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Camden1
Dec: 10 '91
Yr's of 8th2 has just come & I see you have rec'd
the paper copy complete L of G3—Shall
send you another as I expect some to-day or to-morrow with
heavier paper covers—the regular forthcoming
cloth b'd ed'n will be in new
green & stamp—(more
satisfactory)—As now I consider it as
finished as I propose &
laid out—even its deficiencies are provided for, or plainly
hinted at—to me its best points are its unmistakable
atmosphere and with my maturity
or stamina or the like its being in process
(or evolution) qualities f'm first to last.
I continue
in rather a lamentable condition4 day & night—(rather
easier at this moment in my room all day, sitting in big chair or
lying on bed)—unmitigated belly ache fulness & soreness,
& continued trouble &
smartness & burning bladder & urethra—Dr
L5 comes—have had the bladder
wash'd out twice—moderate breakfast of buckwheat cakes
& coffee—fine sunny cold weather—have (temporarily
at any rate) stopped massages6—am too sore & aching—retain
fair spirits
God bless you
Walt Whitman
Mr. Buxton Forman,7
of the General Post-office, London,
has been accredited to the postal administrations at
Paris and Rome for the purpose of negotiating for a
revision of the existing arrangement for the transport of
Indian mails through France and Italy.
Dom Pedro,8 ex-Emperor of Brazil, is (Reuter's9 Paris
correspondent says) confined to his room by a chill.
Manchester Guardian10
Dec: 2 '9111
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Correspondent:
Richard Maurice Bucke (1837–1902) was a
Canadian physician and psychiatrist who grew close to Whitman after reading Leaves of Grass in 1867 (and later memorizing it) and
meeting the poet in Camden a decade later. Even before meeting Whitman, Bucke
claimed in 1872 that a reading of Leaves of Grass led him
to experience "cosmic consciousness" and an overwhelming sense of epiphany.
Bucke became the poet's first biographer with Walt
Whitman (Philadelphia: David McKay, 1883), and he later served as one
of his medical advisors and literary executors. For more on the relationship of
Bucke and Whitman, see Howard Nelson, "Bucke, Richard Maurice," Walt Whitman: An
Encyclopedia, ed. J.R. LeMaster and Donald D. Kummings (New York:
Garland Publishing, 1998).
Notes
- 1. This letter is addressed: Dr
Bucke | Asylum | London | Ontario | Canada. It is postmarked: CAMDEN, N.J. | DEC [illegible] | 8 PM | [illegible]; PHILADELPHIA | DEC | 10 |
9[illegible] PM | 91 | TRANSIT |
LONDON | DE
12 | 91 | CANADA. [back]
- 2. See Bucke's letter to
Whitman of December 8, 1891. [back]
- 3. Whitman wanted to have a
copy of the final Leaves of Grass before his death, and
he also wanted to be able to present copies to his friends. A version of the
1891–1892 Leaves of Grass, often referred to as the
"deathbed edition," was bound in December of 1891 so that Whitman could give the
volume to friends at Christmas. The following year, the 1891–1892 Leaves of Grass was published by Phildelphia publisher
David McKay. This volume reprints, with minor revisions, the 1881 text from the
plates of Boston publisher James R. Osgood. Whitman also includes his two
annexes in the book. The first annex consisted of a long prefatory essay
entitled "A Backward Glance O'er Travel'd Roads" and sixty-five poems; while the
second, "Good-Bye my Fancy," was a collection of thirty-one short poems taken
from the gathering of prose and poetry published under that title by McKay in
1891. For more information on this volume of Leaves, see
R.W. French, "Leaves of Grass, 1891–1892 edition,"
Walt Whitman: An Encyclopedia, ed. J.R. LeMaster and
Donald D. Kummings (New York: Garland Publishing, 1998). [back]
- 4. Whitman's condition would
continue to worsen during the month of December 1891. On December 17, Whitman
came down with a chill and was suffering from congestion in his right lung.
Although the poet's condition did improve in January 1892, he would never
recover. He was confined to his bed, and his physicians, Dr. Daniel Longaker of
Philadelphia and Dr. Alexander McAlister of Camden, provided care during his
final illness. Whitman died on March 26, 1892. [back]
- 5. Daniel Longaker
(1858–1949) was a Philadelphia physician who specialized in obstetrics. He
became Whitman's doctor in early 1891 and provided treatment during the poet's
final illness. For more information, see Carol J. Singley, "Longaker, Dr. Daniel [1858–1949]," Walt
Whitman: An Encyclopedia, ed. J.R.LeMaster and Donald D. Kummings (New
York: Garland Publishing, 1998). [back]
- 6. Whitman's nurse at the time,
Warren Fritizinger, regularly gave the poet massages. [back]
- 7. Henry Buxton Forman (1842–1917), also known as
Harry Buxton Forman, was most notably the biographer and editor of Percy Shelley
and John Keats. On February 21, 1872, Buxton sent
a copy of R. H. Horne's The Great Peace-Maker: A Sub-marine
Dialogue (London, 1872) to Whitman. This poetic account of the laying
of the Atlantic cable has a foreword written by Forman. After his death,
Forman's reputation declined primarily because, in 1934, booksellers Graham
Pollard and John Carter published An Enquiry into the Nature
of Certain Nineteenth Century Pamphlets, which exposed Forman as a
forger of many first "private" editions of poetry. [back]
- 8. In November 1889, Pedro II
(1825–1891), emperor of Brazil, was overthrown by a military coup. The
country became The Republic of the United States of
Brazil, with a general serving as its first President. [back]
- 9. Reuters news agency was
established in London in 1851 by the German entrepreneur Paul Julius Reuter
(1816–1899). The agency originally covered business and financial news for
banks and brokerage firms. With the advent and increase of both overland and
undersea cables, the news agency expanded to South America and the Far East, and
was soon transmitting telegraphic messages to London newspapers. Reuters
continues today as an international news organization owned by the Thompson
Reuters Corporation. It is considered one of the largest news agencies in the
world. [back]
- 10. In 1821, John Edward Taylor
(1791–1844), a cotton merchant, founded The Manchester
Guardian. It began as a weekly, but later became a daily newspaper. The
paper attained international fame under the editorship of Charles Prestwich ("C.
P.") Scott (1846–1932), who served as editor for fifty-seven years,
beginning in 1872, and was the paper's owner from 1907 until his death. In 1959,
the paper's name was changed to simply The Guardian, and
publication continues under that name. [back]
- 11. Whitman has written the
source information for the enclosed newspaper article in pencil at the bottom of
the newspaper clipping, as follows: "Manchester Guardian Dec. 2 '91." [back]