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Camden1—
Dec: 1 '91
No final settlement of the tomb2 bill question3—no
books last ed'n L of G4 yet f'm binder, but expect them every day—Sunny cold
weather—very bad physical cond'n night & day—still eat my meals
(tolerably lightly)—get a new book (sh'd say $1.25) Modern Authors, by
Arthur Lynch,5 pub'd London Ward & Downey 12 York St. Covent
Garden6 H.T.7 well
Walt Whitman
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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 postal card is
addressed: Dr Bucke | Asylum | London | Ontario Canada. It is postmarked:
Camden, N J. | Dec 1 | 6 PM | 91; London | PM | DE 3 | 91 | Canada. [back]
- 2. Whitman was buried in
Harleigh Cemetery in Camden, New Jersey, on March 30, 1892, four days after his
death, in an elaborate granite tomb that he designed. Reinhalter and Company of
Philadelphia built the tomb, at a cost of $4,000. Whitman covered a portion
of these costs with money that his Boston friends had raised so that the poet
could purchase a summer cottage; the remaining balance was paid by Whitman's
literary executor, Thomas Harned. For more information on the cemetery and
Whitman's tomb, see See Geoffrey M. Still, "Harleigh Cemetery" Walt Whitman: An
Encyclopedia, ed. J.R. LeMaster and Donald D. Kummings (New York:
Garland Publishing, 1998). [back]
- 3. See Whitman's letters to
Bucke of November 12–14, 1891 and November 22, 1891, for more on the payment
arrangements for the tomb. [back]
- 4. 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. [back]
- 5. Arthur Alfred Lynch
(1861–1934) was an Irish Australian journalist, author, civil engineer,
and physician. He served as a member of Parliament in the United Kingdom House
of Commons in 1901 and 1902. He later practiced medicine in London, and he wrote
a number of books on a variety of subjects. [back]
- 6. Whitman is referring to
Lynch's Modern Authors: A Review and a Forecast (1891).
In this book, Lynch claims that Whitman's "Emotional Calibre is second to none"
(41–44), that he was "not cultured enough" but had
an "eminently virile mind" (85–87), that he "is a new Columbus"
(123–127) and a moral poet (171–172). He concludes: "The great
pioneer is a vital Ausgangspunkt" (188). Lynch is quoted briefly in In Re Walt Whitman (Philadelphia: David McKay, 1893), ed.
Horace L. Traubel, Richard Maurice Bucke, and Thomas B. Harned, 148. [back]
- 7. Horace L. Traubel (1858–1919)
was an American essayist, poet, and magazine publisher. He is best remembered as
the literary executor, biographer, and self-fashioned "spirit child" of Walt
Whitman. During the late 1880s and until Whitman's death in 1892, Traubel visited
the poet virtually every day and took thorough notes of their conversations,
which he later transcribed and published in three large volumes entitled With Walt Whitman in Camden (1906, 1908, & 1914).
After his death, Traubel left behind enough manuscripts for six more volumes of
the series, the final two of which were published in 1996. For more on Traubel,
see Ed Folsom, "Traubel, Horace L. [1858–1919]," Walt
Whitman: An Encyclopedia, ed. J.R. LeMaster and Donald D. Kummings (New
York: Garland Publishing, 1998). [back]