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easier to-day—have eaten a bit of breakfast for the first time in many days—A long cold snow-storm here—My

Herbert was hurt: "You make no allusion to my Book or my little confidences thereon!

In the letter of November 9 he observed: "I am so sorry that I have finished my labour of love, the doing

I am sitting in the old chair in my Mickle st. den writing this—fine weather— Walt Whitman Walt Whitman

Whitman occasionally referred to Stafford as "My (adopted) son" (as in a December 13, 1876, letter to

Kirkwood (Glendale) New Jersey U S America Oct October 10 Have come back all right from my Canadian trip

me—I am only middling well, but go about—rheumatism not yet subdued—threatens to partially disable my

English or transatlantic "free will offering"—a proposed affectionate and voluntary gift to me from my

(My publisher David McKay, of Philadelphia, has just been over to pay the last half-annual royalty on

being the income to me from the sale of my books for the last six months.)

rations fairly, write a little, and shall quite certainly soon resume my usual state of health, late

Give my love to Wm M. Rossetti and to all enquiring friends, known or unknown.

interview with the poet from the Cleveland Leader and Herald on June 28, in which Whitman was quoted: "My

income is just sufficient to keep my head above water—and what more can a poet ask?"

431 Stevens Street Camden New Jersey Feb: 20 '81 My dear Mr Longfellow A friend in Canada—to whom I am

that as the sentence, on that comparatively mild 7th count, was a cruel & heavy one—& that, waiving my

is at its height and bitter cold here now, the earth hard and covered with ice and snow, as I sit by my

God bless my British friends assisters—(from the first they have come in when most wanted)— Walt Whitman

Pall Mall Gazette devoted a great deal of space to Whitman in 1887: January 10, excerpts from "My Book

My price is $60—same reservation as before & same obligation on my part — The following are responsible

I thought I would just drop you a line for yourself—but no doubt you keep fully posted about me by my

letters to Pete, as I am willing you or any of my particular friends who wish to, should read them.

afternoon—altogether they make up a show that I can richly spend a month in enjoying—for a change from my

Thompson, conductor, you would say I sent him my love, & have not forgot him.

I wish you to tell John Towers, conductor, I sent him my love, & we will see each other again one of

Camden New Jersey U S America April 29 '78 Dear Sir In answer to yours of 14th—I send by mail postpaid my

I remember I sent you on the 29th of April last some circulars, slips, price-advertisements &c. of my

I have to-day today forwarded by mail, to same address as this card, my Two Vols.

Camden N J Sept: September 12 My dear friend I just write to tell you that I have heard of your dear

father's death, & that you have my true sympathy—Love to Arthur and Emily & all—It is no time now to

November 9, 1881 I send you my new book (it is due you, you know) same mail with this. . .

you, & sister & father, & have you located —All sorrowful, solemn, yet soothing thoughts come up in my

mind at reminiscences of my dear friend, your dear mother —have often thought of you all, since '73

mine—I know him well — I have just returned from Boston, where I have been the past week—went on to read my

under the benumbing influences of paralysis, but thankful to be as well as I am—still board here (make my

head quarters here) with my brother & his wife—Eddy, my brother, is living & well, he is now boarding

advance— I am still living here & comfortable & in good spirits enough but probably near the end of my

here—still just holding on—sometimes (perhaps a quarter of the time) tolerably fair—the rest, by the skin of my

My new edition 2 Vols Volumes is out & bound, & pictured & autographed .

Sept: 9 '81 Dear Harry I keep about the same in health—am & have been very busy with the printing of my

here—have a good room & boarding house, the landlady is first rate & kind [to] me, (as often happens I find my

heart—you know the verse of the old song "A light heart & thin pair of breeches Goes through the world my

Howe, Captain Milton Haxtun, or Ed Dallin.

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

once or twice, you find it is nothing to be afraid of— I have been busy all the forenoon fixing one of my

Y New York paper, the Critic —they give me $10 a piece for them, & want several more—I make use of my

time this reaches you—It is now noon & I must get out a bit —I went out & took a short stroll, but my

Street Camden Tuesday Aug August 7 Dear Comrade & Dear Son Your letter came this morning, & as I think my

Good bye for a couple of days, my own loving boy.

want you to tell (above every one) your mother and father I have written to you & that I send them my

York Saturday July 6 p m Dear son I supposed you rec'd a paper from me lately with an acc't of some of my

this forenoon to Sarony's, the great photographic establishment, where I was invited to come & sit for my

picture—had a real pleasant time—I will bring you on one of the pictures— My darling boy, I want to

Bethel had confessed to poisoning the Bishops—I will finish my letter & send it off to-morrow— Sunday

10th street,) is a fine, good bright child, not very rugged, but gets along very well—I take him in my

Glendale a longish letter wh' I want you to have, as it is meant as much for you —I have finished all my

Well, Hank, my Boston tramp, lecture, &c. turned out far ahead of what I had any idea of—it was not a

& callers all the time—So, boy, you see how your uncle was set up —& yet I am going to speak to all my

Y. papers —(will send you the Critic of the latter city next Monday or Tuesday with my piece in)— Havn't

of poetry by a boy 13 years old, in Pennsylvania, he sent it to me with a nice letter —Well, Hank, my

in good spirits—love to you & God bless you—I am sorry enough to hear your mother is unwell—Susan, my

The poet sent "My Picture-Gallery" to Balch on October 8, 1880, for which he received $5, and which appeared

a visit to very kind Quaker folks, particular friends of mine —had a good time—good grub—a horse to my

I am well as usual—nothing very new with my affairs (but the last six or eight months has kind of gone

with him" &c &c— Aleck , the ferry man thought, was her husband)— I am selling quite a good many of my

Then upon going to look where I had my bound books boxed & stored away, up in the garret at Mr.

—the missing letter not there—I am convinced it came to Haddonfield— 2.40 afternoon I have just had my

dinner & am up here in my third story room finishing this—it is a bright sunny day here, after the three

days' storm—I have been alone all day, but busy & contented—my room is just right for all the year except

spell I must write to you—I don't have any such spells—& seems to me it is time you grew out of them—my

write you something cheerful—I have been in all day—quite a deep snow & the wind blowing—I here in my

round—over the ferry & up Market street, Phila Philadelphia , & stop occasionally at 23 south 9th st. where my

Now that my two books, prose and the poems, are out, I hardly know what to strike for—what to look forward

republished in Scotland & L. of G. is being translated in Germany — Tuesday night 10½— I am finishing my

letter—Never mind, Harry, dear—we'll make it all right when we meet—I have just written to your mother—Well my

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

great ship Minnesota , (big enough for a thousand people)—it was all very enjoyable—the officers all my

last letter in Tribune you will see a ¶ about the , my first visit) I got a letter from my sister yesterday

be having royal times there—Beatrice G[ilchrist] is here—she called on me here—Hank, you speak about my

you— let them read this letter if they care to —I shall probably be back last of next week—come up, my

things very easy—am as well as usual—(have some sort o' bad spells, still)—am all tann'd & red—wear my

am always glad to get any letters from you dear boy)—Harry, you certainly know well enough you have my

it all—I go back to the times at Timber Creek beginning most five years ago, & the banks & spring, & my

should not be a living man to-day —I think & remember deeply these things & they comfort me— & you my

—Of the occasional ridiculous little storms & squalls of the past I have quite discarded them from my

you will too—the other recollections overtop them altogether, & occupy the only permanent place in my

silent thoughts of God, & death—& not at all in what he says , nor in Sunday or prayer meeting gas —My

I hope it is healing all right & will be no more trouble—Nothing new or special with me—Sold one of my

great fool —don't you know every 'cute fellow secretly knows that about himself—I do)—God bless you my

I returned to-day from a three days visit to my Quaker friends at Germantown—they have tip top horses

—Sometimes I think you must be sick— —I am about as usual—I am writing this after 9 at night up in my

Still keep the sick chair & sick room—(now going into the sixth month)—The big book , (my whole works

Dear Hank I am here seeing to the setting up & stereotyping of my book in a big printing office, (Rand

I sent—they will give you some acc't account of two or three little happenings in my jaunt—I was down

on Long Island at the spot where I was born & where I had spent my summers in youth from time to time—went

fine very old trees)—I am now writing this in Osgood's place in Boston (they are the publishers of my

—I wish you to give my love to your father & mother—Debbie & Jo Ed, Mont, & Van—Ruth & little George—

old way—am pretty well, so far this winter—(they say I am fatter & more red-faced than ever)—I spent my

boys are all curious to know about you—all wish you luck, sincerely—Well good bye for the present, my

sassier this winter so far than for some years, am very comfortable here, plain & quiet though—eat my

any book particular you want, you tell me, & I will try to get it—Lots of sleighs out, good sleighing—my

had dinner, hot soup, cold roast beef, apple pie—all good—the sun is out real warm, & I shall go at my

should just like to have a ten mile ride behind his nag with the sleigh bells—Dear boy, I send you my

shopping & at the groceries—Mr Carpenter has gone upstairs to write some letters—& I am sitting here in my

son, how I wish you could come in now, even if but for an hour & take off your coat, & sit down on my

thing about the same with us—was over to Camden yesterday afternoon—Mrs Gilchrist went over too, & my

brother took her out on a good drive about the country—My sister was up & in good spirits —Herbert &

C —I shall be down Friday in the 6 o'clock train—I want to see the creek again—& I want to see you, my

thing to say — I have been staying alone here in the house, as the folks have gone off on summer trip—My

sister is at the White Mountains—I take my meals at Mrs Wroth's 319 Stevens—I like it—An old lady I

Sunday Jan 13 [1884] 1½ p m I am going out to a small dinner party of friends, & am sitting here in my

dinner—the shoemaker has been over for his pitcher of cider—and there I hear Ruth calling me to come to my

dinner—so I must bid good bye to you for the present, & God bless you, my darling son— W W I think of

& fixing the ground , more & more & more—& now that the seed is dropt dropped in it sprouts quickly—my

own feeling ab't about my book is that it makes (tries to make) every fellow see himself , & see that

real, & are mostly within reach of all—you chew on this— Hank, I am still feeling under the weather—My

Camden Sunday Sept: 10 Dear Harry Thanks for your good letter—I have had my hands full the last six or

eight weeks getting my new book in shape, seeing to every thing, and watching the proofs day & night

job two or three times a year)—I have had the mighty good luck to keep well this summer all through—my

letter a lady opposite is singing & playing the hymn "Nearer my god to Thee"—how beautiful it sounds

— Love to you my darling young brother W.W.— Walt Whitman to Harry Stafford, 10 September [1882]

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

rascally publisher in New York named Worthington has been printing and selling a cheaper edition of my

, as to be sued—then it cost money— —I am jogging along here about the same—keep pretty well, & eat my

allowance every time—went over to 41st st: Phila: Philadelphia to eat my Thanksgiving dinner, with an

there the good weather middle of November—it has been bad enough since, some bitter cold—I have got my

In Forman's letter of September 8, 1891, he sent "about 15 dollars" for "'Good bye, my Fancy!'

Whitman's book Good-Bye My Fancy (1891) was his last miscellany, and it included both poetry and short

Thirty-one poems from the book were later printed as "Good-Bye my Fancy" in Leaves of Grass (1891–1892

For more information see, Donald Barlow Stauffer, "'Good-Bye my Fancy' (Second Annex) (1891)," Walt Whitman

sixty-five poems that had originally appeared in November Boughs (1888); while the second, "Good-Bye my

Camden New Jersey U S America May 22 1890 My dear Forman Y'r good letter with the £5 has reached me,

temporarily—is well—shall probably get out this fine afternoon in wheel-chair —have kind attention—I send you my