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These Splendid Nights!

About This Item

  • Title: These Splendid Nights!
  • Date: 17 July 1857
  • Creator(s): Walt Whitman
  • Whitman Archive ID: per.01034
  • Source: Brooklyn Daily Times, 17 July 1857: 2. Our transcription is based on a digital image of a microfilm scan of the original issue. Microfilm of original issue held at Pennsylvania State University Libraries. For a description of the editorial rationale behind our treatment of the journalism, see our statement of editorial policy.
  • Editorial note: This piece is unsigned, as was the case for most of Whitman's journalism. However, this editorial is part of a series of texts that deal with a coherent theme that has been identified by the Whitman Archive journalism team as likely authored by Whitman. This decision is based on a combination of historical and (auto)biographical accounts, similarity to contemporary Whitman writings, a history of scholarly attribution, extant clippings retained by Whitman, computational stylometric analysis, and, in some cases, manuscript evidence in Whitman’s hand.
  • Contributors to digital file: Kaylen Michaelis Kevin McMullen Cassandra Jannel Simms Stefan Schöberlein Karie Cobb
  • Cite this page: Whitman, Walt. "These Splendid Nights!." The Walt Whitman Archive. Gen. ed. Matt Cohen, Ed Folsom, & Kenneth M. Price. Accessed 16 July 2024. <http://www.whitmanarchive.org>.
  • Source File: per.01034.xml (TEI)
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THESE SPLENDID NIGHTS!

We have very fine days now, hot as they are;—indeed the farmers (and consequently other people) could not be favored with any thing better. Their crops, corn, oats, potatoes, &c., could not be more promising; and never have they had such times for cutting, curing, and getting in the hay.

But we “took our pen in hand” to speak of the nights—these splendid nights! Every afternoon, toward sundown, the heat subsides, and a gentle and coolish breeze sets in. You can walk out toward the suburbs, or cross the river, or even promenade the flagged sidewalks, with unwonted comfort. Or, if you prefer, you can take a bath in the river. Then sleep is such a pleasure, these nights! You leave your window open—there are no mosquitoes—Yes, you can slumber royally these nights.

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