 | Leaves of grass. |  |
24.
LIFT me close to your face till I whisper,
What you are holding is in reality no book, nor part
of a book,
It is a man, flushed and full-blooded—it is I—So
long!
We must separate—Here! take from my lips this
kiss,
Whoever you are, I give it especially to you;
So long—and I hope we shall meet again.
What you are holding is in reality no book, nor part
of a book,
It is a man, flushed and full-blooded—it is I—So
long!
We must separate—Here! take from my lips this
kiss,
Whoever you are, I give it especially to you;
So long—and I hope we shall meet again.
243
1. O TAKE my hand, Walt Whitman!
Such gliding wonders! Such sights and sounds!
Such joined unended links, each hooked to the next!
Each answering all—each sharing the earth with all.
Such gliding wonders! Such sights and sounds!
Such joined unended links, each hooked to the next!
Each answering all—each sharing the earth with all.
2. What widens within you, Walt Whitman?
What waves and soils exuding?
What climes? What persons and lands are here?
Who are the infants? Some playing, some slum-
bering?
Who are the girls? Who are the married women?
Who are the three old men going slowly with their
arms about each others' necks?
What rivers are these? What forests and fruits are
these?
What are the mountains called that rise so high in
the mists?
What myriads of dwellings are they, filled with
dwellers?
What waves and soils exuding?
What climes? What persons and lands are here?
Who are the infants? Some playing, some slum-
bering?
Who are the girls? Who are the married women?
Who are the three old men going slowly with their
arms about each others' necks?
What rivers are these? What forests and fruits are
these?
What are the mountains called that rise so high in
the mists?
What myriads of dwellings are they, filled with
dwellers?
3. Within me latitude widens, longitude lengthens,
Asia, Africa, Europe, are to the east—America is
provided for in the west,
Asia, Africa, Europe, are to the east—America is
provided for in the west,
244
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