A new edition of Mrs.Browning's poems was called for in 1853; but beyond some minor revisions of detail it did not differ from the edition of 1850.
Her husband's play, 'Colombe's Birthday,' was produced at the Haymarket Theatre during April, with Miss Faucit (Lady Martin) in the principal part; but the poet had no share in the production, and his literary activity must have been devoted to the composition of some of the fine poems which subsequently formed the two volumes of 'Men and Women,' which appeared in 1855.

Mrs.Browning had also embarked on her longest poem, 'Aurora Leigh,' and speaks of being happily and busily engaged in work; but we hear little of it as yet in her correspondence.

Her little son and her Florentine friends and visitors form her principal subjects; and we also see the beginning of a topic which for the next few years occupied a good deal of her attention--namely, Spiritualism.
The temperament of Mrs.Browning had in it a decidedly mystical vein, which predisposed her to believe in any communication between our world and that of the spirits.

Hence when a number of people professed to have such communication, she was not merely ready to listen to their claims, but was by temperament inclined to accept them.

The immense vogue which spiritualism had during 'the fifties' tended to confirm her belief.