Sunday forenoon June 9 '89
Lou, I rec'd the aspargus, strawberries &c, by Charley—have had some of the
a[sparagus] for my breakfast—very good—thanks.
I w'd like you to put a strong middling deep pocket (one at least either on the right
or left side) with a button at top—I am so in the habit of carrying things in
my pocket—(no hurry at all for the gown)1—
Am a little "under the weather" yesterday & to-day but will pass over—Judge
Garrison yesterday bo't twelve books (6 L of G. & 6 Nov. B2) & paid the
money.3 To-day quiet & warm & dull here
muchly—I am sitting up in the 2d story room alone—door & windows
open—Did you or George4 get my little poem5 in N Y World Friday mn'g last, or
Camden Courier same evn'g?—If not I will send you one—
W W
Correspondent:
Louisa Orr Haslam Whitman (1842–1892), called
"Loo" or "Lou," married Whitman's brother George Whitman on April 14, 1871. Their
son, Walter Orr Whitman, was born in 1875 but died the following year. A second
son was stillborn. Whitman lived in Camden, New Jersey, with George and Louisa from
1873 until 1884, when George and Louisa moved to a farm outside of Camden and
Whitman decided to stay in the city. Louisa and Whitman had a warm relationship
during the poet's final decades. For more, see Karen Wolfe, "Whitman, Louisa Orr Haslam (Mrs. George) (1842–1892)," Walt Whitman: An Encyclopedia, ed. J.R. LeMaster and
Donald D. Kummings (New York: Garland Publishing, 1998).
Notes
- 1. Whitman noted that Louisa
"bro't my new blue gown" on June 11, 1889 (The
Commonplace-Book, Charles E. Feinberg Collection of the Papers of Walt
Whitman, 1839–1919, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.). [back]
- 2. Whitman's November Boughs was published in October 1888 by Philadelphia
publisher David McKay. For more information on the book, see James E. Barcus
Jr., "November Boughs [1888]," Walt Whitman: An
Encyclopedia, ed. J.R. LeMaster and Donald D. Kummings (New York:
Garland Publishing, 1998). [back]
- 3. Judge Charles G. Garrison
had been a speaker at the birthday celebration (Camden's
Compliment to Walt Whitman [Philadelphia: David McKay, 1889],
34–36); he paid $19.50 for the volumes (The
Commonplace-Book, Charles E. Feinberg Collection of the Papers of Walt
Whitman, 1839–1919, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.). [back]
- 4. George Washington Whitman (1829–1901) was the
sixth child of Louisa Van Velsor Whitman and ten years Walt Whitman's junior.
George enlisted in 1861 and remained on active duty until the end of the Civil
War. He was wounded in the First Battle of Fredericksburg (December 1862) and
was taken prisoner during the Battle of Poplar Grove (September 1864). As a
Civil War correspondent, Walt wrote warmly about George's service, such as in
"Our Brooklyn Boys in the War" (January 5,
1863); "A Brooklyn Soldier, and a Noble One"
(January 19, 1865); "Return of a Brooklyn Veteran"
(March 12, 1865); and "Our Veterans Mustering Out"
(August 5, 1865). After the war, George returned to Brooklyn and began building
houses on speculation, with partner Mr. Smith and later a mason named French.
George also took a position as inspector of pipes in Brooklyn and Camden. Walt
and George lived together for over a decade in Camden, but when Walt decided not
to move with George and his wife Louisa in 1884, a rift occurred that was
ultimately not mended before Walt's 1892 death. For more information on George
Washington Whitman, see Martin G. Murray, "Whitman, George Washington," Walt Whitman: An
Encyclopedia, ed. J.R. LeMaster and Donald D. Kummings (New York:
Garland Publishing, 1998). [back]
- 5. Whitman is referring to his poem,
"A Voice from Death," which was published in the New
York World on June 7, 1889, and, seemingly, in the Camden Courier on the same day. [back]