1769 by a regular clergyman, for this was not comAtat. 66. manded in scripture. Etat. 61. I was volatile enough to repeat to him a little epigrammatick fong of mine, on matrimony, which Mr. Garrick had a few days before procured to be fet to mufick by the very ingenious Mr. Dibden. A MATRIMONIAL THOUGHT. "IN the blithe days of honey-moon, "I lov'd her late, I lov'd her foon, "But now my kitten's grown a cat, My illuftrious friend faid, "It is very well, Sir; but you should not swear.' Upon which I altered "O! by my foul," to "alas, alas!" He was fo good as to accompany me to London, and fee me into the post-chaife which was to carry me on my road to Scotland. And fure I am, that however inconfiderable many of the particulars recorded at this time may appear to fome, they will beesteemed by the beft part of my readers as genuine traits of his character, contributing together to give a full, fair, and diftinct view of it. In 1770 he published a political pamphlet, entitled "The Falfe Alarm," intended to justify the conduct of ministry and their majority in the Houfe of 1770. of Commons, for having virtually affumed it as an axiom, that the expulsion of a Member of Par- Etat, 61, liament was equivalent to exclufion, and thus having declared Colonel Lutterel to be duly elected for the county of Middlefex, notwithstanding Mr. Wilkes had a great majority of votes. This being juftly confidered as a grofs violation of the right of election, an alarm for the conftitution extended itself all over the kingdom. To prove this alarm to be falfe, was the purpose of Johnfon's pamphlet; but even his vaft powers were inadequate to cope with conftitutional truth and reafon, and his argument failed of effect; and the Houfe of Commons have fince expunged the offenfive refolution from their Journals. That the House of Commons might have expelled Mr. Wilkes repeatedly, and as often as he should be re-chofen, was not denied; but incapacitation cannot be but by an act of the whole legislature. It was wonderful to see how a prejudice in favour of government in general, and an averfion to popular clamour, could blind and contract fuch an underftanding as Johnson's, in this particular cafe; yet the wit, the farcafm, the eloquent vivacity which this pamphlet difplayed, made it be read with great avidity at the time, and it will ever be read with pleasure, for the fake of its compofition. That it endeavoured to infufe a narcotick indifference, as to publick concerns, into the minds of the people, and that it broke out fometimes into an extreme coarseness of contemptuous abufe, is but too evident. 1770. Etat. 61. It muft not, however, be omitted, that when the storm of his violence subsides, he takes a fair opportunity to pay a grateful compliment to the King, who had rewarded his merit: "Thefe lowborn rulers have endeavoured, furely without effect, to alienate the affections of the people from the only King who for almost a century has much appeared to defire, or much endeavoured to deserve them." And, "Every honeft man must lament, that the faction has been regarded with frigid neutrality by the Tories, who being long accuftomed to fignalife their principles by oppofition to the Court, do not yet confider, that they have at laft a King who knows not the name of party, and who wishes to be the common father of all his people." To this pamphlet, which was at once discovered to be Johnson's, feveral anfwers came out, in which, care was taken to remind the publick of his former attacks upon government, and of his now being a pensioner, without allowing for the honourable terms upon which Johnson's penfion was granted and accepted, or the change of system which the British court had undergone upon the acceffion of his prefent Majefty. He was, however, foothed in the highest strain of panegyrick, in a poem called "The Remonftrance," by the Reverend Mr. Stockdale, to whom he was, upon many occafions, a kind protector. The following admirable minute made by him, defcribes fo well his own ftate, and that of numbers to whom felf-examination is habitual, that I cannot omit it: "June 1.770. *June 1, 1770. Every man naturally perfuades himfelf that he can keep his refolutions, nor is Etat. 61. he convinced of his imbecility but by length of time and frequency of experiment. This opinion of our own conftancy is fo prevalent, that we always defpife him who fuffers his general and fettled purpose to be overpowered by an occafional defire. They, therefore, whom frequent failures have made desperate, cease to form resolutions; and they who are become cunning, do not tell them. Those who do not make them are very few, but of their effect little is perceived; for scarcely any man perfifts in a course of life planned by choice, but as he is restrained from deviation by fome external power. He who may live as he will, feldom lives long in the obfervation of his own rules"," Of this year I have obtained the following letters: "SIR, "AS no man ought to keep wholly to himfelf any poffeffion that may be useful to the publick, I hope you will not think me unreasonably intrufive, if I have recourfe to you for fuch information as you are more able to give me than any other man. "In fupport of an opinion which you have al- ready placed above the need of any more support, Mr. Steevens, a very ingenious gentleman, lately of King's College, has collected an account of all Prayers and Meditations, p. 95. the the tranflations which Shakspeare might have feen Ætat. 61. and used. He wishes his catalogue to be perfect, and therefore intreats that you will favour him by the infertion of fuch additions as the accuracy of your inquiries has enabled you to make. To this request, I take the liberty of adding my own folicitation. "We have no immediate ufe for this catalogue, and therefore do not defire that it fhould interrupt or hinder your more important employments. But it will be kind to let us know that you receive it. "THE readinefs with which you were pleased to promise me fome notes on Shakspeare, was a new instance of your friendship. I fhall not hurry you; but am defired by Mr. Steevens, who helps me in this edition, to let you know, that we fhall print the tragedies first, and shall therefore want firft the notes which belong to them. We think not to incommode the readers with a fupplement; and therefore, what we cannot put into its proper place, will do us no good. We shall not begin to print before the end of fix weeks, perhaps not fo foon. "I am, &c. "London, June 23, 1770. SAM. JOHNSON." To |