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Somebody mentioned the Reverend Mr. Mason's prosecution of Mr. Murray, the bookseller, for having inserted a collection of Gray's poems, only fifty lines, of which Mr. Mason had still the exclusive property, under the statute of Queen Anne; and that Mr. Mason had persevered, notwithstanding his being requested to name his own terms of compensation.1 Johnson signified his displeasure at Mr. Mason's conduct very strongly; but added, by way of showing that he was not surprised at it, 'Mason's a Whig.' MRS. KNOWLES (not hearing distinctly): 'What! a prig, sir?' JOHNSON: Worse, madam; a Whig!

But he is both!'

I expressed a horror at the thought of death. MRS. KNOWLES: 'Nay, thou shouldst not have a horror for what is the gate of life.' JOHNSON (standing upon the hearth rolling about, with a serious, solemn, and somewhat gloomy air): 'No rational man can die without uneasy apprehension.' MRS. KNOWLES: The Scriptures tell us, "The righteous shall have hope in his death."' JOHNSON: 'Yes, madam; that is, he shall not have despair. But, consider, his hope of salvation must be founded on the terms on which it is promised that the mediation of our Saviour shall be applied to us-namely, obedience; and where obedience has failed, then, as suppletory to it, repentance. But what man can say that his obedience has been such as he would approve of in another, or even in himself upon close examination, or that his repentance has not been such as to require being repented of? No man can be sure that

1 See A Letter to W. Mason, A.M., from J. Murray, Bookseller in London, second edit., p. 20.

his obedience and repentance will obtain salvation.' MRS. KNOWLES: 'But divine intimation of acceptance may be made to the soul.' JOHNSON: 'Madam, it may; but I should not think the better of a man who should tell me on his deathbed he was sure of salvation. A man cannot be sure himself that he has divine intimation of acceptance; much less can he make others sure that he has it.' BoswELL: 'Then, sir, we must be contented to acknowledge that death is a terrible thing.' JOHNSON: 'Yes, sir. I have made no approaches to a state which can look on it as not terrible.' MRS. KNOWLES (seeming to enjoy a pleasing serenity in the persuasion of benignant divine light): 'Does not St. Paul say "I have fought the good fight of faith, I have finished my course; henceforth is laid up for me a crown of life?”' JOHNSON: 'Yes, madam; but here was a man inspired, a man who had been converted by supernatural interposition.' BOSWELL: 'In prospect death is dreadful; but in fact we find that people die easy.' JOHNSON: 'Why, sir, most people have not thought much of the matter, so cannot say much, and it is supposed they die easy. Few believe it certain they are then to die; and those who do set themselves to behave with resolution, as a man does who is going to be hanged: he is not the less unwilling to be hanged.' MISS SEWARD: 'There is one mode of the fear of death, which is certainly absurd: and that is the dread of annihilation, which is only a pleasing sleep without a dream.' JOHNSON: 'It is neither pleasing nor sleep; it is nothing. Now mere existence is so much better than nothing, that one would rather exist even in pain than not exist.' BOSWELL: 'If annihilation be nothing,

then existing in pain is not a comparative state, but is a positive evil, which I cannot think we should choose. I must be allowed to differ here; and it would lessen the hope of a future state founded on the argument that the Supreme Being, who is good as he is great, will hereafter compensate for our present sufferings in this life. For if existence, such as we have it here, be comparatively a good, we have no reason to complain, though no more of it should be given to us. But if our only state of existence were in this world, then we might with some reason complain that we are so dissatisfied with our enjoyments compared with our desires.' JOHNSON: "The lady confounds annihilation, which is nothing, with the apprehension of it, which is dreadful. It is in the apprehension of it that the horror of annihilation consists.'

Of John Wesley, he said, 'He can talk well on any subject.' BOSWELL: 'Pray, sir, what has he made of his story of the ghost?' JOHNSON: 'Why, sir, he believes it; but not on sufficient authority. He did not take time enough to examine the girl. It was at Newcastle, where the ghost was said to have appeared to a young woman several times, mentioning something about the right to an old house, advising application to be made to an attorney, which was done; and, at the same time, saying the attorney would do nothing, which proved to be the fact. "This (says John) is a proof that a ghost knows our thoughts." Now (laughing) it is not necessary to know our thoughts to tell that an attorney will sometimes do nothing. Charles Wesley, who is a more stationary man, does not believe the story. I am sorry that

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