[Ashes of heroes] | Ashes of heroes, ? soldiers, blended | | with ashes of roses | | & lilacs, | | Ashes cerulean blended fused with | | the ashes of gray, | | Ashes of pine & palmetto | | blended, | | Ashes of North and South—ashes | | of East & West, | | Ashes of seaboard & inland | | ashes of valle prairie, & | | hill & valley rich |
| | | A sSacred aroma & powd | | powder‑odor & dust | | immortal, | | curious |
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leaf 1 verso | | | |
leaf 2 recto | | The Soul of their Ashes | | rising, ?risen |
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- Date
- This manuscript was likely composed around 1870-1871, when Whitman was revising and expanding the poem "Hymn of Dead Soldiers," originally published in Drum-Taps (1865), for republication as "Ashes of Soldiers."
- Editorial note
- This manuscript appears to be draft material for the two linegroups Whitman added in 1871. The added lines, along with the title change, introduce the new imagery of ashes.
- Location
- Beat! Beat! Drums! | The Charles E. Feinberg Collection of the Papers of Walt Whitman, Library of Congress, Washington, DC.
- Whitman Archive ID
- loc.00054
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