1772.

fimilarity with the German. JOHNSON. "Why, Sir, to be fure, fuch parts of Sclavonia as confine with Germany, will borrow German words; and fuch Etat. 63. parts as confine with Tartary, will borrow Tartar words."

He faid, he never had it properly ascertained that the Scotch Highlanders and the Irish understood each other. I told him that my cousin Colonel Graham, of the Royal Highlanders, whom I met at Drogheda, told me they did. JOHNSON." Sir, if the Highlanders understood Irish, why tranflate the New Teftament into Erfe, as was done lately at Edinburgh, when there is an Irish translation?" BOSWELL." Although the Erfe and Irish are both dialects of the fame language, there may be a good deal of diverfity between them, as between the different dialects in Italy.-The Swede went away, and Mr. Johnson continued his reading of the papers. I said, "I am afraid, Sir, it is troublesome to you." "Why, Sir, (faid he,) I do not take much delight in it; but I'll go through it."

We went to the Mitre, and dined in the room where he and I first fupped together. He gave me great hopes of my caufe. "Sir, (faid he,) the government of a schoolmaster is somewhat of the nature of military government; that is to fay, it must be arbitrary, it must be exercised by the will of one man, according to particular circumftances. You must fhew fome learning upon this occafion. You must shew, that a schoolmaster has a prescriptive right to beat; and that an action of affault and battery cannot be admitted against him, unless there is fome great excess, fome barbarity. This man has maimed none of his boys. They are all left with the full exercife of their corporeal faculties. In our schools in England, many boys have been maimed; yet I never heard of an action against a schoolmaster on that account. Puffendorf, I think, maintains the right of a schoolmaster to beat his fcholars."

On Saturday, March 27, I introduced to him Sir Alexander Macdonald, with whom he had expreffed a wifh to be acquainted. He received him very courteously.

Sir Alexander observed, that the Chancellors in England are chofen from views much inferiour to the office, being chofen from temporary political views. JOHNSON. " Why, Sir, in fuch a government as ours, no man is appointed to an office because he is the fitteft for it, nor hardly in any other government; because there are fo many connections and dependencies to be studied. A defpotick prince may choose a man to an office, merely because he is the fittest for it. The King of Pruffia may do it." SIR A. "I think, Sir, almost all great lawyers, fuch at least as have written upon law, have known only law, and

nothing

1772.

Ætat. 63.

nothing elfe." JOHNSON. "Why no, Sir; Judge Hale was a great lawyer, and
wrote upon law; and yet he knew a great many other things, and has written
upon other things. Selden too." SIR A. "Very true, Sir; and Lord Bacon.
But was not Lord Coke a mere lawyer?" JOHNSON. "Why, I am afraid he
was; but he would have taken it very ill if you had told him fo. He would
have profecuted you for fcandal." BOSWELL. "Lord Mansfield is not a mere
lawyer." JOHNSON. "No, Sir. I never was in Lord Mansfield's company;
but, Lord Mansfield was distinguished at the University. Lord Mansfield,
when he came first to town, drank champagne with the wits,' as Prior fays.
He was the friend of Pope." SIR. A. " Barristers, I believe, are not fo
abusive now as they were formerly. I fancy they had lefs law long ago,
and fo were obliged to take to abufe, to fill up the time. Now they have
fuch a number of precedents, they have no occafion for abufe." JOHNSON.
Nay, Sir, they had more law long ago than they have now.
As to pre-
cedents, to be fure they will increase in course of time; but the more prece-
dents there are, the lefs occafion is there for law; that is to fay, the less
occafion is there for investigating principles." SIR A. "I have been cor-
recting feveral Scotch accents in my friend Bofwell. I doubt, Sir, if any
Scotchman ever attains to a perfect English pronunciation." JOHNSON.
"Why, Sir, few of them do, because they do not perfevere after acquiring a
certain degree of it. But, Sir, there can be no doubt that they may attain to
a perfect English pronunciation, if they will. We find how near they come
to it; and certainly, a man who conquers nineteen parts of the Scottish accent,
may conquer the twentieth. But, Sir, when a man has got the better of nine
tenths, he grows weary, he relaxes his diligence, he finds he has corrected his
accent fo far as not to be disagreeable, and he no longer defires his friends to
tell him when he is wrong; nor does he choose to be told. Sir, when people
watch me narrowly, and I do not watch myself, they will find me out to be
of a particular county. In the fame manner, Dunning may be found out to
be a Devonshire man. So moft Scotchmen may be found out. But, Sir,
little aberrations are of no difadvantage. I never catched Mallet in a Scotch
accent; and yet Mallet, I fuppofe, was past five-and-twenty before he came
to London."

Upon another occafion I talked to him on this fubject, having myself taken
fome pains to improve my pronunciation, by the aid of the late Mr. Love, of
Drury-lane theatre, when he was a player at Edinburgh, and also of old Mr.
Sheridan. Johnson faid to me, "Sir, your pronunciation is not offenfive."

With

1772.

With this conceffion I was pretty well fatisfied; and let me give my countrymen of North-Britain an advice not to aim at abfolute perfection in this respect; Etat. 63. not to speak High English, as we are apt to call what is far removed from the Scotch, but which is by no means good English, and makes "the fools who use it," truly ridiculous. Good English is plain, eafy, and smooth in the mouth of an unaffected English gentleman. A ftudied and factitious pronunciation, which requires perpetual attention, and imposes perpetual constraint, is exceedingly difgufting. A fmall intermixture of provincial peculiarities may, perhaps, have an agreeable effect, as the notes of different birds concur in the harmony of the grove, and please more than if they were all exactly alike. I could name fome gentlemen of Ireland, to whom a flight proportion of the accent and recitative of that country is an advantage. The fame obfervation will apply to the gentlemen of Scotland. I do not mean that we should speak as broad as a certain profperous member of parliament from that country; though it has been well obferved, that," it has been of no fmall use to him; as it roufes the attention of the Houfe by its uncommonnefs; and is equal to tropes and figures in a good English fpeaker." I would give as an instance of what I mean to recommend to my countrymen, the pronunciation of the late Sir Gilbert Elliot; and may I prefume to add that of the prefent Earl of Marchmont, who told me, with great good humour, that the master of a shop in London, where he was not known, said to him, "I suppose, Sir, you are an American." Why fo, Sir," (faid his Lordship.) "Because, Sir, (replied the fhopkeeper,) you speak neither English nor Scotch, but fomething different from both, which I conclude is the language of America."

BOSWELL. "It may be of use, Sir, to have a Dictionary to ascertain the pronunciation." JOHNSON. "Why, Sir, my Dictionary fhews you the accents of words, if you can but remember them." BOSWELL." But, Sir, we want marks to ascertain the pronunciation of the vowels. Sheridan, I believe, has finished fuch a work." JOHNSON. "Why, Sir, confider how much easier it is to learn a language by the ear, than by any marks. Sheridan's Dictionary may do very well; but you cannot always carry it about with you: and, when you want the word, you have not the Dictionary. It is like a man who has a fword that will not draw. It is an admirable fword, to be fure: but while your enemy is cutting your throat, you are unable to use it. Befides, Sir, what entitles Sheridan to fix the pronunciation of English? He has, in the first place, the disadvantage of being an Irishman: and if he fays he will Aaa

fix

1772.

Ætat. 63.

fix it after the example of the best company, why they differ among themfelves. I remember an instance: when I published the Plan for my Dictionary, Lord Chesterfield told me that the word great should be pronounced fo as to rhyme to state; and Sir William Young fent me word that it fhould be pronounced so as to rhyme to feat, and that none but an Irishman would pronounce it grait. Now here were two men of the highest rank, the one, the best speaker in the Houfe of Lords, the other, the best speaker in the House of Commons, differing entirely."

I again visited him at night. Finding him in a very good humour, I ventured to lead him to the subject of our fituation in a future ftate, having much curiofity to know his notions on that point. JOHNSON. "Why, Sir, the happiness of an unembodied fpirit will confift in a confciousness of the favour of GOD, in the contemplation of truth, and in the poffeffion of felicitating ideas." BOSWELL. "But, Sir, is there any harrn in our forming to ourselves conjectures as to the particulars of our happiness, though the fcripture has faid but very little on the fubject? • We know not what we fhall be." JOHNSON. "Sir, there is no harm. What philofophy suggests to us on this topick is probable: what scripture tells us is certain. Dr. Henry More has carried it as far as philofophy can. You may buy both his theological and philofophical works in two volumes folio, for about eight shillings." BOSWELL. "One of the most pleasing thoughts is, that we shall fee our friends again." JOHNSON. "Yes, Sir; but you must confider, that when we are become purely rational, many of our friendships will be cut off. Many friendships are formed by a community of fenfual pleasures: all thefe will be cut off. We form many friendships with bad men, because they have agreeable qualities, and they can be useful to us; but, after death, they can no longer be of use to us. We form many friendships by mistake, imagining people to be different from what they really are. After death, we shall fee every one in a true light. Then, Sir, they talk of our meeting our relations: but then all relationship is dif folved; and we shall have no regard for one perfon more than another, but for their real value. However, we shall either have the fatisfaction of meeting our friends, or be satisfied without meeting them." BOSWELL. "Yet, Sir, we fee in fcripture that Dives ftill retained an anxious concern about his brethren." JOHNSON. "Why, Sir, we muft either fuppofe that paffage to be metaphorical, or hold with many divines, and all the Purgatorians, that departed fouls do not all at once arrive at the utmost perfection of which they are capable." BOSWELL. "I think, Sir, that is a very rational fuppofition." JOHNSON.. Why yes, Sir; but we do not know it is a true one. There is no harm in 4 believing

1772.

believing it: but you must not compel others to make it an article of faith, for it is not revealed." BOSWELL. "Do you think, Sir, it is wrong in a man tat. 63. who holds the doctrine of purgatory, to pray for the fouls of his deceased friends?" JOHNSON. "Why no, Sir." BOSWELL. "I have been told, that in the liturgy of the Epifcopal Church of Scotland, there was a form of prayer for the dead.". JOHNSON. "Sir, it is not in the liturgy which Laud framed for the Epifcopal Church of Scotland: if there is a liturgy older than that, I fhould be glad to fee it." BOSWELL. "As to our employment in a future ftate, the facred writings fay little. The Revelation, however, of St. John gives us many ideas, and particularly mentions mufick." JOHNSON. Why, Sir, ideas must be given you by means of fomething which you 'know and as to musick, there are some philofophers and divines who have maintained that we shall not be fpiritualised to such a degree, but that fométhing of matter, very much refined, will remain. In that cafe, mufick may make a part of our future felicity."

BOSWELL. "I do not know whether there are any well-attested stories of the appearance of ghofts. You know there is a famous ftory of the appearance of Mrs. Veal, prefixed to Drelincourt on Death." JOHNSON. "I believe, Sir, that is given up. I believe the woman declared upon her death-bed that it was a lie." BOSWELL. " This objection is made against the truth of ghosts appearing that if they are in a state of happiness, it would be a punishment to them to return to this world; and if they are in a state of misery, it would be giving them a refpite." JOHNSON. "Why, Sir, as the happiness or mifery of unembodied fpirits does not depend upon place, but is intellectual, we cannot say that they are lefs happy or lefs miferable by appearing upon earth."

We went down between twelve and one to Mrs. Williams's room, and drank tea. I mentioned that we were to have the remains of Mr. Gray, in profe and verfe, published by Mr. Mafon. JOHNSON. "I think we have had enough of Gray. I fee they have published a fplendid edition of Akenfide's works. One bad Ode may be fuffered, but a number of them together makes one fick." BosWELL. "Akenfide's diftinguished poem is his Pleasures of the Imagination :' but, for my part, I never could admire it so much as most people do." JOHNSON. "Sir, I could not read it through." BosWELL. «I have read it through; but I did not find any great power in it."

I mentioned Elwal, the heretick, whofe trial Sir John Pringle had given me to read. JOHNSON. "Sir, Mr. Elwal was, I think, an ironmonger at Wolverhampton; and he had a mind to make himself famous, by being the