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Sheets.loc.00340xxx.00384My 71st Yearabout 1889poetryhandwritten1 leaf11.5 x 15 cm; Proof sheet of My

My 71st Year was first published in 1889. My 71st Year

Sheets.loc.02503xxx.00384My 71st Yearabout 1889poetryhandwritten1 leaf11.5 x 15 cm; Proof sheet of My

My 71st Year was first published in 1889. My 71st Year

Sheets.loc.02504xxx.00384My 71st Yearabout 1889poetryhandwritten1 leaf11.5 x 15 cm; Proof sheet of My

My 71st Year was first published in 1889. My 71st Year

Sheets.loc.02505xxx.00384My 71st Yearabout 1889poetryhandwritten1 leaf11.5 x 15 cm; Proof sheet of My

My 71st Year was first published in 1889. My 71st Year

"A Backward Glance on My Own Road."

Sheets.loc.00218xxx.00384My 71st Yearabout 1889poetryhandwritten1 leaf18.75 x 20.25 cm; A proof sheet of My

My 71st Year

serviceable present, from Mary & Alys Smith & Mrs S. nice new sheets & pillow and bolster cases for my

Camden NJ Dec. 16 '84 Dear friend Please convey to the Marquis de Leuville my thanks for his beautiful

and the introduction, called "Entre-Nous," begins, "I had therefore better make some apologies for my

328 Mickle Street Camden New Jersey Aug: 21 '84 My dear Sir First begging your pardon & hoping "I dont

the magazine market—or rather have written—a reminiscence of the actors & plays & "the old Bowery" of my

youthful days—the chief figure in it being your father—by far the greatest histrion I have ever seen in my

get things for myself—or I wouldn't trouble you— Won't you allow me to send you an autograph copy of my

in Booth's words, "poor copies of the good portraits that are in some secure, forgotten place among my

appeared uncorrected in the 5 January 1884 issue of the Critic with the title, A Backward Glance on My

combined with two other pieces of journalism (How I Made a Book, Philadelphia Press, 11 July 1886; My

Whitman wrote this note on an offprint of "A Backward Glance on My Own Road."

months but am now better & shall soon be ab't as of late years—I have moved into a little old shanty of my

wistful thoughts" that, "were not I & mine bound here by unseverable ties, . . . could I make America my

Those fellows have one virtue—they always use good paper: and on that I manage to do a good deal of my

My Dearest Friend: Those few words of yours to Herby "tasted good" to us —few, but enough, seeing that

here as by a kind of natural destiny that has to be fulfilled very cheerfully, could I make America my

I say how very highly I prize that last slip you sent me, "A backward glance on my own road"?

"A Backward Glance on My Own Road," The Critic, 4 (5 January 1884), 1–2.

Whitman on December 21, 1883, sent "A Backward Glance on My Own Road" to The North American Review and

Whitman: "Because you have, as it were, given me a ground for the love of men I thank you continually in my

acknowledges Whitman's influence in the following statements: "I find it difficult to imagine what my

'Leaves of Grass' 'filtered and filtered' my blood; but I do not think I ever tried to imitate it or

I do indeed feel proud to have it direct from the Author, & to have my name written in it by himself.

Whitman: "Because you have, as it were, given me a ground for the love of men I thank you continually in my

On February 10 he informed the poet that he was suffering from an "abcess in my neck," and asked for

Dresden My Dear Walt— I write to tell you how things are going now about the translation, &c.

First I translated all I am going to give as well as I could out of my own unassisted resources and handed

over the M.S. manuscript to my colleague.

my preface to the work and Freiligrath's article from the Allg.

My address then will be Glasshouse, Shinrone, Ireland. This indeed is always sure to find me.

his January 16, 1872 letter to Rudolf Schmidt, Whitman wrote that Freiligrath "translates & commends my

It is like a great ship that comes to windward of me & takes the breeze out of the sail of my little

He does not do full justice to Emerson as I hope to show in my essay.

"A Backward Glance on My Own Road," The Critic, 4 (5 January 1884), 1–2.

Whitman: "Because you have, as it were, given me a ground for the love of men I thank you continually in my

my love to a living soul.

I glory in my mutability and my vast receptivity; I glory in having no unalterable opinions.

I glory in my invincible supremacy over prejudice, my superb contempt for custom.

He is the author of all my suffering, but he hath redeemed my soul. (And alas!

Nor am I less thine equal on account of my years.

I could not but warmly respond to that which is actually personal: I do it with my whole heart."

My dear Walt— I got your second letter yesterday, forwarded here from Dresden.

I have mentioned it in my preface.

I sent with my M.S. manuscript a copy of Freiligrath's article, & did all I could to secure a favourable

But I think I can rely on my father's helping me to the extent needed.

He & my mother are greatly delighted with the two grandchildren we have brought them home.

his January 16, 1872 letter to Rudolf Schmidt, Whitman wrote that Freiligrath "translates & commends my

I got too the paper with translation from my essay, for which I owe the editor & translator deep thanks

Bucke about my lecture.

is progressing well, though the necessity of taking pupils which I am under now costs a good deal of my

The essay alluded to is probably Whitman's "A Backward Glance on My Own Road" in the January 5, 1884

328 Mickle Street Camden New Jersey March 27 —I am getting well towards my usual (late year) state of

health —have had a bad time ever since I saw you in Phila —my own illness, confinement to the house

On March 27 Whitman wrote in his Commonplace Book: "Am writing this in my new premises in Mickle Street—slept

Dear Walt Whitman, "That my soul embraces you this hour, and we affect each other without ever seeing

Yes, and how "utterly quelled and defeated" too I have felt to find my strength so much less than my

each one the core of life, namely happiness, is full of the rotten excrement of maggots," and so in my

Leaves of Grass laid on my lightstand, and I opened to "Song of the Universe."

fast the world moves to me when I read such thoughts, and how slow when I carry them with me among my

Minchen is quoting from Whitman's poem "Who Learns My Lesson Complete."

328 Mickle street Camden Evn'g Nov. 18 '84 My dear friends Your kind letter (Eva's) came this afternoon

every day, I don't go any distance—havn't been away this past summer, only one short trip to Cape May —My

before I shall be unable to get around at all——General health otherwise about the same as usual—Eva, my

affairs—not much sale for my books at present, or for the last fifteen months—Harry your Mother call'd

little most every day—sell a piece once in a while—Maintain good spirits and a first-rate appetite—My

from want of love for you, not because I am not always in communion with you:— that I am, & so are all my

friends; there is a fine young fellow, son of Col Brackenbury, lying dead now in my neighbor's house

No: it is not that I do not love you, & do not dwell with you, that I have sent no token of my work.

You will see that I have stamped my two books of Sonnets with the heraldic coat borne by my ancestors

I will send you photos of my house, myself (done by Clifford), & 3 of my daughters.

My Dear Whitman— I return the J. Burroughs Book. & the pamphlet with thanks.

The Burroughs book fed me on my journey home, so that I had to buy no other reading.

I shall cherish the memory of that blessed January 2nd '85 to the end of my days.

I must send you my N. Orleans articles. My Creole article in Lit.

it be the means of my being able to publish it. Dr.

Borrowdale, Cressington Park Sep 29 To Walter Whitman, Esq r Sir, To my only Brother, who for nearly

has been a helpless sufferer in Santiago, I am sending a specially prepared Birthday Book: and it is my

very earnest wish to obtain for insertion in my Book the name of your most honored self.

I trust you will graciously pardon my freedom in asking the favour of your sign-manual on enclosed slip

passed, & that I shall be better in a day or two—I feel so today already—& soon about as usual— No my

I wish dear Alys would take This side the earliest convenient opportunity to give my excuses & love to

very lonesome here—If I had not been born with a happy-tending natural disposition (I inherit it from my

heaviness to me—As it is, the ennuyeed hours have been the rare exceptions— Then about the shows of life & my

strong, with weightiest animality & appetites, or I should go off in a balloon—Well luckily for you my

Now I am out here, and circumstances contrary to my wishes, will keep me here indefinitely.

This is one of my homesick days, and I have been thinking over what there is in the north that I would

When I read I say "Yes, I am she, O you wise poet," and sometimes I think I must put out my hand for

and I am sure that we have gone together down that brown road a great many times; and perhaps it was my

I am very glad my eyes found the message you hid away for me—hid so deeply, though, that I barely found

I break down allmost almost to hysteria at times, from exhaustion but my appetite remains steadfast,

does not; is averse to having our clothes put to laundry; their condition is so bad: beside to keep my

house free from embarressment must beware of debt; for pay day comes at last, and my habitation is a

professional labours and endurance; my devotion—yet so many have imperative needs of their.

George should help us, all he can: Han's friends or relatives are known: and my embarressments embarrassments

Walt Whitman: I came across your, and now my, Leaves of Grass when I was eighteen, that is a year ago

I took it to my mother and "wheedled" her as she says, and got her to give the "leaves" to me.

At the page where you breathed on and pressed your hand, I also pressed my hand and so we have had a

condition of London and I am working hard to get out of it and back to America, where I shall bury my

And you have done my brothers & sisters, the race, good.

(1884) 328 Mickle street Camden Monday 3 pm Nov 10 Thanks my dear friend for the nice chicken—I have

just had a part of it for my dinner—& the honey in the comb just like that is something I like—I had

request of a fine jolly young Englishman who is visiting there for a few days, & told me much about my

considerably better, more able to get around since the cool weather has set in—had rather a bad summer—my

[I approve of your attempt to translate certain of my poems into the German tongue.

Indeed, arrogant as the statement may seem, I had more than my own native land in view when I was composing

I had also in mind, as one of my objects, to send a hearty greeting to these lands in America's name.

endorsement of your friendly enterprise, translating and publishing in Germany, some of the poems of my

It has not been for my own country alone —ambitious as the saying so may seem— that I have composed that

One purpose of my chants is to cordially salute all foreign lands in America's name.

m Dear friends I send the within letter just rec'd from Harry—I am about as usual, & nothing new in my

time—better luck next time—It is heavy and bad outside, the wind blowing a gale—(I should like to put on my

W W London Feb 10—84 Dr Dear Old Friend: Am quite well with the exception of the abcess on my neck, it

Most of my friends appear to have forgotten me or think me of too little importance to drop a line.

Dear Sir— I have tried in vain to obtain a good portrait of my father for you and am reduced to this

not read) containing poor copies of the good portraits that are in some secure, forgotten place among my

traps—stored in garret or cellar of my new house where all things are at sixes and sevens.

Since I first read your poems years ago now they have always had a great influence on my thoughts and

I have found out the truth of your words too from my short experience of life in deed as well as in thought

Your Leaves of Grass I keep with my Shakespeare and my Bible and it is from these three that I have got

Camden Thursday 4 afternoon Thank you for the nice chicken—had some for my dinner—was glad to see Van

& to hear from you all— I am getting over my bad spell of health—but very slowly—& have been depressed

know yet what move I shall make—but shall have to do something in a few days—If it hadn't been for my

just rec'd his postal card from Haddonfield that he would try to come up early next week—I send him my

I send my love specially to Alma and the girls & the new Mrs J— Nothing very new with me—I am ab't as

Portrait —have already outlined & partly prepared it—you shall have it soon — I am writing this up in my

floor all around horribly litter -rary, but a cheery wood fire in the little stove—& I comfortable in my

328 Mickle street Camden New Jersey September 16 1884 My friends Can you use this in the C[ritic]?

& 20 copies of the number—& of course I should want to see proof—(reserving the right to include in my

April 5 th . 28 Terrassen Ufer Dresden My dear Master I have to tell you that the plan of the translations

I have begun working at my translation with a German friend who is fully competent to help & has holidays

I shan't let my own name appear, lest the fact of my being a foreigner might prejudice people against

am pretty much as usual again after quite a long siege—I am here in a little old house I have bought—my

a couple of elderly folks, acquaintances of mine, Mr and Mrs Lay, they live in the house, & I take my

all ever so much better than the Stevens Street business—Am not doing any thing lately, & the sale of my

For my own part, it (the Republican article) made me marvel.

I cannot make my belief square with such a notion. Au revoir .

I am up to my ears in office work, wretchedly unwell, and wish I could be away.

Camden Thursday Evn'g, Nov: 6 My dear friend I should like to come over Saturday, be there about noon—will

the weather good, we may have a (longer or shorter) drive, before supper—will leave the question of my

Dear Walt: Just a line to give you my changed address.

My friends the Fearnehoughs have come with me, and we are employing one or two extra hands beside, just

takes its name; very quaint old wooden wheels and cogs—the stream which feeds it runs at the bottom of my

.], quite 'uneducated' in the ordinary sense... but well-grown and finely built" (Edward Carpenter, My

328 Mickle Street Camden Oct 11 '84 My dear friend Thank you for your kind & warm invitation to write

Walt Whitman I enclose my last screed in the Critic Walt Whitman to Talcott Williams, 11 October 1884

Walt Whitman, Dear Sir:— Since the completion of my late work on "Nests & Eggs of Birds of the U.S.,"

Anything else that you would like to appear, will be given a place, if you will call my attention thereto