Walt Whitman's Correspondence with
Whitelaw Reid, Editor of the New York Tribune
by
Edwin Haviland Miller
Among the papers recently deposited by the Reid family in the
Library of Congress are eleven unpublished letters of Walt Whitman
to Whitelaw Reid, who, as editor of the New York Tribune
from 1872 to 1905, frequently published the writings of the poet.
These letters are significant for two reasons: they establish first
printed appearances of some of Whitman's prose and poetry, and they
also demonstrate that the poet was not quite accurate when he
averred that he had difficulty publishing his works in the United
States.[1] Despite reservations about
Whitman's artistic stature, the New York Tribune encouraged
him by printing many of his self-styled "gossipy" letters and a
lengthy review of his 1876 author's editions of Two Rivulets
and Leaves of Grass; in addition, in its "Personals" the
newspaper gave Whitman a great deal of publicity by printing, among
other items, his own press releases.
Reid's friendship with Whitman began when the poet "came to
Washington as a nurse in the Army Hospitals." Reid adds: "No one
could fail then to admire his zeal and devotion, and I am afraid
that at first my regard was for his character rather than his
poetry. It was not till long after 'The Leaves of Grass' period
that his great verses on the death of Lincoln conquered me
completely."[2] However, in the first
extant letter to Reid, the editor did not hesitate to reject a
Whitman contribution.
431 Stevens st.
cor West. Camden, N. Jersey
Dec 5. [1874]
[3]
My dear Reid,
Hasn't this got vim enough—from your point of view, even as
editor of the paper —to make you print it in the
Tribune?
I am still tediously invalided here—but have not at all given
up the hope of getting out of the woods, & doing some work
yet.
When you come to Philadelphia, try to come over & see
me.
The next note to Reid is of importance, for it establishes that
Whitman reviewed his 1876 books in the Tribune on
February
19, 1876 (p. 4, cols. 3-5), under the heading, "Walt Whitman's
Poems. | Extracts from 'Two Rivulets.'"
private
Calculated to make from 2 1/3d to 2 2/3d. columns, in the
ordinary nonpareil, (or minion is it?) you use for reading
matter.
If convenient, when in type, send me a (revised) proof, which I
will return by next mail.
Walt Whitman
431 Stevens st.
Camden,
N. Jersey.
[8 Feb. 1876.]
Whitman's review begins: "Herewith are presented, in advance of
their publication, sufficiently copious extracts from Walt
Whitman's new volume of poems, 'Two Rivulets,' to give a fair and
pretty full summary of it. The book is an intertwining of the
author's characteristic verse, alternated throughout with prose;
and hence the name." In the article, Whitman, with considerable
journalistic skill, excerpts significant passages from Two
Rivulets. First he quotes from the Preface two paragraphs (pp.
5-6)[4] which explain his purpose in
this miscellaneous collection of prose and poetry. Then he reprints
his title poem "Two Rivulets" (p. 15) and the second poem "Or from
that Sea of Time" (p. 16).[5] Next
appear two more paragraphs from the Preface (pp. 12-13), with the
deletion of a quotation from his poem "Eidólons" (pp. 17-20),
which he reprints in entirety in the newspaper. Without comment he
reprints a prose
section entitled "Thoughts for the Centennial" (pp. 16-17),
probably because of the topical interest in the Centennial
exposition in Philadelphia later in the year. Then, abruptly
returning to the biographical, he includes the first stanza of "Out
from Behind this Mask" (p. 24). Once again rapidly changing subject
matter, but always alternating prose and poetry, Whitman includes
a prose section on "Freedom" (pp. 31-32), the poem "To a Locomotive
in Winter" (pp. 25-26), and the prose "New Poetry —Prose Grander
than Verse" (pp. 28-30, here entitled "New Poetry").
At this point in his review Whitman introduces descriptive
material concerning his volume which the ordinary critic probably
would have placed at the beginning:
The volume, in its 350 pages, comprises, besides the "Two
Rivulets," from which the foregoing extracts are taken, the prose
essay, "Democratic Vistas," and the poetical pieces already
published under the name of "Passage to India." Quite a large part
of the book is occupied with Whitman's "Memoranda During the War,"
in the army hospitals, or down at the front, being given verbatim
from the original notes of the time, "blotch'd here and there with
more than one blood stain, hurriedly written, sometimes at the
clinique, not seldom amid the excitement of uncertainty or defeat
or of action, or of getting ready for it, or a march." He says, as
he introduces these little note-book mementoes of the war. . . .
Thereupon he quotes three paragraphs from "Memoranda during the
War" (pp. 4-5). Then, turning to his 1876 edition of
Leaves of
Grass, Whitman writes: "We also add a few hitherto unpublished
forthcoming pieces from 'Leaves of Grass.' On the new title page of
the volume appears the following verse, signed by Whitman's
autograph. . . ." He reprints "Come, said my Soul" from the
titlepage, "After an Interval" (p. 369), "When the Full-Grown Poet
Came" (p. 359), and "The Beauty of the Ship" (p. 247).
[6] He concludes his article by quoting
again from
Two Rivulets: "A Song by the Potomac," which
is
called "By Broad Potomac's Shore" (p. 16) in the printed book, and
"Ship of Democracy," which is the third section of "As a Strong
Bird on Pinions Free" (p. 3), also the title of part four of
Two
Rivulets.
The works quoted in Whitman's article mark first appearances in
print which, I believe, have not been previously noted.
The third letter to Reid refers to the publication of Whitman's
"A Death-Sonnet for Custer" (later entitled "From Far Dakota's
Cañons"), in the Tribune on July 10, 1876.[7]
431 Stevens st.
Camden N Jersey
July 18 '76
My dear Reid,
The cheque has reached me $10, as pay for the little
poem—Thanks—I enclose a a for the
"Personals,"—if thought
proper.
The "Personal," which appeared on July 19 (p. 4, col. 5), is
another unnoted Whitman item:
The burial of little Walter Whitman, an infant year-old nephew
of the poet, occurred a day or two since at Camden, N. J. It was
very simple, without sermon or ceremony. In the middle of the room,
in its white coffin, lay the dead babe, strewed with a profusion of
fresh geranium leaves and some tuberoses. All the young ones of the
neighborhood, by groups or couples or singly, kept coming
noiselessly in, surrounding the coffin. Near the corpse, in a great
chair, sat Walt Whitman, enveloped by children, holding one
encircled by either arm, and a beautiful little girl on his lap.
The little one looked curiously at the spectacle of death and then
inquiringly in the old man's face. "You don't know what it is, do
you, my dear?" said he, adding,
"We don't either." Many of the children surrounding the coffin were
mere babes, and had to be lifted up to take a look.
The willingness of the
Tribune to print this flattering
account of the poet—by the poet—is a tribute to its sense of
fairness. For earlier in this year Robert Buchanan, the English
poet and admirer of Whitman, created a veritable international
incident in which this newspaper vehemently took sides—against
Whitman.
[8]
On March 28, the London correspondent of the
Tribune,
in
a first-page article on "Anglo-American Topics," devoted two
lengthy paragraphs to Buchanan's impassioned, but not very
accurate, assertion, in the London Daily News of March 13,
that Whitman was impoverished by the refusal of American editors to
accept his poetry. The skepticism of the reporter—"Save me from
my friends—or from one of them—must be Mr. Walt
Whitman's cry
when he gets this week's mails from London"—is also apparent in
a long editorial in the same issue of the newspaper, "In Re Walt
Whitman." On March 30 an editorial note again assails Buchanan for
the recklessness of his charges and maintains, somewhat
gratuitously, that Whitman's position in the Attorney General's
Office "supported a family of four persons, before he received it;
he held the place several years, and if he failed to accumulate any
surplus during that time, the cause thereof was certainly not
'persecution.'"[9] Another hostile editorial
appeared on April 12, "American vs. English Criticism," in
which the author evaluates Whitman's poetry and, while
acknowledging the power of his verse, laments the absence of
discipline and restraint.
Whitman's American friends soon rushed to his defense. On April
13, the Tribune printed a letter from John Burroughs, "Walt
Whitman's Poetry" (p. 6, col. 1),[10]
although the newspaper evidently withheld this letter, dated March
30,
until after the appearance of the third editorial on the preceding
day. Then a letter from William D. O'Connor, one of Whitman's most
fervid admirers, was printed on April 22, "Walt Whitman. Is He
Persecuted?" (p. 8, cols. 1-3). In answer to this extravagant, and
garrulous, encomium appeared an editorial, on the same day,
entitled "Intellectual Convexity." In May the
Tribune
returned to its former policy of treating Whitman objectively.
Perhaps Whitelaw Reid himself restored the balance after Bayard
Taylor,
[11] evidently the author of
the editorials referred to above, had run roughshod over the poet.
At any rate, after the storm caused by Buchanan, the newspaper
continued to reprint Whitman's contributions and to give him good
publicity, as evidenced in the letter of July 18 reproduced
above.
[12]
The next letter, although undated, can be assigned to 1878
through the reference to "A Poet's Recreation," a "gossipy" letter
printed in the Tribune on July 4, 1878 (p. 2, cols.
1-2).[13]
431 Stevens street
Camden New Jersey
July 12 [1878]
My dear Reid
I forward you same mail with this the little "Passage to India"
we spoke of, with the "Captain" bit in.[14]
If convenient have the pay for my letter of July 4 in
Tribune ($20) sent me here.
—I am well, for me—All the better for my pleasant N
Y
jaunt.
The following three letters deal with the publication of
"Gathering the Corn," a previously unnoted signed article which
appeared in the newspaper on October 24, 1878 (p. 5, cols.
4-5).[15]
431 Stevens Street
Camden New Jersey
Sept 21 [1878]
My dear Reid,
Won't the herewith do for an editorial these days?
The price is $10—
Walt Whitman
I am keeping quite well & hearty yet for me—
431 Stevens Street
Camden New Jersey
Sept 30 [1878]
My dear Reid
Yes—put my name to the piece, if you like it better that
way—But I think you had first better send the M S back to me,
&
let me fix it up for an October article
431 Stevens Street
Camden New Jersey
Nov 27 [1878]
My dear Reid
If convenient please send me the pay for the Gathering the
Corn article ($10) published Oct: 24
—All goes about as usual with me—
On April 15, 1879, the Tribune carried a two-column
report of Whitman's Lincoln address—"A Poet on the Platform" (p.
2, cols. 3-4). The first paragraph of the "news report,"
The poet Walt Whitman made his beginning as a lecturer last
night at Steck Hall, in Fourteenth-st. His subject was the death of
President Lincoln. He reads from notes, sitting in a chair, as he
is still much disabled from paralysis. He desires engagements as a
reader of his own poems and as a lecturer. The following was last
night's discourse. . . .
draws upon a letter sent to Reid the preceding day:
Monday afternoon
April 14 [1879]
1309 Fifth av: near 86th st
My dear Reid—
As you might possibly have room in the paper—& a full
report
might hit—I send you a complete copy of my lecture,
to
take the chances for to-morows paper—(As I calculate,
it
would make about three quarters of a column of small type)—
—My plan is to break the tedium of my half invalidism from
time to time (& also collect a few shekals) by getting
engagements as a lecturer & reader,—& this is an attempt
to
break the ice.
The next two letters refer to three of Whitman's "gossipy"
articles which appeared in the Tribune in May, 1879.
1309 Fifth av. near 86th st
Thursday afternoon May 8 [1879]
My Dear Reid
Can you use this for Saturday's paper? (Will make a
column & a third or half about)—
—If put in type please have me the proof (which I will return
forthwith) sent to-morrow afternoon anytime before 7 o'clock to
above address—
1309 Fifth av: near 86th street
Monday noon May 12 [1879]
My dear Reid
If you put this in type perhaps you could send me a proof
to-morrow Tuesday afternoon say by 2, (if convenient order
it so, specifically)
—It will make, I think, from 1½ to 1¾
columns—Can
you use it in Wednesday's paper?
—I have another screed—Central Park
jottings,
&c—which I think of offering you for Saturday's
paper—I
return to Camden in a few days—
The first "Letter to the Editor," on May 10 (p. 2, cols, 1-2),
is entitled "Broadway Revisited. | Letter from Walt Whitman. |
Sights and Sounds in the Metropolis— Broad-|way, from the
Battery—The Old Park | Theatre—John Jacob Astor—
The Old
Omni-|bus Drivers." The second letter appeared on May 17 (p. 2,
cols. 3-4): "Real Summer Openings. | Letter from Walt Whitman. |
Jaunting Up the Hudson—The Ulster County |
Region—Spring Sights
amid Hills and Rocks | —The Birds; Bees; Turf-Fires—Shows
on |
the River—Vassar and Manresa—Walter | Dumont and his
Medal."[17] The
"screed—Central
Park jottings, &c" was called "These May Afternoons" when
it
came out in the May 24 issue (p. 2, cols. 3-4).[18] (The first two letters have not been
recorded in the Whitman canon.)
The next letter is interesting because it reveals a promotional
scheme which, if successful, would have been a profitable venture
for the poet. However, Reid evidently was not enthusiastic about
the project, for the material does not appear in the
Tribune.
London Ontario Canada
June 17 '80
My dear Reid
Herewith find a letter for the paper. The price is $12—If used
it must be printed in the paper of Tuesday, June 22 (or
afterward) The letter is sent in the same
manner as this
to several other papers in Canada & The
States—(no
two papers in same city)—one each
in Boston,
Phila: Cincinnati, Denver, &c—on the same
condition—
this
condition being a point of honor—It is sent to
no other
but you in New York
Walt Whitman
I am well for me—& having a good time—fine
country, many
fine people here— I go all about leisurely but
this will
be my headquarters & p. o. address all summer
[19]
The last extant letter to Reid confirms what any one examining
the publicity Whitman received in the Tribune, particularly
in 1876, suspected: the poet frequently supplied Reid with press
clippings from Philadelphia and Camden newspapers. In this letter,
at the top of the page, Whitman has scrawled: "? Under Bits of
Criticism in Sunday Tribune." Then he supplies the
headline: "A defence of Walt Whitman From the Philadelphia Press."
There follows a clipping from the Press concerning the
Boston censorship of the Osgood edition of Leaves of Grass.
So far as I can discover, this excerpt did not appear in the
Tribune. Significantly, presumably in the hand of Whitelaw
Reid, we find at the bottom of the letter the words "not
answered."
Camden
May 23 [1882]
My dear Reid
Couldn't you feel to print the above say for instance in the
Bits of Criticism in next Sunday's
Tribune?
Thus Whitman's relations with the New York Tribune
in the 1870's and the early 1880's were not only cordial, despite the
brief hostility during the Buchanan incident, but also
remunerative. As we can see from references to payments, Reid was
not miserly in his treatment of the poet, and, with the exception
of two articles, he freely opened to Whitman the pages of one of
the most influential newspapers of the era. Such was Reid's
interest that he permitted the poet to act as his own publicity
agent. That Whitman's contributions were not always of the highest
caliber is probably in part the responsibility of the
Tribune, which preferred, according to Henry James,
"'newsy' and gossipy" reminiscences to more substantial fare.[20]
Notes