Feinberg/Whitman Box 7 Folder 8 General Correspondence Butts, Asa K. Feb. 1874 - Sept. 1876 & undated (DCN 192) Includes verso letter from D.S. Croly, Jan.19, 1874To Camden, Feb. 4 '74 A.K. Butts 36 Dey at N.Y. [There are positively] Beyond O'Kane's [those] copies of Leaves of Grass (200 or about) and the copies (27 was it?) of the '67 edition you got of Shephard, four or five weeks ago -- [there] [and] with the [if any,] remaining copies (if any) of the 25 sent by my order two months since to Piper & Co. -- there are positively, no other copies [in the] in existence & of course none in the market. There are no other copies [such as you in Washington none] in N.Y. -- none in Boston -- none in Washington -- whatever you were "told" [in America There are a few copies] none any where in America. I made & exclusively own the plates & of course [?] [?] A hundred copies were sent by me to England about a year & a half ago. But these have certainly been mostly sold. [If you] What I told you in our interview upon that subject you must remember & I can fully depend on & acted on [There are] I have somewhere between 300 & 350 of [the] my little book of later poems "As a Strong Bird on Pinions free" [in the present] bound & ready. I should like to furnish you withNo. 45. HALF RATE MESSAGES. The Western Union Telegraph Company will receive messages for all stations in the United States East of the Mississippi River, to be sent during the night at ONE HALF THE USUAL RATES, on condition that the Company shall not be liable to errors or delay in the transmission or delivery, or for non-delivery of such messages, from whatever cause occurring, and shall only be bound in such case to return the amount paid by the tender. No claim for refunding will be allowed, unless presented in writing within twenty days. O.H. PALMER, Secretary WILLIAM ORTON, President 187 Send the following Message to the above terns, which are agreed to. To [*order on Piper enclosed*] Should be willing, guaranteeing the just mentioned to make over the whole [nun balk to] of the copies L of G and every thing to you on liberal terms, one half cash down the remainder in three months -- with a [written] guarantee that no new edition of L of G. or any of these books shall be [printed] put out for at least six months. If you care to have the sole & exclusive command of [L of G] [what are] all my books in existence take this offer. I am sick & paralysed -- a tedious prospect still before me -- & [I] should be glad to have the [it] [edition] books off my hands. About Piper's debt take this note & collect it when you go to Boston. The one I furnished you with is for a wrong am't. Destroy [them] it. Please get the books from O'Kane soon convenient & send me receipt specifying number also receipt for those of ed '67150 25 750 300 37.50A.K. Butts & co. 36 Dey st. N.Y. have had & have to acc't to me for. 27 Leaves of Grass Mr. Butts got ed. 1867 from Lee Shephard & Dill 49 Greene st 9 Drum Taps as per letter Dec 26 '73 from Mr. Butts got from O'Kane Feb. 3 '74 168 Leaves of Grass 86 Democratic Vistas ?94 As a Strong Bird 42 Notes on W.W. as Poet & Person 18 Passage to India 2 After all not to create only see his letter Feb. 4 '74If not called for in ten days, return to The Wakefield Earth Closet Co. 34 Dey Street, New York Mr Walt Whitman Camden NJThe Wakefield Earth-Closet Co Advertising Department ASA K. Butts, Manager New York Sept 27 1876 I have been too hard at work in trying to pay other debts & support my large family to attend to this before. Now I wish to go into the book business again & I wish to get through with C.P.S. & all the debts he left unpaid. If I can do this without bankruptcy Ill be glad- But I weary you- I don't wish to wait for you to come to N.Y. I want proceedings begun at once. Please let me hear promptly & oblige your Asa K ButtsThe Wakefield Earth-Closet Co. Advertising Department ASA K BUTTS Manager New York Sept 29 1876 Dear Sir Yours of the 25th came duly. I hope there will be an effort made by the creditors to push C.P.A. to the extremity of the law. That he obtained your goods & service under false pretenses is perfectly certain to my mind I had placed confidence in him notwithstanding warnings from some friends who didn't like his looks & even up to last Nov an Dec. I put confidence in him & did every possible thing to help him. Im sure of those months for example (I cant remember to a day) I offered to pay at least $100 in payment of your claims in cash if he would let me have some property which he has no earthly use for viz some books which had once been in my private library a $150.00 book case which had been in my library The Wakefield Earth-Closet Co. Advertising Department, ASA K. BUTTS, Manager, New York, Sept 27 1876 5 or 6 years before I thought of going into book business. He had much more shelving than he could use without it. In fact had more lying away entirely unused - I urged that it was his intent to pay you entire & secure your new book then announcement. cc &c To make a long story short I used every inducement to make him pay the debts but he either shuffled, evaded or refused to do any thing. I bo't one of the claims under his solemn promise to give me $25-. towards it on a certain day in Dec. He utterly refused to let me have any more or even books which were mine under exemption laws had I elected to call them so. Since then I have not spoken to him or he to me. One of the creditors is now prosecuting him. I paying lawyers fees. His defense is a lie.The Wakefield Earth-Closet Co. Advertising Department 3 Asa K. Butts, Manager New York Sept 27 1876 I wish I could see you to give you all the points. However [s???g] to a form of the contract you have an advantage over the other creditors. In one place he binds himself to pay you $200.00 (just what was due Dec 1st '74) In another place he binds himself to carry out all my contracts with you among other authors &c. This last is quite unconditional. The first with others debts were to be paid in fair proportion vs the [(debts not paid)] goods were sold. Now do you know some able lawyer here in whom you have confidence who would make fees in accordance with times & my (& your) purses! If so let me see him give him the points & pay enough to begin operations. I will work, as I have done for 3 or 4 years, day & night & Sunday, to get justice out of thisThe Wakefield Earth-Closet Co. 4 Advertising Department, Asa K. Butts, Manager. New York, ___________187 fellow for myself & my creditors. Your case is in the best hope of seeing of any them & it is one advantage that you should not have been paid promptly as he most solemnly & repeatedly promise me you should be. He represented that he had several sources from which was quite beyond any contingency -- (If you have had better acquaintance here) Perhaps the attorney of the suit (Donely & Co's [?????]) above named would do. I never have been till 5 or 6 weeks since but am very well impressed. He is a man of some note about your age & quite moderate so far in his changes. Perhaps you can learn otherwise of his reliability. The name is H. F. Pultz, 67 William st However select any of [?] & I'll pay the gelt to test the thing whether he can be made to pay up if it is not too much-(Postmark) New York Sep 23 1:30 PM Mr Walt Whitman Camden NJOffice of Wakefield Earth Closet Co., 34 Dey Street, New York, Sept 23d, 1876 I would like to know how much of our indebtedness to you Dec. 1st '74 has since been paid by C.P. Somerby who assumed the whole indebtedness an early reply will oblige Asa K. Butts[*see notes Jan 1st 1889*] To A.K. Butts, Camden Feb. 8, '74 O'Kane has undoubtedly sent you all the copies of my books remaining in his possession -- he [had] received [from] originally (April 28 '73 from Doolady.) 239 Leaves of Grass 100 As a Strong Bird 92 Democratic Vistas, 45 Notes by John Burroughs &c. And since then he has delivered about 30 Leaves of of Grass to my order -- leaving 30 or 40 more to be accounted for as sales &c. [which is] so that, as just said, he [had] has unquestionably retained none in his possession. As said in my note, you now, with the exception of about 350 copies of As A Strong Bird, which are at my printer in N.Y. , & which I [will] can send you an order for:) you now have all my books in the market. (The [last] edition you have L. of G. any [can] consisted of 500 copies when issued over a year & a half ago.) Will write you again [within] early this week went of your yesterdays letter, offer, &c.The Daily Graphic January 19, 1874 Walt Whitman: We enclose the proof of your second article; but would much prefer that you should get the copy strait the first time. Such very heavy corrections in proof cause great embarrassment and expense in a newspaper office. We are quite willing to give proof for verbal corrections; but we do not like to reset and readjust so largely. So please have a care to fix your copy correctly before sending it in. Yours very truly, DG Croly[*7347*] 1874 Feb. 8 WHITMAN TO A. K. BUTTS, bookseller; from Camden. A.L. draft (1p. 25 x 20 1/2 cm.) Walt Whitman had arranged to have O'Kane, his previous agent, send all remaining copies of books, to A. K. Butts: "You now (with the exception of about 350 copies of As A strong Bird . . . ) you now have all my books on the market . . ." On verso, cancelled letter written to D. S. Croly of The Daily Graphic (1p.) Jan. 19, 1874 to Walt Whitman telling him that he is enclosing proof of an article by Walt Whitman for correction: "but would much prefer that you should get the copy strait the first time. Such very heavy corrections in proof cause great embarrassment [sic] and expense in a newspaper office .. ." Both, draft of letter to Butts, and letter to Walt Whitman by Croly, were discussed and reprinted in With Walt Whitman in C., v. 3, p. 560-61. {192}1873-88 WHITMAN TO JOHN BURROUGHS. Two A.LS.S., two A. post cards s. (Various sizes) 1873 Apr. 30 From Washington 9 (A.L.S. with envelope 2p. 25 1/2 x 20 cm.) Reporting on his bad health and regretting not to be able to see Burroughs and "Sula" more often: "Those nice breakfasts were bright spots and I shall not forget them--As I sit I look over from my office window on the President's grounds--the grass is green enough . . . I have a big bunch of lilacs in a pitcher in my room."Bottom part of A.L.s. to Asa K. Butts & Co. [*163*] Re As a Strong Bird: letter. A.MS.s. (1 p. 8 1/2 x 19 1/2 cm.) Written in ink on a piece of paper which seems to have ben cut from the bottom of a letter ( and pasted to a slightly larger piece), 72 words and signed in full: So that you now, (with the exception of perhaps 350 of the little book, As a Strong Bird on store in N.Y., which I can send you an order for, if you wish, at once,) you have all my books in the market. I will write you more specifically early this week about of your yesterday's letter offer, &c. Walt Whitman. O'Kane has not sent me yet his statement, or acc't--Not a word Bottom part of letter to Asa K. Butts & Co. see letter #579, "W.W. Correspondence," Vol. II, p. 275, Camden, Feb. 8, 1874.So that now (with the exception of perhaps 350 of the little book, As A Stong Bird in store in N.Y. which I can send you an order for, if you wish, at once.) You have all my books in the market. I will write you more specifically early this week about of your yesterday's letter offer, &c. Walt Whitman O'Kane has not sent me yet his statement, or acct- not a word