Pvt. Robert N. Jabo, of the 8th New Hampshire infantry, was
dying of tuberculosis in Washington’s Harewood Hospital and needed to write to
his family.
The Civil War had been over for months. Most soldiers had
gone home. And Jabo’s wife and six children were no doubt wondering where he
was.
But he was sick and illiterate. So a cheerful, bearded man
who regularly visited hospitalized soldiers offered to write a letter for him.
“My dear wife,” it began, “you must excuse me for not having
written . . .
have not been very well.” The letter explained that it was penned by, “a friend
who is now sitting by my side.”
And in a postscript, the friend identified himself: “Walt
Whitman.”
No comments:
Post a Comment