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have hit hard, unless it rebounds." BOSWELL. "I don't know, Sir, what you Etat, 66. would be at. Five or fix fhots of fmall arms in every newspaper, and repeated cannonading in pamphlets, might, I think fatisfy you. But, Sir, you'll never make out this match, of which we have talked, with a certain political lady, fince you are fo fevere against her principles." JOHNSON. "Nay, Sir, I have the better chance for that. She is like the Amazons of old; fhe must be courted by the fword. But I have not been fevere upon her." BOSWELL. "Yes, Sir, you have made her ridiculous." JOHNSON. "That was already done, Sir. To endeavour to make her ridiculous, is like blacking the chimney."

I put him in mind that the landlord at Ellon in Scotland faid, that he heard he was the greateft man in England,-next to Lord Mansfield. "Aye, Sir, (faid he,) the exception defined the idea. A Scotchman could go no farther:

"The force of Nature could no farther go."

Lady Miller's collection of verfes by fashionable people, which were put into her Vafe at Batheafton villa, near Bath, in competition for honorary prizes, being mentioned, he held them very cheap: "Bouts rimés (faid he,) is a mere conceit, and an old conceit now; I wonder how people were perfuaded to write in that manner for this lady." I named a gentleman of his acquaintance, who wrote for the Vafe. JOHNSON. "He was a blockhead for his pains." BOSWELL. "The Duchefs of Northumberland wrote." JOHNSON. "Sir, the Duchefs of Northumberland may do what fhe pleases: nobody will fay any thing to a lady of her high rank. But I should be apt to throw ******'s verses in his face."

I talked of the cheerfulness of Fleet-ftreet, owing to the conftant quick fucceffion of people which we perceive paffing through it. JOHNSON. "Why, Sir, Fleet-street has a very animated appearance; but I think the full tide of human existence is at Charing-crofs."

He made the common remark on the unhappiness which men who have led a bufy life experience, when they retire in expectation of enjoying themfelves at eafe, and that they generally languifh for want of their habitual occupation, and wish to return to it. He mentioned as strong an instance of this as can well be imagined. "An eminent tallow-chandler in London, who had acquired a confiderable fortune, gave up the trade in favour of his foreman, and went to live at a country-houfe near town. He foon grew weary, and paid frequent vifits to his old fhop, where he defired they might let him know

1775

their melting-days, and he would come and affift them; which he accordingly did. Here, Sir, was a man, to whom the most disgusting circumftance in Etat. 66. the bufinefs to which he had been used, was a relief from idlenefs."

On Wednesday, April 5, I dined with him at Meffieurs Dillys, with Mr. John Scott of Amwell, the Quaker, Mr. Langton, Mr. Miller, (now Sir John,) and Dr. Thomas Campbell, an Irish clergyman, whom I took the liberty of inviting to Meffieurs Dillys' table, having seen him at Mr. Thrale's, and been told that he had come to England chiefly with a view to fee Dr. Johnson, for whom he entertained the highest veneration. He has fince published " A philofophical Survey of the South of Ireland," a very entertaining book, which has, however, one fault ;-that it affumes the fictitious character of an Englishman.

We talked of publick speaking.-JOHNSON. "We must not estimate a man's powers by his being able or not able to deliver his fentiments in publick. Ifaac Hawkins Browne, one of the firft wits of this country, got into parliament, and never opened his mouth. For my own part, I think it is more difgraceful never to try to speak, than to try it and fail; as it is more difgraceful not to fight, than to fight and be beaten." This argument appeared to me fallacious; for if a man has not spoken, it may be faid that he would have done very well if he had tried; whereas, if he has tried and failed, there is nothing to be faid for him. "Why then, (I asked,) is it thought difgraceful for a man not to fight, and not difgraceful not to speak in publick?" JOHNSON. "Because there may be other reasons for a man's not speaking in publick than want of refolution he may have nothing to fay, (laughing). Whereas, Sir, you know courage is reckoned the greatest of all virtues; because, unless a man has that virtue, he has no fecurity for preferving any other."

He obferved, that "the ftatutes against bribery were intended to prevent upstarts with money from getting into parliament;" adding, that "if he were a gentleman of landed property, he would turn out all his tenants who did not vote for the candidate whom he supported." LANGTON. "Would not that, Sir, be checking the freedom of election?" JOHNSON. "Sir, the law does not mean that the privilege of voting fhould be independent of old family intereft; of the permanent property of the country.'

On Thursday, April 6, I dined with him at Mr. Thomas Davies's, with Mr. Hicky the painter, and my old acquaintance Mr. Moody the player.

Dr. Johnson, as ufual, fpoke contemptuously of Colley Cibber. "It is wonderful that a man, who for forty years had lived with the great and the witty, fhould have acquired fo ill the talents of converfation: and he had but half to furnish;

PPP

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Etat. 66.

furnish; for one half of what he faid was oaths." He, however, allowed
confiderable merit to some of his comedies, and faid there was no reason to
believe that "The Careless Hufband" was not written by himself. Davies
faid, he was the first dramatick writer who introduced genteel ladies upon the
ftage. Johnson refuted this obfervation by inftancing feveral fuch characters
in comedies before his time. DAVIES. (trying to defend himself from a charge
of ignorance,) "I mean genteel moral characters." "I think (faid Hicky,)
gentility and morality are infeparable." BOSWELL. "By no means, Sir. The
genteeleft characters are often the most immoral. Does not Lord Chesterfield
give precepts for uniting wickednefs and the graces? A man, indeed, is not
genteel when he gets drunk; but moft vices may be committed very genteely:
a man may debauch his friend's wife genteely: he may cheat at cards genteely."
HICKY. "I do not think that is genteel." BOSWELL. "Sir, it may not be like a
gentleman, but it may be genteel." JOHNSON. "You are meaning two different
things. One means exteriour grace; the other honour. It is certain, that a
man may be very immoral with exteriour grace. Lovelace, in Clariffa,' is a
very genteel and a very wicked character. Tom Hervey, who died t'other day,
though a vicious man, was one of the genteelest men that ever lived." Tom
Davies instanced Charles the Second. JOHNSON, (taking fire at any attack upon
this Prince, for whom he had an extraordinary partiality,) "Charles the Second
was licentious in his practice; but he always had a reverence for what was good.
Charles the Second knew his people, and rewarded merit. The Church was
at no time better filled than in his reign. He was the best King we have had
from his time till the reign of his prefent Majefty, except James the Second,
who was a very good King, but unhappily believed that it was neceffary for
the falvation of his fubjects that they should be Roman Catholicks. He had the
merit of endeavouring to do what he thought was for the falvation of the souls
of his fubjects, till he loft a great empire. We, who thought that we should.
not be faved if we were Roman Catholicks, had the merit of maintaining our
religion, at the expence of fubmitting ourselves to the government of King
William, (for it could not be done otherwife,)—to the government of one of
the moft worthlefs fcoundrels that ever exifted. No; Charles the Second was
not fuch a man as
-, (naming another King). He did not destroy his
father's will. He took money, indeed, from France: but he did not betray thofe
over whom he ruled: he did not let the French fleet pafs ours. George the
First knew nothing, and defired to know nothing; did nothing, and defired to
do nothing: and the only good thing that is told of him is, that he wished to
restore the crown to its hereditary fucceffor." He roared with prodigious.
violence

2

violence against George the Second. When he ceafed, Moody interjected, in an Irish tone, and with a comick look, "Ah! poor George the Second."

I mentioned that Dr. Thomas Campbell had come from Ireland to London, principally to fee Dr. Johnson. He seemed angry at this obfervation. DAVIES. "Why, you know, Sir, there came a man from Spain to fee Livy'; and Corelli came to England to fee Purcell, and, when he heard he was dead, went directly back again to Italy." JOHNSON. "I fhould not have wished to be dead to disappoint Campbell, had he been fo foolish as you represent him; but I fhould have wifhed to have been a hundred miles off." This was apparently perverse; and I do believe it was not his real way of thinking: he could not but like a man who came fo far to fee him. He laughed with fome complacency, when I told him Campbell's odd expreffion to me concerning him: "That having feen fuch a man, was a thing to talk of a century hence;" as if he could live fo long.

We got into an argument whether the Judges who went to India might with propriety engage in trade. Johnson warmly maintained that they might. "For why (he urged) fhould not Judges get riches, as well as those who deferve them lefs." I faid, they fhould have fufficient falaries, and have nothing to take off their attention from the affairs of the publick. JOHNSON. "No Judge, Sir, can give his whole attention to his office; and it is very proper that he should employ what time he has to himself, for his own advantage, in the most profitable manner." "Then, Sir, (faid Davies, who enlivened the dispute by making it fomewhat dramatick,) he may become an insurer; and when he is going to the bench, he may be stopped, Your Lordship cannot go yet: here is a bunch of invoices: feveral ships are about to fail." JOHNSON. "Sir, you may as well fay a judge fhould not have a houfe; for they may come and tell him, Your Lordship's house is on fire;' and so, instead of minding the business of his Court, he is to be occupied in getting the engine with the greatest speed. There is no end of this. Every Judge who has land, trades to a certain extent in corn or in cattle; and in the land itself, undoubtedly. His steward acts for him, and fo do clerks for a great merchant. A Judge may be a farmer; but he is not to geld his own pigs. A Judge may play a little at cards for his amusement; but he is not to play at marbles, or at chuck-farthing in the Piazza. No, Sir; there is no profeffion to which a man gives a very great proportion of his time. It is wonderful when a calculation is made, how little the mind is actually employed in the discharge of

1775.

Ætat. 66.

1775.

any profeffion. No man would be a Judge, upon the condition of being Atat, 66. obliged to be totally a Judge. The best employed lawyer has his mind at work but for a small proportion of his time: a great deal of his occupation is merely mechanical.-I once wrote for a magazine: I made a calculation, that if I should write but a page a day, at the fame rate, I should, in ten years, write nine volumes in folio, of an ordinary size and print." BOSWELL. "Such as Carte's History?" JOHNSON. "Yes, Sir. When a man writes from his own mind, he writes very rapidly'. The greatest part of a writer's time is spent in reading, in order to write: a man will turn over half a library to make one book."

I argued warmly against the Judges trading, and mentioned Hale as an inftance of a perfect Judge, who devoted himself entirely to his office. JOHNSON. "Hale, Sir, attended to other things befide law: he left a great eftate." BOSWELL. "That was, because what he got, accumulated without any exertion and anxiety on his part."

While the difpute went on, Moody once tried to fay fomething upon our fide. Tom Davies clapped him on the back, to encourage him. Beauclerk, to whom I mentioned this circumftance, faid, that "he could not conceive a more humiliating fituation than to be clapped on the back by Tom Davies."

We spoke of Rolt, to whofe Dictionary of Commerce, Dr. Johnson wrote the Preface. JOHNSON. "Old Gardner the bookfeller employed Rolt and Smart to write a monthly mifcellany, called The Vifitor. There was a formal written contract, which Allen the printer faw.. Gardner thought as you do of the Judge. They were bound to write nothing else. They were to have, I think, a third of the profits of this fixpenny pamphlet; and the contract was for ninety-nine years. I wish I had thought of giving this to Thurlow, in the cause about Literary Property. What an excellent inftance would it have been of the oppreffion of bookfellers towards poor authours!" (fmiling). Davies,, zealous for the honour of the Trade, faid, Gardner was not properly a book-. feller. JOHNSON. "Nay, Sir; he certainly was a bookfeller. He had served, his time regularly, was a member of the Stationers' company, kept a shop in, the face of mankind, purchased copy-right, and was a bibliopole, Sir, in every fenfe. I wrote for fome months in The Vifitor,' for poor Smart, while he. was mad, not then knowing the terms on which he was engaged to write, and; thinking I was doing him good. I hoped his wits would foon return to him.. Mine returned to me, and I wrote in The Vifitor' no longer..

3

Johnfon certainly did, who had a mind ftored with knowledge, and teeming with imagery: but the obfervation is not applicable to writers in general,

Friday,