Chapter 12

1855-1858

'Men and Women'--'Karshook'--'Two in the Campagna'--Winter in
Paris; Lady Elgin--'Aurora Leigh'--Death of Mr. Kenyon and Mr.
Barrett--Penini--Mrs. Browning's Letters to Miss Browning--The
Florentine Carnival--Baths of Lucca--Spiritualism--Mr. Kirkup; Count
Ginnasi--Letter from Mr. Browning to Mr. Fox--Havre.



The beautiful 'One Word More' was dated from London in September; and
the fifty poems gathered together under the title of 'Men and Women'
were published before the close of the year, in two volumes, by Messrs.
Chapman and Hall.* They are all familiar friends to Mr. Browning's
readers, in their first arrangement and appearance, as in later
redistributions and reprints; but one curious little fact concerning
them is perhaps not generally known. In the eighth line of the
fourteenth section of 'One Word More' they were made to include
'Karshook (Ben Karshook's Wisdom)', which never was placed amongst them.
It was written in April 1854; and the dedication of the volume must have
been, as it so easily might be, in existence, before the author decided
to omit it. The wrong name, once given, was retained, I have no doubt,
from preference for its terminal sound; and 'Karshook' only became
'Karshish' in the Tauchnitz copy of 1872, and in the English edition of
1889.

* The date is given in the edition of 1868 as London 185-;
in the Tauchnitz selection of 1872, London and Florence 184-