Barry-autographed copies of this book, in its first edition, in both cloth boards and paperback, are at Yale, and the publication date was November 1893 (the ads bound in at the back of the book on Remington & Co.’s New Books announce that this title will be “Ready early in November [1893]”. This is the month before the Kipling letter to Henley, which accords with Kipling knowing or clearly implying that the book had appeared in print.  It is correct to say that there are no other known  RK connections with this publishing house, and he had no Australian first editions in his lifetime, other than with this house with addresses in both Sydney and London—so perhaps he had actually seen a copy when he wrote the Henley letter.  Kipling’s name is on the title page and the binding, so this was no surreptitious effort, and Kipling at one point had 23 lawsuits going simultaneously in the US against “pirate” publishing houses who produced his work without his permission, so this appearance was pretty clearly authorized by the poet.

 

I cannot presently unravel any of the other conundrums noted in the attachment.

 

Dave Richards

 

 

Most/many/ well, some of you may have seen the recent notes posted in the New Reader's Guide on the web-site  (to be found under the 'What's New' button).
There's nothing particularly remarkable about the notes  on the verse, but its origins have been exercising the minds of two or three of us.
To cut short what is fast becoming a very long story, we don't know when, nor why, nor how, Barry managed to 'twist RK's arm' to write verses as an introduction.  We are, as Inspector Lestrade of Scotland Yard would say, baffled.
Accordingly, I have attached an expanded version of the section of the notes in the NRG on the Background to the poem.  If anyone would like to add their two ha'p'orth we would be extremely grateful.
Alastair Wilson