Richard Maurice Bucke to Walt Whitman, 20–22 August 1890 a machine readable transcription Richard Maurice Bucke Kenneth M. Price Ed Folsom Transcription and encoding Blake Bronson-Bartlett Ian Faith Breanna Himschoot Stephanie Blalock Center for Digital Research in the Humanities, University of Nebraska-Lincoln University of Iowa National Historical Publications and Records Commission 2020 The Walt Whitman Archive
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 loc.07357 Richard Maurice Bucke Richard Maurice Bucke to Walt Whitman, 20–22 August 1890 August 20–22, 1890 MSS18630, Box 5, Reel 3 http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/ms004014.mss18630.00098 The Charles E. Feinberg Collection of the Papers of Walt Whitman, 1839–1919, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. Richard Maurice Bucke Walt Whitman final check, corrected Second check, added notes First check, corrected Transcribed and encoded Superintendent's Office. ASYLUM FOR THE INSANE LONDON, ONTARIO London, Ont., 20 Aug 1890

I wrote the date as above on 20th and have not had a moment since in which to write the letter

It is now 22 Aug.

And in the first place I may say that I received by mail from England nearly a week ago J.A. Symonds' "Essays: Speculative & Suggestive," that I have, of course, found time to read "Democratic Art," and that I am greatly disappointed. It, to my mind, comes far short of what such a man ought to have written on such a subject. The singular thing to me is that he does not seem to understand the least what you are driving at, what you are there for. He speaks for instance of "Walt Whitman whose whole life has been employed in attempting to lay foundations for a new national literature."

Is it not extraordinary that he should not see through and behind this (perfectly true as far as it goes) phase of the matter?

How strange too (to cite a small but significant point) that he does not know that the "Poetry of the Future" is included in "Sp. Days & Collect"?

The whole article is "flat, stale and unprofitable"—a saw dust chewing business–dealing with the hull, the shell, the superfices, never for one time, one flash of insight penetrating to the heart of the business. Too bad, too bad.

I have your note of 18th, Have not seen the "Rejoinder" you mention. Will you not send it? Or do you mean the reply to the Woodberry shirt sleeve lie? I have that & Kennedy's letter. I hope you will find Symonds' letter & send it, am particularly anxious to read it now and compare it with his "Democratic Art" (it may be he has purposely kept to the outside, the form in "D. A." All well here and going well—only too much work

Love always R M Bucke