Poem by Walt Whitman

Leaves of Grass. 33. Songs of Parting. 1. As the Time Draws Nigh

As the time draws nigh glooming a cloud,
A dread beyond of I know not what darkens me.

I shall go forth,
I shall traverse the States awhile, but I cannot tell whither or how long,
Perhaps soon some day or night while I am singing my voice will
      suddenly cease.

O book, O chants! must all then amount to but this?
Must we barely arrive at this beginning of us? —and yet it is
      enough, O soul;
O soul, we have positively appear'd—that is enough.

1. Leaves of Grass. 32. From Noon to Starry Night. 9. Excelsior
2. Leaves of Grass. 34. Sands at Seventy. 11. The Wallabout Martyrs
3. Leaves of Grass. 5. Calamus. 38. That Shadow My Likeness
4. Leaves of Grass. 20. By the Roadside. 28. Offerings
5. Leaves of Grass. 21. Drum-Taps. 35. How Solemn As One by One [Washington City, 1865]

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