Months later, on March 6, 1865, he received a letter from his mother explaining that George, who had survived the poor conditions experienced at many prisoner of war camps, had been released and was now going home to Brooklyn on medical leave. Walt now desperately wanted to be home. Not only so he could see his brother, but he also felt with the way the war was progressing so well now for the Union, this was the perfect time to publish his book. He was only able to gain minimal momentum however after receiving some money from the government. On this date, Whitman signed a contract with printer Peter Eckler to produce five hundred copies of "Drum-Taps". Things began to proceed smoothly until the morning of April 15, 1865, when the newspapers told the story of the assassination of President Lincoln. Like the rest of the country, Whitman was deeply saddened by his passing. Over the following months he would split time between Brooklyn and the Capitol while also adding several additions to his compilation of poems. His poem "When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom'd" was extremely popular. It was this success (Roy Morris Jr. later wrote that this would be the final success of his career) that finally led to the publication of "Drum-Taps", along with a 24-page insert called "Sequel to Drum-Taps", on October 28, 1865.