ONLY A NEW FERRY BOAT

This is another visually descriptive passage from specimen days. You can tell Whitman appreciates just about everything in life. Man-made objects are in no way unequal to the natural in beauty. In this passage he makes it clear that the new ferry boat has, for the moment, out-shined nature with its brilliance. He is connecting the technological with the natural and melding them. He uses the imagery of clouds dressed in a, "golden profusion of beaming shaft and dazzle," in much the same way that the ferry is draped in, " flags, transparent red and blue, streaming out in the breeze." The comparison is a simple one but pleasant, and I don't think there are many that would argue that either would be an ugly sight to behold