Senex, and which I have, in another place,1 with truth and sincerity applied to Mr. Burke :— "Regum æquabat opes animis." On the subject of the right employment of wealth, Johnson observed, "A man cannot make a bad use of his money, so far as regards society, if he do not hoard it; for if he either spends it or lends it out, society has the benefit. It is in general better to spend money than to give it away; for industry is more promoted by spending money than by giving it away. A man who spends his money is sure he is doing good with it: he is not sure when he gives it away. A man who spends ten thousand a year will do more good than a man who spends two thousand, and gives away eight." In the evening I came to him again. He was somewhat fretful from his illness. A gentleman asked him whether he had been abroad today. "Don't talk so childishly," said he. "You may as well ask if I hanged myself to-day." I mentioned politics. JOHNSON: "Sir, I'd as soon have a man to break my bones as talk to me of public affairs, internal or external. I have lived to see things all as bad as they can be." Having mentioned his friend, the second Lord Southwell, he said, "Lord Southwell was the highest bred man, without insolence, that I ever was in company with; the most qualitied I ever saw. Lord Orrery was not dignified; Lord Chesterfield was, but he was insolent. Lord is a man of coarse manners, but a man of abilities and information. I don't say he is a man I would set at the head of a nation, though perhaps he may be as good as the next Prime Minister that comes; but he is a man to be at the head of a Club ;-I don't say our CLUB ;-for there is no such Club.' BOSWELL: 'But, Sir, was he not once a factious man?" JOHNSON: "O yes, Sir; as factious a fellow as could be found; one who was for sinking us all into the mob." BOSWELL: "How then, Sir, did he get into favour with the King?" JOHNSON: " Because, Sir, I suppose he promised the King to do whatever the King pleased.' 66 He said, "Goldsmith's blundering speech to Lord Shelburne, which has been so often mentioned, and which he really did make to him, was only a blunder in emphasis :- I wonder they should call your Lordship Malagrida, for Malagrida was a very good man;'—meant, I wonder they should use Malagrida as a term of reproach." Soon after this time I had an opportunity of seeing, by means of one of his friends, a proof that his talents, as well as his obliging service to authors, were ready as ever. He had revised "The Village," an admirable poem, by the Reverend Mr. Crabbe. Its sentiments, as to the 1 Letter to the People of Scotland against the Attempt to diminish the Number of the Lords of Session, 1785.-BosWELL. false notions of rustic happiness and rustic virtue, were quite congenial with his own; and he had taken the trouble, not only to suggest slight corrections and variations, but to furnish some lines, when he thought he could give the writer's meaning better than in the words of the manuscript.1 I shall give an instance, marking the original by Roman, and Johnson's substitution in Italic characters : "In fairer scenes, where peaceful pleasures spring, From Truth and Nature shall we widely stray, Where Virgil, not where Fancy, leads the way?" Here we find Johnson's poetical and critical powers undiminished. I must, however, observe, that the aids he gave to this poem, as to "The Traveller," and "Deserted Village," of Goldsmith, were so small as by no means to impair the distinguishing merit of the author.-BOSWELL. PENURIOUSNESS OF WEALTH-LORD MANSFIELD-HARRINGTON'S "NUGE ANTIQUE "-MOTTO ON JOHNSON'S PORTRAIT-" QUOS DEUS VULT PERDERE," &c.ON HAPPINESS JOHNSON'S POWERS OF CONVERSATION-MR. WELCH - DR BUCHANAN-GRUB STREET-SIR WM. CHAMBERS-BISHOP HURD-RESERVE OF ENGLISHMEN MORICE MORGANN, DERRICK AND SMART "THE GREAT TWALMLEY "-A CHARADE-MR. CAMBRIDGE JOHNSON'S LOVE OF CHILDREN AND ANIMALS ABP. STUART "THE TURKISH SPY"-MR. WINDHAM-MR. LOWE ON HOSPITALITY-WALLED GARDENS-MR. WALKER ON THE ORIGIN OF LANGUAGE-MOORFIELDS-A SINGULAR CHARACTER. N Sunday, March 30, I found him at home in the evening, and had the pleasure to meet with Dr. Brocklesby, whose reading, and knowledge of life, and good spirits, supply him with a never-failing source of conversation. He mentioned a respectable gentleman, who became extremely penurious near the close of his life. Johnson said there must have been a degree of madness about him. "Not at all, Sir," said Dr. Brocklesby, "his judgment was entire. Unluckily, however, he mentioned that, although he had a fortune of twenty-seven thousand pounds, he denied himself many comforts, from an apprehension that he could not afford them. Nay, Sir," cried Johnson, "when the judgment is so disturbed that a man cannot count, that is pretty well." 66 I shall here insert a few of Johnson's sayings, without the formality of dates, as they have no reference to any particular time or place. "The more a man extends and varies his acquaintance the better." This, however, was meant with a just restriction; for he, on another occasion, said to me, "Sir, a man may be so much of everything, that he is nothing of anything." "Raising the wages of day-labourers is wrong; for it does not make them live better, but only makes them idler; and idleness is a very thing for human nature.' bad "It is a very good custom to keep a journal for a man's own use; he may write upon a card a day all that is necessary to be written, after he has had experience of life. At first there is a great deal to be written, because there is a great deal of novelty; but when once a man has settled his opinions, there is seldom much to be set down." "There is nothing wonderful in the Journal1 which we see Swift kept in London; for it contains slight topics, and it might soon be written." I praised the accuracy of an account-book of a lady whom I mentioned. JOHNSON: "Keeping accounts, Sir, is of no use when a man is spending his own money, and has nobody to whom he is to account. You wont eat less beef to-day, because you have written down what it cost yesterday." I mentioned another lady who thought as he did, so that her husband could not get her to keep an account of the expense of the family, as she thought it enough that she never exceeded the sum allowed her. JOHNSON: "Sir, it is fit she should keep an account, because her husband wishes it; but I do not see its use." I maintained that keeping an account had this advantage, that it satisfies a man that his money has not been lost or stolen, which he might sometimes be apt to imagine, were there no written state of his expense; and besides, a calculation of economy, so as not to exceed one's income, cannot be made without a view of the different articles in figures, that one may see how to retrench in some particulars less necessary than others. This he did not attempt to answer. 66 Talking of an acquaintance of ours, whose narratives, which abounded in curious and interesting topics, were unhappily found to be very fabulous, I mentioned Lord Mansfield's having said to me, Suppose we believe one half of what he tells." JOHNSON: "Ay; but we don't know which half to believe. By his lying we lose not only our reverence for him, but all comfort in his conversation.' BOSWELL: "May we not take it as amusing fiction?" JOHNSON: Sir, the misfortune is, that you will insensibly believe as much of it as you incline to believe." 1 In his Life of Swift, he thus speaks of this Journal :— 66 "In the midst of his power and his politics, he kept a journal of his visits, his walks, his interviews with ministers, and quarrels with his servant, and transmitted it to Mrs. Johnson and Mrs. Dingley, to whom he knew that whatever befel him was interesting, and no account could be too minute. Whether these diurnal trifles were properly exposed to eyes which had never received any pleasure from the Dean, may be reasonably doubted: they have, however, some odd attractions: the reader finding frequent mention of names which he has been used to consider as important, goes on in hope of information; and as there is nothing to fatigue attention, if he is disappointed, he can hardly complain." It may be added, that the reader not only hopes to find, but does find, in this very entertaining Journal, much curious information, respecting persons and things, which he will in vain seek for in other books of the same period.-MALONE. 66 It is remarkable, that notwithstanding their congeniality in politics, he never was acquainted with a late eminent noble judge, whom I have heard speak of him, as a writer, with great respect. Johnson, I know not upon what degree of investigation, entertained no exalted opinion of his lordship's intellectual character. Talking of him to me one day, he said, "It is wonderful, Sir, with how little real superiority of mind men can make an eminent figure in public life." He expressed himself to the same purpose concerning another law-lord, who, it seems, once took a fancy to associate with the wits of London; but with so little success, that Foote said, What can he mean by coming among us? He is not only dull himself, but the cause of dulness in others." Trying him by the test of his colloquial powers, Johnson had found him very defective. He once said to Sir Joshua Reynolds, "This man now has been ten years about town, and has made nothing of it;" meaning as a companion.1 He said to me, "I never heard anything from him in company that was at all striking; and depend upon it, Sir, it is when you come close to a man in conversation, that you discover what his real abilities are: to make a speech in a public assembly is a knack. Now I honour Thurlow, Sir; Thurlow is a fine fellow; he fairly puts his mind to yours." 66 After repeating to him some of his pointed, lively sayings, I said, "It is a pity, Sir, you don't always remember your own good things, that you may have a laugh when you will." JOHNSON: Nay, Sir, it is better that I forget them, that I may be reminded of them, and have a laugh on their being brought to my recollection." When I recalled to him his having said as we sailed up Lochlomond, "That if he wore anything fine, it should be very fine;" I observed that all his thoughts were upon a great scale. JOHNSON: Depend upon it, Sir, every man will have as fine a thing as he can get; as large a diamond for his ring." BOSWELL: “ Pardon me, Sir; a man of a narrow mind will not think of it; a slight trinket will satisfy him: 'Nec sufferre queat majoris pondera gemmæ.'" 66 2 I told him I should send him some Essays" that I had written, which I hoped he would be so good as to read, and pick out the good ones. JOHNSON: 66 Nay, Sir, send me only the good ones; don't make me pick them." I heard him once say, "Though the proverb Nullum numen abest, si sit prudentia,' does not always prove true, we may be certain of the converse of it, Nullum numen adest, si sit imprudentia.' 1 Knowing as well as I do what precision and elegance of oratory his Lordship can display, I cannot but suspect that his unfavourable appearance in a social circle, which drew such animadversions upon him, must be owing to a cold affectation of consequence, from being reserved and stiff. If it be so, and he might be an agreeable man if he would, we cannot be sorry that he misses his aim.-BOSWELL. 2 Under the title of "The Hypochondriac.”—MALONE. |