"What conscience dictates to be done,
Or warns us not to do," &c.

It was this:

1

"Can sins of moment claim the rod
Of everlasting fires?

and

count fairly, as a specimen of that unhappy
temper with which this great and good man
had occasionally to struggle, from some-
thing morbid in his constitution. Let the
most censorious of my readers suppose nim-
self to have a violent fit of the toothache or
'to have received a severe stroke on the shin-
bone, and when in such a state to be asked
a question; and if he has any candour, he
will not be surprised at the answers which
Johnson sometimes gave in moments of ir-
ritation, which, let me assure them is ex-
quisitely painful. But it must not be erro-last two lines of this stanza.
neously supposed that he was, in the small-
est degree, careless concerning any work
which he undertook, or that he was gener-
ally thus peevish. It will be seen that in
the following year he had a very agreeable
interview with Lord Marchmont at his
lordship's house; and this very afternoon
he soon forgot any fretfulness, and fell into
conversation as usual.

And that offend great Nature's God
Which Nature's self inspires?"

that Dr. Johnson observed. "It had been borrowed from Guarini." There are, indeed, in Pastor Fido. many such flimsy superficial reasonings as that in the

I mentioned a reflection having been thrown out against four peers for having presumed to rise in opposition to the opinion of the twelve judges, in a cause in the house of lords, as if that were indecent. JOHNSON. "Sir, there is no ground for censure. The peers are judges themselves: and supposing them really to be of a different opinion, they might from duty be in opposition to the judges, who were there only to be consulted."

BOSWELL. "In that stanza of Pope's rod of fires' is certainly a bad metaphor.' MRS. THRALE. "And sins of moment' is a faulty expression; for its true import is momentous, which cannot be intended."

JOHNSON. "It must have been written of moments.' Of moment, is momentous; of moments, momentary. I warrant you, however, Pope wrote this stanza, and some friend struck it out. Boileau wrote some such thing, and Arnaud struck it out, saying, Vous gagnerez deux ou trois impies, et perdrez je ne sçais combien d'honettes gens.' These fellows want to say a daring thing, and don't know how to go about it. Mere poets know no more of fundamental principles than-." Here he was interrupted somehow. Mrs. Thrale mentioned Dryden. JOHNSON. "He puzzled himself about predestination. How foolish In this observation I fully concurred with was it in Pope to give all his friendship to him; for, unquestionably, all the peers are lords, who thought they honoured him by vested with the highest judicial powers; being with him; and to choose such lords and when they are confident that they un- as Burlington, and Cobham, and Bolingderstand a cause, are not obliged, nay, broke! Bathurst was negative, a pleasing ought not to acquiesce in the opinion of the man; and I have heard no ill of Marchmont. ordinary law judges, or even in that of And then always saying, I do not value those who from their studies and experience you for being a lord;' which was a sure are called the law lords. I consider the proof that he did. I never say I do not peers in general as I do a jury, who ought value Boswell more for being born to an to listen with respectful attention to the estate, because I do not care. BOSWELL. sages of the law; but if, after hearing" Nor for being a Scotchman?" “ Nay, them, they have a firm opinion of their sir, I do value you more for being a Scotchown, are bound, as honest men, to decide man. You are a Scotchman without the accordingly. Nor is it so difficult for them to faults of Scotchmen. You would not have understand even law questions as is gener- been so valuable as you are had you not ally thought, provided they will bestow been a Scotchman." sufficient attention upon them. This observation was made by my honoured relation the late Lord Cathcart, who had spent his life in camps and courts; yet assured me, that he could form a clear opinion upon most of the causes that came before the house of lords, "as they were so well enucleated in the Cases."

Mrs. Thrale told us, that a curious clergyman of our acquaintance had discovered a licentious stanza, which Pope had originally in his "Universal Prayer," before the stanza,

1 [The occasion was Mr. Horne's writ of error in 1778.-ED.]

دو

Talking of divorces, I asked if Othello's doctrine was not plausible;

"He that is robb'd, not wanting what is stolen,

Let him not know 't, and he's not robb'd at all.” Dr. Johnson and Mrs. Thrale joined against this. JOHNSON. "Ask any man if he'd wish not to know of such an injury." BoSWELL. "Would you tell your friend to make him unhappy?" JOHNSON. "Perlaps, sir, I should not; but that would be from prudence on my own account. A man would tell his father." BOSWELL. because he would not have spurious children to get any share of the family inheritance." MRS. THRALE. "Or he would tell his

Yes,

After Mrs. Thrale was gone to bed, He said of one 2 of our friends, "He is Johnson and I sat up late. We resumed ruining himself without pleasure. A man Sir Joshua Reynolds's argument on the who loses at play, or who runs out his for- preceding Sunday, that a man would be tune at court, makes his estate less, in hopes virtuous, though he had no other motive of making it bigger (I am sure of this than to preserve his character. JOHNSON. word, which was often used by him): but" Sir, it is not true; for, as to this world, it is a sad thing to pass through the quagmire of parsimony to the gulf of ruin. To pass over the flowery path of extravagance is very well."

[The editor declines to attempt supplying this He fears that it will be but too evident at whose expense Mr. Boswell chose to make so of--ED.] fensive an hypothesis.-ED.]

* [No doubt Mr. Langton.-ED.]

little things not being sufficient to move
his great mind." JOHNSON (very angry).
"Nay, sir, what stuff is this? You had no
more this opinion after Robertson said it
than before. I know nothing more offen-
sive than repeating what one knows to be
foolish things, by way of continuing a dis-
pute, to see what a man will answer,-to
make him your butt!" (angrier still).
BOSWELL. "My dear sir, I had no such
intention as you seem to suspect; I had not,
indeed. Might not this nobleman have felt
every thing weary, stale, flat, and un-
profitable,' as Hamlet says?" JOHNSON.
"Nay, if you are to bring in gabble, I'll
talk no more. I will not, upon my honour."
My readers will decide upon this dispute.
Next morning I stated to Mrs. Thrale at
breakfast, before he came down, the dispute
of last night as to the influence of character
upon success in life.
She said he was cer-
tainly wrong; and told me that a baronet
lost an election in Wales because he had
debauched the sister of a gentleman in the
county, whom he made one of his daugh-
ters invite as her companion at his seat in
the country, when his lady and his other
children were in London. But she would
not encounter Johnson upon the subject.

as we find no people quite in a state of na-
ture; but, I think, the more they are taught,
the more modest they are. The French
are a gross, ill-bred, untaught people; a la-
dy there will spit on the floor and rub it
with her foot. What I gained by being in
France was, learning to be better satisfied
with my own country. Time may be em-
ployed to more advantage from nineteen to
twenty-four, almost in any way than in
travelling. When you set travelling against
mere negation, against doing nothing, it is
better to be sure; but how much more
Would a young man improve were he to
study during those years. Indeed, if a
young man is wild, and must run after wo-
men and bad company, it is better this
should be done abroad, as, on his return,
he can break off such connexions, and be-
gin at home a new man, with a character
to form, and acquaintance to make. How
little does travelling supply to the conver-
sation of any man who has travelled; how
little to Beauclerk?" BOSWELL. "What
say you to Lord
32" JOHNSON
"I never but once heard him talk of what
he had seen, and that was of a large ser-
pent in one of the pyramids of Egypt."
BOSWELL. "Well, I happened to hear him
tell the same thing, which made me men-
tion him."

But,

I staid all this day with him at Streatham. He talked a great deal in very good humour. I talked of a country life. JOHNSON. Looking at Messrs. Dilly's splendid edi-"Were I to live in the country, I would tion of Lord Chesterfield's miscellaneous not devote myself to the acquisition of pop works, he laughed, and said, "Here are ularity; I would live in a much better way, now two speeches ascribed to him, both of much more happily; I would have my time which were written by me: and the best of at my own command." BOSWELL. it is, they have found out that one is like sir, is it not a sad thing to be at a distance Demosthenes, and the other like Cicero 1." from all our literary friends?" JOHNSON. He censured Lord Kames's "Sketches "Sir, you will by-and-by have enough of of the History of Man," for misrepresenting this conversation, which now delights you Clarendon's account of the appearance of so much." Sir George Villiers's ghost, as if Clarendon As he was a zealous friend of subordinawere weakly credulous; when the truth is, tion, he was at all times watchful to repress that Clarendon only says, that the story the vulgar cant against the manners of the was upon a better foundation of credit than great. High people, sir," said he, "are usually such discourses are founded upon; the best: take a hundred ladies of quality, nay, speaks thus of the person who was re- you'll find them better wives, better mothported to have seen the vision, "the poorers, more willing to sacrifice their own pleaman, if he had been at all waking;" which Lord Kames has omitted 2. He added, "In this book it is maintained that virtue is natural to man, and that if we would but consult our own hearts, we should be virtuous. Now, after consulting our own hearts all we can, and with all the helps we have, we find how few of us are virtuous. This is saying a thing which all mankind know not to be true." BOSWELL. "Is not modesty natural?" JOHNSON. "I cannot say, sir,

1 [See ante, vol. i. p. 60.-ED.]

66

sure to their children, than a hundred other women. Trades-women (I mean the wives of tradesmen) in the city, who are worth from ten to fifteen thousand pounds, are the worst creatures upon the earth, grossly ignorant, and thinking viciousness fashionable. Farmers, I think, are often worthless fellows. Few lords will cheat; and, if they do, they'll be ashamed of it: farmers cheat, and are not ashamed of it: they have all the sensual vices too of the nobility, with cheating into the bargain.

2 [This suppression is particularly blameable, 3 [Charlemont. His lordship was in the habit because the question was as to the extent of Clar- of telling the story alluded to rather too often.——— endon's credulity. See also ante, p. 189.-ED.] | ED.]

There is as much fornication and adultery | my 3 was then the common topick of conamongst farmers as amongst noblemen." versation. It was asked why piling their BOSWELL. "The notion of the world, sir, arms was insisted upon as a matter of such wever, is, that the morals of women of consequence, when it seemed to be a cirquality are worse than those in lower sta- cumstance so inconsiderable in itself. JOHNtions." JOHNSON. "Yes, sir; the licen- SON. Why, sir, a French authour says, 'I tiousness of one woman of quality makes y a beaucoup de puerilités dans la guerre. more noise than that of a number of wo- All distinctions are trifles, because great men in lower stations: then, sir, you are to things can seldom occur, and those distincconsider the malignity of women in the city tions are settled by custom. A savage against women of quality, which will make would as willingly have his meat sent to them believe any thing of them, such as him in the kitchen, as eat it at the table that they call their coachmen to bed. No, here: as men become civilised, various sir; so far as I have observed, the higher in modes of denoting honourable preference rank, the richer ladies are, they are the bet- are invented." ter instructed, and the more virtuous."

This year the Reverend Mr. Horne published his "Letter to Mr. Dunning on the English Particle." Johnson read it, and though not treated in it with sufficient respect, he had candour enough to say to Mr. Seward, "Were I to make a new edition of my Dictionary, I would adopt several 1 of Mr. Horne's etymologies. I hope they did not put the dog in the pillory for his libel: he has too much literature for that." On Saturday, May 16, I dined with him at Mr. Beauclerk's with Mr. Langton, Mr. Steevens, Dr. Higgins, and some others. I regret very feelingly every instance of my remissness in recording his memorabilia; I am afraid it is the condition of humanity (as Mr. Windham, of Norfolk, once observed to me, after having made an admirable speech in the house of commons, which was highly applauded, but which he afterwards perceived might have been better), "that we are more uneasy from thinking of our wants, than happy in thinking of our acquisitions." This is an unreasonable mode of disturbing our tranquillity, and should be corrected: let me then comfort myself with the large treasure of Johnson's conversation which I have preserved for my own enjoyment and that of the world, and et me exhibit what I have upon each occasion, whether more or less, whether a bulse, or only a few sparks of a diamond.

He said, "Dr. Mead lived more in the broad sunshine of life than almost any man."

The disaster of General Burgoyne's ar

He this day made the observations upon the similarity between "Rasselas " and "Candide:" which I have inserted in its proper place, when considering his admirable philosophical romance. He said, "Candide" he thought had more power in it than any thing that Voltaire had written.

He said, "The lyrical part of Horace never can be perfectly translated; so much of the excellence is in the numbers and expression. Francis has done it the best; I'll take his, five out of six, against them | all.” On Sunday, May 17, I presented to him Mr. Fullarton, of Fullarton, who has since distinguished himself so much in India, to whom he naturally talked of travels, as Mr. Brydone accompanied him in his tour to Sicily and Malta. He said, "The information which we have from modern travellers is much more authentick than what we had from ancient travellers: ancient travellers guessed; modern travellers measure. Swiss admit that there is but one errour in Stanyan. If Brydone were more attentive to his Bible, he would be a good traveller."

The

He said, "Lord Chatham was a Dictator; he possessed the power of putting the state in motion; now there is no power, all order is relaxed." BOSWELL. "Is there no hope of a change to the better?" JOHNSON. "Why, yes, sir, when we are weary of this relaxation. So the city of London will appoint its mayors again by seniority." BoswELL. "But is not that taking a mere chance for having a good or a bad mayor?" JOHNSON. "Yes, sir; but the evil of competition is greater than that of the worst mayor that can come: besides, there is no more reason to suppose that the choice of a rabble will be right, than that chance will be right."

In Mr. Horne Tooke's enlargement of that Letter,' ," which he has since published with the title of "ET TEGET, or, The Diversions of Purley," he mentions this compliment, as if Dr. Johnson, instead of several of his etymologies, On Tuesday, May 19, I was to set out had said all His recollection having thus magni- for Scotland in the evening. He was enfied it, shows how ambitious he was of the appro-gaged to dine with me at Mr. Dilly's; I bation of so great a man.-BOSWELL. waited upon him to remind him of his ap2 [See ante, p. 178. The editor cannot ac-pointment and attend him thither; he gave count for Johnson's ignorance of the sentenceme some salutary counsel, and recommendany more than for the inconsistency between the wishes expressed in this and the former passage. -ED.]

3 [Its surrender at Saratoga, October 17, 1777.-ED.]