1 piece.
Autograph Manuscript Signed. Whitman, Walt. [Camden], [late July or August, 1873]. 1 p., folio, 18 5/8 x 7 3/4 inches, on Department of Justice letterhead. Separated along 3 horizontal folds - one repaired on verso with cello-tape, some chipping along bottom edge - very minor paper loss, top & bottom quadrants moderately toned. Signed by Whitman in heading. Docketed, "Walt Whitman's Case."
Whitman's own candid assessment of his physical & psychological condition in the midst of perhaps the darkest year of his life, 1873, during which he suffered partially paralyzing strokes, the death of his mother and sister-in-law, as well as isolation from friends, as a consequence of his necessary move to Camden, New Jersey during that year.
Written on Department of Justice letterhead & titled in his hand, "Walt Whitman's case - paralysis," Whitman evidently composed this report in preparation for his petition for leave from his Department of Justice clerkship.