sorry too; for that he had a property in the Dictionary, to which his Lordship's patronage might have been of consequence.' He then told Dr. Adams, that Lord Chesterfield had shewn him the letter. 'I should have imagined (replied Dr. Adams) that Lord Chesterfield would have concealed it.' 'Poh! (said Dodsley) do you think a letter from Johnson could hurt Lord Chesterfield? Not at all, Sir. It lay upon his table, where any body might see it. He read it to me; said, "this man has great powers," pointed out the severest passages, and observed how well they were expressed.' This air of indifference, which imposed upon the worthy Dodsley, was certainly nothing but a specimen of that dissimulation which Lord Chesterfield inculcated as one of the most essential lessons for the conduct of life. His Lordship endeavoured to justify himself to Dodsley from the charges brought against him by Johnson; but we may judge of the flimsiness of his defence, from his having excused his neglect of Johnson, by saying that 'he had heard he had changed his lodgings, and did not know where he lived;' as if there could have been the smallest difficulty to inform himself of that circumstance, by inquiring in the literary circle with which his Lordship was well acquainted, and was, indeed, himself one of its ornaments.

Dr. Adams expostulated with Johnson, and suggested, that his not being admitted when he called on him, was, probably, not to be imputed to Lord Chesterfield; for his Lordship had declared to Dodsley, that 'he would have turned off the best servant he ever had, if he had known that he denied him to a man who would have been always more than welcome;' and, in confirmation of this, he insisted on Lord Chesterfield's general affability and easiness of access, especially to literary men. 'Sir (said Johnson) that is not Lord Chesterfield; he is the proudest man this day existing.' 'No, (said Dr. Adams) there is one person, at least, as proud; I think, by your own account, you are the prouder man of the two.' 'But mine (replied Johnson, instantly) was defensive pride.' This, as Dr. Adams well observed, was one of those happy turns for which he was so remarkably ready.

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Johnson having now explicitly avowed his opinion of Lord Chesterfield, did not refrain from expressing himself concerning that nobleman with pointed freedom: 'This man (said he) I thought had been a Lord among wits; but, I find, he is only a wit among Lords!' And when his Letters to his natural son were published, he observed, that 'they teach the morals of a whore, and the manners of a dancing master.'

On the 6th of March came out Lord Bolingbroke's works, published by Mr. David Mallet. The wild and pernicious ravings, under the name of Philosophy, which were thus ushered into the world, gave great offence to all well-principled men. Johnson, hearing of their tendency, which nobody disputed, was roused with a just indignation, and pronounced this memorable sentence upon the noble authour and his editor. 'Sir, he was a scoundrel, and a coward: a scoundrel, for charging a blunderbuss against religion and morality; a coward, because he had not resolution to fire it off himself, but left half a crown to a beggarly Scotchman, to draw the trigger after his death!'

Johnson this year found an interval of leisure to make an excursion to Oxford, for the purpose of consulting the libraries there.

Of his conversation while at Oxford at this time, Mr. Warton preserved and communicated to me the following memorial, which, though not written with all the care and attention which that learned and elegant writer bestowed on those compositions which he intended for the publick eye, is so happily expressed in an easy style, that I should injure it by any alteration:

'When Johnson came to Oxford in 1754, the long vacation was beginning, and most people were leaving the place. This was the first time of his being there, after quitting the University. The next morning after his arrival, he wished to see his old College, Pembroke. I went with him. He was highly pleased to find all the College-servants which he had left there still remaining, particularly a very old butler; and expressed great satisfaction at being recognised by them, and conversed with them familiarly. He

waited on the master, Dr. Radcliffe, who received him coldly. Johnson at least expected, that the master w order a copy of his Dictionary, now near publication: the master did not choose to talk on the subject, n asked Johnson to dine, nor even to visit him, while stayed at Oxford. After we had left the lodgings, John said to me, "There lives a man, who lives by the reven of literature, and will not move a finger to support it. come to live at Oxford, I shall take up my abode at Trinit We then called on the Reverend Mr. Meeke, one of fellows, and of Johnson's standing. Here was a most dial greeting on both sides. On leaving him, Johnson sa "I used to think Meeke had excellent parts, when we w boys together at the College: but, alas!

I remember, at the classical lecture in the Hall, I cou not bear Meeke's superiority, and I tried to sit as far fr him as I could, that I might not hear him construe."

'As we were leaving the College, he said, "Here I tra lated Pope's Messiah. Which do you think is the best li in it? My own favourite is,

'Vallis aromaticas fundit Saronica nubes.""

I told him, I thought it a very sonorous hexameter. I d not tell him, it was not in the Virgilian style. He mu regretted that his first tutor was dead; for whom he seem to retain the greatest regard. He said, "I once had be a whole morning sliding in Christ-Church Meadow, an missed his lecture in logick. After dinner, he sent for m to his room. I expected a sharp rebuke for my idlenes and went with a beating heart. When we were seated, b told me he had sent for me to drink a glass of wine with hin and to tell me, he was not angry with me for missing h lecture. This was, in fact, a most severe reprimand. Som more of the boys were then sent for, and we spent a ver pleasant afternoon." Besides Mr. Meeke, there was onl

1754]

MR. WISE'S HOUSE

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whom Johnson received the greatest civilities during this visit, and they pressed him very much to have a room in the College.

'In the course of this visit (1754), Johnson and I walked, three or four times, to Ellsfield, a village beautifully situated about three miles from Oxford, to see Mr. Wise, Radclivian librarian, with whom Johnson was much pleased. At this place, Mr. Wise had fitted up a house and gardens, in a singular manner, but with great taste. Here was an excellent library; particularly, a valuable collection of books in Northern literature, with which Johnson was often very busy. One day Mr. Wise read to us a dissertation which he was preparing for the press, intitled, "A History and Chronology of the fabulous Ages." Some old divinities of Thrace, related to the Titans, and called the CABIRI, made a very important part of the theory of this piece; and in conversation afterwards, Mr. Wise talked much of his CABIRI. As we returned to Oxford in the evening, I out-walked Johnson, and he cried out Sufflamina, a Latin word which came from his mouth with peculiar grace, and was as much as to say, Put on your drag chain. Before we got home, I again walked too fast for him; and he now cried out, "Why, you walk as if you were pursued by all the CABIRI in a body." In an evening, we frequently took long walks from Oxford into the country, returning to supper. Once, in our way home, we viewed the ruins of the abbies of Oseney and Rewley, near Oxford. After at least half an hour's silence, Johnson said, "I viewed them with indignation!" We had then a long conversation on Gothick buildings; and in talking of the form of old halls, he said, "In these halls, the fire place was anciently always in the middle of the room, till the Whigs removed it on one side."-About this time there had been an execution of two or three criminals at Oxford on a Monday. Soon afterwards, one day at dinner, I was saying that Mr. Swinton the chaplain of the gaol, and also a frequent preacher before the University, a learned man, but often thoughtless and absent, preached the condemnation-sermon on repentance, before the convicts, on the preceding day, Sunday; and that in the close he told his audience, that he

should give them the remainder of what he had to say o subject, the next Lord's Day. Upon which, one of our pany, a Doctor of Divinity, and a plain matter-of-fact by way of offering an apology for Mr. Swinton, gravel marked, that he had probably preached the same se before the University: "Yes, Sir, (says Johnson) but University were not to be hanged the next morning."

'I forgot to observe before, that when he left Mr. M (as I have told above) he added, "About the same tim life, Meeke was left behind at Oxford to feed on a Fellows and I went to London to get my living: now, Sir, see difference of our literary characters!"'

The degree of Master of Arts, which, it has been obser could not be obtained for him at an early period of his was now considered as an honour of considerable importa in order to grace the title-page of his Dictionary; and character in the literary world being by this time deserve high, his friends thought that, if proper exertions were ma the University of Oxford would pay him the complimen

TO THE REVEREND THOMAS WARTON.

'DEAR SIR, I am extremely sensible of the favour d me, both by Mr. Wise and yourself. The book1 canno think, be printed in less than six weeks, nor probably soon; and I will keep back the title-page, for such an ins tion as you seem to promise me. . . .

'I had lately the favour of a letter from your brother, w some account of poor Collins, for whom I am much concern I have a notion, that by very great temperance, or m properly abstinence, he may yet recover. . .

'You know poor Mr. Dodsley has lost his wife; I belie he is much affected. I hope he will not suffer so much I yet suffer for the loss of mine.

Οἴμοι. τί δ' οἴμοι; Θνῆτα γὰρ πεπόνθαμεν.

I have ever since seemed to myself broken off from mankin

bind of

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