half-page ("I
am indifferent to my own/ songs—") became verses 11-12. There were no further
appearances of this poem during the poet's lifetime, Whitman having canceled it in
his "Blue Book Copy" of the
1860
Leaves.
Content:
On two pieces of white wove paper, the first cut down to 9.5 x 9 cm and the second
comprising two sections (14.5 x 9 and 5 x 9.5 cm) joined by means of a strip of
pink paper. In brown-black ink, with revisions in the same ink and in pencil.
Pinholes mostly at top and in center of leaves. Whitman penciled in the numbers 11
and 12 (apparently over other numbers) in the lower-left corner of each page; his
partly erased pencil note "(finished in/ the other city)" appears on the first
page. The ornamental number "VIII" replaces a deleted ornamental "IX" on the first
page, and the top of another "IX" appears at the foot of the second page, beneath
a wavy line indicating the end of the poem. Whitman removed the lower section of
page 2 from the top of current leaf 1:3:33 ("I dreamed in a dream of a/ city...").
This poem, the eighth in the sequence "Live Oak, with Moss," became section 9 of "Calamus" in 1860. This was its
only appearance in
Leaves
. The
first page contains what would become verses 1-3 in 1860, and the second ("Hours
discouraged, distracted,") contains lines 4-12.
Content:
On two sections of white wove paper, the first cut down to 8 x 9 cm and the second
a composite of two pieces pasted together, the top measuring 14.5 x 9.5 and the
bottom 5.5 x 9.5 cm. In black ink, with a few revisions in the same ink. Pinholes
at top and in center of both pages. Whitman numbered the first 9 1/2 and the
second 10, in pencil, in the lower-left corner of each leaf. The Roman numeral is
inscribed in an ornamental style, and the poem terminates with a wavy line. The
seventh poem in the sequence "Live
Oak, with Moss," became section 10 of "Calamus" in 1860 and was permanently retitled "Recorders Ages Hence" in 1867.
The lines on the first page correspond to verses 1-3 of the 1860 version, and
those on the second page ("Publish my name and hang up/ my picture...") to lines
4-11.
Whitman Archive Title: [When I heard at the close of]
Content:
On two leaves of white wove paper, both measuring 15 x 9.5 cm; the lower half of
the second page is pasted over with a section of white paper (8 x 9 cm) containing
four revised verses. In black ink, with revisions in the same ink and in pencil.
Pinholes mostly at top of both pages. Whitman numbered the pages 4 and 5, in
pencil, in their lower-left corners. The third section of "Live Oak, with Moss" (with
ornamental Roman numeral), this poem became section 11 of "Calamus" in 1860 and was
permanently retitled "When I Heard at
the Close of the Day" in 1867. For an earlier draft of the poem numbered
V please see the verso of leaves 15-16 of "Premonition" (1:1:15-16). Bowers (p. 88) supplies the
three earlier lines concealed by the paste-on revision to the second leaf. The
lines on the first page correspond to verses 1-5 of the 1860 version, and those on
the second page ("And when I thought how/ my friend,...") to lines 6-13.
Content:
On two pieces of white wove paper, 13 x 11.5 and 20 x 16 cm, in brown-black ink,
with substantial revisions in the same ink. Pinholes mostly at center and in left
margins of both pages. This poem, featuring a new first line, became section 12 of
"Calamus" in 1860; in 1867
Whitman dropped the last 2 1/2 lines and permanently retitled it "Are you the New Person Drawn Toward
Me?" The first page contains verses corresponding to lines 2-3 of the
1860 version, and the lines on the second page ("Do you suppose you can easily/ be
my lover,...") became verses 4-11.
Content:
On pink leaf (21.5 x 13 cm), in black ink, with minor revisions in the same ink. A
few pinholes at top and near center. A pencil question mark appears in parentheses
in the upper-right corner. The number 52 appears to have been revised from 51.
After adding several verses, Whitman designated this poem section 13 of "Calamus" in the 1860
Leaves
, and, after dropping the first
two and last three lines of the 1860 version, permanently retitled it "Roots and Leaves Themselves
Alone" in 1867.
Content:
On white wove leaf, 15 x 9 cm, in black ink, with the title "Live Oak, with Moss" stricken out
and "Calamus-Leaves" added in
light brown ink, and with one small revision in blue pencil. Whitman numbered this
page 1 in pencil. The first section of the original sequence "Live Oak, with Moss," this became
section 14 of "Calamus" in
1860 and was permanently retitled "Not Heat Flames up and Consumes" in the 1867
Leaves
.
Content:
On two leaves of white wove paper, both 15 x 9.5 cm, in black ink, with extensive
revisions in the same ink, in light brown ink, and in pencil. Pinholes mostly at
top and in center of both pages. Whitman numbered the pages 2 and 3 in pencil.
This was originally the second section of the sequence "Live Oak, with Moss" (one of the deleted lines reads
"I write/ these pieces, and name/ them after it [the Louisiana live-oak];"), with
ornamental Roman numeral. It became section 20 of "Calamus" in 1860; the lines on the first manuscript
page correspond to verses 1-7, and those on the second ("It is not needed to
remind/ me...") to verses 8-13. The poem was retitled "I saw in Louisiana a Live-Oak Growing" in 1867.
Content:
On two leaves of pink paper, both 21 x 13 cm, in black ink, with minor revisions
in the same ink. Pinholes mostly in center and at top of both pages. This poem
became section 21 of "Calamus"
in 1860; the lines on the first manuscript page became verses 1-6, and those on
the second ("I hear not the volumes of/ sound merely—...") became 7-9. Retitled
"That Music Always Round
Me" in 1867, it was transferred in 1871 to the "Whispers of Heavenly Death"
cluster in
Passage to India.
In
1881 Whitman incorporated it, with the rest of the cluster, in the main body of
Leaves
.
Content:
On two leaves of pink paper, both 21 x 13 cm, in black ink, with revisions in the
same ink and in light ink. Pinholes mostly in center and in left margin of each
page. This poem was first numbered 94, and the first word was "Stranger"; Whitman
penciled in a question mark, in parentheses, next to the title. It was numbered
section 22 of "Calamus" in
1860: the lines on the first page correspond to verses 1-6 of the 1860 version,
and those on the second ("You give me the pleasure") to verses 7-10. Whitman
reintroduced the title "To a
Stranger" in the 1867
Leaves
.
Whitman Archive Title: [This moment as I sit alone]
Content:
On one leaf of white wove paper, in dark brown ink, with revisions in pencil.
Pinholes in center and at top. Whitman penciled in the number 6 in the lower-left
corner. The fourth poem in the original sequence "Live Oak, with Moss" (with ornamental Roman numeral),
it became section 23 of "Calamus" in 1860 and was permanently retitled "This Moment, Yearning and
Thoughtful" in 1867.
Content:
On one leaf of pink paper (21 x 13 cm), in black ink, with revisions in an even
blacker ink and in pencil. Pinholes in center. The poem was originally numbered
53. In 1860 Whitman designated it section 25 of "Calamus," transforming the title into a new first line
and expanding the original first line into verses 2-4. In 1867 he further revised
it, permanently retitling it "The
Prairie-Grass Dividing."
Content:
On one light blue Williamsburgh tax blank (21.5 x 12 cm), in dark brown ink, with
revisions in fine pen and pencil. Whitman penciled in a question mark, in
parentheses, next to the title. With the addition of the new first line "O love!"
this became section 27 of "Calamus" in 1860. In the 1867
Leaves
it was retitled "O
Living Always—Always Dying!" Whitman next transferred it to the "Passage to India" supplement
bound in with
Leaves
, where it
reappeared in 1876; in the 1881
Leaves
Whitman permanently added it to the cluster "Whispers of Heavenly Death."
Whitman Archive Title: Leaf [A promise to Indiana]
Content:
On one leaf of pink paper (22 x 13 cm), in black ink, with revisions in the same
ink. Pinholes mostly in center. The original title was "Leaflet," and the original number seems to have been
70. After substantial revision (including the addition of the new first line "A
promise and gift to California,") this poem became section 30 of "Calamus" in 1860. Whitman further
revised the poem before including it, permanently retitled "A Promise to California," in the
1867
Leaves
.
Whitman Archive Title: Leaf [What place is besieged]
Content:
On one leaf of pink paper (21.5 x 13 cm), in black ink, with a fair copy of the
poem at the bottom of the leaf and a deleted draft featuring heavy revisions in
the same ink and in pencil at the top. This poem was originally numbered 68, and
its title was "Leaflet—." In
1860 it became the second numbered verse paragraph of section 31 of "Calamus." In 1867 Whitman split
up the two paragraphs and made them separate poems; these verses were moved to a
position between the "Calamus"
and a "Leaves of Grass"
cluster and permanently retitled "What Place Is Besieged?" In 1881 the poem was transferred to the
cluster "Inscriptions."
Whitman Archive Title: [Here the frailest leaves of me]
Content:
On one leaf of white wove paper (15 x 9.5 cm), in medium-brown ink, with one
revision in the same ink. Pinholes mostly at top and in center. The two sets of
verses are divided by a short horizontal line. In 1860 the first set, with the
addition of a new first line ("Here my last words, and the most baffling,") became
section 44 of "Calamus"; the
poem was permanently retitled "Here
the Frailest Leaves of Me", and the new first line dropped, in 1867. The
second set was revised to form section 38 of "Calamus" in 1860; in 1867 it was further revised and
retitled "Fast Anchor'd, Eternal, O
Love."
Content:
On one leaf of white wove paper (14.5 x 9 cm), in black ink, with revisions in
pencil. Pinholes in center and at top. A blue-pencil number 3 appears in the upper
right corner over an erased 9. With substantial additions and revisions this
evolved into section 37 of "Calamus" in 1860; after further revision it became "A Leaf for Hand in Hand" in
1867.
Content:
On one leaf of white wove paper (14.5 x 9.5 cm), in brown-black ink, with
revisions in lighter ink (including the deletion, undone in 1860, of the phrase
"My likeness!" after "Earth!"). Pinholes mostly at top and in center. Whitman
penciled in the number 15 in the lower-left corner. Originally poem XI in the
sequence "Live Oak, with Moss"
(with the Roman numeral ornamentally drawn), this was revised to become section 36
of "Calamus" in 1860. In 1867
Whitman retitled the poem "Earth! My
Likeness!"
Whitman Archive Title: [I dreamed in a dream of a]
Content:
On one leaf of white wove paper cut down to 9.5 x 9 cm, in brown-black ink, with
revisions in pencil. Pinholes at top and in center. Whitman numbered the leaf 13,
in pencil, in the lower-left corner. The excised top portion of the leaf became
the bottom section of page 2 of 1:3:11, the poem (eighth in the sequence "Live Oak, with Moss") beginning
"Hours continuing long, sore/ and heavy-hearted..." In 1860 this poem was
substantially revised to form section 34 of "Calamus"; in 1867 it was retitled "I Dreamed in a Dream."
Content:
On a composite leaf of white wove paper consisting of two sections (8.5 x 9 and
6.5 x 9 cm) pasted together. Both sections are in black ink but, as Bowers notes,
the lower verses were inscribed using a darker, thicker pen; the upper section is
unrevised, but the lower section bears several alterations in the original ink.
Pinholes at top of both sections and in the current center. Whitman numbered the
page 9, in pencil, in the lower-left corner. Originally the sixth section of the
sequence "Live Oak, with
Moss," this poem was revised to form section 32 of "Calamus" in 1860, and in 1867 was
retitled "What Think You I Take My
Pen in Hand?"
Content:
On one leaf of white wove paper (15 x 9.5 cm), in light brown ink, with one
revision in the same ink. Pinholes at top and in center. A blue pencil mark,
possibly the number 4, has been inscribed in the upper right corner. Bowers notes
that the page bears the imprint of a papermaker's lozenge die, perhaps that of
Platner and Smith of Lee, Massachusetts. This poem became section 39 of "Calamus" in 1860; in 1867 Whitman
replaced the third line with a new one and permanently retitled the poem "Sometimes with One I Love."
Content:
On one leaf of white wove paper (15 x 9 cm), in black ink, with revisions in the
same ink and in pencil. Whitman also penciled in the page number 16 in the
lower-left corner. Pinholes in center and at top. This page bears the same
papermaker's mark as 1:3:35. Twelfth in the original sequence "Live Oak, with Moss" (with
ornamental Roman numeral), it became section 42 of "Calamus" in 1860. In 1867 Whitman changed the poem to
an apostrophe, adding the first line "O Boy of the West!" (later removed) and
permanently retitling it "To a
Western Boy."
Content:
On one leaf of pink paper (21.5 x 13 cm), in black ink, with revisions in the same
ink, in pencil, and in fine ink (in that order). Pinholes mostly in center.
Originally titled "To Those Who Will
Understand" and numbered 100 (then 101, then the current ?100 in the
fine pen). This was revised to form section 41 of "Calamus" in 1860 and was permanently retitled "Among the Multitude" in the 1867
Leaves
.
Whitman Archive Title: [O you whom I often and silently come where you are]
Content:
On one leaf of white wove paper (14.5 x 9 cm), in brown-black ink, with revisions
in the same ink. Pinholes mostly at the top, with a few lower down. The tenth
section of the original sequence "Live Oak, with Moss" (with ornamental Roman numeral), this was
reformatted and renumbered but otherwise left unrevised as section 43 of "Calamus" in 1860. In 1867 Whitman
permanently retitled it "O You Whom I
Often and Silently Come."
Content:
One one leaf of lined light blue wove paper (17 x 9.5 cm), in pencil, with one
pencil revision. Only two sets of pinholes, both in center. This was revised to
become section 40 of "Calamus"
in 1860; in 1867 it was retitled "That Shadow, My Likeness."
Whitman Archive Title: To one a century hence, or any number of centuries hence
Content:
On one composite leaf of pink paper formed of two sections (10 x 13 and 11.5 x 13
cm) of the same page cut apart and pasted together in a new order. The poem number
was originally 101 and then changed to 102; this number was deleted and the
current ?101 added in fine pen. Bowers explains that the poem, in two discrete
verse sections and inscribed in black ink (with title), originally occupied one
full side of this leaf. When Whitman wanted to expand the first section without
having to retranscribe the second one, he simply cut the two sections apart,
flipped the first section over (turning it upside-down in the process), pasted the
second section to the lower edge of the verso of the first section, and wrote his
new first section (beginning "Throwing far, throwing over the head/ of death" and
incorporating the original title as verse 3) in the blank space now created above
the second section. The new first section is written and revised in light ink. As
Bradley and Blodgett observe, the words "thirty-eight years old the/ eighty-first
year of The States" indicate that Whitman composed the poem in 1857; these were
revised to read "I, forty years old the Eighty-third Year of The States" in the
1860
Leaves
, in which this poem
constituted section 45 of "Calamus." In 1867 Whitman retitled the poem "Full of Life, Now."
Content:
The verses on the recto, while not published word-for-word until 1897,
seem to represent an early draft of the poem first published as number 13 of the
cluster "Leaves of Grass" in
the 1860
Leaves of Grass
, and
eventually titled "You Felons on
Trial in Courts." Whitman's careful script and verse forms here also
resemble the methods of inscription used for the "Live Oak, with Moss" poems dated to the post-1856,
pre-1860 period. The undeleted notes on the back are titled "Poems". A cartoon hand in the
left margin points to the phrase "religious emotions." Whitman's use of the title
"Calamus Leaves" dates
these notes to the same pre-1860 period as the deleted verses on the recto, since
"Calamus-Leaves" was what
he renamed the cluster "Live Oak,
with Moss" before settling on "Calamus" for the 1860 edition. A section of the notes
below the rest (beginning "spirituality—the unknown,...") is inscribed in verse
form.
