Walt Whitman - Builder For America (Paperback)

WALT WHITMAN BUILDER FOR AMERICA WAIT WHITMAN Guilder for America By BABETTE DEUTSCH ILLUSTRATED BY RAFAELLO BUSONI NEW YORK . Julian Messnerj Inc. FOR ADAM expecting the main things from him CONTENTS 1. STARTING FROM PAUMANOK 3 2. DROPPED IN THE STREET 11 3-A FONT OF TYPE 23 4. A POPULOUS CITY 37 5. FULL OF LIFE NOW 52 6. STRONGER LESSONS 68 7. DRUM-TAPS 83 8. THE WOUND DRESSER 93 9. QUICKSAND YEARS 108 10. AFTER THE DAZZLE 125 11. so LONG 142 A SELECTION FROM THE POEMS OF WALT WHITMAN 161 SUGGESTED READINGS 265 BIBLIOGRAPHY 269 INDEX 275 As a young woman I came upon these words of Walt Whitman Go, dear friend, if need be give up all else, and com mence to-day to inure yourself to pluck, reality, self-esteem, definiteness, elevatedness, Rest not till you rivet and publish yourself of your own Personality. These lines stirred me so that I started reading Whitman from cover to cover, and have done so over and over again for more than fifty years, finding in him courage to stand for my own truth, my personality, and all that I hold dear in life. It is therefore for me a profound satisfaction that this remarkable biography of him has won my award. JULIA ELLSWORTH FORD. WALT WHITMAN BUILDER FOR AMERICA America because you build for mankind I build for you, well-beloved stone-cutters, I lead them who plan with decision and science, Lead the present with friendly hand toward the future. 1. STARTING FROM PAUMANOK WALT WAS the son of a carpenter-But his adventures began on a farm, within sound and smell of the sea. His grandmother Van Velsor was a sea-captains daughter. Walt liked to hear her tell the story of Old Salt Kossabone, his great-great-grandfather, who 3