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Camden N J—
Jan: 14 18891
Received from Thomas Donaldson2 Ten Dollars for
books—
Walt Whitman
Dear TD
I am here imprison'd yet in my sick room—don't get any thing that can be call'd
a set back (yet)—but physical weakness & disability remain fully the same
as ever, & I can't get out, or even around the house—take no
medicine—am free from any pronounc'd pain &c—Best love to you &
all—
W W
What has become of Clayton Peirson3 the young fellow that came over to see me
sixteen or eighteen months ago?
I have a copy of my big 900 Vol. "Complete Poems & Prose"4 (plain bound) for
you—& I think Ed Wilkins5 will bring it over to you
ab't noon to-morrow Tuesday
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Correspondent:
Thomas Donaldson
(1843–1898) was a lawyer from Philadelphia and a friend of Whitman. He
introduced Whitman to Bram Stoker and later accompanied Stoker when he visited
the poet; he also organized a fund-raising drive to buy Whitman a horse and
carriage. He authored a biography of Whitman titled Walt
Whitman, the Man (1896). For more information about Donaldson, see
Steven Schroeder, "Donaldson, Thomas (1843–1898)," Walt Whitman:
An Encyclopedia, ed. J.R. LeMaster and Donald D. Kummings (New York:
Garland Publishing, 1998).
Notes
- 1. This letter is addressed:
Thomas Donaldson | 326 N 40th Street | Philadelphia. It is postmarked: Ca[illegible] | Jan 14 | 8 PM | 89. The
envelope is printed with Whitman's address as follows: Walt Whitman, | Camden, |
New Jersey. [back]
- 2. Thomas Donaldson (1843–1898)
was a Philadelphia attorney whom Whitman met in 1882. Donaldson helped to
facilitate meetings between Whitman and Bram Stoker in the 1880s, and raised
money for the purchase of a horse and buggy for Whitman in 1885. He also wrote a
biography of Whitman titled Walt Whitman: The Man (New
York: Francis P. Harper, 1896). For more about Whitman's relationship with
Donaldson, see Steven Schroeder, "Donaldson, Thomas (1843–1898)," in Walt Whitman: An Encyclopedia (New York: Garland
Publishing, 1998), 185. [back]
- 3. According to an entry in
The Commonplace-Book on March 25, 1887, Clayton
Wesley Peirson took Walt Whitman's "'Day Book' to be re-bound—(is to make
me a new one also)." At the beginning of his last "Day Book," the poet noted:
"CWP is located (July 24 '90) at 3819 Lancaster av: Phila—real estate
office." (The Commonplace-Book, Charles E. Feinberg
Collection of the Papers of Walt Whitman, 1839–1919, Library of Congress,
Washington, D.C.). [back]
- 4. Whitman's Complete Poems & Prose (1888)included a profile photo of the poet
on the title page. The nearly 900-page book was published in December 1888. For
more information on the book, see Ed Folsom, Whitman Making Books/Books Making Whitman: A Catalog and
Commentary (University of Iowa: Obermann Center for Advanced Studies, 2005). [back]
- 5. Edward "Ned" Wilkins
(1865–1936) was one of Whitman's nurses during his Camden years; he was
sent to Camden from London, Ontario, by Dr. Richard M. Bucke, and he began
caring for Whitman on November 5, 1888. He stayed for a year before returning to
Canada to attend the Ontario Veterinary School. Wilkins graduated on March 24,
1893, and then he returned to the United States to commence his practice in
Alexandria, Indiana. For more information, see Bert A. Thompson, "Edward
Wilkins: Male Nurse to Walt Whitman," Walt Whitman Review
15 (September 1969), 194–195. [back]