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Johnson begins

ents.

CHAPTER IX.

Adversaria.

1750-1751.

"The Rambler."- His Prayer on commencing the Undertaking.—Obligations to CorrespondSuccess of the Rambler. Collected into Volumes.—" Beauties" of the Rambler. Writes a Prologue, to be spoken by Garrick, for the Benefit of Milton's Grand-daughter." Life of Cheynel."- Lauder's Forgery against Milton.—Mrs. Anna Williams.

IN 1750 Johnson came forth in the character for which he was eminently qualified, a majestic teacher of moral and religious wisdom. The vehicle which he chose was that of a periodical paper, which he knew had been, upon former occasions, employed with great success. The Tatler, Spectator, and Guardian, were the last of the kind published in England, which had stood the test of a long trial; and such an interval had now elapsed since their publication, as made him justly think that, to many of his readers, this form of instruction would, in some degree, have the advantage of novelty. A few days before the first of his Essays came out, there started another competitor for fame in the same form, under the title of " The Tatler Revived,” which, I believe, was "born but to die." John

son was, I think, not very happy in the choice of his title," The Rambler;" which certainly is not suited to a series of grave and moral discourses; which the Italians have literally, but ludicrously, translated by Il Vagabondo; and which has been lately assumed as the denomination of a vehicle of licentious tales, "The Rambler's Magazine." He gave Sir Joshua Reynolds the following account of its getting this name: "What must be done, Sir, will be done. When I was to begin publishing that paper, I was at a loss how to name it. I sat down at night upon my bedside, and resolved that I would not go to sleep till I had fixed its title. The Rambler seemed the best that occurred, and I took it." (1)

With what devout and conscientious sentiments this paper was undertaken, is evidenced by the following prayer, which he composed and offered up on the occasion:

"Almighty God, the giver of all good things, without whose help all labour is ineffectual, and without whose grace all wisdom is folly: grant, I beseech Thee, that in this undertaking thy Holy Spirit may not be withheld from me, but that I may promote thy glory, and the salvation of myself and others: grant

(1) I have heard Dr. Warton mention, that he was at Mr. Robert Dodsley's with the late Mr. Moore, and several of his friends, considering what should be the name of the periodical paper which Moore had undertaken. Garrick proposed the Salad, which, by a curious coincidence, was afterwards applied to himself by Goldsmith: —

"Our Garrick's a salad, for in him we see

Oil, vinegar, sugar, and saltness agree!

At last, the company having separated, without any thing of which they approved having been offered, Dodsley himself thought of The World.

this, O Lord, for the sake of thy son, JESUS CHRIST. Amen." (1)

The first paper of the Rambler was published on Tuesday the 20th of March, 1749-50; and its author was enabled to continue it, without interruption, every Tuesday and Saturday, till Saturday the 14th of March, 1752, on which day it closed. This is a strong confirmation of the truth of a remark of his, which I have had occasion to quote elsewhere [Aug. 16. 1773], that "a man may write at any time, if he will set himself doggedly to it;" for, notwithstanding his constitutional indolence, his depression of spirits, and his labour in carrying on his Dictionary, he answered the stated calls of the press twice a week from the stores of his mind during all that time; having received no assistance, except four billets in No. 10., by Miss Mulso, now Mrs. Chapone; No.30., by Mrs. Catherine Talbot; No. 97., by Mr. Samuel Richardson, whom he describes in an introductory note, as "an author who has enlarged the knowledge of human nature, and taught the passions to move at the command of virtue;" (2)

(1) Prayers and Meditations, p. 9. In the Pemb. MS. the last sentence runs-"the salvation both of myself and others: grant this, O Lord, for the sake of Jesus Christ."-HALL.

(2) Lady Bradshaigh, one of Mr. Richardson's female sycophants, thus addresses him on the subject of this letter: -"A few days ago I was pleased with hearing a very sensible lady greatly pleased with the Rambler, No. 97. She happened to be in town when it was published; and I asked if she knew who was the author? She said, it was supposed to be one who was concerned in the Spectators, it being much better written than any of the Ramblers. I wanted to say who was really the author, but durst not without your permission." -Rich. Cor. vol. vi. p. 108. It was probably on some such authority that

and Numbers 44. and 100., by Mrs. Elizabeth Carter. (1)

Posterity will be astonished when they are told, upon the authority of Johnson himself, that many of these discourses, which we should suppose had been laboured with all the slow attention of literary leisure, were written in haste as the moment pressed, without even being read over by him before they were printed. (2) It can be accounted for only in this way; that, by reading and meditation, and a very close inspection of life, he had accumulated a great fund of miscellaneous knowledge, which, by a peculiar promptitude of mind, was ever ready at his call, and which he had constantly accustomed himself to clothe in the most apt and energetic expression. Sir Joshua Reynolds once asked him, by what means he had attained his extraordinary accuracy and flow of language. He told him, that he had early laid it down as a fixed rule to do his best on every occasion, and in every company : to impart whatever he knew

Mr. Payne told Mr. Chalmers (Brit. Ess. vol. xix. p. 14.), that No. 97. was "the only paper which had a prosperous sale, and was popular." The flatteries which Richardson's coterie lavished on him and all his works were quite extravagant: the paper is rather a poor one. — - CROKER.

(1) The papers contributed by Mrs. Carter had much of Johnson's esteem, though he always blamed me for preferring the letter signed Chariessa (No. 100.) to the allegory (No. 45.) where religion and superstition are, indeed, most masterly delineated. Piozzi.

(2) The fine Rambler on Procrastination [No. 134.] was hastily composed in Sir Joshua Reynolds's parlour, while the boy waited to carry it to the press, and numberless are the instances of his writing under the immediate pressure of importunity or distress. Piozzi.

in the most forcible language he could put it in; and that by constant practice, and never suffering any careless expressions to escape him, or attempting to deliver his thoughts without arranging them in the clearest manner, it became habitual to him. (1)

Yet, he was not altogether unprepared as a periodical writer: for I have in my possession a small duodecimo volume, in which he has written, in the form of Mr. Locke's Common-Place Book, a variety of hints for essays on different subjects. He has marked upon the first blank leaf of it, "To the 128th page, collections for the RAMBLER;" and in another place, "In fifty-two there were seventeen provided; in 97-21; in 190 — 25.” At a subsequent period (probably after the work was finished) he added, "In all, taken of provided materials, 30." (2)

Sir John Hawkins, who is unlucky upon all occasions, tells us, that "this method of accumulating intelligence had been practised by Mr. Addison, and is humorously described in one of the Spectators [No. 46.], wherein he feigns to have dropped his paper of notanda, consisting of a diverting medley of broken sentences and loose hints, which

(1) The rule which Dr. Johnson observed is sanctioned by the authority of two great writers of antiquity: "Ne id quidem tacendum est, quod eidem Ciceroni placet, nullum nostrum usquam negligentem esse sermonem: quicquid loquemur, ubicunque, sit pro sua scilicet portione perfectum." Quinctil. x. 7.- MALONE.

(2) This, no doubt, means, that, of the first 52 Ramblers, 17 had been prepared, and so on, till, at the completion of the whole 208 numbers, he found that only 30 had been formed of materials previously provided. — CROKER.