Salut au Monde

O TAKE my hand, Walt Whitman! Such gliding wonders! such sights and sounds! Such joind unended links, each hookd to the ne t! Each answering all!each sharing the earth with all" What widens within you, Walt Whitman# What wa$es and soils e uding# What climes# what %ersons and lands are here# Who are the in&ants# some %laying, some slum'ering# Who are the girls# who are the married women# Who are the grou%s o& old men going slowly with their arms a'out each others necks# What ri$ers are these# what &orests and &ruits are these# What are the mountains calld that rise so high in the mists# What myriads o& dwellings are they, &illd with dwellers#
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Within me latitude widens, longitude lengthens) Asia, A&rica, Euro%e, are to the east!America is %ro$ided &or in the west) *anding the 'ulge o& the earth winds the hot e+uator, ,uriously north and south turn the a is-ends) Within me is the longest day!the sun wheels in slanting rings!it does not set &or months) Stretchd in due time within me the midnight sun just rises a'o$e the hori.on, and sinks again) Within me .ones, seas, cataracts, %lants, $olcanoes, grou%s, /alaysia, 0olynesia, and the great West 1ndian islands"
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What do you hear, Walt Whitman# 1 hear the workman singing, and the &armers wi&e singing) 1 hear in the distance the sounds o& children, and o& animals early in the day) 1 hear +uick ri&le-cracks &rom the ri&lemen o& East Tennessee and Kentucky, hunting on hills) 1 hear emulous shouts o& Australians, %ursuing the wild horse)

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1 hear the S%anish dance, with castanets, in the chestnut shade, to the re'eck and guitar) 1 hear continual echoes &rom the Thames) 1 hear &ierce 3rench li'erty songs) 1 hear o& the 1talian 'oat-sculler the musical recitati$e o& old %oems) 1 hear the 4irginia %lantation-chorus o& negroes, o& a har$est night, in the glare o& %ine-knots) 1 hear the strong 'aritone o& the long-shore-men o& /annahatta) 1 hear the ste$edores unlading the cargoes, and singing) 1 hear the screams o& the water-&owl o& solitary north-west lakes) 1 hear the rustling %attering o& locusts, as they strike the grain and grass with the showers o& their terri'le clouds) 1 hear the ,o%tic re&rain, toward sundown, %ensi$ely &alling on the 'reast o& the 'lack $enera'le $ast mother, the 5ile) 1 hear the 'ugles o& ra&t-tenders on the streams o& Kanada) 1 hear the chir% o& the /e ican muleteer, and the 'ells o& the mule) 1 hear the Ara' mue..in, calling &rom the to% o& the mos+ue) 1 hear the ,hristian %riests at the altars o& their churches!1 hear the res%onsi$e 'ass and so%rano) 1 hear the wail o& utter des%air o& the white-haird 1rish grand%arents, when they learn the death o& their grandson) 1 hear the cry o& the ,ossack, and the sailors $oice, %utting to sea at Okotsk) 1 hear the whee.e o& the sla$e-co&&le, as the sla$es march on!as the husky gangs %ass on 'y twos and threes, &astend together with wrist-chains and ankle-chains) 1 hear the entreaties o& women tied u% &or %unishment!1 hear the si'ilant whisk o& thongs through the air) 1 hear the 6e'rew reading his records and %salms) 1 hear the rhythmic myths o& the 7reeks, and the strong legends o& the 8omans) 1 hear the tale o& the di$ine li&e and 'loody death o& the 'eauti&ul 7od!the ,hrist) 1 hear the 6indoo teaching his &a$orite %u%il the lo$es, wars, adages, transmitted sa&ely to this day, &rom %oets who wrote three thousand years ago"
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What do you see, Walt Whitman# Who are they you salute, and that one a&ter another salute you# 1 see a great round wonder rolling through the air) 1 see diminute &arms, hamlets, ruins, gra$e-yards, jails, &actories, %alaces, ho$els, huts o& 'ar'arians, tents o& nomads, u%on the sur&ace) 1 see the shaded %art on one side, where the slee%ers are slee%ing!and the sun-lit %art on the other side, 1 see the curious silent change o& the light and shade, 1 see distant lands, as real and near to the inha'itants o& them, as my land is to me" 1 see %lenteous waters) 1 see mountain %eaks!1 see the sierras o& Andes and Alleghanies, where they range)

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1 see %lainly the 6imalayas, ,hian Shahs, Altays, 7hauts) 1 see the giant %innacles o& El'ru., Ka.'ek, *a.ardjusi, 1 see the 8ocky /ountains, and the 0eak o& Winds) 1 see the Styrian Al%s, and the Karnac Al%s) 1 see the 0yrenees, *alks, ,ar%athians!and to the north the :o&ra&ields, and o&& at sea /ount 6ecla) 1 see 4esu$ius and Etna!1 see the Anahuacs) 1 see the /ountains o& the /oon, and the Snow /ountains, and the 8ed /ountains o& /adagascar) 1 see the 4ermont hills, and the long string o& ,ordilleras) 1 see the $ast deserts o& Western America) 1 see the ;y'ian, Ara'ian, and Asiatic deserts) 1 see huge dread&ul Arctic and Antarctic ice'ergs) 1 see the su%erior oceans and the in&erior ones!the Atlantic and 0aci&ic, the sea o& /e ico, the *ra.ilian sea, and the sea o& 0eru, The <a%an waters, those o& 6indostan, the ,hina Sea, and the 7ul& o& 7uinea, The s%read o& the *altic, ,as%ian, *othnia, the *ritish shores, and the *ay o& *iscay, The clear-sunnd /editerranean, and &rom one to another o& its islands, The inland &resh-tasted seas o& 5orth America, The White Sea, and the sea around 7reenland" 1 'ehold the mariners o& the world) Some are in storms!some in the night, with the watch on the look-out) Some dri&ting hel%lessly!some with contagious diseases" 1 'ehold the sail and steamshi%s o& the world, some in clusters in %ort, some on their $oyages) Some dou'le the ,a%e o& Storms!some ,a%e 4erde,!others ,a%e 7uarda&ui, *on, or *ajadore) Others :ondra 6ead!others %ass the Straits o& Sunda!others ,a%e ;o%atka! others *ehrings Straits) Others ,a%e 6orn!others sail the 7ul& o& /e ico, or along ,u'a or 6ayti!others 6udsons *ay or *a&&ins *ay) Others %ass the Straits o& :o$er!others enter the Wash!others the 3irth o& Solway !others round ,a%e ,lear!others the ;ands End) Others tra$erse the =uyder =ee, or the Scheld) Others add to the e its and entrances at Sandy 6ook) Others to the comers and goers at 7i'raltar, or the :ardanelles) Others sternly %ush their way through the northern winter-%acks) Others descend or ascend the O'i or the ;ena) Others the 5iger or the ,ongo!others the 1ndus, the *uram%ooter and ,am'odia) Others wait at the whar$es o& /anhattan, steamd u%, ready to start) Wait, swi&t and swarthy, in the %orts o& Australia) Wait at ;i$er%ool, 7lasgow, :u'lin, /arseilles, ;is'on, 5a%les, 6am'urg, *remen, *ordeau , the 6ague, ,o%enhagen) Wait at 4al%araiso, 8io <aneiro, 0anama)

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Wait at their moorings at *oston, 0hiladel%hia, *altimore, ,harleston, 5ew Orleans, 7al$eston, San 3rancisco"
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1 see the tracks o& the rail-roads o& the earth) 1 see them welding State to State, city to city, through 5orth America) 1 see them in 7reat *ritain, 1 see them in Euro%e) 1 see them in Asia and in A&rica" 1 see the electric telegra%hs o& the earth) 1 see the &ilaments o& the news o& the wars, deaths, losses, gains, %assions, o& my race" 1 see the long ri$er-stri%es o& the earth) 1 see where the /ississi%%i &lows!1 see where the ,olum'ia &lows) 1 see the 7reat 8i$er and the 3alls o& 5iagara) 1 see the Ama.on and the 0araguay) 1 see the &our great ri$ers o& ,hina, the Amour, the ?ellow 8i$er, the ?iang-tse, and the 0earl) 1 see where the Seine &lows, and where the :anu'e, the ;oire, the 8hone, and the 7uadal+ui$er &low) 1 see the windings o& the 4olga, the :nie%er, the Oder) 1 see the Tuscan going down the Arno, and the 4enetian along the 0o) 1 see the 7reek seaman sailing out o& Egina 'ay"
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1 see the site o& the old em%ire o& Assyria, and that o& 0ersia, and that o& 1ndia) 1 see the &alling o& the 7anges o$er the high rim o& Saukara" 1 see the %lace o& the idea o& the :eity incarnated 'y a$atars in human &orms) 1 see the s%ots o& the successions o& %riests on the earth!oracles, sacri&icers, 'rahmins, sa'ians, lamas, monks, mu&tis, e horters) 1 see where druids walked the gro$es o& /ona!1 see the mistletoe and $er$ain) 1 see the tem%les o& the deaths o& the 'odies o& 7ods!1 see the old signi&iers" 1 see ,hrist once more eating the 'read o& his last su%%er, in the midst o& youths and old %ersons) 1 see where the strong di$ine young man, the 6ercules, toild &aith&ully and long, and then died) 1 see the %lace o& the innocent rich li&e and ha%less &ate o& the 'eauti&ul nocturnal son, the &ull-lim'd *acchus) 1 see Kne%h, 'looming, drest in 'lue, with the crown o& &eathers on his head) 1 see 6ermes, unsus%ected, dying, well-'elo$ed, saying to the %eo%le, Do not weep for me, This is not my true country, I ha e !i e" #anish$" from my true country%I now &o

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#ac' there, I return to the ce!estia! sphere, where e ery one &oes in his turn(
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1 see the 'attle-&ields o& the earth!grass grows u%on them, and 'lossoms and corn) 1 see the tracks o& ancient and modern e %editions" 1 see the nameless masonries, $enera'le messages o& the unknown e$ents, heroes, records o& the earth" 1 see the %laces o& the sagas) 1 see %ine-trees and &ir-trees torn 'y northern 'lasts) 1 see granite 'oulders and cli&&s!1 see green meadows and lakes) 1 see the 'urial-cairns o& Scandina$ian warriors) 1 see them raised high with stones, 'y the marge o& restless oceans, that the dead mens s%irits, when they wearied o& their +uiet gra$es, might rise u% through the mounds, and ga.e on the tossing 'illows, and 'e re&reshd 'y storms, immensity, li'erty, action" 1 see the ste%%es o& Asia) 1 see the tumuli o& /ongolia!1 see the tents o& Kalmucks and *askirs) 1 see the nomadic tri'es, with herds o& o en and cows) 1 see the ta'le-lands notchd with ra$ines!1 see the jungles and deserts) 1 see the camel, the wild steed, the 'ustard, the &at-taild shee%, the antelo%e, and the 'urrowing wol&" 1 see the high-lands o& A'yssinia) 1 see &locks o& goats &eeding, and see the &ig-tree, tamarind, date, And see &ields o& te&&-wheat, and see the %laces o& $erdure and gold" 1 see the *ra.ilian $a+uero) 1 see the *oli$ian ascending /ount Sorata) 1 see the Wacho crossing the %lains!1 see the incom%ara'le rider o& horses with his lasso on his arm) 1 see o$er the %am%as the %ursuit o& wild cattle &or their hides"
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1 see little and large sea-dots, some inha'ited, some uninha'ited) 1 see two 'oats with nets, lying o&& the shore o& 0aumanok, +uite still) 1 see ten &ishermen waiting!they disco$er now a thick school o& moss'onkers!they dro% the joind seine-ends in the water, The 'oats se%arate!they di$erge and row o&&, each on its rounding course to the 'each, enclosing the moss'onkers) The net is drawn in 'y a windlass 'y those who sto% ashore, Some o& the &ishermen lounge in their 'oats!others stand negligently ankle-dee% in the water, %oisd on strong legs)

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The 'oats are %artly drawn u%!the water sla%s against them) On the sand, in hea%s and winrows, well out &rom the water, lie the green-'ackd s%otted moss'onkers"
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1 see the des%ondent red man in the west, lingering a'out the 'anks o& /oingo, and a'out ;ake 0e%in) 6e has heard the +uail and 'eheld the honey-'ee, and sadly %re%ared to de%art" 1 see the regions o& snow and ice) 1 see the shar%-eyed Samoiede and the 3inn) 1 see the seal-seeker in his 'oat, %oising his lance) 1 see the Si'erian on his slight-'uilt sledge, drawn 'y dogs) 1 see the %or%oise-hunters!1 see the whale-crews o& the South 0aci&ic and the 5orth Atlantic) 1 see the cli&&s, glaciers, torrents, $alleys, o& Swit.erland!1 mark the long winters, and the isolation" 1 see the cities o& the earth, and make mysel& at random a %art o& them) 1 am a real 0arisian) 1 am a ha'itan o& 4ienna, St" 0eters'urg, *erlin, ,onstantino%le) 1 am o& Adelaide, Sidney, /el'ourne) 1 am o& ;ondon, /anchester, *ristol, Edin'urgh, ;imerick) 1 am o& /adrid, ,adi., *arcelona, O%orto, ;yons, *russels, *erne, 3rank&ort, Stuttgart, Turin, 3lorence) 1 'elong in /oscow, ,racow, Warsaw!or northward in ,hristiania or Stockholm! or in Si'erian 1rkutsk!or in some street in 1celand) 1 descend u%on all those cities, and rise &rom them again"
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1 see $a%ors e haling &rom une %lored countries) 1 see the sa$age ty%es, the 'ow and arrow, the %oisond s%lint, the &etish, and the o'i" 1 see A&rican and Asiatic towns) 1 see Algiers, Tri%oli, :erne, /ogadore, Tim'uctoo, /onro$ia) 1 see the swarms o& 0ekin, ,anton, *enares, :elhi, ,alcutta, ?edo) 1 see the Kruman in his hut, and the :ahoman and Ashanteeman in their huts) 1 see the Turk smoking o%ium in Ale%%o) 1 see the %ictures+ue crowds at the &airs o& Khi$a, and those o& 6erat) 1 see Teheran!1 see /uscat and /edina, and the inter$ening sands!1 see the cara$ans toiling onward) 1 see Egy%t and the Egy%tians!1 see the %yramids and o'elisks) 1 look on chiseld histories, songs, %hiloso%hies, cut in sla's o& sand-stone, or on granite-'locks) 1 see at /em%his mummy-%its, containing mummies, em'almd, swathed in linen

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cloth, lying there many centuries) 1 look on the &alln The'an, the large-'alld eyes, the side-droo%ing neck, the hands &olded across the 'reast" 1 see the menials o& the earth, la'oring) 1 see the %risoners in the %risons) 1 see the de&ecti$e human 'odies o& the earth) 1 see the 'lind, the dea& and dum', idiots, hunch'acks, lunatics) 1 see the %irates, thie$es, 'etrayers, murderers, sla$e-makers o& the earth) 1 see the hel%less in&ants, and the hel%less old men and women" 1 see male and &emale e$erywhere) 1 see the serene 'rotherhood o& %hiloso%hs) 1 see the constructi$eness o& my race) 1 see the results o& the %erse$erance and industry o& my race) 1 see ranks, colors, 'ar'arisms, ci$ili.ations!1 go among them!1 mi indiscriminately, And 1 salute all the inha'itants o& the earth"
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?ou, whoe$er you are! ?ou daughter or son o& England! ?ou o& the mighty Sla$ic tri'es and em%ires! you 8uss in 8ussia! ?ou dim-descended, 'lack, di$ine-sould A&rican, large, &ine-headed, no'ly-&ormd, su%er'ly destind, on e+ual terms with me! ?ou 5orwegian! Swede! :ane! 1celander! you 0russian! ?ou S%aniard o& S%ain! you 0ortuguese! ?ou 3renchwoman and 3renchman o& 3rance! ?ou *elge! you li'erty-lo$er o& the 5etherlands! ?ou sturdy Austrian! you ;om'ard! 6un! *ohemian! &armer o& Styria! ?ou neigh'or o& the :anu'e! ?ou working-man o& the 8hine, the El'e, or the Weser! you working-woman too! ?ou Sardinian! you *a$arian! Swa'ian! Sa on! Wallachian! *ulgarian! ?ou citi.en o& 0rague! 8oman! 5ea%olitan! 7reek! ?ou lithe matador in the arena at Se$ille! ?ou mountaineer li$ing lawlessly on the Taurus or ,aucasus! ?ou *okh horse-herd, watching your mares and stallions &eeding! ?ou 'eauti&ul-'odied 0ersian, at &ull s%eed in the saddle, shooting arrows to the mark! ?ou ,hinaman and ,hinawoman o& ,hina! you Tartar o& Tartary! ?ou women o& the earth su'ordinated at your tasks! ?ou <ew journeying in your old age through e$ery risk, to stand once on Syrian ground! ?ou other <ews waiting in all lands &or your /essiah! ?ou thought&ul Armenian, %ondering 'y some stream o& the Eu%hrates! you %eering amid the ruins o& 5ine$eh! you ascending /ount Ararat!

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?ou &oot-worn %ilgrim welcoming the &ar-away s%arkle o& the minarets o& /ecca! ?ou sheiks along the stretch &rom Sue. to *a'-el-mande', ruling your &amilies and tri'es! ?ou oli$e-grower tending your &ruit on &ields o& 5a.areth, :amascus, or ;ake Ti'erias! ?ou Thi'et trader on the wide inland, or 'argaining in the sho%s o& ;assa! ?ou <a%anese man or woman! you li$er in /adagascar, ,eylon, Sumatra, *orneo! All you continentals o& Asia, A&rica, Euro%e, Australia, indi&&erent o& %lace! All you on the num'erless islands o& the archi%elagoes o& the sea! And you o& centuries hence, when you listen to me! And you, each and e$erywhere, whom 1 s%eci&y not, 'ut include just the same! 6ealth to you! 7ood will to you all!&rom me and America sent" Each o& us ine$ita'le) Each o& us limitless!each o& us with his or her right u%on the earth) Each o& us allowd the eternal %ur%orts o& the earth) Each o& us here as di$inely as any is here"
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?ou 6ottentot with clicking %alate! ?ou woolly-haird hordes! ?ou ownd %ersons, dro%%ing sweat-dro%s or 'lood-dro%s! ?ou human &orms with the &athomless e$er-im%ressi$e countenances o& 'rutes! 1 dare not re&use you!the sco%e o& the world, and o& time and s%ace, are u%on me" ?ou %oor ko'oo whom the meanest o& the rest look down u%on, &or all your glimmering language and s%irituality! ?ou low e %iring a'origines o& the hills o& Etah, Oregon, ,ali&ornia! ?ou dwar&d Kamtschatkan, 7reenlander, ;a%%! ?ou Austral negro, naked, red, sooty, with %rotrusi$e li%, gro$elling, seeking your &ood! ?ou ,a&&re, *er'er, Soudanese! ?ou haggard, uncouth, untutord, *edowee! ?ou %lague-swarms in /adras, 5ankin, Kau'ul, ,airo! ?ou 'ather 'athing in the 7anges! ?ou 'enighted roamer o& Ama.onia! you 0atagonian! you 3ejee-man! ?ou %eon o& /e ico! you sla$e o& ,arolina, Te as, Tennessee! 1 do not %re&er others so $ery much 'e&ore you either) 1 do not say one word against you, away 'ack there, where you stand) F?ou will come &orward in due time to my side"G /y s%irit has %assd in com%assion and determination around the whole earth) 1 ha$e lookd &or e+uals and lo$ers, and &ound them ready &or me in all lands) 1 think some di$ine ra%%ort has e+uali.ed me with them"
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O $a%ors! 1 think 1 ha$e risen with you, and mo$ed away to distant continents, and &allen down there, &or reasons) 1 think 1 ha$e 'lown with you, O winds) O waters, 1 ha$e &ingerd e$ery shore with you" 1 ha$e run through what any ri$er or strait o& the glo'e has run through) 1 ha$e taken my stand on the 'ases o& %eninsulas, and on the high em'edded rocks, to cry thence" )a!ut au mon"e* What cities the light or warmth %enetrates, 1 %enetrate those cities mysel&) All islands to which 'irds wing their way, 1 wing my way mysel&" Toward all, 1 raise high the %er%endicular hand!1 make the signal, To remain a&ter me in sight &ore$er, 3or all the haunts and homes o& men"
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