Life & Letters

Correspondence

About this Item

Title: Walt Whitman to Edward D. Bellows, 20 November 1877

Date: November 20, 1877

Whitman Archive ID: yal.00370

Source: Yale Collection of American Literature, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library. Transcribed from digital images or a microfilm reproduction of the original item. For a description of the editorial rationale behind our treatment of the correspondence, see our statement of editorial policy.

Notes for this letter were created by Whitman Archive staff and/or were derived from Walt Whitman, The Correspondence, ed. Edwin Haviland Miller, 6 vols. (New York: New York University Press, 1961–1977), and supplemented or updated by Whitman Archive staff.

Contributors to digital file: Alicia Bones, Anthony Dreesen, Eder Jaramillo, Kevin McMullen, and Nicole Gray



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431 Stevens Street
Camden New Jersey1
Nov 20/77

Dear Sir2

I rec'd the letter with the money—& yesterday I sent you by Adams' express, paid, to same address as this letter a set of my books Leaves of Grass and Two Rivulets with John Burroughs's Notes—Should like to have you notify me if they reach you safely—I can lend you a copy of Mr O'Connor's pamphlet Good Gray Poet, which you can have for a month, if you wish & then return by mail to me—or if you want rather to purchase a copy I will get you one at the store of rare books in Philadelphia where they sell it at $1 a copy—


Walt Whitman3


Notes:

1. The envelope for this letter bears the address: Edward D. Bellows | 356 Fifth Street | bet Monmouth & Brunswick sts | Jersey City | N J. It is postmarked: Camden | Nov | 20 | N.J. [back]

2. Whitman sent advertising circulars to Edward D. Bellows on November 13, after which Bellows sent an order for books on November 15, 1877, and on November 18, Whitman forwarded the two-volume edition and John Burroughs' book Notes on Walt Whitman (The Commonplace Book, Charles E. Feinberg Collection of the Papers of Walt Whitman, 1839–1919, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.). [back]

3. On the back of this letter is a pencil drawing that looks like a page layout. Bits of pasted-on newspaper clippings are attached to the backs of both letter and envelope. [back]


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