s Warton. Com Buckw. It. We, the Circumscribers, having read with great pleasure an intended Epitaph for the Monument of Dr. Goldsmith, which, considered abstractedly, w. Tho. Franklin, Vrt Cranmer appears to be, for elegant composition and masterly have been the opinion of the have epitaphs written both in a learned language, and in the language of the country; so that they might have the advantage of being more universally understood, and at the same time be secured of classical stability. I cannot, however, but be of opinion that it is not sufficiently discriminative. Applying to Goldsmith equally the epithets of 'Poeta, Historici, Physici,' is surely not right; for as to his claim to the last of those epithets, I have heard Johnson himself say, 'Goldsmith, sir, will give us a very fine book upon the subject; but if he can distinguish a cow from a horse, that I believe may be the extent of his knowledge of natural history.' His book is, indeed, himself. Glolman задачка повтору an excellent performance, though in some instances he appears to have trusted too much to Buffon, who, with all his theoretical ingenuity and extraordinary eloquence, I suspect had little actual information in the science on which he wrote so admirably. For instance, he tells us that the cow sheds her horns every two years; a most palpable error, which Goldsmith has faithfully transferred into his book. It is wonderful that Buffon, who lived so much in the country, at his noble seat, should have fallen into such a blunder. I suppose he has confounded the cow with the deer.BOSWELL. My readers are presented with a faithful transcript of a paper which I doubt not of their being desirous to see. Sir William Forbes's observation is very just. The anecdote now related, proves in the strongest manner the reverence and awe with which Johnson was regarded by some of the most eminent men of his time, in various departments, and even by such of them as lived most with him; while it also confirms what I have again and again inculcated, that he was by no means of that ferocious and irascible character which has been ignorantly imagined. This hasty composition is also to be remarked as one of the thousand instances which evince the extraordinary promptitude of Mr. Burke; who, while he is equal to the greatest things, can adorn the least; can with equal facility embrace the vast and complicated speculations of politics, or the ingenious topics of literary investigation. DR. JOHNSON TO MRS. BOSWELL. May 16, 1776. 'MADAM,-You must not think me uncivil in omitting to answer the letter with which you favoured me some time ago. I imagined it to have been written without Mr. Boswell's knowledge, and therefore supposed the answer to require, what I could not find, a private con 'You will now have Mr. Boswell home: it is well that you have him; he has led a wild life. I have taken him to Lichfield, and he has followed Mr. Thrale to Bath. Pray take care of him and tame him. The only thing in which I have the honour to agree with you is, in loving him; and while we are so much of a mind in a matter of so much importance, our other quarrels will, I hope, produce no great bitterness. I am, madam, your most humble servant, 'SAM. JOHNSON.' MR. BOSWELL TO DR. JOHNSON. EDINBURGH, June 25, 1776. " You have formerly complained that my letters were too long. There is no danger of that complaint being made at present; for I find it difficult for me to write to you at all. [Here an account of having been afflicted with a return of melancholy or bad spirits.] 'The boxes of books which you sent to me 1 Upon a settlement of our account of expenses, on a tour to the Hebrides, there was a balance due to me, which Dr. Johnson chose to discharge by sending books.-BOSWELL. are arrived; but I have not yet examined the contents. I send you Mr. Maclaurin's paper for the negro, who claims his freedom in the Court of Session.' DR. JOHNSON TO MR. BOSWELL. 'July 2, 1776. 'DEAR SIR,-These black fits of which you complain perhaps hurt your memory as well as your imagination. When did I complain that your letters were too long? Your last letter, after a very long delay, brought very bad news. [Here a series of reflections upon melancholy, and-what I could not help thinking strangely unreasonable in him who had suffered so much from it himself-a good deal of severity and reproof, as if it were owing to my own fault, or that I was perhaps affecting it from a desire of distinction.] 'Read Cheyne's English Malady; but do not let him teach you a foolish notion that melancholy is a proof of acuteness. 'To hear that you have not opened your boxes of books is very offensive. The examination and arrangement of so many volumes might have afforded you an amusement very seasonable at present, and useful for the whole of life. I am, I confess, very angry that you manage yourself so ill. 'I do not now say any more than that I am, with great kindness and sincerity, dear sir, your humble servant. 'SAM. JOHNSON. 'Now, my dear Bozzy, let us have done with quarrels and with censure. Let me know whether I have not sent you a pretty library. There are, perhaps, many books among them which you never need read through; but there are none which it is not proper for you to know, Of these books, of and sometimes to consult. which the use is only occasional, it is often sufficient to know the contents, that, when any question arises, you may know where to look for information. 1 Baretti told me that Johnson complained of my writing very long letters to him when I was upon the Continent; which was most certainly true; but it seems my friend did not remember it.-BOSWELL. 'Since I wrote, I have looked over Mr. Maclaurin's plea, and think it excellent. How is the suit carried on? If by subscription, I commission you to contribute in my name what is proper. Let nothing be wanting in such a case. Dr. Drummond,' I see, is superseded. His father would have grieved; but he lived to obtain the pleasure of his son's election, and died before that pleasure was abated. 'Langton's lady has brought him a girl, and both are well; I dined with him the other day. 'It vexes me to tell you, that on the evening of the 29th of May I was seized by the gout, and am not quite well. The pain has not been violent, but the weakness and tenderness were very troublesome, and, what is said to be very uncommon, it has not alleviated my other disorders. Make use of youth and health while you have them. Make my compliments to Mrs. Boswell.-I am, my dear sir, your most affectionate, 'SAM. JOHNSON.' MR. BOSWELL TO DR. JOHNSON. upon my studies and endeavours. Grant me, O LORD, to design only what is lawful and right: and afford me calmness of mind and steadiness of purpose, that I may so do Thy will in this short life as to obtain happiness in the world to come, for the sake of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.' It appears, from a note subjoined, that this was composed when he purposed to apply vigorously to study, particularly of the Greek and Italian tongues.' Such a purpose, so expressed, at the age of sixty-seven, is admirable and encouraging; and it must impress all the thinking part of my readers with a consolatory confidence in habitual devotion, when they see a man of such enlarged intellectual powers as Johnson, thus in the genuine earnestness of secrecy imploring the aid of that Supreme Being from whom cometh down every good and every perfect gift.' TO SIR JOSHUA REYNOLDS. 'August 3, 1776. 'SIR,-A young man, whose name is Paterson, offers himself this evening to the Academy. He is the son of a man for whom I have long had a kindness, and who is now abroad in distress. I shall be glad that you will be pleased to show him any little countenance, or pay him any small distinction. How much it is in your EDINBURGH, July 18, 1776. 'MY DEAR SIR,-Your letter of the second of this month was rather a harsh medicine; but I was delighted with that spontaneous tenderness which, a few days afterwards, sent forth such balsam as your next brought me. I found myself for some time so ill, that all I could do was to pre-power to favour or to forward a young man I serve a decent appearance, while all within was weakness and distress. Like a reduced garrison that has some spirit left, I hung out flags, and planted all the force I could muster upon the walls. I am now much better, and I sincerely thank you for your kind attention and friendly counsel.' 'Count Manucci came here last week from travelling in Ireland. I have shown him what civilities I could on his account, on yours, and on that of Mr. and Mrs. Thrale. He has had a fall from his horse, and been much hurt. I regret this unlucky accident, for he seems to be a very amiable man.' As the evidence of what I have mentioned at the beginning of this year, I select from his private register the following passage : 'July 25, 1776. O God, who hast ordained that whatever is to be desired should be sought by labour, and who by Thy blessing bringest honest labour to good effect, look with mercy 1 The son of Johnson's old friend, Mr. William Drummond. He was a young man of such distinguished merit, that he was nominated to one of the medical professorships in the College of Edinburgh, without solicitation, while he was at Naples. Having other views, he did not accept of the honour, and soon afterwards died.-BoSWELL. 2 A Florentine nobleman, mentioned by Johnson in his Notes of his Tour in France. I had the pleasure of becoming acquainted with him in London, in the spring of this year.-BOSWELL. do not know; nor do I know how much this candidate deserves favour by his personal merit," or what hopes his proficiency may now give of future eminence. I recommend him as the son of my friend. Your character and station en- Walpole than that he would bow to him at his MR. BOSWELL TO DR. JOHNSON, 'August 30, 1776. [After giving him an account of my having examined the chest of books which he had sent to me, and which contained what may be truly called a numerous and miscellaneous Stall Library, thrown together at random :-] 'Lord Hailes was against the decree in the case of my client, the minister; not that he justified the minister, but because the parishioner both provoked and retorted. I sent his Lordship your able argument upon the case for his perusal. His observation upon it in a letter to me was, Dr. Johnson's Suasorium is pleasantly 1 Prayers and Meditations, p. 151.-Boswell. 2 Samuel Paterson, formerly a bookseller, lately an auctioneer, and well known for his skill in forming catalogues of books. He died in London, Oct. 22, 1802. MALONE. and artfully composed. I suspect, however, that he has not convinced himself; for I believe that he is better read in ecclesiastical history than to imagine that a bishop or presbyter has a right to begin censure or discipline è cathedrâ.1 'For the honour of Count Manucci, as well as to observe that exactness of truth which you have taught me, I must correct what I said in a former letter. He did not fall from his horse, which might have been an imputation on his skill as an officer of cavalry; his horse fell with him. "While Tories call me Whig, and Whigs a Tory.' I wish you would look more into his book; and as Lord Mountstuart wishes much to find a proper person to continue the work upon Granger's plan, and has desired I would mention it to you, if such a man occurs, please to let me know. His Lordship will give him generous encouragement.' 'TO MR. ROBERT LEVETT. " BRIGHTHELMSTONE, Oct. 21, 1776. DEAR SIR,-Having spent about six weeks at this place, we have at length resolved upon returning. I expect to see you all in Fleet Street on the 30th of this month. 'I did not go into the sea till last Friday, but think to go most of this week, though I know not that it does me any good. My nights are very restless and tiresome, but I am otherwise well. 'I have written word of my coming to Mrs. Williams. Remember me kindly to Francis and Betsey.2-I am, sir, your most humble servant, 'SAM. JOHNSON.'3 I again wrote to Dr. Johnson on the 21st of October, informing him that my father had, in the most liberal manner, paid a large debt for me, and that I had now the happiness of being upon very good terms with him; to which he returned the following answer : 1 Dr. Johnson afterwards told me that he was or opinion that a clergyman had this right.-BOSWELL. 2 His female servant.-MALONE. 3 For this and Dr. Johnson's other letters to Mr. Levett, I am indebted to my old acquaintance Mr. Nathaniel Thomas, whose worth and ingenuity have been long known to a respectable though not a wide circle; and whose collection of medals would do credit to persons of greater opulence.-BOSWELL. Mr. Nathaniel Thomas, who was many years editor of The St. James's Chronicle, died March 1, 1795.MALONE. TO JAMES BOSWELL, ESQ. 'BOLT COURT, Nov. 16, 1776. 'DEAR SIR,-I had great pleasure in hearing that you are at last on good terms with your ! father. Cultivate his kindness by all honest and manly means. Life is but short; no time can be afforded but for the indulgence of real momentous. Let us not throw away any of our sorrow, or contests upon questions seriously days upon useless resentment, or contend who shall hold out longest in stubborn malignity. It is best not to be angry; and best in the next place to be quickly reconciled. May you and your father pass the remainder of your time in reciprocal benevolence! 'I hope my irreconcilable enemy, Mrs. Boswell, is well. Desire her not to transmit her malevolence to the young people. Let me have Alexander, and Veronica, and Euphemia for my friends. 'Mrs. Williams, whom you may reckon as one of your well-wishers, is in a feeble and languishing state, with little hopes of growing better. She went for some part of the autumn into the country, but is little benefited; and Dr. Lawrence confesses that his art is at an end. Death is, however, at a distance: and what more than that can we say of ourselves? I am sorry for her pain, and more sorry for her decay. Mr. Levett is sound, wind and limb. 'I was some weeks this autumn at Brighthelmstone. The place was very dull, and I was not well. The expedition to the Hebrides was the most pleasant journey that I ever made. Such an effort annually would give the world a little diversification. 'Every year, however, we cannot wander, and must therefore endeavour to spend our time at home as well as we can. I believe it is best to throw life into a method, that every hour may bring its employment, and every employment have its hour. Xenophon observes, in his Treatise of Economy, that if everything be kept in a certain place, when anything is worn out or consumed, the vacuity which it leaves will show what is wanting; so if every part of time has its duty, the hour will call into remembrance its proper engagement. 'I have not practised all this prudence myself, but I have suffered much for want of it; and I steady resolution, escape from those evils which would have you, by timely recollection and have lain heavy upon me.-I am, my dearest Boswell, your most humble servant, 'SAM. JOHNSON." 'DEAR SIR, I have been for some time ill of a cold, which perhaps I made an excuse to myself for not writing, when in reality I knew not what to say. 'The books you must at last distribute as you think best, in my name or your own as you are inclined, or as you judge most proper. Everybody cannot be obliged; but I wish that nobody may be offended. Do the best you can. 'I congratulate you on the increase of your family, and hope that little David is by this time well, and his mamma perfectly recovered. I am much pleased to hear of the re-establishment of kindness between you and your father. Cultivate his paternal tenderness as much as you can. To live at variance at all is uncomfortable; and variance with a father is still more uncomfortable. Besides that, in the whole dispute you have the wrong side; at least you gave the first provocations, and some of them very offensive. Let it now be all over. As you have no reason to think that your new mother has shown you any foul play, treat her with respect, and with some degree of confidence; this will secure your father. When once a discordant family has felt the pleasure of peace, they will not willingly lose it. If Mrs. Boswell would but be friends with me, we might now shut the temple of Janus. 'What came of Dr. Memis's cause? Is the question about the negro determined? Has Sir Allan any reasonable hopes? What has become of poor Macquarry? Let me know the event of all these litigations. I wish particularly well to the negro and Sir Allan. 'Mrs. Williams has been much out of order; and though she is something better, is likely, in her physician's opinion, to endure her malady for life, though she may perhaps die of some other. Mrs. Thrale is big, and fancies that she carries a boy; if it were very reasonable to wish much about it, I should wish her not to be disappointed. The desire of male heirs is not appendant only to feudal tenures. A son is almost necessary to the continuance of Thrale's fortune; for what can misses do with a brew-house? Lands are fitter for daughters than trades. 'Baretti went away from Thrale's in some whimsical fit of disgust, or ill-nature, without taking any leave. It is well if he finds in another place as good an habitation, and as many con veniences. He has got five-and-twenty guineas by translating Sir Joshua's Discourses into Italian, and Mr. Thrale gave him a hundred in the spring; so that he is yet in no difficulties. 'Colman has bought Foote's patent, and is to allow Foote for life £1600 a year, as Reynolds told me, and to allow him to play so often on such terms that he may gain £400 more. What Colman can get by his bargain,' but trouble and hazard, I do not see.-I am, dear sir, your humble servant, 'SAM. JOHNSON.' The Rev. Dr. Hugh Blair, who had long been admired as a preacher at Edinburgh, thought now of diffusing his excellent sermons more extensively, and increasing his reputation by publishing a collection of them. He transmitted the manuscript to Mr. Strahan, the printer, who, after keeping it for some time, wrote a letter to him, discouraging the publication. Such, at first, was the unpropitious state of one of the most successful theological books that has ever appeared. Mr. Strahan, however, had sent one of the sermons to Dr. Johnson for his opinion; and, after his unfavourable letter to Dr. Blair had been sent off, he received from Johnson, on Christmas-eve, a note, in which was the following paragraph: 'I have read over Dr. Blair's first sermon with more than approbation; to say it is good, is to say too little.' I believe Mr. Strahan had, very soon after this time, a conversation with Dr. Johnson concerning them, and then he very candidly wrote again to Dr. Blair, enclosing Johnson's note, and agreeing to purchase the volume, for which he and Mr. Cadell gave £100. The sale was so rapid and extensive, and the approbation of the public so high, that, to their honour be it recorded, the proprietors made Dr. Blair a present, first of one sum and afterwards of another of £50, thus voluntarily doubling the stipulated price; and when he prepared another volume they gave him at once £300, being in all £500, by an agreement to which I am a subscribing witness; and now for a third octavo volume he has received no less than £600.2 In 1777, it appears, from his Prayers and Meditations, that Johnson suffered much from a state of mind unsettled and perplexed,' and from that constitutional gloom which, together with his extreme humility and anxiety with regard to his religious state, made him contemplate himself through too dark and unfavourable a medium. It may be said of him, that he 'saw GOD in clouds.' Certain we may be of his injustice to himself in the following lamentable paragraph, which it is painful to think came 1 It turned out, however, a very fortunate bargain; for Foote, though not then fifty-six, died at an inn in Dover, in less than a year, Oct. 21, 1777.-MALONE. 2 Two other volumes were published. |