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Bucke strengthen my faith in immortality."

"It is indeed," he said, "I know nothing that better satisfies my own feeling, conviction."

He seemed to like my opinions, judgment.

So a good part of my work was to spare him work—to go over the correspondence,—give him the juice, substance

And to Tillman himself: "And you, Tillman—take my love to the ferry boys—tell them I hope to see them

I have not so far been on the boats—but my time is near—my time is near!"

W. said: "Give him my love." A young Unitarian minister from Cambridge preaches in Camden tomorrow.

Whitman:I am very anxious not to leave this country without paying my respects to you, and bearing to

My judgment would, on the whole, the judgment I sent to The Herald, be considered unfavorable."

It more than meets my expectations: its serenity, its seriosity—which stops finely short of ministerial

You go as my representative." "All right. And what shall I say of the picture when I get there?"

I get so sleepy and stupid—come over to the bed, then go back again—and that is about all my day's story

I went straight in and put my hands on the book immediately.

"No, I will go over to my chair—write it immediately. That will get it off our minds."

"Give my love to Frank when you see him"—this the parting shot as I passed out the door.

You have more chapters than me to write still: my last chapter is done."

I expressed my own protest, but he insisted, "Have it your own way, anyhow!"

And to my reply, "We have heard nothing for six weeks," he exclaimed, "You must write her up—find out

Then my good-bye!

My appetite is nearly all gone. I seem to have no wish to eat."

article on "The Whitman-Shakespeare Question," notes on "Good-Bye" from Miss Porter, announcement of my

W. intensely interested in my detail of it all and expressing "entire concurrence with Brinton's attitude

J.Aug. 21st 1891.My dear SirOn Oct 12th (Discovery day falls this year on Sunday) our Pan Republic Congress

My inquiries developed that he was looking for a cork to stop a little bottle on the table.

cologne, but somehow the cork is gone—utterly gone—at least for the present, and I'll have to postpone my

"The scoundrelly cork is here somewhere—but not here to my asking.

I think I inherit from my father a disinclination to throw anything away—I keep every odd and end that

And to my further saying; "It is not everybody who can paint you—" W.

And I am sure neither Gilder nor William Carey, my friends there, would refuse to give some weight to

my words in that connection.

And to my phrase "brutally natural" he said—"I like it said that way: it takes us back to the elements

My note about Trumbull, with a reply from Trumbull, in Open Court. I left paper with W.

He facsimile'ed it for the Review without my knowledge—not asking if I approved, though it was done out

my voice is all nature, pure, true—and whose teacher told her at the very start—do you know, my girl,

B. was always my friend—that his allusions were always kind—that he quoted 'Leaves of Grass' without

Hotel Caranne153, Boulevard Saint-Germain, Paris 11 July, 1891 Reached Paris, exceedingly tired, but my

Send me papers and works: my permanent address is my uncle's, in the country, as follows: M.

The worst thing lately has been the clutch of my old monster—the grip.

And it fatally—almost fatally—affects my hearing.

If I talk myself, or listen to others talk, a while, I seem to lose my hearing utterly."

McKay wondered if W. expected him to publish "Good-Bye My Fancy."

The public has little to do with my acts, deeds, words.

I long ago saw that if I was to do anything at all I must disregard the howling throng—must go my own

W. at once responded, "I like that a good deal—it is exactly my idea—and now I can make myself clear.

follows: While I stand in reverence before the fact of Humanity, the People, I will confess, in writing my

I interposing—"No: you remember I testify in my article that you are sharply determined in all such minute

And that "Lincoln granted it, only said—'But my plan is, to meet each day as it appears—to have no rules

, except the rule to apply my best force to every new circumstance.'"

Then to Harned's for consultation about the meter—to my house for some further Whitman talk—finally to

For one thing I gave him out of it set of proofs of my Lippincott's piece.

: "With the poems I always have a certain sort of conscience that I must not give them out, even to my

I stood before him and read to him from Conservator, first page, my question anent Chadwick's note.

Go with my blessing."

Send her my love—hopes for her. Oh!

W. thereupon fervently, "Them's my sentiments, out and out!

of Emerson,' but just whether to like it or not, I don't make out," saying, "Sidney is on to one of my

I think my memory is getting worse and worse. After a bit it will be a blank!"

"She was a phantom of delight When first she gleamed upon my sight; A lovely apparition, sent To be a

position for the present, I will ask leave to begin these Notes with such hints of the character of my

father and mother and of my own childhood as may at least help "The Fair Pilot of Loch Uribol" one of

my favorite stories WW WALT WHITMAN CAMDEN, NEW JERSEY. 32 Transcribed from our digital image of the

To my knowledge it is understood by Col. Mulford, Major John E.

In my opinion the Secretary has taken and obstinately held a position of cold-blooded policy, (that is

Major General Butler, in my opinion, has also incorporated in the question of exchange a needless amount

In my opinion, the anguish and death of these ten to fifteen thousand American young men, with all the

I enjoyed your letter very much, did I tell you so in my note?

I am better of my cough, which has been very bad, and I shall do well I have no doubt, but I get very

were—he asked if you were coming back &c. & when I told him that I had heard & should write you, he said "My

I wish that you were back here in your old room for my sake, for I miss you & shall.

thousands in the struggle already— Lew, you speak in your letter how you would like to see me—well, my

land & all the items—you say I must excuse you for writing so much foolishness—nothing of the kind—My

have been sun-struck here the last two weeks—I keep shady through the middle of the day lately—Well, my

I have scribbled away any thing, for I wanted to write you to-day & now I must switch off—good by, my

trip with some friends, one of them being the daughter, whom I had known from childhood, of one of my

My wife is greatly interested in you & what concerns you, & bids me not fail to say that she "admires

that her sister, then perhaps barely 17 years of age, seemed more fascinated with your poems, when my

Last month I for the first time in my life faced a public audience (in Birmingham) to deliver a lecture—on

criticism . . . after full retrospect of his works and life, the aforesaid 'odd-kind chiel' remains to my

My first task is to write to you.

sent you myself one copy in loose sheets ( to two of those small parcels) and the editor has during my

My own opinion I wrote you in a letter the last summer. I hope, that you have received it.

With poor Clausen I sent you my picture. If you have not got, then ask it from his widow.

Clausen, who Rudolf Schmidt called "my old friend and countryman," corresponded with Schmidt after he

Copenhagen, August 18, 1875 My dear Walt Whitman.

Society, I pressed him for two years ago (when he had previously sent me some very fine articles for my

But all the striking expressions, all the elaborate work of the thought, is fading away beneath my feather

I am never saying exactly what I would say, and you know, my dear friend, that this is a great pain to

Davis, who retired on my entrance. W. said he had not been well today.

"This is one of my bad days—a cold-in-the-head day. I have not been out at all.

My sister Agnes had sent him down a bunch of flowers. "Good girl! good girl!"

And after my answer: "Oh! the obvious way—the way it is spelled. Well, I don't know!"

I do not think it can be accused of me that I have been ungenerous with respect to my books: on the contrary

Much of my reason for going would be, the weather, my condition, the case of transportation—this probably

It is, in my eyes, a valuable volume—peculiarly valuable, unique,—I might almost call it sweet—for two

"I shall send it—or let you send it—just as comes up as most convenient and easy—fits in with my mood

speeches of Gilder, Hawthorne, Bonsall, Garland, Eyre, and he will examine, suggest, and return to my

Davis had gone and my exclamation: "How beautiful in their own element!"

honey—don't make enough of the other side of the critter—and there is another side, as all you—all my

To my demur, explaining: "I know that is the harsh view—that there is another.

I spoke of having read "Song of the Rolling Earth" aloud in my room—of the delight it gave me.

It is about here somewhere among my trash and would serve well for you to know.

. & I will bring out my book on you sometime, perhaps sooner than we any of us know.

I wrote from London Canada to Frederick Wilson peremptorily ordering him to return my ms to me.Do write

W. then: "That is striking—it is what I am trying to say—why Kennedy's book fails to excite my enthusiasms

Expressed gladness, asked after him: "Give him my love.

—"Not a bit—on the contrary, the closer contact enlarges my appreciation.

I made up my mind from the first that at a time when all literature was sickly with plaints, moan, sillinesses

"Here are my lots—I like these—I'll come out some day and buy half a dozen."

following letter: Your letter to Walt Whitman, which he has shown to me, has raised this question in my

mind, whether my inference be true, that you will expunge the paragraph or paragraphs referred to rather

evening—from Baltimore sooner than expected.W. still reading the Lincoln matter, saying, "I adhere to my

W. said, "My young man here is good—none could be better.

No, no, they may not want it, of course—that is one of my risks.

But the words he puts into my mouth, the so-called actual phrase, touch—oh! they are very funny.

been at a meter meeting—all the principal stockholders present—got home about 6 P.M. and found it on my

I cannot understand you leaving it out—to my mind it is an admirable piece—most valuable.

The springs break forth like the table there—like my head—like my leg—like my arm—all sizes and forms

"I suppose it is good—it is reputed good, but I can't take it, which people say is my fault not the fault

No other method would accomplish my purpose.'" I asked W., "Do you think he was right?"

Gave me a copy of Black and White for my father.

It is one of the despairs of my life—to listen, to lose! I shall never recover from the disaster!

a loose story—if it have wit, if it pass for a good purpose—illustrate, illumine—but otherwise all my

my dear mother!" What a touch that, in indirection and tone!

In this connection called my attention to the following in today's Press: "Chief Brown, of Pittsburg's

It did my eyes good to see her again. She seemed to bring the whole past back with her."

And in fact it has long been one of my cherished thoughts."

And she assured me I could have everything my own way with them."

A great many of my things here used to disappear that way."

And he gave me some of the slip reprints of my Post piece of 1st (reprinted on four-page leaflet).

SONG OF THE ANSWERER. 1 NOW list to my morning's romanza, I tell the signs of the Answerer, To the cities

And I stand before the young man face to face, and take his right hand in my left hand and his left hand

in my right hand, And I answer for his brother and for men, and I answer for him that answers for all

landscape, people, animals, The profound earth and its attributes and the unquiet ocean, (so tell I my

to the President at his levee, And he says Good-day my brother, to Cudge that hoes in the sugar-field

Farewell my brethren, Farewell O earth and sky, farewell ye neighboring waters, My time has ended, my

heard not, As the wood-spirits came from their haunts of a thousand years to join the refrain, But in my

many a summer sun, And the white snows and night and the wild winds; O the great patient rugged joys, my

SONG OF THE ANSWERER. 1 NOW list to my morning's romanza, I tell the signs of the Answerer, To the cities

And I stand before the young man face to face, and take his right hand in my left hand and his left hand

in my right hand, And I answer for his brother and for men, and I answer for him that answers for all

landscape, people, animals, The profound earth and its attributes and the unquiet ocean, (so tell I my

to the President at his levee, And he says Good-day my brother, to Cudge that hoes in the sugar-field

Farewell my brethren, Farewell O earth and sky, farewell ye neighboring waters, My time has ended, my

heard not, As the wood-spirits came from their haunts of a thousand years to join the refrain, But in my

many a summer sun, And the white snows and night and the wild winds; O the great patient rugged joys, my

My morning report this morning (and for the last 8 days has been the same) was I—Capt, 2 Sergts 2 Corpls

I suppose the draft must be through with in New York & Brooklyn by this time, I wonder how many of my

another fine Stroke for our side, and Gillmore to at Charleston seems to be getting along well, but its my

I suppose Walt thinks strange of my not writing to him, but as you send my letters around, writing to

Today, finishing my 70th year, the fancy comes for celebrating it by a special, complete final utterance

And for testimony to all (and good measure), I here with pen and ink append my name.

He read it at once, putting on his glasses and saying when done, in answer to my question, "Yes—it is

But W. himself said: "My sight, like my hearing, is gradually going: I feel it from time to time markedly

Then he continued—"I freely give my consent to the use of the Gutekunst portrait if you care to use that

Yet, such are the drains of the heat on my small treasure of strength, that the vim I had (Lord knows

I have had the book a couple of years (Gabriel sent it to me himself: he is my personal friend) but have

in the matter you can't hit a landlord too often, Irish or American, and if you hit and don't hear my

Put the photo for the frontispiece in my hands: "I leave it all to you fellows to do right with: if you

of my own make."

Sometimes I think I eat too much—am not cautious enough—though caution is one of my strong points, too

At my mention of Bucke, "Dear, dear Doctor!" And of Ingersoll, "Dear, dear Ingersoll, too!"

Would he object to my giving copy of his Bolton letter to Kennedy for the Transcript?

The old ferry has been a part of my life, not to be wiped out but with life itself."

W.: "Easier—not at my worst." Warrie: "How does the cough—eased up?" W.: "Kind 'o—" (Pause.

Then after a pause, "I gave him a copy of my big book—gave away three copies, in fact—one to each of

And as for my own? No, never!

In fact, I am not a demonstrable being, even to my intimate friends.

And to my "yes" he added, "Then you have said truth.

Give her my love, anyway." Saturday, November 7, 1891

every word, several times," he said, and added, "If I wrote on the subject at all, that would be about my

After a little my mother came in.

"I know you, my dear, don't I? Haven't I known you somewhere?"

At the table W. said, "I think champagne and oysters were made for me: that they are prima facie in my

our coast" than have America "make any stand for military tradition," adding explanatorily, "It is my

49 Comeragh RoadWest Kensington, London W.16 Aug. '91Yesterday came to my hands your card of 2d inst.

My visit here has been a great success—I have been well received and treated on all hands, I shall feel

richer for it for the rest of my life.Keep good heart, dear Walt, till I get back—but in any case be

I shd. have acknowledged yr wedding card & offered my congratulations, wh.

"Yes, my own, too. But we must take care, not to offend against him.

.— The old house in which my father's grand parents lived, (and their parents probably before them, )

—Some of them are yet represented by descendants in New England My father's grandfather was quite a large

—My father's father I never saw.— Mother's family lived only two or three miles from West Hills—on a

—Her mother 's (my great grandmother's) maiden name was Mary Woolley, and her father Capt: Williams,

the lampblack and oil with which the canvass covering of the stage was painted, would make me.— After my

NOW LIST TO MY MORNING'S ROMANZA. 1 Now list to my morning's romanza—I tell the signs of the Answerer

And I stand before the young man face to face, and take his right hand in my left hand, and his left

hand in my right hand, And I answer for his brother, and for men, and I an- swer answer for him that

landscape, people, animals, The profound earth and its attributes, and the unquiet ocean, (so tell I my

to the President at his levee, And he says, Good-day, my brother!

aweful awful scene and I do not want to witness another for I must say I never was so frightened in my

when he flew at me again and said he did not mean to hurt me but now he Be D_ if he would'nt knock my

Jeff would do a rash act any quicker than I or you would he is naturrally naturally so good and kind my

back achued ached two or three days and it made Jeff very angry I do not have Jess up in my room any

have so much trouble she feels it more now than ever before but I can never consent to have him in my

impending death as but one of his soul's many incarnations and promotions: "I receive now again of my

many translations, from my avataras ascending, while others doubtless await me" ("So Long!").

especially profound or "real" form of experience which develops or "identifies" his soul: "O the joy of my

My soul vibrated back to me from them . . .

The real life of my senses and flesh transcending my senses and flesh" ("Song of Joys").This sense of

I loafe and invite my soul, I lean and loafe at my ease observing a spear of summer grass.

My tongue, every atom of my blood, form'd from this soil, this air.

My special word to thee. Hear me illustrious!

woodedge, thy touching-distant beams enough, or man matured, or young or old, as now to thee I launch my

lengthening shadows, prepare my starry nights.

well fortified does he think himself in his cobweb Gibraltar, that he blandly imagines the force of my

passionate, well-wishing, which I felt then, and feel to this hour, the gratitude and reverence of my

And my arriere and citadel positions—such as I have indicated in my June North American Review memorandum—were

as a statement “of all that could be said against that part (and a main part) in the construction of my

On the contrary, without waiting to understand what he has read, he talks about my letter to you being

He "at last understands better" my very "frequent association of" his own name "with Tolstoy's."

Yesterday was my birthday.

"I would as lief regret that I had not murdered my mother."

To-dayToday he turned up a Gardner letter which he brought to my notice before I left.

My dear Whitman,I received this morning from an old friend (Mr.

W. again: "Stedman thinks I should be happy to have my Lincoln poem classed with Lowell's ode.

W. said as to that: "Many of my friends have agreed with you, Doctor, about that.

I don't have much bother with my conscience. But books—well, books make a coward of me."

My dear friend—It is just dawn, but there is light enough to write by, and the birds in their old sweet

My first knowledge of you is all entangled with that little garden.