BOSWELL'SLIFE OF JOHNSON

INCLUDING BOSWELL'S JOURNAL OF A TOUR TO THE HEBRIDESAND JOHNSON'S DIARY OF A JOURNEY INTO NORTH WALES

EDITED BY

GEORGE BIRKBECK HILL, D. C. L. 

PEMBROKE COLLEGE, OXFORD

IN SIX VOLUMES

VOLUME V. TOUR TO THE HEBRIDES (1773)

AND

JOURNEY INTO NORTH WALES (1774)

THEJOURNALOF A TOUR TO THE_HEBRIDES_, WITH

SAMUEL JOHNSON, LL. D. BY _JAMES BOSWELL_, ESQ. 

CONTAINING

Some Poetical Pieces by Dr. JOHNSON, relative to the TOUR, and never before published;

A Series of his Conversation, Literary Anecdotes, and Opinionsof Men and Books:

WITH AN AUTHENTICK ACCOUNT OF

The Distresses and Escape of the GRANDSON of KINGJAMES II. In the Year 1746. 

_THE THIRD EDITION, REVISED AND CORRECTED. _

 * * * * *

 O! while along the stream of time, thy name Expanded flies, and gathers all its fame, Say, shall my little bark attendant fail, Pursue the triumph and partake the gale? POPE. 

 * * * * *

_LONDON:_PRINTED BY HENRY BALDWIN, FOR CHARLES DILLY, IN THE POULTRY. MDCCLXXXVI. 

CONTENTS OF VOL. V. 

JOURNAL OF A TOUR TO THE HEBRIDES WITH SAMUEL JOHNSON, LL. D. :DEDICATION TO EDMOND MALONE, ESQ. ADVERTISEMENT TO THE THIRD EDITIONCONTENTSJOURNALAPPENDICES: I. LETTER FROM DR. BLACKLOCKII. VERSES BY SIR ALEXANDER MACDONALD ADVERTISEMENT OF THE LIFEA. EXTRACTS FROM WARBURTONB. LORD HOUGHTON'S TRANSLATION OF JOHNSON'S ODE WRITTEN IN SKYC. JOHNSON'S USE OF THE WORD _BIG_

A JOURNEY INTO NORTH WALES IN THE YEAR 1774

DEDICATION. 

_TO EDMOND MALONE, ESQ. _

MY DEAR SIR, In every narrative, whether historical or biographical, authenticity isof the utmost consequence[1]. Of this I have ever been so firmlypersuaded, that I inscribed a former work[2] to that person who was thebest judge of its truth. I need not tell you I mean General Paoli; who, after his great, though unsuccessful, efforts to preserve the libertiesof his country, has found an honourable asylum in Britain, where he hasnow lived many years the object of Royal regard and private respect[3];and whom I cannot name without expressing my very grateful sense of theuniform kindness which he has been pleased to shew me[4]. 

The friends of Doctor Johnson can best judge, from internal evidence, whether the numerous conversations which form the most valuable part ofthe ensuing pages are correctly related. To them, therefore, I wish toappeal, for the accuracy of the portrait here exhibited to the world. 

As one of those who were intimately acquainted with him, you have atitle to this address. You have obligingly taken the trouble to perusethe original manuscript of this Tour, and can vouch for the strictfidelity of the present publication[5]. Your literary alliance with ourmuch lamented friend, in consequence of having undertaken to render oneof his labours more complete, by your edition of _Shakspeare_[6], a workwhich I am confident will not disappoint the expectations of thepublick, gives you another claim. But I have a still more powerfulinducement to prefix your name to this volume, as it gives me anopportunity of letting the world know that I enjoy the honour andhappiness of your friendship; and of thus publickly testifying thesincere regard with which I am, My dear Sir, Your very faithful And obedient servant, JAMES BOSWELL. 

 LONDON, 20th September, 1785. 

ADVERTISEMENT

TO THE

_THIRD EDITION. _

Animated by the very favourable reception which two large impressions ofthis work have had[7], it has been my study to make it as perfect as Icould in this edition, by correcting some inaccuracies which Idiscovered myself, and some which the kindness of friends or thescrutiny of adversaries pointed out. A few notes are added, of which theprincipal object is, to refute misrepresentation and calumny. 

To the animadversions in the periodical Journals of criticism, and inthe numerous publications to which my book has given rise, I have madeno answer. Every work must stand or fall by its own merit. I cannot, however, omit this opportunity of returning thanks to a gentleman whopublished a Defence of my Journal, and has added to the favour bycommunicating his name to me in a very obliging letter. 

It would be an idle waste of time to take any particular notice of thefutile remarks, to many of which, a petty national resentment, unworthyof my countrymen, has probably given rise; remarks which have beenindustriously circulated in the publick prints by shallow or enviouscavillers, who have endeavoured to persuade the world that Dr. Johnson'scharacter has been _lessened_ by recording such various instances ofhis lively wit and acute judgment, on every topick that was presented tohis mind. In the opinion of every person of taste and knowledge that Ihave conversed with, it has been greatly _heightened_; and I willventure to predict, that this specimen of the colloquial talents andextemporaneous effusions of my illustrious fellow-traveller will becomestill more valuable, when, by the lapse of time, he shall have become an_ancient_; when all those who can now bear testimony to the transcendentpowers of his mind, shall have passed away; and no other memorial ofthis great and good man shall remain but the following Journal, theother anecdotes and letters preserved by his friends, and thoseincomparable works, which have for many years been in the highestestimation, and will be read and admired as long as the English languageshall be spoken or understood. 

J. B. 

LONDON, 15th Aug. 1786. 

CONTENTS. 

DEDICATION. ADVERTISEMENT. INTRODUCTION. Character of Dr. Johnson. He arrives in Scotland. 

_August 15_. Sir William Forbes. Practice of the law. Emigration. Dr. Beattie and Mr. Hume. Dr. Robertson. Mr. Burke's various andextraordinary talents. Question concerning genius. Whitfield and Wesley. Instructions to political parties. Dr. Johnson's opinion of Garrick as atragedian. 

_August 16_. Ogden on Prayer. Aphoristick writing. Edinburgh surveyed. Character of Swift's works. Evil spirits and witchcraft. Lord Monboddoand the Ouran-Outang. 

_August 17_. Poetry and Dictionary writing. Scepticism. Eternalnecessity refuted. Lord Hailes's criticism on _The Vanity of HumanWishes. _ Mr. Maclaurin. Decision of the Judges in Scotland onliterary property. 

_August 18_. Set out for the Hebrides. Sketch of the authour'scharacter. Trade of Glasgow. Suicide. Inchkeith. Parliamentaryknowledge. Influence of Peers. Popular clamours. Arrive at St. Andrews. 

_August 19_. Dr. Watson. Literature and patronage. Writing andconversation compared. Change of manners. The Union. Value of money. St. Andrews and John Knox. Retirement from the world. Dinner with theProfessors. Question concerning sorrow and content. Instructions forcomposition. Dr. Johnson's method. Uncertainty of memory. 

_August 20_. Effect of prayer. Observance of Sunday. Professor Shaw. Transubstantiation. Literary property. Mr. Tyers's remark on Dr. Johnson. Arrive at Montrose. 

_August 21_. Want of trees. Laurence Kirk. Dinner at Monboddo. Emigration. Homer. Biography and history compared. Decrease of learning. Causes of it. Promotion of bishops. Warburton. Lowth. Value ofpoliteness. Dr. Johnson's sentiments concerning Lord Monboddo. Arriveat Aberdeen. 

_August 22_. Professor Thomas Gordon. Publick and private education. Sir Alexander Gordon. Trade of Aberdeen. Prescription of murder inScotland. Mystery of the Trinity. Satisfaction of Christ. Importance ofold friendships. 

_August 23_. Dr. Johnson made a burgess of Aberdeen. Dinner at SirAlexander Gordon's. Warburton's powers of invective. His _Doctrine ofGrace_. Lock's verses. Fingal. 

_August 24_. Goldsmith and Graham. Slains castle. Education of children. Buller of Buchan. Entails. Consequence of Peers. Sir Joshua Reynolds. Earl of Errol. 

_August 25_. The advantage of being on good terms with relations. Nabobs. Feudal state of subordination. Dinner at Strichen. Life ofcountry gentlemen. THE LITERARY CLUB. 

_August 26_. Lord Monboddo. Use and importance of wealth. Elgin. Macbeth's heath. Fores. 

_August 27_. Leonidas. Paul Whitehead. Derrick. Origin of Evil. Calder-manse. Reasonableness of ecclesiastical subscription. Family worship. 

_August 28_. Fort George. Sir Adolphus Oughton. Contest betweenWarburton and Lowth. Dinner at Sir Eyre Coote's. Arabs and Englishsoldiers compared. The Stage. Mr. Garrick, Mrs. Cibber, Mrs. Pritchard, Mrs. Clive. Inverness. 

_August 29_. Macbeth's Castle. Incorrectness of writers of Travels. Coinage of new words. Dr. Johnson's _Dictionary_. 

_August 30_. Dr. Johnson on horseback. A Highland hut. Fort Augustus. Governour Trapaud. 

_August 31_. Anoch. Emigration. Goldsmith. Poets and soldiers compared. Life of a sailor. Landlord's daughter at Anoch. 

_September 1_. Glensheal. The Macraas. Dr. Johnson's anger at being leftfor a little while by the authour on a wild plain. Wretched innat Glenelg. 

_September 2_. Dr. Johnson relents. Isle of Sky. Armidale. 

_September 3_. Colonel Montgomery, now Earl of Eglintoune. 

_September 4_. Ancient Highland Enthusiasm. 

_September 5_. Sir James Macdonald's epitaph and last letters to hismother. Dr. Johnson's Latin ode on the Isle of Sky. IsaacHawkins Browne. 

_September 6_. Corrichatachin. Highland hospitality and mirth. Dr. Johnson's Latin ode to Mrs. Thrale. 

_September 7_. Uneasy state of dependence on the weather. State of thosewho live in the country. Dr. M'Pherson's Dissertations. Second Sight. 

_September 8_. Rev. Mr. Donald M'Queen. Mr. Malcolm M'Cleod. Sail toRasay. Fingal. Homer. Elegant and gay entertainment at Rasay. 

_September 9_. Antiquity of the family of Rasay. Cure of infidelity. 

_September 10_. Survey of the island of Rasay. Bentley. Mallet. Hooke. Duchess of Marlborough. 

_September 11_. Heritable jurisdictions. Insular life. The Laird ofM'Cleod. 

_September 12_. Sail to Portree. Dr. Johnson's discourse on death. Letters from Lord Elibank to Dr. Johnson and the authour. Dr. Johnson'sanswer. Ride to Kingsburgh. Flora M'Donald. 

_September 13_. Distresses and escape of the grandson of King James II. Arrive at Dunvegan. 

_September 14_. Importance of the chastity of women. Dr. Cadogan. Whether the practice of authours is necessary to enforce theirDoctrines. Good humour acquirable. 

_September 15_. Sir George M'Kenzie. Mr. Burke's wit, knowledge andeloquence. 

_September 16_. Dr. Johnson's hereditary melancholy. His minuteknowledge in various arts. Apology for the authour's ardour in hispursuits. Dr. Johnson's imaginary seraglio. Polygamy. 

_September 17_. Cunning. Whether great abilities are necessary to bewicked. Temple of the Goddess Anaitis. Family portraits. Records notconsulted by old English historians. Mr. Pennant's Tours criticised. 

_September 18_. Ancient residence of a Highland Chief. Languages thepedigree of nations. Laird of the Isle of Muck. 

_September 19_. Choice of a wife. Women an over-match for men. LadyGrange in St. Kilda. Poetry of savages. French Literati. Prize-fighting. French and English soldiers. Duelling. 

_September 20_. Change of London manners. Laziness censured. Landed andtraded interest compared. Gratitude considered. 

_September 21_. Description of Dunvegan. Lord Lovat's Pyramid. Ride toUlinish. Phipps's Voyage to the North Pole. 

_September 22_. Subterraneous house and vast cave in Ulinish. Swift'sLord Orrery. Defects as well as virtues the proper subject of biography, though the life be written by a friend. Studied conclusions of letters. Whether allowable in dying men to maintain resentment to the last. Instructions for writing the lives of literary men. Fingal denied to begenuine, and pleasantly ridiculed. 

_September 23_. Further disquisition concerning Fingal. Eminent mendisconcerted by a new mode of publick appearance. Garrick. Mrs. Montague's Essay on Shakspeare. Persons of consequence watched inLondon. Learning of the Scots from 1550 to 1650. The arts of civil lifelittle known in Scotland till the Union. Life of a sailor. The folly ofPeter the Great in working in a dock-yard. Arrive at Talisker. Presbyterian clergy deficient in learning. _September 24_. Frenchhunting. Young Col. Dr. Birch, Dr. Percy. Lord Hailes. Historicalimpartiality. Whiggism unbecoming in a clergyman. 

_September 25_. Every island a prison. A Sky cottage. Return toCorrichatachin. Good fellowship carried to excess. 

_September 26_. Morning review of last night's intemperance. OldKingsburgh's Jacobite song. Lady Margaret Macdonald adored in Sky. Different views of the same subject at different times. Self-deception. 

_September 27_. Dr. Johnson's popularity in the Isle of Sky. Hisgood-humoured gaiety with a Highland lady. 

_September 28_. Ancient Irish pride of family. Dr. Johnson on threshingand thatching. Dangerous to increase the price of labour. Arrive atOstig. Dr. M'Pherson's Latin poetry. 

_September 29_. Reverend Mr. M'Pherson, Shenstone. Hammond. Sir CharlesHanbury Williams. 

_September 30_. Mr. Burke the first man every where. Very moderatetalents requisite to make a figure in the House of Commons. Dr. Young. Dr. Doddridge. Increase of infidel writings since the accession of theHanover family. Gradual impression made by Dr. Johnson. Particularminutes to be kept of our studies. 

_October 1_. Dr. Johnson not answerable for all the words in his_Dictionary_. Attacks on authours useful to them. Return to Armidale. 

_October 2_. Old manners of great families in Wales. German courts. Goldsmith's love of talk. Emigration. Curious story of the people ofSt. Kilda. 

_October 3_. Epictetus on the voyage of death. Sail for Mull. A storm. Driven into Col. 

_October 4_. Dr. Johnson's mode of living in the Temple. His curiousappearance on a sheltie. Nature of sea-sickness. Burnet's _History ofhis own Times_. Difference between dedications and histories. 

_October 5_. People may come to do anything by talking of it. TheReverend Mr. Hector Maclean. Bayle. Leibnitz and Clarke. Survey of Col. Insular life. Arrive at Breacacha. Dr. Johnson's power of ridicule. 

_October 6_. Heritable jurisdictions. The opinion of philosophersconcerning happiness in a cottage, considered. Advice to landlords. 

_October 7_. Books the best solace in a state of confinement. 

_October 8_. Pretended brother of Dr. Johnson. No redress for a man'sname being affixed to a foolish work. Lady Sidney Beauclerk. Carte's_Life of the Duke of Ormond_. Col's cabinet. Letters of the greatMontrose. Present state of the island of Col. 

_October 9_. Dr. Johnson's avidity for a variety of books. Improbabilityof a Highland tradition. Dr. Johnson's delicacy of feeling. 

_October 10_. Dependence of tenants on landlords. 

_October 11_. London and Pekin compared. Dr. Johnson's high opinion ofthe former. 

_October 12_. Return to Mr. M'Sweyn's. Other superstitions beside thoseconnected with religion. Dr. Johnson disgusted with coarse manners. Hispeculiar habits. 

_October 13_. Bustle not necessary to dispatch. _Oats_ the food not ofthe Scotch alone. 

_October 14_. Arrive in Mull. Addison's _Remarks on Italy_. Addison notmuch conversant with Italian literature. The French masters of the artof accommodating literature. Their _Ana_. Racine. Corneille. Moliere. Fenelon. Voltaire. Bossuet. Massillon. Bourdaloue. Virgil's descriptionof the entrance into hell, compared to a printing-house. 

_October 15_. Erse poetry. Danger of a knowledge of musick. Thepropriety of settling our affairs so as to be always prepared for death. Religion and literary attainments not to be described to young personsas too hard. Reception of the travellers in their progress. Spence. 

_October 16_. Miss Maclean. Account of Mull. The value of an oakwalking-stick in the Hebrides. Arrive at Mr. M'Quarrie's in Ulva. Captain Macleod. Second Sight. _Mercheta Mulierum_, and Borough-English. The grounds on which the sale of an estate may be set aside in a courtof equity. 

_October 17_. Arrive at Inchkenneth. Sir Allan Maclean and hisdaughters. None but theological books should be read on Sunday. Dr. Campbell. Dr. Johnson exhibited as a Highlander. Thoughts on drinking. Dr. Johnson's Latin verses on Inchkenneth. 

_October 18_. Young Col's various good qualities. No extraordinarytalents requisite to success in trade. Dr. Solander. Mr. Burke. Dr. Johnson's intrepidity and presence of mind. Singular custom in theislands of Col and Otaheité. Further elogium on young Col. Credulity ofa Frenchman in foreign countries. 

_October 19_. Death of young Col. Dr. Johnson slow of belief withoutstrong evidence. _La Crédulité des incrédules_. Coast of Mull. Nun'sIsland. Past scenes pleasing in recollection. Land on Icolmkill. _October 20_. Sketch of the ruins of Icolmkill. Influence of solemnscenes of piety. Feudal authority in the extreme. Return to Mull. 

_October 21_. Pulteney. Pitt. Walpole. Mr. Wilkes. English and Jewishhistory compared. Scotland composed of stone and water, and a littleearth. Turkish Spy. Dreary ride to Lochbuy. Description of the laird. 

_October 22_. Uncommon breakfast offered to Dr. Johnson, and rejected. Lochbuy's war-saddle. Sail to Oban. 

_October 23_. Goldsmith's _Traveller_. Pope and Cowley compared. Archibald Duke of Argyle. Arrive at Inverary. Dr. Johnson drinks somewhisky, and assigns his reason. Letter from the authour to Mr. Garrick. Mr. Garrick's answer. 

_October 24_. Specimen of Ogden on Prayer. Hervey's _Meditations_. Dr. Johnson's Meditation on a Pudding. Country neighbours. The authour'svisit to the castle of Inverary. Perverse opposition to the influence ofPeers in Ayrshire. 

_October 25_. Dr. Johnson presented to the Duke of Argyle. Grandeur ofhis grace's seat. The authour possesses himself in an embarrassingsituation. Honourable Archibald Campbell on _a middle state_. The oldLord Townshend. Question concerning luxury. Nice trait of character. Good principles and bad practice. 

_October 26_. A passage in Home's _Douglas_, and one in _Juvenal_, compared. Neglect of religious buildings in Scotland. Arrive at SirJames Colquhoun's. 

_October 27_. Dr. Johnson's letter to the Duke of Argyle. His grace'sanswer. Lochlomond. Dr. Johnson's sentiments on dress. Forms of prayerconsidered. Arrive at Mr. Smollet's. 

_October 28_. Dr. Smollet's Epitaph. Dr. Johnson's wonderful memory. Hisalacrity during the Tour. Arrive at Glasgow. 

_October 29_. Glasgow surveyed. Attention of the professors to Dr. Johnson. 

_October 30_. Dinner at the Earl of Loudoun's. Character of thatnobleman. Arrive at Treesbank. 

_October 31_. Sir John Cunningham of Caprington. 

_November 1_. Rules for the distribution of charity. Castle ofDundonald. Countess of Eglintoune. Alexander Earl of Eglintoune. 

_November 2_. Arrive at Auchinleck. Character of Lord Auchinleck, Hisidea of Dr. Johnson. 

_November 3_. Dr. Johnson's sentiments concerning the Highlands. Mr. Harris of Salisbury. 

_November 4_. Auchinleck. Cattle without horns. Composure of mind howfar attainable. _November 5_. Dr. Johnson's high respect for theEnglish clergy. 

_November 6_. Lord Auchinleck and Dr. Johnson in collision. 

_November 7_. Dr. Johnson's uniform piety. His dislike of presbyterianworship. 

_November 8_. Arrive at Hamilton. 

_November 9_. The Duke of Hamilton's house. Arrive at Edinburgh. 

_November 10_. Lord Elibank. Difference in political principlesincreased by opposition. Edinburgh Castle. Fingal. English credulity notless than Scottish. Second Sight. Garrick and Foote compared ascompanions. Moravian Missions and Methodism. 

_November 11_. History originally oral. Dr. Robertson's liberality ofsentiment. Rebellion natural to man. 

 * * * * *

Summary account of the manner in which Dr. Johnson spent his time fromNovember 12 to November 21. Lord Mansfield, Mr. Richardson. The privatelife of an English Judge. Dr. Johnson's high opinion of Dr. Robertsonand Dr. Blair. Letter from Dr. Blair to the authour. Officers of thearmy often ignorant of things belonging to their own profession. Academyfor the deaf and dumb. A Scotch Highlander and an English sailor. Attacks on authours advantageous to them. Roslin Castle and Hawthornden. Dr. Johnson's _Parody of Sir John Dalrymple's Memoirs_. Arrive atCranston. Dr. Johnson's departure for London. Letters from Lord Hailesand Mr. Dempster to the authour. Letter from the Laird of Rasay to theauthour. The authour's answer. Dr. Johnson's Advertisement, acknowledging a mistake in his _Journey to the Western Islands_. Hisletter to the Laird of Rasay. Letter from Sir William Forbes to theauthour. Conclusion. 

 HE WAS OF AN ADMIRABLE PREGNANCY OF WIT, AND THAT PREGNANCY MUCH IMPROVED BY CONTINUAL STUDY FROM HIS CHILDHOOD: BY WHICH HE HAD GOTTEN SUCH A PROMPTNESS IN EXPRESSING HIS MIND, THAT HIS EXTEMPORAL SPEECHES WERE LITTLE INFERIOR TO HIS PREMEDITATED WRITINGS. MANY, NO DOUBT, HAD READ AS MUCH, AND PERHAPS MORE THAN HE; BUT SCARCE EVER ANY CONCOCTED HIS READING INTO JUDGEMENT AS HE DID[8]. 

 _Baker's Chronicle_ [ed. 1665, p. 449]. 

THE

JOURNAL

OF A

TOUR TO THE HEBRIDES

WITH

SAMUEL JOHNSON, LL. D. 

Dr. Johnson had for many years given me hopes that we should gotogether, and visit the Hebrides[9]. Martin's Account of those islandshad impressed us with a notion that we might there contemplate a systemof life almost totally different from what we had been accustomed tosee; and, to find simplicity and wildness, and all the circumstances ofremote time or place, so near to our native great island, was an objectwithin the reach of reasonable curiosity. Dr. Johnson has said in his_Journey_[10] 'that he scarcely remembered how the wish to visit theHebrides was excited;' but he told me, in summer, 1763[11], that hisfather put Martin's Account into his hands when he was very young, andthat he was much pleased with it. We reckoned there would be someinconveniencies and hardships, and perhaps a little danger; but these wewere persuaded were magnified in the imagination of every body. When Iwas at Ferney, in 1764, I mentioned our design to Voltaire. He looked atme, as if I had talked of going to the North Pole, and said, 'You do notinsist on my accompanying you?'--'No, Sir, '--'Then I am very willingyou should go. ' I was not afraid that our curious expedition would beprevented by such apprehensions; but I doubted that it would not bepossible to prevail on Dr. Johnson to relinquish, for some time, thefelicity of a London life, which, to a man who can enjoy it with fullintellectual relish, is apt to make existence in any narrower sphereseem insipid or irksome. I doubted that he would not be willing to comedown from his elevated state of philosophical dignity; from asuperiority of wisdom among the wise, and of learning among the learned;and from flashing his wit upon minds bright enough to reflect it. 

He had disappointed my expectations so long, that I began to despair;but in spring, 1773, he talked of coming to Scotland that year with somuch firmness, that I hoped he was at last in earnest. I knew that, ifhe were once launched from the metropolis he would go forward very well;and I got our common friends there to assist in setting him afloat. ToMrs. Thrale in particular, whose enchantment over him seldom failed, Iwas much obliged. It was, '_I'll give thee a wind. _'-' _Thou artkind. _[12]'--To _attract_ him, we had invitations from the chiefsMacdonald and Macleod; and, for additional aid, I wrote to LordElibank[13], Dr. William Robertson, and Dr. Beattie. 

To Dr. Robertson, so far as my letter concerned the present subject, Iwrote as follows:

'Our friend, Mr. Samuel Johnson, is in great health and spirits; and, Ido think, has a serious resolution to visit Scotland this year. The moreattraction, however, the better; and therefore, though I know he will behappy to meet you there, it will forward the scheme, if, in your answerto this, you express yourself concerning it with that power of which youare so happily possessed, and which may be so directed as to operatestrongly upon him. '

His answer to that part of my letter was quite as I could have wished. It was written with the address and persuasion of the historian ofAmerica. 'When I saw you last, you gave us some hopes that you mightprevail with Mr. Johnson to make out that excursion to Scotland, withthe expectation of which we have long flattered ourselves. If he couldorder matters so, as to pass some time in Edinburgh, about the close ofthe summer session, and then visit some of the Highland scenes, I amconfident he would be pleased with the grand features of nature in manyparts of this country: he will meet with many persons here who respecthim, and some whom I am persuaded he will think not unworthy of hisesteem. I wish he would make the experiment. He sometimes cracks hisjokes upon us; but he will find that we can distinguish between thestabs of malevolence, and _the rebukes of the righteous, which are likeexcellent oil[14], and break not the head[15]_. Offer my bestcompliments to him, and assure him that I shall be happy to have thesatisfaction of seeing him under my roof. 

To Dr. Beattie I wrote, 'The chief intention of this letter is to informyou, that I now seriously believe Mr. Samuel Johnson will visit Scotlandthis year: but I wish that every power of attraction may be employed tosecure our having so valuable an acquisition, and therefore I hope youwill without delay write to me what I know you think, that I may read itto the mighty sage, with proper emphasis, before I leave London, which Imust do soon. He talks of you with the same warmth that he did lastyear[16]. We are to see as much of Scotland as we can, in the months ofAugust and September. We shall not be long of being at MarischalCollege[17]. He is particularly desirous of seeing some of theWestern Islands. '

Dr. Beattie did better: _ipse venit_. He was, however, so polite as towave his privilege of _nil mihi rescribas[18]_, and wrote fromEdinburgh, as follows:--'Your very kind and agreeable favour of the20th of April overtook me here yesterday, after having gone to Aberdeen, which place I left about a week ago. I am to set out this day forLondon, and hope to have the honour of paying my respects to Mr. Johnsonand you, about a week or ten days hence. I shall then do what I can, toenforce the topick you mention; but at present I cannot enter upon it, as I am in a very great hurry; for I intend to begin my journey withinan hour or two. '

He was as good as his word, and threw some pleasing motives into thenorthern scale. But, indeed, Mr. Johnson loved all that he heard, fromone whom he tells us, in his _Lives of the Poets_, Gray found 'a poet, aphilosopher, and a good man[19]. '

My Lord Elibank did not answer my letter to his lordship for some time. The reason will appear, when we come to the isle of _Sky_[20]. I shallthen insert my letter, with letters from his lordship, both to myselfand Mr. Johnson. I beg it may be understood, that I insert my ownletters, as I relate my own sayings, rather as keys to what is valuablebelonging to others, than for their own sake. 

Luckily Mr. Justice (now Sir Robert) Chambers[21], who was about to sailfor the East-Indies, was going to take leave of his relations atNewcastle, and he conducted Dr. Johnson to that town. Mr. Scott, ofUniversity College, Oxford, (now Dr. Scott[22], of the Commons, )accompanied him from thence to Edinburgh, With such propitious convoysdid he proceed to my native city. But, lest metaphor should make it besupposed he actually went by sea, I choose to mention that he travelledin post-chaises, of which the rapid motion was one of his most favouriteamusements[23]. 

Dr. Samuel Johnson's character, religious, moral, political, andliterary, nay his figure and manner, are, I believe, more generallyknown than those of almost any man; yet it may not be superfluous hereto attempt a sketch of him. Let my readers then remember that he was asincere and zealous Christian, of high church of England and monarchicalprinciples, which he would not tamely suffer to be questioned; steadyand inflexible in maintaining the obligations of piety and virtue, bothfrom a regard to the order of society, and from a veneration for theGreat Source of all order; correct, nay stern in his taste; hard toplease, and easily offended, impetuous and irritable in his temper, butof a most humane and benevolent heart; having a mind stored with a vastand various collection of learning and knowledge, which he communicatedwith peculiar perspicuity and force, in rich and choice expression. Heunited a most logical head with a most fertile imagination, which gavehim an extraordinary advantage in arguing; for he could reason close orwide, as he saw best for the moment. He could, when he chose it, be thegreatest sophist that ever wielded a weapon in the schools ofdeclamation; but he indulged this only in conversation; for he owned hesometimes talked for victory[24]; he was too conscientious to makeerrour permanent and pernicious, by deliberately writing it. He wasconscious of his superiority. He loved praise when it was brought tohim; but was too proud to seek for it. He was somewhat susceptible offlattery[25]. His mind was so full of imagery, that he might have beenperpetually a poet. It has been often remarked, that in his poeticalpieces, which it is to be regretted are so few, because so excellent, his style is easier than in his prose. There is deception in this: it isnot easier, but better suited to the dignity of verse; as one may dancewith grace, whose motions, in ordinary walking, in the common step, areawkward. He had a constitutional melancholy, the clouds of whichdarkened the brightness of his fancy, and gave a gloomy cast to hiswhole course of thinking: yet, though grave and awful in his deportment, when he thought it necessary or proper, he frequently indulged himselfin pleasantry and sportive sallies. He was prone to superstition, butnot to credulity. Though his imagination might incline him to a beliefof the marvellous and the mysterious, his vigorous reason examined theevidence with jealousy. He had a loud voice, and a slow deliberateutterance, which no doubt gave some additional weight to the sterlingmetal of his conversation[26]. His person was large, robust, I may sayapproaching to the gigantick, and grown unwieldy from corpulency. Hiscountenance was naturally of the cast of an ancient statue, but somewhatdisfigured by the scars of that _evil_, which, it was formerly imagined, the _royal touch_[27] could cure. He was now in his sixty-fourth year, and was become a little dull of hearing. His sight had always beensomewhat weak; yet, so much does mind govern, and even supply thedeficiency of organs, that his perceptions were uncommonly quick andaccurate[28]. His head, and sometimes also his body shook with a kind ofmotion like the effect of a palsy: he appeared to be frequentlydisturbed by cramps, or convulsive contractions[29], of the nature ofthat distemper called _St. Vitus's dance_. He wore a full suit of plainbrown clothes, with twisted hair-buttons[30] of the same colour, alarge bushy greyish wig, a plain shirt, black worsted stockings, andsilver buckles. Upon this tour, when journeying, he wore boots, and avery wide brown cloth great coat, with pockets which might have almostheld the two volumes of his folio _Dictionary_; and he carried in hishand a large English oak stick. Let me not be censured for mentioningsuch minute particulars. Every thing relative to so great a man is worthobserving. I remember Dr. Adam Smith, in his rhetorical lectures atGlasgow[31], told us he was glad to know that Milton wore latchets inhis shoes, instead of buckles. When I mention the oak stick, it is butletting _Hercules_ have his club; and, by-and-by, my readers will findthis stick will bud, and produce a good joke[32]. 

This imperfect sketch of 'the COMBINATION and the _form_[33]' of thatWonderful Man, whom I venerated and loved while in this world, and afterwhom I gaze with humble hope, now that it has pleased ALMIGHTY GOD tocall him to a better world, will serve to introduce to the fancy of myreaders the capital object of the following journal, in the course ofwhich I trust they will attain to a considerable degree ofacquaintance with him. 

His prejudice against Scotland[34] was announced almost as soon as hebegan to appear in the world of Letters. In his _London_, a poem, arethe following nervous lines:--

 'For who would leave, unbrib'd, Hibernia's land? Or change the rocks of Scotland for the Strand? There none are swept by sudden fate away; But all, whom hunger spares, with age decay. '

The truth is, like the ancient Greeks and Romans, he allowed himself tolook upon all nations but his own as barbarians[35]: not only Hibernia, and Scotland, but Spain, Italy, and France, are attacked in the samepoem. If he was particularly prejudiced against the Scots, it wasbecause they were more in his way; because he thought their success inEngland rather exceeded the due proportion of their real merit; andbecause he could not but see in them that nationality which I believe noliberal-minded Scotsman will deny. He was indeed, if I may be allowedthe phrase, at bottom much of a _John Bull_[36]; much of a blunt _trueborn Englishman_[37]. There was a stratum of common clay under the rockof marble. He was voraciously fond of good eating[38]; and he had agreat deal of that quality called _humour_, which gives an oiliness anda gloss to every other quality. 

I am, I flatter myself, completely a citizen of the world. --In mytravels through Holland, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Corsica, France, Inever felt myself from home; and I sincerely love 'every kindred andtongue and people and nation[39]. ' I subscribe to what my late trulylearned and philosophical friend Mr. Crosbie[40] said, that the Englishare better animals than the Scots; they are nearer the sun; their bloodis richer, and more mellow: but when I humour any of them in anoutrageous contempt of Scotland, I fairly own I treat them as children. And thus I have, at some moments, found myself obliged to treat evenDr. Johnson. 

To Scotland however he ventured; and he returned from it in great goodhumour, with his prejudices much lessened, and with very gratefulfeelings of the hospitality with which he was treated; as is evidentfrom that admirable work, his _Journey to the Western Islands ofScotland_, which, to my utter astonishment, has been misapprehended, even to rancour, by many of my countrymen. To have the company ofChambers and Scott, he delayed his journey so long, that the court ofsession, which rises on the eleventh of August, was broke up before hegot to Edinburgh[41]. 

On Saturday the fourteenth of August, 1773, late in the evening, Ireceived a note from him, that he was arrived at Boyd's inn[42], at thehead of the Canongate. I went to him directly. He embraced me cordially;and I exulted in the thought, that I now had him actually in Caledonia. Mr. Scott's amiable manners, and attachment to our _Socrates_, at onceunited me to him. He told me that, before I came in, the Doctor hadunluckily had a bad specimen of Scottish cleanliness[43]. He then drankno fermented liquor. He asked to have his lemonade made sweeter; uponwhich the waiter, with his greasy fingers, lifted a lump of sugar, andput it into it. The Doctor, in indignation, threw it out of the window. Scott said, he was afraid he would have knocked the waiter down. Mr. Johnson told me, that such another trick was played him at the house ofa lady in Paris[44]. He was to do me the honour to lodge under my roof. I regretted sincerely that I had not also a room for Mr. Scott. Mr. Johnson and I walked arm-in-arm up the High=street, to my house inJames's court[45]: it was a dusky night: I could not prevent his beingassailed by the evening effluvia of Edinburgh. I heard a late baronet, of some distinction in the political world in the beginning of thepresent reign, observe, that 'walking the streets of Edinburgh at nightwas pretty perilous, and a good deal odoriferous. ' The peril is muchabated, by the care which the magistrates have taken to enforce the citylaws against throwing foul water from the windows[46]; but from thestructure of the houses in the old town, which consist of many stories, in each of which a different family lives, and there being no coveredsewers, the ordour still continues. A zealous Scotsman would have wishedMr. Johnson to be without one of his five senses upon this occasion. Aswe marched slowly along, he grumbled in my ear, 'I smell you in thedark[47]!' But he acknowledged that the breadth of the street, and theloftiness of the buildings on each side made a noble appearance[48]. 

My wife had tea ready for him, which it is well known he delighted todrink at all hours, particularly when sitting up late, and of which hisable defence against Mr. Jonas Hanway[49] should have obtained him amagnificent reward from the East-India Company. He shewed muchcomplacency upon finding that the mistress of the house was so attentiveto his singular habit; and as no man could be more polite when he choseto be so, his address to her was most courteous and engaging; and hisconversation soon charmed her into a forgetfulness of his externalappearance[50]. 

I did not begin to keep a regular full journal till some days after wehad set out from Edinburgh; but I have luckily preserved a good manyfragments of his _Memorabilia_ from his very first evening in Scotland. 

We had, a little before this, had a trial for murder, in which thejudges had allowed the lapse of twenty years since its commission as aplea in bar, in conformity with the doctrine of prescription in the_civil_ law, which Scotland and several other countries in Europe haveadopted. He at first disapproved of this; but then he thought there wassomething in it, if there had been for twenty years a neglect toprosecute a crime which was _known_. He would not allow that a murder, by not being _discovered_ for twenty years, should escapepunishment[51]. We talked of the ancient trial by duel. He did not thinkit so absurd as is generally supposed; 'For (said he) it was onlyallowed when the question was _in equilibrio_, as when one affirmed andanother denied; and they had a notion that Providence would interfere infavour of him who was in the right. But as it was found that in a duel, he who was in the right had not a better chance than he who was in thewrong, therefore society instituted the present mode of trial, and gavethe advantage to him who is in the right. '

We sat till near two in the morning, having chatted a good while aftermy wife left us. She had insisted, that to shew all respect to the Sageshe would give up her own bed-chamber to him and take a worse[52]. ThisI cannot but gratefully mention, as one of a thousand obligations whichI owe her, since the great obligation of her being pleased to accept ofme as her husband[53]. 

SUNDAY, AUGUST 15[54]

Mr. Scott came to breakfast, at which I introduced to Dr. Johnson andhim, my friend Sir William Forbes, now of Pitsligo[55]; a man of whomtoo much good cannot be said; who, with distinguished abilities andapplication in his profession of a Banker, is at once a good companion, and a good christian; which I think is saying enough. Yet it is butjustice to record, that once, when he was in a dangerous illness, he waswatched with the anxious apprehension of a general calamity; day andnight his house was beset with affectionate enquiries; and, upon hisrecovery, _Te deum_ was the universal chorus from the _hearts_ of hiscountrymen. Mr. Johnson was pleased with my daughter Veronica[56], then a child of about four months old. She had the appearance oflistening to him. His motions seemed to her to be intended for heramusement; and when he stopped, she fluttered, and made a littleinfantine noise, and a kind of signal for him to begin again. She wouldbe held close to him; which was a proof, from simple nature, that hisfigure was not horrid. Her fondness for him endeared her still more tome, and I declared she should have five hundred pounds of additionalfortune[57]. 

We talked of the practice of the law. Sir William Forbes said, hethought an honest lawyer should never undertake a cause which he wassatisfied was not a just one. 'Sir, (said Mr. Johnson, ) a lawyer has nobusiness with the justice or injustice of the cause which he undertakes, unless his client asks his opinion, and then he is bound to give ithonestly. The justice or injustice of the cause is to be decided by thejudge. Consider, Sir; what is the purpose of courts of justice? It is, that every man may have his cause fairly tried, by men appointed to trycauses. A lawyer is not to tell what he knows to be a lie: he is not toproduce what he knows to be a false deed; but he is not to usurp theprovince of the jury and of the judge, and determine what shall be theeffect of evidence, --what shall be the result of legal argument. As itrarely happens that a man is fit to plead his own cause, lawyers are aclass of the community, who, by study and experience, have acquired theart and power of arranging evidence, and of applying to the points atissue what the law has settled. A lawyer is to do for his client allthat his client might fairly do for himself, if he could. If, by asuperiority of attention, of knowledge, of skill, and a better method ofcommunication, he has the advantage of his adversary, it is anadvantage to which he is entitled. There must always be some advantage, on one side or other; and it is better that advantage should be had bytalents than by chance. Lawyers were to undertake no causes till theywere sure they were just, a man might be precluded altogether from atrial of his claim, though, were it judicially examined it might befound a very just claim[58]. ' This was sound practical doctrine, andrationally repressed a too refined scrupulosity[59] of conscience. 

Emigration was at this time a common topick of discourse[60]. Dr. Johnson regretted it as hurtful to human happiness: 'For (said he) itspreads mankind, which weakens the defence of a nation, and lessens thecomfort of living. Men, thinly scattered, make a shift, but a bad shift, without many things. A smith is ten miles off: they'll do without a nailor a staple. A taylor is far from them: they'll botch their own clothes. It is being concentrated which produces high convenience[61]. '

Sir William Forbes, Mr. Scott, and I, accompanied Mr. Johnson to thechapel[62], founded by Lord Chief Baron Smith, for the Service of theChurch of England. The Reverend Mr. Carre, the senior clergyman, preached from these words, 'Because the Lord reigneth, let the earth beglad[63]. ' I was sorry to think Mr. Johnson did not attend to thesermon, Mr. Carre's low voice not being strong enough to reach hishearing. A selection of Mr. Carre's sermons has, since his death, beenpublished by Sir William Forbes[64], and the world has acknowledgedtheir uncommon merit. I am well assured Lord Mansfield has pronouncedthem to be excellent. 

Here I obtained a promise from Lord Chief Baron Orde[65], that he woulddine at my house next day. I presented Mr. Johnson to his Lordship, whopolitely said to him, I have not the honour of knowing you; but I hopefor it, and to see you at my house. I am to wait on you to-morrow. ' Thisrespectable English judge will be long remembered in Scotland, where hebuilt an elegant house, and lived in it magnificently. His own amplefortune, with the addition of his salary, enabled him to be splendidlyhospitable. It may be fortunate for an individual amongst ourselves tobe Lord Chief Baron; and a most worthy man now has the office; but, inmy opinion, it is better for Scotland in general, that some of ourpublick employments should be filled by gentlemen of distinction fromthe south side of the Tweed, as we have the benefit of promotion inEngland. Such an interchange would make a beneficial mixture of manners, and render our union more complete. Lord Chief Baron Orde was on goodterms with us all, in a narrow country filled with jarring interests andkeen parties; and, though I well knew his opinion to be the same with myown, he kept himself aloof at a very critical period indeed, when the_Douglas cause_ shook the sacred security of _birthright_ in Scotlandto its foundation; a cause, which had it happened before the Union, whenthere was no appeal to a British House of Lords, would have left thegreat fortress of honours and of property in ruins[66]. When we gothome, Dr. Johnson desired to see my books. He took down Ogden's _Sermonson Prayer_[67], on which I set a very high value, having been muchedified by them, and he retired with them to his room. He did not staylong, but soon joined us in the drawing room. I presented to him Mr. Robert Arbuthnot, a relation of the celebrated Dr. Arbuthnot[68], and aman of literature and taste. To him we were obliged for a previousrecommendation, which secured us a very agreeable reception at St. Andrews, and which Dr. Johnson, in his _Journey_, ascribes to 'someinvisible friend[69]. '

Of Dr. Beattie, Mr. Johnson said, 'Sir, he has written like a manconscious of the truth, and feeling his own strength[70]. Treating youradversary with respect is giving him an advantage to which he is notentitled[71]. The greatest part of men cannot judge of reasoning, andare impressed by character; so that, if you allow your adversary arespectable character, they will think, that though you differ from him, you may be in the wrong. Sir, treating your adversary with respect, isstriking soft in a battle. And as to Hume, --a man who has so muchconceit as to tell all mankind that they have been bubbled[72] for ages, and he is the wise man who sees better than they, --a man who has solittle scrupulosity as to venture to oppose those principles which havebeen thought necessary to human happiness, --is he to be surprized ifanother man comes and laughs at him? If he is the great man he thinkshimself, all this cannot hurt him: it is like throwing peas against arock. ' He added '_something much too rough_' both as to Mr. Hume's headand heart, which I suppress. Violence is, in my opinion, not suitable tothe Christian cause. Besides, I always lived on good terms with Mr. Hume, though I have frankly told him, I was not clear that it was rightin me to keep company with him. 'But, (said I) how much better are youthan your books!' He was cheerful, obliging, and instructive; he wascharitable to the poor; and many an agreeable hour have I passed withhim[73]: I have preserved some entertaining and interesting memoirs ofhim, particularly when he knew himself to be dying, which I may sometime or other communicate to the world[74]. I shall not, however, extolhim so very highly as Dr. Adam Smith does, who says, in a letter to Mr. Strahan the Printer (not a confidential letter to his friend, but aletter which is published[75] with all formality:) 'Upon the whole, Ihave always considered him, both in his life time and since his death, as approaching as nearly to the idea of a perfectly wise and virtuousman as perhaps the nature of human frailty will permit. ' Let Dr. Smithconsider: Was not Mr. Hume blest with good health, good spirits, goodfriends, a competent and increasing fortune? And had he not also aperpetual feast of fame[76]? But, as a learned friend has observed tome, 'What trials did he undergo to prove the perfection of his virtue?Did he ever experience any great instance of adversity?'--When I readthis sentence delivered by my old _Professor of Moral Philosophy_, Icould not help exclaiming with the _Psalmist_, 'Surely I have now moreunderstanding than my teachers[77]!'

While we were talking, there came a note to me from Dr. WilliamRobertson. 

'DEAR SIR, 'I have been expecting every day to hear from you, of Dr. Johnson'sarrival. Pray, what do you know about his motions? I longto take him by the hand. I write this from the college, where I haveonly this scrap of paper. Ever yours, 'W. R. '

'Sunday. '

It pleased me to find Dr. Robertson thus eager to meet Dr. Johnson. Iwas glad I could answer, that he was come: and I begged Dr. Robertsonmight be with us as soon as he could. 

Sir William Forbes, Mr. Scott, Mr. Arbuthnot, and another gentlemandined with us. 'Come, Dr. Johnson, (said I, ) it is commonly thought thatour veal in Scotland is not good. But here is some which I believe youwill like. ' There was no catching him. JOHNSON. 'Why, Sir, what iscommonly thought, I should take to be true. _Your_ veal may be good; butthat will only be an exception to the general opinion; not a proofagainst it. '

Dr. Robertson, according to the custom of Edinburgh at that time, dinedin the interval between the forenoon and afternoon service, which wasthen later than now; so we had not the pleasure of his company tilldinner was over, when he came and drank wine with us. And then begansome animated dialogue[78], of which here follows a pretty full note. 

We talked of Mr. Burke. Dr. Johnson said, he had great variety ofknowledge, store of imagery, copiousness of language. ROBERTSON. 'He haswit too. ' JOHNSON. 'No, Sir; he never succeeds there. 'Tis low; 'tisconceit. I used to say, Burke never once made a good joke[79]. What Imost envy Burke for, is his being constantly the same. He is never whatwe call hum-drum; never unwilling to begin to talk, nor in haste toleave off. ' BOSWELL. 'Yet he can listen. ' JOHNSON. 'No: I cannot say heis good at that[80]. So desirous is he to talk, that, if one is speakingat this end of the table, he'll speak to somebody at the other end. Burke, Sir, is such a man, that if you met him for the first time in thestreet where you were stopped by a drove of oxen, and you and he steppedaside to take shelter but for five minutes, he'd talk to you in such amanner, that, when you parted, you would say, this is an extraordinaryman[81]. Now, you may be long enough with me, without finding any thingextraordinary. ' He said, he believed Burke was intended for the law; buteither had not money enough to follow it, or had not diligenceenough[82]. He said, he could not understand how a man could apply toone thing, and not to another. ROBERTSON said, one man had morejudgment, another more imagination. JOHNSON. 'No, Sir; it is only, oneman has more mind than another. He may direct it differently; he may, byaccident, see the success of one kind of study, and take a desire toexcel in it. I am persuaded that, had Sir Isaac Newton applied topoetry, he would have made a very fine epick poem. I could as easilyapply to law as to tragick poetry. ' BOSWELL. 'Yet, Sir, you did apply totragick poetry, not to law. ' JOHNSON. 'Because, Sir, I had not money tostudy law. Sir, the man who has vigour, may walk to the east, just aswell as to the west, if he happens to turn his head that way[83]. 'BOSWELL. 'But, Sir, 'tis like walking up and down a hill; one man willnaturally do the one better than the other. A hare will run up a hillbest, from her fore-legs being short; a dog down. ' JOHNSON. 'Nay, Sir;that is from mechanical powers. If you make mind mechanical, you mayargue in that manner. One mind is a vice, and holds fast; there's a goodmemory. Another is a file; and he is a disputant, a controversialist. Another is a razor; and he is sarcastical. ' We talked of Whitefield. Hesaid he was at the same college with him[84], and knew him _before hebegan to be better than other people_ (smiling;) that he believed hesincerely meant well, but had a mixture of politicks and ostentation:whereas Wesley thought of religion only[85]. ROBERTSON said, Whitefieldhad strong natural eloquence, which, if cultivated, would have donegreat things. JOHNSON. 'Why, Sir, I take it, he was at the height ofwhat his abilities could do, and was sensible of it. He had the ordinaryadvantages of education; but he chose to pursue that oratory which isfor the mob[86]. ' BOSWELL. 'He had great effect on the passions. 'JOHNSON. 'Why, Sir, I don't think so. He could not represent asuccession of pathetic images. He vociferated, and made an impression. _There_, again, was a mind like a hammer. ' Dr. Johnson now said, acertain eminent political friend of our's[87] was wrong, in his maxim ofsticking to a certain set of _men_ on all occasions. 'I can see that aman may do right to stick to a _party_ (said he;) that is to say, he isa _Whig_, or he is a _Tory_, and he thinks one of those parties upon thewhole the best, and that to make it prevail, it must be generallysupported, though, in particulars it may be wrong. He takes its faggotof principles, in which there are fewer rotten sticks than in the other, though some rotten sticks to be sure; and they cannot well be separated. But, to bind one's self to one man, or one set of men, (who may be rightto-day and wrong to-morrow, ) without any general preference of system, Imust disapprove[88]. '

He told us of Cooke, who translated Hesiod, and lived twenty years on atranslation of Plautus, for which he was always taking subscriptions;and that he presented Foote to a Club, in the following singular manner:'This is the nephew of the gentleman who was lately hung in chains formurdering his brother[89]. ' In the evening I introduced to Mr. Johnson[90] two good friends of mine, Mr. William Nairne, Advocate, andMr. Hamilton of Sundrum, my neighbour in the country, both of whomsupped with us. I have preserved nothing of what passed, except that Dr. Johnson displayed another of his heterodox opinions, --a contempt oftragick acting[91]. He said, 'the action of all players in tragedy isbad. It should be a man's study to repress those signs of emotion andpassion, as they are called. ' He was of a directly contrary opinion tothat of Fielding, in his _Tom Jones_; who makes Partridge say, ofGarrick, 'why, I could act as well as he myself. I am sure, if I hadseen a ghost, I should have looked in the very same manner, and donejust as he did[92]. ' For, when I asked him, 'Would you not, Sir, startas Mr. Garrick does, if you saw a ghost?' He answered, 'I hope not. If Idid, I should frighten the ghost. '

MONDAY, AUGUST 16. 

Dr. William Robertson came to breakfast. We talked of _Ogden on Prayer_. Dr. Johnson said, 'The same arguments which are used against GOD'Shearing prayer, will serve against his rewarding good, and punishingevil. He has resolved, he has declared, in the former case as in thelatter. ' He had last night looked into Lord Hailes's _Remarks on theHistory of Scotland_. Dr. Robertson and I said, it was a pity LordHailes did not write greater things. His lordship had not then publishedhis _Annals of Scotland_[93]. JOHNSON. 'I remember I was once on avisit at the house of a lady for whom I had a high respect. There was agood deal of company in the room. When they were gone, I said to thislady, "What foolish talking have we had!" "Yes, (said she, ) but whilethey talked, you said nothing. " I was struck with the reproof. How muchbetter is the man who does anything that is innocent, than he who doesnothing. Besides, I love anecdotes[94]. I fancy mankind may come, intime, to write all aphoristically, except in narrative; grow weary ofpreparation, and connection, and illustration, and all those arts bywhich a big book is made. If a man is to wait till he weaves anecdotesinto a system, we may be long in getting them, and get but few, incomparison of what we might get. 

Dr. Robertson said, the notions of _Eupham Macallan_, a fanatick woman, of whom Lord Hailes gives a sketch, were still prevalent among some ofthe Presbyterians; and therefore it was right in Lord Hailes, a man ofknown piety, to undeceive them[95]. 

We walked out[96], that Dr. Johnson might see some of the things whichwe have to shew at Edinburgh. We went to the Parliament-House[97], where the Parliament of Scotland sat, and where the _Ordinary Lords_ ofSession hold their courts; and to the New Session-House adjoining to it, where our Court of Fifteen (the fourteen _Ordinaries_, with the LordPresident at their head, ) sit as a court of Review. We went to the_Advocates Library_[98], of which Dr. Johnson took a cursory view, andthen to what is called the _Laigh_[99] (or under) Parliament-House, where the records of Scotland, which has an universal security byregister, are deposited, till the great Register Office be finished. Iwas pleased to behold Dr. Samuel Johnson rolling about in this oldmagazine of antiquities. There was, by this time, a pretty numerouscircle of us attending upon him. Somebody talked of happy moments forcomposition; and how a man can write at one time, and not at another. 'Nay, (said Dr. Johnson, ) a man may write at any time, if he will sethimself _doggedly_[100] to it. '

I here began to indulge _old Scottish_[101] sentiments, and to express awarm regret, that, by our Union with _England_, we were no more;--ourindependent kingdom was lost[102]. JOHNSON. 'Sir, never talk of yourindependency, who could let your Queen remain twenty years in captivity, and then be put to death, without even a pretence of justice, withoutyour ever attempting to rescue her; and such a Queen too; as every manof any gallantry of spirit would have sacrificed his life for[103]. 'Worthy Mr. JAMES KERR, Keeper of the Records. 'Half our nation wasbribed by English money. ' JOHNSON. 'Sir, that is no defence: that makesyou worse. ' Good Mr. BROWN, Keeper of the Advocates' Library. 'We hadbetter say nothing about it. ' BOSWELL. 'You would have been glad, however, to have had us last war, sir, to fight your battles!' JOHNSON. 'We should have had you for the same price, though there had been noUnion, as we might have had Swiss, or other troops. No, no, I shallagree to a separation. You have only to _go home_. ' Just as he had saidthis, I, to divert the subject, shewed him the signed assurances of thethree successive Kings of the Hanover family, to maintain thePresbyterian establishment in Scotland. 'We'll give you that (said he)into the bargain. '

We next went to the great church of St. Giles, which has lost itsoriginal magnificence in the inside, by being divided into four placesof Presbyterian worship[104]. 'Come, (said Dr. Johnson jocularly toPrincipal Robertson[105], ) let me see what was once a church!' Weentered that division which was formerly called the _New Church_, and oflate the _High Church_, so well known by the eloquence of Dr. HughBlair. It is now very elegantly fitted up; but it was then shamefullydirty[106]. Dr. Johnson said nothing at the time; but when we came tothe great door of the Royal Infirmary, where upon a board was thisinscription, '_Clean your feet!_' he turned about slyly and said, 'Thereis no occasion for putting this at the doors of your churches!'

We then conducted him down the Post-house stairs, Parliament-close, andmade him look up from the Cow-gate to the highest building in Edinburgh, (from which he had just descended, ) being thirteen floors or storiesfrom the ground upon the back elevation; the front wall being built uponthe edge of the hill, and the back wall rising from the bottom of thehill several stories before it comes to a level with the front wall. Weproceeded to the College, with the Principal at our head. Dr. AdamFergusson, whose _Essay on the History of Civil Society[107]_ gives hima respectable place in the ranks of literature, was with us. As theCollege buildings[108] are indeed very mean, the Principal said to Dr. Johnson, that he must give them the same epithet that a Jesuit did whenshewing a poor college abroad: '_Hae miseriae nostrae_. ' Dr. Johnsonwas, however, much pleased with the library, and with the conversationof Dr. James Robertson, Professor of Oriental Languages, the Librarian. We talked of Kennicot's edition of the Hebrew Bible[109], and hoped itwould be quite faithful. JOHNSON. 'Sir, I know not any crime so greatthat a man could contrive to commit, as poisoning the sources ofeternal truth. '

I pointed out to him where there formerly stood an old wall enclosingpart of the college, which I remember bulged out in a threateningmanner, and of which there was a common tradition similar to thatconcerning _Bacon's_ study at Oxford, that it would fall upon some verylearned man[110]. It had some time before this been taken down, that thestreet might be widened, and a more convenient wall built. Dr. Johnson, glad of an opportunity to have a pleasant hit at Scottish learning, said, 'they have been afraid it never would fall. '

We shewed him the Royal Infirmary, for which, and for every otherexertion of generous publick spirit in his power, that noble-mindedcitizen of Edinburgh, George Drummond, will be ever held in honourableremembrance. And we were too proud not to carry him to the Abbey ofHolyrood-house, that beautiful piece of architecture, but, alas! thatdeserted mansion of royalty, which Hamilton of Bangour, in one of hiselegant poems, calls

 'A virtuous palace, where no monarch dwells[111]. '

I was much entertained while Principal Robertson fluently harangued toDr. Johnson, upon the spot, concerning scenes of his celebrated _Historyof Scotland_. We surveyed that part of the palace appropriated to theDuke of Hamilton, as Keeper, in which our beautiful Queen Mary lived, and in which David Rizzio was murdered; and also the State Rooms. Dr. Johnson was a great reciter of all sorts of things serious or comical. Ioverheard him repeating here in a kind of muttering tone, a line of theold ballad, _Johnny Armstrong's Last Good Night_:

 'And ran him through the fair body[112]!'

We returned to my house, where there met him, at dinner, the Duchess ofDouglas[113], Sir Adolphus Oughton, Lord Chief Baron, Sir WilliamForbes, Principal Robertson, Mr. Cullen[114], Advocate. Before dinner hetold us of a curious conversation between the famous GeorgeFaulkner[115] and him. George said that England had drained Ireland offifty thousand pounds in specie, annually, for fifty years. 'How so, Sir! (said Dr. Johnson, ) you must have a very great trade?' 'No trade. ''Very rich mines?' 'No mines. ' 'From whence, then, does all this moneycome?' 'Come! why out of the blood and bowels of the poor peopleof Ireland!'

He seemed to me to have an unaccountable prejudice against Swift[116];for I once took the liberty to ask him, if Swift had personally offendedhim, and he told me he had not. He said to-day, 'Swift is clear, but heis shallow. In coarse humour, he is inferior to Arbuthnot[117]; indelicate humour, he is inferior to Addison. So he is inferior to hiscontemporaries; without putting him against the whole world. I doubt ifthe _Tale of a Tub_ was his[118]: it has so much more thinking, moreknowledge, more power, more colour, than any of the works which areindisputably his. If it was his, I shall only say, he was _imparsibi_[119]. '

We gave him as good a dinner as we could. Our Scotch muir-fowl, orgrowse, were then abundant, and quite in season; and so far as wisdomand wit can be aided by administering agreeable sensations to thepalate, my wife took care that our great guest should not be deficient. 

Sir Adolphus Oughton, then our Deputy Commander in Chief, who was notonly an excellent officer, but one of the most universal scholars I everknew, had learned the Erse language, and expressed his belief in theauthenticity of Ossian's Poetry[120]. Dr. Johnson took the opposite sideof that perplexed question; and I was afraid the dispute would have runhigh between them. But Sir Adolphus, who had a very sweet temper, changed the discourse, grew playful, laughed at Lord Monboddo's[121]notion of men having tails, and called him a Judge, _à posteriori_, which amused Dr. Johnson; and thus hostilities were prevented. 

At supper[122] we had Dr. Cullen, his son the advocate, Dr. AdamFergusson, and Mr. Crosbie, advocate. Witchcraft was introduced[123]. Mr. Crosbie said, he thought it the greatest blasphemy to suppose evilspirits counteracting the Deity, and raising storms, for instance, todestroy his creatures. JOHNSON. 'Why, Sir, if moral evil be consistentwith the government of the Deity, why may not physical evil be alsoconsistent with it? It is not more strange that there should be evilspirits, than evil men: evil unembodied spirits, than evil embodiedspirits. And as to storms, we know there are such things; and it is noworse that evil spirits raise them, than that they rise. ' CROSBIE. 'Butit is not credible, that witches should have effected what they are saidin stories to have done. ' JOHNSON. 'Sir, I am not defending theircredibility. I am only saying, that your arguments are not good, andwill not overturn the belief of witchcraft. --(Dr. Fergusson said to me, aside, 'He is right. ')--And then, Sir, you have all mankind, rude andcivilized, agreeing in the belief of the agency of preternatural powers. You must take evidence: you must consider, that wise and great men havecondemned witches to die[124]. ' CROSBIE. 'But an act of parliament putan end to witchcraft[125]. ' JOHNSON. 'No, Sir; witchcraft had ceased;and therefore an act of parliament was passed to prevent persecution forwhat was not witchcraft. Why it ceased, we cannot tell, as we cannottell the reason of many other things. '--Dr. Cullen, to keep up thegratification of mysterious disquisition, with the grave address forwhich he is remarkable in his companionable as in his professionalhours, talked, in a very entertaining manner, of people walking andconversing in their sleep. I am very sorry I have no note of this. Wetalked of the _Ouran-Outang_, and of Lord Monboddo's thinking that hemight be taught to speak. Dr. Johnson treated this with ridicule. Mr. Crosbie said, that Lord Monboddo believed the existence of every thingpossible; in short, that all which is in _posse_ might be found in_esse_. JOHNSON. 'But, Sir, it is as possible that the _Ouran-Outang_does not speak, as that he speaks. However, I shall not contest thepoint. I should have thought it not possible to find a Monboddo; yet_he_ exists. ' I again mentioned the stage. JOHNSON. 'The appearance of aplayer, with whom I have drunk tea, counteracts the imagination that heis the character he represents. Nay, you know, nobody imagines that heis the character he represents. They say, "See _Garrick!_ how he looksto night! See how he'll clutch the dagger!" That is the buz of thetheatre[126]. '

TUESDAY, AUGUST 17. 

Sir William Forbes came to breakfast, and brought with him Dr. Blacklock[127], whom he introduced to Dr. Johnson, who received him witha most humane complacency; 'Dear Dr. Blacklock, I am glad to see you!'Blacklock seemed to be much surprized, when Dr. Johnson said, 'it waseasier to him to write poetry than to compose his _Dictionary_[128]. Hismind was less on the stretch in doing the one than the other. Besides;composing a _Dictionary_ requires books and a desk: you can make a poemwalking in the fields, or lying in bed. Dr. Blacklock spoke ofscepticism in morals and religion, with apparent uneasiness, as if hewished for more certainty[129]. Dr. Johnson, who had thought it allover, and whose vigorous understanding was fortified by much experience, thus encouraged the blind Bard to apply to higher speculations what weall willingly submit to in common life: in short, he gave him morefamiliarly the able and fair reasoning of Butler's _Analogy_: 'Why, Sir, the greatest concern we have in this world, the choice of ourprofession, must be determined without demonstrative reasoning. Humanlife is not yet so well known, as that we can have it. And take the caseof a man who is ill. I call two physicians: they differ in opinion. I amnot to lie down, and die between them: I must do something. ' Theconversation then turned on Atheism; on that horrible book, _Système dela Nature_[130]; and on the supposition of an eternal necessity, withoutdesign, without a governing mind. JOHNSON. 'If it were so, why has itceased? Why don't we see men thus produced around us now? Why, at least, does it not keep pace, in some measure, with the progress of time? Ifit stops because there is now no need of it, then it is plain there is, and ever has been, an all powerful intelligence. But stay! (said he, with one of his satyrick laughs[131]. ) Ha! ha! ha! I shall supposeScotchmen made necessarily, and Englishmen by choice. '

At dinner this day, we had Sir Alexander Dick, whose amiable character, and ingenious and cultivated mind, are so generally known; (he was thenon the verge of seventy, and is now (1785) eighty-one, with hisfaculties entire, his heart warm, and his temper gay;) Sir DavidDalrymple, Lord Hailes; Mr. Maclaurin[132], advocate; Dr. Gregory, whonow worthily fills his father's medical chair[133]; and my uncle, Dr. Boswell. This was one of Dr. Johnson's best days. He was quite in hiselement. All was literature and taste, without any interruption. LordHailes, who is one of the best philologists in Great Britain, who haswritten papers in _The World_[134], and a variety of other works inprose and in verse, both Latin and English, pleased him highly. He toldhim, he had discovered the life of _Cheynel_, in _The Student_[135], tobe his. JOHNSON. 'No one else knows it. ' Dr. Johnson had, before this, dictated to me a law-paper, upon a question purely in the law ofScotland, concerning _vicious intromission_[136], that is to say, intermeddling with the effects of a deceased person, without a regulartitle; which formerly was understood to subject the intermeddler topayment of all the defunct's debts. The principle has of late beenrelaxed. Dr. Johnson's argument was, for a renewal of its strictness. The paper was printed, with additions by me, and given into the Court ofSession. Lord Hailes knew Dr. Johnson's part not to be mine, and pointedout exactly where it began, and where it ended. Dr. Johnson said, 'It ismuch, now, that his lordship can distinguish so. ' In Dr. Johnson's_Vanity of Human Wishes_, there is the following passage:--

 'The teeming mother, anxious for her race, Begs, for each birth, the fortune of a face: Yet _Vane_ could tell, what ills from beauty spring, And _Sedley_ curs'd the charms which pleas'd a king[137]. '

Lord Hailes told him, he was mistaken in the instances he had given ofunfortunate fair ones; for neither _Vane_ nor _Sedley_ had a title tothat description. His Lordship has since been so obliging as to send mea note of this, for the communication of which I am sure my readerswill thank me. 

'The lines in the tenth Satire of Juvenal, according to my alteration, should have run thus:--

 'Yet _Shore_[138] could tell-----; And _Valiere_[139] curs'd------. '

'The first was a penitent by compulsion, the second by sentiment; thoughthe truth is, Mademoiselle de la Valiere threw herself (but still fromsentiment) in the King's way. 

'Our friend chose _Vane_[140], who was far from being well-looked; and_Sedley_, who was so ugly, that Charles II. Said, his brother had her byway of penance[141]. '

Mr. Maclaurin's learning and talents enabled him to do his part verywell in Dr. Johnson's company. He produced two epitaphs upon hisfather, the celebrated mathematician[142]. One was in English, of whichDr. Johnson did not change one word. In the other, which was in Latin, he made several alterations. In place of the very words of _Virgil_, '_Ubi luctus et pavor et plurima mortis imago_[143], ' he wrote '_Ubiluctus regnant et pavor_. ' He introduced the word _prorsus_ into theline '_Mortalibus prorsus non absit solatium_, ' and after '_Hujus enimscripta evolve_, ' he added '_Mentemque tantarum rerum capacem corporicaduco superstitem crede_;' which is quite applicable to Dr. Johnsonhimself[144]. 

Mr. Murray, advocate, who married a niece of Lord Mansfield's, and isnow one of the judges of Scotland, by the title of Lord _Henderland_, sat with us a part of the evening; but did not venture to say any thing, that I remember, though he is certainly possessed of talents which wouldhave enabled him to have shewn himself to advantage, if too greatanxiety had not prevented him. 

At supper we had Dr. Alexander Webster, who, though not, learned, hadsuch a knowledge of mankind, such a fund of information andentertainment, so clear a head and such accommodating manners, that Dr. Johnson found him a very agreeable companion. 

When Dr. Johnson and I were left by ourselves, I read to him my notes ofthe Opinions of our Judges upon the questions of Literary Property[145]. He did not like them; and said, 'they make me think of your Judges notwith that respect which I should wish to do. ' To the argument of one ofthem, that there can be no property in blasphemy or nonsense, heanswered, 'then your rotten sheep are mine! By that rule, when a man'shouse falls into decay, he must lose it. ' I mentioned an argument ofmine, that literary performances are not taxed. As _Churchill_ says, 'No statesman yet has thought it worth his pains To tax our labours, or excise our brains[146];'

and therefore they are not property. 'Yet, (said he, ) we hang a man forstealing a horse, and horses are not taxed. ' Mr. Pitt has since put anend to that argument[147]. 

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 18. 

On this day we set out from Edinburgh. We should gladly have had Mr. Scott to go with us; but he was obliged to return to England. --I havegiven a sketch of Dr. Johnson: my readers may wish to know a little ofhis fellow traveller[148]. Think then, of a gentleman of ancient blood, the pride of which was his predominant passion. He was then in histhirty-third year, and had been about four years happily married. Hisinclination was to be a soldier[149]; but his father, a respectable[150]Judge, had pressed him into the profession of the law. He had travelleda good deal, and seen many varieties of human life. He had thought morethan any body supposed, and had a pretty good stock of general learningand knowledge[151]. He had all Dr. Johnson's principles, with somedegree of relaxation. He had rather too little, than too much prudence;and, his imagination being lively, he often said things of which theeffect was very different from the intention[152]. He resembled sometimes

 'The best good man, with the worst natur'd muse[153]. '

He cannot deny himself the vanity of finishing with the encomium of Dr. Johnson, whose friendly partiality to the companion of his Tourrepresents him as one 'whose acuteness would help my enquiry, and whosegaiety of conversation, and civility of manners, are sufficient tocounteract the inconveniences of travel, in countries less hospitablethan we have passed[154]. ' Dr. Johnson thought it unnecessary to puthimself to the additional expence of bringing with him Francis Barber, his faithful black servant; so we were attended only by my man, JosephRitter, a Bohemian; a fine stately fellow above six feet high, who hadbeen over a great part of Europe, and spoke many languages. He was thebest servant I ever saw. Let not my readers disdain his introduction!For Dr. Johnson gave him this character: 'Sir, he is a civil man, and awise man[155]. '

From an erroneous apprehension of violence, Dr. Johnson had provided apair of pistols, some gunpowder, and a quantity of bullets: but uponbeing assured we should run no risk of meeting any robbers, he left hisarms and ammunition in an open drawer, of which he gave my wife thecharge. He also left in that drawer one volume of a pretty full andcurious Diary of his Life, of which I have a few fragments; but the bookhas been destroyed. I wish female curiosity had been strong enough tohave had it all transcribed; which might easily have been done; and Ishould think the theft, being _pro bono publico_, might have beenforgiven. But I may be wrong. My wife told me she never once looked intoit[156]. --She did not seem quite easy when we left her: but awaywe went!

Mr. Nairne, advocate, was to go with us as far as St. Andrews. It givesme pleasure that, by mentioning his _name_, I connect his title to thejust and handsome compliment paid him by Dr. Johnson, in his book: 'Agentleman who could stay with us only long enough to make us know howmuch we lost by his leaving us[157]. 'When we came to Leith, I talkedwith perhaps too boasting an air, how pretty the Frith of Forth looked;as indeed, after the prospect from Constantinople, of which I have beentold, and that from Naples, which I have seen, I believe the view ofthat Frith and its environs, from the Castle-hill of Edinburgh, is thefinest prospect in Europe. 'Ay, (said Dr. Johnson, ) that is the state ofthe world. Water is the same every where. 

 "Una est injusti caerula forma maris[158]. "'

I told him the port here was the mouth of the river or water of _Leith_. 'Not _Lethe_; said Mr. Nairne. 'Why, Sir, (said Dr. Johnson, ) when aScotchman sets out from this port for England, he forgets his nativecountry. ' NAIRNE. 'I hope, Sir, you will forget England here. ' JOHNSON. 'Then 'twill still be more _Lethe_' He observed of the Pier or Quay, 'you have no occasion for so large a one: your trade does not requireit: but you are like a shopkeeper who takes a shop, not only for what hehas to put in it, but that it may be believed he has a great deal to putinto it. ' It is very true, that there is now, comparatively, littletrade upon the eastern coast of Scotland. The riches of Glasgow shew howmuch there is in the west; and perhaps we shall find trade travelwestward on a great scale, as well as a small. 

We talked of a man's drowning himself. JOHNSON. 'I should never think ittime to make away with myself. ' I put the case of Eustace Budgell[159], who was accused of forging a will, and sunk himself in the Thames, before the trial of its authenticity came on. 'Suppose, Sir, (said I, )that a man is absolutely sure, that, if he lives a few days longer, heshall be detected in a fraud, the consequence of which will be utterdisgrace and expulsion from society. ' JOHNSON. 'Then, Sir, let him goabroad to a distant country; let him go to some place where he is _not_known. Don't let him go to the devil where he _is_ known!'

He then said, 'I see a number of people bare-footed here: I suppose youall went so before the Union. Boswell, your ancestors went so, when theyhad as much land as your family has now. Yet _Auchinleck_ is the _Fieldof Stones_: there would be bad going bare-footed there. The _Lairds_, however, did it. ' I bought some _speldings_, fish (generally whitings)salted and dried in a particular manner, being dipped in the sea anddried in the sun, and eaten by the Scots by way of a relish. He hadnever seen them, though they are sold in London. I insisted on_scottifying_[160] his palate; but he was very reluctant. Withdifficulty I prevailed with him to let a bit of one of them lie in hismouth. He did not like it. 

In crossing the Frith, Dr. Johnson determined that we should land uponInch Keith[161]. On approaching it, we first observed a high rockyshore. We coasted about, and put into a little bay on the North-west. Weclambered up a very steep ascent, on which was very good grass, butrather a profusion of thistles. There were sixteen head of black cattlegrazing upon the island. Lord Hailes observed to me, that Brantome callsit _L'isle des Chevaux_, and that it was probably 'a _safer_ stable'than many others in his time. The fort[162], with an inscription onit, _Maria Re_ 1564, is strongly built. Dr. Johnson examined it with muchattention. He stalked like a giant among the luxuriant thistles andnettles. There are three wells in the island; but we could not find onein the fort. There must probably have been one, though now filled up, asa garrison could not subsist without it. But I have dwelt too long onthis little spot. Dr. Johnson afterwards bade me try to write adescription of our discovering Inch Keith, in the usual style oftravellers, describing fully every particular; stating the grounds onwhich we concluded that it must have once been inhabited, andintroducing many sage reflections; and we should see how a thing mightbe covered in words, so as to induce people to come and survey it. Allthat was told might be true, and yet in reality there might be nothingto see. He said, 'I'd have this island. I'd build a house, make a goodlanding-place, have a garden, and vines, and all sorts of trees. A richman, of a hospitable turn, here, would have many visitors fromEdinburgh. ' When we got into our boat again, he called to me, 'Come, now, pay a classical compliment to the island on quitting it. ' Ihappened luckily, in allusion to the beautiful Queen Mary, whose name isupon the fort, to think of what Virgil makes Aeneas say, on having leftthe country of his charming Dido. 

 'Invitus, regina, tuo de littore cessi[163]. '

'Very well hit off!' said he. 

We dined at Kinghorn, and then got into a post-chaise[164]. Mr. Nairneand his servant, and Joseph, rode by us. We stopped at Cupar, and dranktea. We talked of parliament; and I said, I supposed very few of themembers knew much of what was going on, as indeed very few gentlemenknow much of their own private affairs. JOHNSON. 'Why, Sir, if a man isnot of a sluggish mind, he may be his own steward. If he will look intohis affairs, he will soon learn[165]. So it is as to publick affairs. There must always be a certain number of men of business in parliament. 'BOSWELL. 'But consider, Sir; what is the House of Commons? Is not agreat part of it chosen by peers? Do you think, Sir, they ought to havesuch an influence?' JOHNSON. 'Yes, Sir. Influence must ever be inproportion to property; and it is right it should[166]. ' BOSWELL. 'Butis there not reason to fear that the common people may be oppressed?'JOHNSON. 'No, Sir. Our great fear is from want of power in government. Such a storm of vulgar force has broke in. ' BOSWELL. 'It has onlyroared. ' JOHNSON. 'Sir, it has roared, till the Judges inWestminster-Hall have been afraid to pronounce sentence in opposition tothe popular cry[167]. You are frightened by what is no longer dangerous, like Presbyterians by Popery. ' He then repeated a passage, I think, in_Butler's Remains_, which ends, 'and would cry, Fire! Fire! in Noah'sflood[168]. '

We had a dreary drive, in a dusky night, to St. Andrews, where wearrived late. We found a good supper at Glass's inn, and Dr. Johnsonrevived agreeably. He said, 'the collection called _The Muses' Welcometo King James_, (first of England, and sixth of Scotland, ) on his returnto his native kingdom, shewed that there was then abundance of learningin Scotland; and that the conceits in that collection, with which peoplefind fault, were mere mode. ' He added, 'we could not now entertain asovereign so; that Buchanan had spread the spirit of learning amongstus, but we had lost it during the civil wars[169]. ' He did not allow theLatin Poetry of Pitcairne so much merit as has been usually attributedto it; though he owned that one of his pieces, which he mentioned, butwhich I am sorry is not specified in my notes, was, 'very well. ' It isnot improbable that it was the poem which Prior has so elegantlytranslated[170]. 

After supper, we made a _procession_ to _Saint Leonard's College_, thelandlord walking before us with a candle, and the waiter with a lantern. That college had some time before been dissolved; and Dr. Watson, aprofessor here, (the historian of Philip II. ) had purchased the ground, and what buildings remained. When we entered this court, it seemed quiteacademical; and we found in his house very comfortable and genteelaccommodation[171]. 

THURSDAY, AUGUST 19. 

We rose much refreshed. I had with me a map of Scotland, a bible whichwas given me by Lord Mountstuart when we were together in Italy[172], and Ogden's _Sermons on Prayer_; Mr. Nairne introduced us to Dr. Watson, whom we found a well-informed man, of very amiable manners. Dr. Johnson, after they were acquainted, said, 'I take great delight in him. ' Hisdaughter, a very pleasing young lady, made breakfast. Dr. Watsonobserved, that Glasgow University had fewer home-students, since tradeincreased, as learning was rather incompatible with it. JOHNSON. 'Why, Sir, as trade is now carried on by subordinate hands, men in trade haveas much leisure as others; and now learning itself is a trade. A mangoes to a bookseller, and gets what he can. We have done withpatronage[173]. In the infancy of learning, we find some great manpraised for it. This diffused it among others. When it becomes general, an authour leaves the great, and applies to the multitude. ' BOSWELL. 'Itis a shame that authours are not now better patronized. ' JOHNSON. 'No, Sir. If learning cannot support a man, if he must sit with his handsacross till somebody feeds him, it is as to him a bad thing, and it isbetter as it is. With patronage, what flattery! what falsehood! While aman is in equilibrio, he throws truth among the multitude, and lets themtake it as they please: in patronage, he must say what pleases hispatron, and it is an equal chance whether that be truth or falsehood. 'WATSON. 'But is not the case now, that, instead of flattering oneperson, we flatter the age?' JOHNSON. 'No, Sir. The world always lets aman tell what he thinks, his own way. I wonder, however, that so manypeople have written, who might have let it alone. That people shouldendeavour to excel in conversation, I do not wonder; because inconversation praise is instantly reverberated[174]. '

We talked of change of manners. Dr. Johnson observed, that our drinkingless than our ancestors was owing to the change from ale to wine. ' Iremember, (said he, ) when all the _decent_ people in Lichfield got drunkevery night, and were not the worse thought of[175]. Ale was cheap, soyou pressed strongly. When a man must bring a bottle of wine, he is notin such haste. Smoking has gone out. To be sure, it is a shocking thing, blowing smoke out of our mouths into other people's mouths, eyes, andnoses, and having the same thing done to us. Yet I cannot account, why athing which requires so little exertion, and yet preserves the mind fromtotal vacuity, should have gone out[176]. Every man has something bywhich he calms himself: beating with his feet, or so[177]. I rememberwhen people in England changed a shirt only once a week[178]: a Pandour, when he gets a shirt, greases it to make it last. Formerly, goodtradesmen had no fire but in the kitchen; never in the parlour, excepton Sunday. My father, who was a magistrate of Lichfield, lived thus. They never began to have a fire in the parlour, but on leaving offbusiness, or some great revolution of their life. ' Dr. Watson said, thehall was as a kitchen, in old squires' houses. JOHNSON. 'No, Sir. Thehall was for great occasions, and never was used for domestickrefection[179]. ' We talked of the Union, and what money it had broughtinto Scotland. Dr. Watson observed, that a little money formerly went asfar as a great deal now. JOHNSON. 'In speculation, it seems that asmaller quantity of money, equal in value to a larger quantity, ifequally divided, should produce the same effect. But it is not so inreality. Many more conveniences and elegancies are enjoyed where moneyis plentiful, than where it is scarce. Perhaps a great familiarity withit, which arises from plenty, makes us more easily part with it. '

After what Dr. Johnson had said of St. Andrews, which he had long wishedto see, as our oldest university, and the seat of our Primate in thedays of episcopacy, I can say little. Since the publication of Dr. Johnson's book, I find that he has been censured for not seeing herethe ancient chapel of _St. Rule_, a curious piece of sacredarchitecture. [180] But this was neither his fault nor mine. We were bothof us abundantly desirous of surveying such sort of antiquities: butneither of us knew of this. I am afraid the censure must fall on thosewho did not tell us of it. In every place, where there is any thingworthy of observation, there should be a short printed directory forstrangers, such as we find in all the towns of Italy, and in some of thetowns in England. I was told that there is a manuscript account of St. Andrews, by Martin, secretary to Archbishop Sharp;[181] and that oneDouglas has published a small account of it. I inquired at abookseller's, but could not get it. Dr. Johnson's veneration for theHierarchy is well known. [182] There is no wonder then, that he wasaffected with a strong indignation, while he beheld the ruins ofreligious magnificence. I happened to ask where John Knox was buried. Dr. Johnson burst out, 'I hope in the high-way. [183] I have been lookingat his reformations. '[184] It was a very fine day. Dr. Johnson seemedquite wrapt up in the contemplation of the scenes which were nowpresented to him. He kept his hat off while he was upon any part of theground where the cathedral had stood. He said well, that 'Knox had seton a mob, without knowing where it would end; and that differing from aman in doctrine was no reason why you should pull his house about hisears. ' As we walked in the cloisters, there was a solemn echo, while hetalked loudly of a proper retirement from the world. Mr. Nairne said, hehad an inclination to retire. I called Dr. Johnson's attention to this, that I might hear his opinion if it was right. JOHNSON. 'Yes, when hehas done his duty to society[185]. In general, as every man is obligednot only to "love GOD, but his neighbour as himself, " he must bear hispart in active life; yet there are exceptions. Those who are exceedinglyscrupulous, (which I do not approve, for I am no friend toscruples[186], ) and find their scrupulosity[187] invincible, so thatthey are quite in the dark, and know not what they shall do, --or thosewho cannot resist temptations, and find they make themselves worse bybeing in the world, without making it better, may retire[188]. I neverread of a hermit, but in imagination I kiss his feet; never of amonastery, but I could fall on my knees, and kiss the pavement. But Ithink putting young people there, who know nothing of life, nothing ofretirement, is dangerous and wicked[189]. It is a saying as oldas Hesiod, Erga neon, boulaite meson, enchaite geronton[190]. 

That is a very noble line: not that young men should not pray, or oldmen not give counsel, but that every season of life has its properduties. I have thought of retiring, and have talked of it to a friend;but I find my vocation is rather to active life. ' I said, some youngmonks might be allowed, to shew that it is not age alone that can retireto pious solitude; but he thought this would only shew that they couldnot resist temptation. 

He wanted to mount the steeples, but it could not be done. There are nogood inscriptions here. Bad Roman characters he naturally mistook forhalf Gothick, half Roman. One of the steeples, which he was told was indanger, he wished not to be taken down; 'for, said he, it may fall onsome of the posterity of John Knox; and no great matter!'--Dinner wasmentioned. JOHNSON. 'Ay, ay; amidst all these sorrowful scenes, I haveno objection to dinner[191]. '

We went and looked at the castle, where Cardinal Beaton wasmurdered[192], and then visited Principal Murison at his college, whereis a good library-room; but the Principal was abundantly vain of it, forhe seriously said to Dr. Johnson, 'you have not such a one inEngland. '[193]

The professors entertained us with a very good dinner. Present: Murison, Shaw, Cook, Hill, Haddo, Watson, Flint, Brown. I observed, that Iwondered to see him eat so well, after viewing so many sorrowful scenesof ruined religious magnificence. 'Why, said he, I am not sorry, afterseeing these gentlemen; for they are not sorry. ' Murison said, allsorrow was bad, as it was murmuring against the dispensations ofProvidence. JOHNSON. 'Sir, sorrow is inherent in humanity. As you cannotjudge two and two to be either five, or three, but certainly four, so, when comparing a worse present state with a better which is past, youcannot but feel sorrow. [194] It is not cured by reason, but by theincursion of present objects, which wear out the past. You need notmurmur, though you are sorry. ' MURISON. 'But St. Paul says, "I havelearnt, in whatever state I am, therewith to be content. "' JOHNSON. 'Sir, that relates to riches and poverty; for we see St. Paul, when hehad a thorn in the flesh, prayed earnestly to have it removed; and thenhe could not be content. ' Murison, thus refuted, tried to be smart, anddrank to Dr. Johnson, 'Long may you lecture!' Dr. Johnson afterwards, speaking of his not drinking wine, said, 'The Doctor spoke of_lecturing_ (looking to him). I give all these lectures on water. '

He defended requiring subscription in those admitted to universities, thus: 'As all who come into the country must obey the king, so all whocome into an university must be of the church[195]. '

And here I must do Dr. Johnson the justice to contradict a very absurdand ill-natured story, as to what passed at St. Andrews. It has beencirculated, that, after grace was said in English, in the usual manner, he with the greatest marks of contempt, as if he had held it to be nograce in an university, would not sit down till he had said grace aloudin Latin. This would have been an insult indeed to the gentlemen whowere entertaining us. But the truth was precisely thus. In the course ofconversation at dinner, Dr. Johnson, in very good humour, said, 'Ishould have expected to have heard a Latin grace, among so many learnedmen: we had always a Latin grace at Oxford. I believe I can repeatit. '[196] Which he did, as giving the learned men in one place aspecimen of what was done by the learned men in another place. 

We went and saw the church, in which is Archbishop Sharp'smonument. [197] I was struck with the same kind of feelings with whichthe churches of Italy impressed me. I was much pleased, to see Dr. Johnson actually in St. Andrews, of which we had talked so long. Professor Haddo was with us this afternoon, along with Dr. Watson. Welooked at St. Salvador's College. The rooms for students seemed verycommodious, and Dr. Johnson said, the chapel was the neatest place ofworship he had seen. The key of the library could not be found; for itseems Professor Hill, who was out of town, had taken it with him. Dr. Johnson told a joke he had heard of a monastery abroad, where the key ofthe library could never be found. 

It was somewhat dispiriting, to see this ancient archiepiscopal citynow sadly deserted[198]. We saw in one of its streets a remarkable proofof liberal toleration; a nonjuring clergyman, strutting about in hiscanonicals, with a jolly countenance and a round belly, like awell-fed monk. 

We observed two occupations united in the same person, who had hung outtwo sign-posts. Upon one was, 'James Hood, White Iron Smith' (_i. E. _Tin-plate Worker). Upon another, 'The Art of Fencing taught, by JamesHood. '--Upon this last were painted some trees, and two men fencing, oneof whom had hit the other in the eye, to shew his great dexterity; sothat the art was well taught. JOHNSON. 'Were I studying here, I shouldgo and take a lesson. I remember _Hope_, in his book on this art[199], says, "the Scotch are very good fencers. "'

We returned to the inn, where we had been entertained at dinner, anddrank tea in company with some of the Professors, of whose civilities Ibeg leave to add my humble and very grateful acknowledgement to thehonourable testimony of Dr. Johnson, in his _Journey_[200]. 

We talked of composition, which was a favourite topick of Dr. Watson's, who first distinguished himself by lectures on rhetorick. JOHNSON. 'Iadvised Chambers, and would advise every young man beginning to compose, to do it as fast as he can, to get a habit of having his mind to startpromptly; it is so much more difficult to improve in speed than inaccuracy[201]. ' WATSON. 'I own I am for much attention to accuracy incomposing, lest one should get bad habits of doing it in a slovenlymanner. ' JOHNSON. 'Why, Sir, you are confounding _doing_ inaccuratelywith the _necessity_ of doing inaccurately. A man knows when hiscomposition is inaccurate, and when he thinks fit he'll correct it. But, if a man is accustomed to compose slowly, and with difficulty, upon alloccasions, there is danger that he may not compose at all, as we do notlike to do that which is not done easily; and, at any rate, more time isconsumed in a small matter than ought to be. ' WATSON. 'Dr. Hugh Blairhas taken a week to compose a sermon. ' JOHNSON. 'Then, Sir, that is forwant of the habit of composing quickly, which I am insisting one shouldacquire. ' WATSON. 'Blair was not composing all the week, but only suchhours as he found himself disposed for composition. ' JOHNSON. 'Nay, Sir, unless you tell me the time he took, you tell me nothing. If I say Itook a week to walk a mile, and have had the gout five days, and beenill otherwise another day, I have taken but one day. I myself havecomposed about forty sermons[202]. I have begun a sermon after dinner, and sent it off by the post that night. I wrote forty-eight of theprinted octavo pages of the _Life of Savage_ at a sitting; but then Isat up all night. I have also written six sheets in a day of translationfrom the French[203]. ' BOSWELL. 'We have all observed how one mandresses himself slowly, and another fast. ' JOHNSON. 'Yes, Sir: it iswonderful how much time some people will consume in dressing; taking upa thing and looking at it, and laying it down, and taking it up again. Every one should get the habit of doing it quickly. I would say to ayoung divine, "Here is your text; let me see how soon you can make asermon. " Then I'd say, "Let me see how much better you can make it. "Thus I should see both his powers and his judgement. '

We all went to Dr. Watson's to supper. Miss Sharp, great grandchild ofArchbishop Sharp, was there; as was Mr. Craig, the ingenious architectof the new town of Edinburgh[204] and nephew of Thomson, to whom Dr. Johnson has since done so much justice, in his _Lives of the Poets_. 

We talked of memory, and its various modes. JOHNSON. 'Memory will playstrange tricks. One sometimes loses a single word. I once lost _fugaces_in the Ode _Posthume, Posthume_[205]. ' I mentioned to him, that a worthygentleman of my acquaintance actually forgot his own name. JOHNSON. 'Sir, that was a morbid oblivion. '

FRIDAY, AUGUST 20. 

Dr. Shaw, the professor of divinity, breakfasted with us. I took out my_Ogden on Prayer_, and read some of it to the company. Dr. Johnsonpraised him. 'Abernethy[206], (said he, ) allows only of a physicaleffect of prayer upon the mind, which may be produced many ways, as wellas by prayer; for instance, by meditation. Ogden goes farther. In truth, we have the consent of all nations for the efficacy of prayer, whetheroffered up by individuals, or by assemblies; and Revelation has told us, it will be effectual. ' I said, 'Leechman seemed to incline toAbernethy's doctrine. ' Dr. Watson observed, that Leechman meant to shew, that, even admitting no effect to be produced by prayer, respecting theDeity, it was useful to our own minds[207]. He had given only a part ofhis system. Dr. Johnson thought he should have given the whole. 

Dr. Johnson enforced the strict observance of Sunday[208]. 'It should bedifferent (he observed) from another day. People may walk, but not throwstones at birds. There may be relaxation, but there should be nolevity[209]. '

We went and saw Colonel Nairne's garden and grotto. Here was a fine oldplane tree. Unluckily the colonel said, there was but this and anotherlarge tree in the county. This assertion was an excellent cue for Dr. Johnson, who laughed enormously, calling to me to hear it. He hadexpatiated to me on the nakedness of that part of Scotland which he hadseen. His _Journey_ has been violently abused, for what he has said uponthis subject. But let it be considered, that, when Dr. Johnson talks oftrees, he means trees of good size, such as he was accustomed to see inEngland; and of these there are certainly very few upon the _easterncoast_ of Scotland. Besides, he said, that he meant to give only a mapof the road; and let any traveller observe how many trees, which deservethe name, he can see from the road from Berwick to Aberdeen[210]. HadDr. Johnson said, 'there are _no_ trees' upon this line, he would havesaid what is colloquially true; because, by no trees, in common speech, we mean few. When he is particular in counting, he may be attacked. Iknow not how Colonel Nairne came to say there were but _two_ large treesin the county of Fife. I did not perceive that he smiled. There arecertainly not a great many; but I could have shewn him more than two at_Balmuto_, from whence my ancestors came, and which now belongs to abranch of my family[211]. 

The grotto was ingeniously constructed. In the front of it werepetrified stocks of fir, plane, and some other tree. Dr. Johnson said, 'Scotland has no right to boast of this grotto; it is owing to personalmerit. I never denied personal merit to many of you. ' Professor Shawsaid to me, as we walked, 'This is a wonderful man; he is master ofevery subject he handles. ' Dr. Watson allowed him a very strongunderstanding, but wondered at his total inattention to establishedmanners, as he came from London. 

I have not preserved in my Journal, any of the conversation which passedbetween Dr. Johnson and Professor Shaw; but I recollect Dr. Johnson saidto me afterwards, 'I took much to Shaw. '

We left St. Andrews about noon, and some miles from it observing, at_Leuchars_, a church with an old tower, we stopped to look at it. The_manse_, as the parsonage-house is called in Scotland, was close by. Iwaited on the minister, mentioned our names, and begged he would tell uswhat he knew about it. He was a very civil old man; but could onlyinform us, that it was supposed to have stood eight hundred years. Hetold us, there was a colony of Danes in his parish[212]; that they hadlanded at a remote period of time, and still remained a distinct people. Dr. Johnson shrewdly inquired whether they had brought women with them. We were not satisfied as to this colony. 

We saw, this day, Dundee and Aberbrothick, the last of which Dr. Johnsonhas celebrated in his _Journey_[213]. Upon the road we talked of theRoman Catholick faith. He mentioned (I think) Tillotson's argumentagainst transubstantiation: 'That we are as sure we see bread and wineonly, as that we read in the Bible the text on which that false doctrineis founded. We have only the evidence of our senses for both[214]. ' 'If, (he added, ) GOD had never spoken figuratively, we might hold that hespeaks literally, when he says, "This is my body[215]. "' BOSWELL. 'Butwhat do you say, Sir, to the ancient and continued tradition of thechurch upon this point?' JOHNSON. 'Tradition, Sir, has no place, wherethe Scriptures are plain; and tradition cannot persuade a man into abelief of transubstantiation. Able men, indeed, have _said_ theybelieved it. '

This is an awful subject. I did not then press Dr. Johnson upon it: norshall I now enter upon a disquisition concerning the import of thosewords uttered by our Saviour[216], which had such an effect upon many ofhis disciples, that they 'went back, and walked no more with him. ' TheCatechism and solemn office for Communion, in the Church of England, maintain a mysterious belief in more than a mere commemoration of thedeath of Christ, by partaking of the elements of bread and wine. 

Dr. Johnson put me in mind, that, at St. Andrews, I had defended myprofession very well, when the question had again been started, Whethera lawyer might honestly engage with the first side that offers him afee. 'Sir, (said I, ) it was with your arguments against Sir WilliamForbes[217]: but it was much that I could wield the arms of Goliah. '

He said, our judges had not gone deep in the question concerningliterary property. I mentioned Lord Monboddo's opinion, that if a mancould get a work by heart, he might print it, as by such an act the mindis exercised. JOHNSON. 'No, Sir; a man's repeating it no more makes ithis property, than a man may sell a cow which he drives home. ' I said, printing an abridgement of a work was allowed, which was only cuttingthe horns and tail off the cow. JOHNSON. 'No, Sir; 'tis making the cowhave a calf[218]. '

About eleven at night we arrived at Montrose. We found but a sorry inn, where I myself saw another waiter put a lump of sugar with his fingersinto Dr. Johnson's lemonade, for which he called him 'Rascal!' It put mein great glee that our landlord was an Englishman. I rallied the Doctorupon this, and he grew quiet[219]. Both Sir John Hawkins's and Dr. Burney's _History of Musick_ had then been advertised. I asked if thiswas not unlucky: would not they hurt one another? JOHNSON. 'No, Sir. They will do good to one another. Some will buy the one, some the other, and compare them; and so a talk is made about a thing, and the booksare sold. '

He was angry at me for proposing to carry lemons with us to Sky, thathe might be sure to have his lemonade. 'Sir, (said he, ) I do not wish tobe thought that feeble man who cannot do without any thing. Sir, it isvery bad manners to carry provisions to any man's house, as if he couldnot entertain you. To an inferior, it is oppressive; to a superior, itis insolent. '

Having taken the liberty, this evening, to remark to Dr. Johnson, thathe very often sat quite silent for a long time, even when in companywith only a single friend, which I myself had sometimes sadlyexperienced, he smiled and said, 'It is true, Sir[220]. Tom Tyers, (forso he familiarly called our ingenious friend, who, since his death, haspaid a biographical tribute to his memory[221], ) Tom Tyers described methe best. He once said to me, "Sir, you are like a ghost: you neverspeak till you are spoken to[222]. "'

SATURDAY, AUGUST 31. 

Neither the Rev. Mr. Nisbet, the established minister, nor the Rev. Mr. Spooner, the episcopal minister, were in town. Before breakfast, we wentand saw the town-hall, where is a good dancing-room, and other rooms fortea-drinking. The appearance of the town from it is very well; but manyof the houses are built with their ends to the street, which looksawkward. When we came down from it, I met Mr. Gleg, a merchant here. Hewent with us to see the English chapel. It is situated on a pretty dryspot, and there is a fine walk to it. It is really an elegant building, both within and without. The organ is adorned with green and gold. Dr. Johnson gave a shilling extraordinary to the clerk, saying, 'He belongsto an honest church[223]. ' I put him in mind, that episcopals were but_dissenters_ here; they were only _tolerated_. 'Sir, (said he, ) we arehere, as Christians in Turkey. ' He afterwards went into an apothecary'sshop, and ordered some medicine for himself, and wrote the prescriptionin technical characters. The boy took him for a physician[224]. 

I doubted much which road to take, whether to go by the coast, or byLaurence Kirk and Monboddo. I knew Lord Monboddo and Dr. Johnson did notlove each other[225]; yet I was unwilling not to visit his Lordship; andwas also curious to see them together[226]. I mentioned my doubts to Dr. Johnson, who said, he would go two miles out of his way to see LordMonboddo[227]. I therefore sent Joseph forward with thefollowing note:--

'Montrose, August 21. 

'My Dear Lord, 'Thus far I am come with Mr. Samuel Johnson. We must be at Aberdeento-night. I know you do not admire him so much as I do; but I cannot bein this country without making you a bow at your old place, as I do notknow if I may again have an opportunity of seeing Monboddo. Besides, Mr. Johnson says, he would go two miles out of his way to see Lord Monboddo. I have sent forward my servant, that we may know if your lordship beat home. 

'I am ever, my dear lord, 'Most sincerely yours, 'JAMES BOSWELL. '

As we travelled onwards from Montrose, we had the Grampion hills in ourview, and some good land around us, but void of trees and hedges. Dr. Johnson has said ludicrously, in his _Journey_, that the _hedges_ wereof _stone_[228]; for, instead of the verdant _thorn_ to refresh the eye, we found the bare _wall_ or _dike_ intersecting the prospect. Heobserved, that it was wonderful to see a country so divested, sodenuded of trees. 

We stopped at Laurence Kirk[229], where our great Grammarian, Ruddiman[230], was once schoolmaster. We respectfully remembered thatexcellent man and eminent scholar, by whose labours a knowledge of theLatin language will be preserved in Scotland, if it shall be preservedat all. Lord Gardenston[231], one of our judges, collected money toraise a monument to him at this place, which I hope will be wellexecuted[232]. I know my father gave five guineas towards it. LordGardenston is the proprietor of Laurence Kirk, and has encouraged thebuilding of a manufacturing village, of which he is exceedingly fond, and has written a pamphlet upon it[233], as if he had founded Thebes; inwhich, however, there are many useful precepts strongly expressed. Thevillage seemed to be irregularly built, some of the houses being ofclay, some of brick, and some of brick and stone. Dr. Johnson observed, they thatched well here. I was a little acquainted with Mr. Forbes, the minister of the parish. I sent to inform him that a gentlemandesired to see him. He returned for answer, 'that he would not come to astranger. ' I then gave my name, and he came. I remonstrated to him fornot coming to a stranger; and, by presenting him to Dr. Johnson, provedto him what a stranger might sometimes be. His Bible inculcates, 'be notforgetful to entertain strangers, ' and mentions the same motive[234]. Hedefended himself by saying, 'He had once come to a stranger who sent forhim; and he found him "_a little worth person!_"'

Dr. Johnson insisted on stopping at the inn, as I told him that LordGardenston had furnished it with a collection of books, that travellersmight have entertainment for the mind, as well as the body. He praisedthe design, but wished there had been more books, and thosebetter chosen. 

About a mile from Monboddo, where you turn off the road, Joseph waswaiting to tell us my lord expected us to dinner. We drove over a wildmoor. It rained, and the scene was somewhat dreary. Dr. Johnsonrepeated, with solemn emphasis, Macbeth's speech on meeting the witches. As we travelled on, he told me, 'Sir, you got into our club by doingwhat a man can do[235]. Several of the members wished to keep you out. Burke told me, he doubted if you were fit for it: but, now you are in, none of them are sorry. Burke says, that you have so much good humournaturally, it is scarce a virtue[236]. ' BOSWELL. 'They were afraid ofyou, Sir, as it was you who proposed me. ' JOHNSON. 'Sir, they knew, thatif they refused you, they'd probably never have got in another. I'd havekept them all out. Beauclerk was very earnest for you. ' BOSWELL. "Beauclerk has a keenness of mind which is very uncommon. " JOHNSON. 'Yes, Sir; and everything comes from him so easily. It appears to methat I labour, when I say a good thing. ' BOSWELL. 'You are loud, Sir;but it is not an effort of mind[237]. '

Monboddo is a wretched place, wild and naked, with a poor old house;though, if I recollect right, there are two turrets which mark an oldbaron's residence. Lord Monboddo received us at his gate mostcourteously; pointed to the Douglas arms upon his house, and told usthat his great-grandmother was of that family. 'In such houses (saidhe, ) our ancestors lived, who were better men than we. ' 'No, no, my lord(said Dr. Johnson). We are as strong as they, and a great dealwiser[238]. ' This was an assault upon one of Lord Monboddo's capitaldogmas, and I was afraid there would have been a violent altercation inthe very close, before we got into the house. But his lordship isdistinguished not only for 'ancient metaphysicks, ' but for ancient_politesse_, '_la vieille cour_' and he made no reply[239]. 

His lordship was dressed in a rustick suit, and wore a little roundhat; he told us, we now saw him as _Farmer Burnet_[240], and we shouldhave his family dinner, a farmer's dinner. He said, 'I should not haveforgiven Mr. Boswell, had he not brought you here, Dr. Johnson. ' Heproduced a very long stalk of corn, as a specimen of his crop, and said, 'You see here the _loetas segetes_[241];' he added, that _Virgil_ seemedto be as enthusiastick a farmer as he[242], and was certainly apractical one. JOHNSON. 'It does not always follow, my lord, that a manwho has written a good poem on an art, has practised it. Philip Millertold me, that in Philips's _Cyder_, a poem, all the precepts were just, and indeed better than in books written for the purpose of instructing;yet Philips had never made cyder[243]. '

I started the subject of emigration[244]. JOHNSON. 'To a man of mereanimal life, you can urge no argument against going to America, but thatit will be some time before he will get the earth to produce. But a manof any intellectual enjoyment will not easily go and immerse himself andhis posterity for ages in barbarism. '

He and my lord spoke highly of Homer. JOHNSON. 'He had all the learningof his age. The shield of Achilles shews a nation in war, a nation inpeace; harvest sport, nay, stealing[245]. ' MONBODDO. 'Ay, and what we(looking to me) would call a parliament-house scene[246]; a causepleaded. ' JOHNSON. 'That is part of the life of a nation in peace. Andthere are in Homer such characters of heroes, and combinations ofqualities of heroes, that the united powers of mankind ever since havenot produced any but what are to be found there. ' MONBODDO. 'Yet nocharacter is described. ' JOHNSON. 'No; they all develope themselves. Agamemnon is always a gentleman-like character; he has always [Greek:Basilikon ti]. That the ancients held so, is plain from this; thatEuripides, in his _Hecuba_, makes him the person to interpose[247]. 'MONBODDO. 'The history of manners is the most valuable. I never set ahigh value on any other history. ' JOHNSON. 'Nor I; and therefore Iesteem biography, as giving us what comes near to ourselves, what we canturn to use[248]. ' BOSWELL. 'But in the course of general history, wefind manners. In wars, we see the dispositions of people, their degreesof humanity, and other particulars. ' JOHNSON. 'Yes; but then you musttake all the facts to get this; and it is but a little you get. 'MONBODDO. 'And it is that little which makes history valuable. ' Bravo!thought I; they agree like two brothers. MONBODDO. 'I am sorry, Dr. Johnson, you were not longer at Edinburgh to receive the homage of ourmen of learning. ' JOHNSON. 'My lord, I received great respect and greatkindness. ' BOSWELL. 'He goes back to Edinburgh after our tour. ' Wetalked of the decrease of learning in Scotland, and of the _Muses'Welcome_[249]. JOHNSON. 'Learning is much decreased in England, in myremembrance[250]. ' MONBODDO. 'You, Sir, have lived to see its decreasein England, I its extinction in Scotland. ' However, I brought him toconfess that the High School of Edinburgh did well. JOHNSON. 'Learninghas decreased in England, because learning will not do so much for a manas formerly. There are other ways of getting preferment. Few bishops arenow made for their learning. To be a bishop, a man must be learned in alearned age, --factious in a factious age; but always of eminence[251]. Warburton is an exception; though his learning alone did not raise him. He was first an antagonist to Pope, and helped Theobald to publish his_Shakspeare_; but, seeing Pope the rising man, when Crousaz attacked his_Essay on Man_, for some faults which it has, and some which it has not, Warburton defended it in the Review of that time[252]. This brought himacquainted with Pope, and he gained his friendship. Pope introduced himto Allen, Allen married him to his niece: so, by Allen's interest andhis own, he was made a bishop[253]. But then his learning was the _sinequa non_: he knew how to make the most of it; but I do not find by anydishonest means. ' MONBODDO. 'He is a great man. ' JOHNSON. 'Yes; he hasgreat knowledge, --great power of mind. Hardly any man brings greatervariety of learning to bear upon his point[254]. ' MONBODDO. 'He is oneof the greatest lights of your church. ' JOHNSON. 'Why, we are not sosure of his being very friendly to us[255]. He blazes, if you will, butthat is not always the steadiest light. Lowth is another bishop who hasrisen by his learning. '

Dr. Johnson examined young Arthur, Lord Monboddo's son, in Latin. Heanswered very well; upon which he said, with complacency, 'Get you gone!When King James comes back[256], you shall be in the _Muses Welcome_!'My lord and Dr. Johnson disputed a little, whether the Savage or theLondon Shopkeeper had the best existence; his lordship, as usual, preferring the Savage. My lord was extremely hospitable, and I saw bothDr. Johnson and him liking each other better every hour. 

Dr. Johnson having retired for a short time, his lordship spoke of hisconversation as I could have wished. Dr. Johnson had said, 'I have donegreater feats with my knife than this;' though he had eaten a veryhearty dinner. My lord, who affects or believes he follows anabstemious system, seemed struck with Dr. Johnson's manner of living. Ihad a particular satisfaction in being under the roof of Monboddo, mylord being my father's old friend, and having been always very good tome. We were cordial together. He asked Dr. Johnson and me to stay allnight. When I said we _must_ be at Aberdeen, he replied, 'Well, I amlike the Romans: I shall say to you, "Happy to come;--happy to depart!"'He thanked Dr. Johnson for his visit. 

JOHNSON. 'I little thought, when I had the honour to meet your Lordshipin London, that I should see you at Monboddo. '

After dinner, as the ladies[257] were going away, Dr. Johnson wouldstand up. He insisted that politeness was of great consequence insociety. 'It is, (said he, ) fictitious benevolence[258]. It supplies theplace of it amongst those who see each other only in publick, or butlittle. Depend upon it, the want of it never fails to produce somethingdisagreeable to one or other. I have always applied to good breeding, what Addison in his _Cato_[259] says of honour:--

 "Honour's a sacred tie; the law of Kings; The noble mind's distinguishing perfection, That aids and strengthens Virtue where it meets her; And imitates her actions where she is not. "'

When he took up his large oak stick, he said, 'My lord, that's_Homerick_[260];' thus pleasantly alluding to his lordship'sfavourite writer. 

Gory, my lord's black servant, was sent as our guide, to conduct us tothe high road. The circumstance of each of them having a black servantwas another point of similarity between Johnson and Monboddo. Iobserved how curious it was to see an African in the North of Scotland, with little or no difference of manners from those of the natives. Dr. Johnson laughed to see Gory and Joseph riding together most cordially. 'Those two fellows, (said he, ) one from Africa, the other from Bohemia, seem quite at home. ' He was much pleased with Lord Monboddo to-day. Hesaid, he would have pardoned him for a few paradoxes, when he found hehad so much that was good: but that, from his appearance in London, hethought him all paradox; which would not do. He observed that hislordship had talked no paradoxes to-day. 'And as to the savage and theLondon shopkeeper, (said he, ) I don't know but I might have taken theside of the savage equally, had any body else taken the side of theshopkeeper. [261]' He had said to my lord, in opposition to the value ofthe savage's courage, that it was owing to his limited power ofthinking, and repeated Pope's verses, in which 'Macedonia's madman' isintroduced, and the conclusion is, 'Yet ne'er looks forward farther than his nose[262]. '

I objected to the last phrase, as being low. JOHNSON. 'Sir, it isintended to be low: it is satire. The expression is debased, to debasethe character. '

When Gory was about to part from us, Dr. Johnson called to him, 'Mr. Gory, give me leave to ask you a question! are you baptised?' Gory toldhim he was, and confirmed by the Bishop of Durham. He then gave hima shilling. 

We had tedious driving this afternoon, and were somewhat drowsy. Lastnight I was afraid Dr. Johnson was beginning to faint in his resolution;for he said, 'If we must ride much, we shall not go; and there's an endon't. ' To-day, when he talked of _Sky_ with spirit, I said, 'Why, Sir, you seemed to me to despond yesterday. You are a delicate Londoner;--youare a maccaroni[263]; you can't ride. ' JOHNSON. 'Sir, I shall ridebetter than you. I was only afraid I should not find a horse able tocarry me. ' I hoped then there would be no fear of getting through ourwild Tour. 

We came to Aberdeen at half an hour past eleven. The New Inn, we weretold, was full. This was comfortless. The waiter, however, asked, if oneof our names was Boswell, and brought me a letter left at the inn: itwas from Mr. Thrale, enclosing one to Dr. Johnson[264]. Finding who Iwas, we were told they would contrive to lodge us by putting us for anight into a room with two beds. The waiter said to me in the broadstrong Aberdeenshire dialect, 'I thought I knew you by your likeness toyour father. ' My father puts up at the New Inn, when on his circuit. Little was said to-night. I was to sleep in a little press-bed in Dr. Johnson's room. I had it wheeled out into the dining-room, and there Ilay very well. 

SUNDAY, AUGUST 22. 

I sent a message to Professor Thomas Gordon, who came and breakfastedwith us. He had secured seats for us at the English chapel. We found arespectable congregation, and an admirable organ, well played byMr. Tait. 

We walked down to the shore: Dr. Johnson laughed to hear that Cromwell'ssoldiers taught the Aberdeen people to make shoes and stockings, and toplant cabbages[265]. He asked, if weaving the plaids[266] was ever adomestick art in the Highlands, like spinning or knitting. They couldnot inform him here. But he conjectured probably, that where peoplelived so remote from each other, it was likely to be a domestick art; aswe see it was among the ancients, from Penelope. I was sensible to-day, to an extraordinary degree, of Dr. Johnson's excellent Englishpronunciation. I cannot account for its striking me more now than anyother day: but it was as if new to me; and I listened to every sentencewhich he spoke, as to a musical composition. Professor Gordon gave himan account of the plan of education in his college. Dr. Johnson said, itwas similar to that at Oxford. Waller the poet's great-grandson wasstudying here. Dr. Johnson wondered that a man should send his son sofar off, when there were so many good schools in England[267]. He said, 'At a great school there is all the splendour and illumination of manyminds; the radiance of all is concentrated in each, or at leastreflected upon each. But we must own that neither a dull boy, nor anidle boy, will do so well at a great school as at a private one. For ata great school there are always boys enough to do well easily, who aresufficient to keep up the credit of the school; and after whipping beingtried to no purpose, the dull or idle boys are left at the end of aclass, having the appearance of going through the course, but learningnothing at all[268]. Such boys may do good at a private school, whereconstant attention is paid to them, and they are watched. So that thequestion of publick or private education is not properly a general one;but whether one or the other is best for _my son_. ' We were told thepresent Mr. Waller was a plain country gentleman; and his son would besuch another. I observed, a family could not expect a poet but in ahundred generations. 'Nay, (said Dr. Johnson, ) not one family in ahundred can expect a poet in a hundred generations. ' He then repeatedDryden's celebrated lines, 'Three poets in three distant ages born, ' &c. 

and a part of a Latin translation of it done at Oxford[269]: he did notthen say by whom. 

He received a card from Sir Alexander Gordon, who had been hisacquaintance twenty years ago in London, and who, 'if forgiven for notanswering a line from him, ' would come in the afternoon. Dr. Johnsonrejoiced to hear of him, and begged he would come and dine with us. Iwas much pleased to see the kindness with which Dr. Johnson received hisold friend Sir Alexander[270]; a gentleman of good family, _Lismore_, but who had not the estate. The King's College here made him Professorof Medicine, which affords him a decent subsistence. He told us that thevalue of the stockings exported from Aberdeen was, in peace, a hundredthousand pounds; and amounted, in time of war, to one hundred andseventy thousand pounds. Dr. Johnson asked, What made the difference?Here we had a proof of the comparative sagacity of the two professors. Sir Alexander answered, 'Because there is more occasion for them inwar. ' Professor Thomas Gordon answered, 'Because the Germans, who areour great rivals in the manufacture of stockings, are otherwise employedin time of war. ' JOHNSON. 'Sir, you have given a very good solution. '

At dinner, Dr. Johnson ate several plate-fulls of Scotch broth, withbarley and peas in it, and seemed very fond of the dish. I said, 'Younever ate it before. ' JOHNSON. 'No, Sir; but I don't care how soon I eatit again[271]. ' My cousin, Miss Dallas, formerly of Inverness, wasmarried to Mr. Riddoch, one of the ministers of the English chapel here. He was ill, and confined to his room; but she sent us a kind invitationto tea, which we all accepted. She was the same lively, sensible, cheerful woman as ever. Dr. Johnson here threw out some jokes againstScotland. He said, 'You go first to Aberdeen; then to _Enbru_ (theScottish pronunciation of Edinburgh); then to Newcastle, to be polishedby the colliers; then to York; then to London. ' And he laid hold of alittle girl, Stuart Dallas, niece to Mrs. Riddoch, and, representinghimself as a giant, said, he would take her with him! telling her, in ahollow voice, that he lived in a cave, and had a bed in the rock, andshe should have a little bed cut opposite to it!

He thus treated the point, as to prescription of murder inScotland[272]. 'A jury in England would make allowance for deficienciesof evidence, on account of lapse of time; but a general rule that acrime should not be punished, or tried for the purpose of punishment, after twenty years, is bad. It is cant to talk of the King's advocatedelaying a prosecution from malice. How unlikely is it the King'sadvocate should have malice against persons who commit murder, or shouldeven know them at all. If the son of the murdered man should kill themurderer who got off merely by prescription, I would help him to makehis escape; though, were I upon his jury, I would not acquit him. Iwould not advise him to commit such an act. On the contrary, I would bidhim submit to the determination of society, because a man is bound tosubmit to the inconveniences of it, as he enjoys the good: but theyoung man, though politically wrong, would not be morally wrong. Hewould have to say, 'here I am amongst barbarians, who not only refuse todo justice, but encourage the greatest of all crimes. I am therefore ina state of nature: for, so far as there is no law, it is a state ofnature: and consequently, upon the eternal and immutable law of justice, which requires that he who sheds man's blood should have his bloodshed[273], I will stab the murderer of my father. '

We went to our inn, and sat quietly. Dr. Johnson borrowed, at Mr. Riddoch's, a volume of _Massillon's Discourses on the Psalms_: but Ifound he read little in it. Ogden too he sometimes took up, and glancedat; but threw it down again. I then entered upon religious conversation. Never did I see him in a better frame: calm, gentle, wise, holy. I said, 'Would not the same objection hold against the Trinity as againstTransubstantiation?' 'Yes, (said he, ) if you take three and one in thesame sense. If you do so, to be sure you cannot believe it: but thethree persons in the Godhead are Three in one sense, and One in another. We cannot tell how; and that is the mystery!'

I spoke of the satisfaction of Christ. He said his notion was, that itdid not atone for the sins of the world; but, by satisfying divinejustice, by shewing that no less than the Son of God suffered for sin, it shewed to men and innumerable created beings, the heinousness of it, and therefore rendered it unnecessary for divine vengeance to beexercised against sinners, as it otherwise must have been; that in thisway it might operate even in favour of those who had never heard of it:as to those who did hear of it, the effect it should produce would berepentance and piety, by impressing upon the mind a just notion of sin:that original sin was the propensity to evil, which no doubt wasoccasioned by the fall. He presented this solemn subject in a new lightto me[274], and rendered much more rational and clear the doctrine ofwhat our Saviour has done for us;--as it removed the notion of imputedrighteousness in co-operating; whereas by this view, Christ has done allalready that he had to do, or is ever to do for mankind, by making hisgreat satisfaction; the consequences of which will affect eachindividual according to the particular conduct of each. I wouldillustrate this by saying, that Christ's satisfaction resembles a sunplaced to shew light to men, so that it depends upon themselves whetherthey will walk the right way or not, which they could not have donewithout that sun, '_the sun of righteousness_[275]' There is, however, more in it than merely giving light--_a light to lighten theGentiles_[276]: for we are told, there _is healing under hiswings_[277]. Dr. Johnson said to me, 'Richard Baxter commends atreatise by Grotius, _De Satisfactione Christi_. I have never read it:but I intend to read it; and you may read it. ' I remarked, upon theprinciple now laid down, we might explain the difficult and seeminglyhard text, 'They that believe shall be saved; and they that believe notshall be damned[278]:' They that believe shall have such an impressionmade upon their minds, as will make them act so that they may beaccepted by GOD. 

We talked of one of our friends[279] taking ill, for a length of time, ahasty expression of Dr. Johnson's to him, on his attempting to prosecutea subject that had a reference to religion, beyond the bounds withinwhich the Doctor thought such topicks should be confined in a mixedcompany. JOHNSON. 'What is to become of society, if a friendship oftwenty years is to be broken off for such a cause?' As Bacon says, 'Who then to frail mortality shall trust, But limns the water, or but writes in dust[280]. '

I said, he should write expressly in support of Christianity; for that, although a reverence for it shines through his works in several places, that is not enough. 'You know, (said I, ) what Grotius has done, and whatAddison has done[281]. --You should do also. ' He replied, 'I hopeI shall. '

MONDAY, AUGUST 23. 

Principal Campbell, Sir Alexander Gordon, Professor Gordon, andProfessor Ross, visited us in the morning, as did Dr. Gerard, who hadcome six miles from the country on purpose. We went and saw theMarischal College[282], and at one o'clock we waited on the magistratesin the town hall, as they had invited us in order to present Dr. Johnsonwith the freedom of the town, which Provost Jopp did with a very goodgrace. Dr. Johnson was much pleased with this mark of attention, andreceived it very politely. There was a pretty numerous companyassembled. It was striking to hear all of them drinking 'Dr. Johnson!Dr. Johnson!' in the town-hall of Aberdeen, and then to see him withhis burgess-ticket, or diploma[283], in his hat, which he wore as hewalked along the street, according to the usual custom. It gave me greatsatisfaction to observe the regard, and indeed fondness too, which everybody here had for my father. 

While Sir Alexander Gordon conducted Dr. Johnson to old Aberdeen, Professor Gordon and I called on Mr. Riddoch, whom I found to be a graveworthy clergyman. He observed, that, whatever might be said of Dr. Johnson while he was alive, he would, after he was dead, be looked uponby the world with regard and astonishment, on account of his_Dictionary_. 

Professor Gordon and I walked over to the Old College, which Dr. Johnsonhad seen by this time. I stepped into the chapel, and looked at the tombof the founder, Archbishop Elphinston[284], of whom I shall haveoccasion to write in my _History of James IV. Of Scotland_, the patronof my family[285]. We dined at Sir Alexander Gordon's. The Provost, Professor Ross, Professor Dunbar, Professor Thomas Gordon, were there. After dinner came in Dr. Gerard, Professor Leslie[286], ProfessorMacleod. We had little or no conversation in the morning; now we werebut barren. The professors seemed afraid to speak[287]. 

Dr. Gerard told us that an eminent printer[288] was very intimate withWarburton. JOHNSON. 'Why, Sir, he has printed some of his works, andperhaps bought the property of some of them. The intimacy is such as oneof the professors here may have with one of the carpenters who isrepairing the college. ' 'But, (said Gerard, ) I saw a letter from him tothis printer, in which he says, that the one half of the clergy of thechurch of Scotland are fanaticks, and the other half infidels. ' JOHNSON. 'Warburton has accustomed himself to write letters just as he speaks, without thinking any more of what he throws out[289]. When I readWarburton first, and observed his force, and his contempt of mankind, Ithought he had driven the world before him; but I soon found that wasnot the case; for Warburton, by extending his abuse, rendered itineffectual[290]. '

He told me, when we were by ourselves, that he thought it very wrong inthe printer to shew Warburton's letter, as it was raising a body ofenemies against him. He thought it foolish in Warburton to write so tothe printer; and added, 'Sir, the worst way of being intimate, is byscribbling. ' He called Warburton's _Doctrine of Grace_[291] a poorperformance, and so he said was Wesley's Answer[292]. 'Warburton, heobserved, had laid himself very open. In particular, he was weak enoughto say, that, in some disorders of the imagination, people had spokenwith tongues, had spoken languages which they never knew before; a thingas absurd as to say, that, in some disorders of the imagination, peoplehad been known to fly. '

I talked of the difference of genius, to try if I could engage Gerard ina disquisition with Dr. Johnson; but I did not succeed. I mentioned, asa curious fact, that Locke had written verses. JOHNSON. 'I know of none, Sir, but a kind of exercise prefixed to Dr. Sydenham's Works[293], inwhich he has some conceits about the dropsy, in which water and burningare united; and how Dr. Sydenham removed fire by drawing off water, contrary to the usual practice, which is to extinguish fire by bringingwater upon it. I am not sure that there is a word of all this; but it issuch kind of talk[294]. ' We spoke of _Fingal_[295]. Dr. Johnson saidcalmly, 'If the poems were really translated, they were certainly firstwritten down. Let Mr. Macpherson deposite the manuscript in one of thecolleges at Aberdeen, where there are people who can judge; and, if theprofessors certify the authenticity, then there will be an end of thecontroversy. If he does not take this obvious and easy method, he givesthe best reason to doubt; considering too, how much is against it_à priori'_. 

We sauntered after dinner in Sir Alexander's garden, and saw his littlegrotto, which is hung with pieces of poetry written in a fair hand. Itwas agreeable to observe the contentment and kindness of this quiet, benevolent man. Professor Macleod was brother to Macleod of Talisker, and brother-in-law to the Laird of Col. He gave me a letter to youngCol. I was weary of this day, and began to think wishfully of beingagain in motion. I was uneasy to think myself too fastidious, whilst Ifancied Dr. Johnson quite satisfied. But he owned to me that he wasfatigued and teased by Sir Alexander's doing too much to entertain him. I said, it was all kindness. JOHNSON. 'True, Sir; but sensation issensation. ' BOSWELL. 'It is so: we feel pain equally from the surgeon'sprobe, as from the sword of the foe. '

We visited two booksellers' shops, and could not find Arthur Johnston'sPoems'[296]. We went and sat near an hour at Mr. Riddoch's. He couldnot tell distinctly how much education at the college here costs[297], which disgusted Dr. Johnson. I had pledged myself that we should go tothe inn, and not stay supper. They pressed us, but he was resolute. Isaw Mr. Riddoch did not please him. He said to me, afterwards, 'Sir, hehas no vigour in his talk. ' But my friend should have considered that hehimself was not in good humour; so that it was not easy to talk to hissatisfaction. We sat contentedly at our inn. He then became merry, andobserved how little we had either heard or said at Aberdeen: that theAberdonians had not started a single _mawkin_ (the Scottish word forhare) for us to pursue[298]. 

TUESDAY, AUGUST 24. 

We set out about eight in the morning, and breakfasted at Ellon. Thelandlady said to me, 'Is not this the great Doctor that is going aboutthrough the country?' I said, 'Yes. ' 'Ay, (said she) we heard of him. Imade an errand into the room on purpose to see him. There's somethinggreat in his appearance: it is a pleasure to have such a man in one'shouse; a man who does so much good. If I had thought of it, I would haveshewn him a child of mine, who has had a lump on his throat for sometime. ' 'But, (said I, ) he is not a doctor of physick. ' 'Is he anoculist?' said the landlord. 'No, (said I, ) he is only a very learnedman. ' LANDLORD. 'They say he is the greatest man in England, except LordMansfield[299]. ' Dr. Johnson was highly entertained with this, and I dothink he was pleased too. He said, 'I like the exception: to have calledme the greatest man in England, would have been an unmeaning compliment:but the exception marked that the praise was in earnest: and, in_Scotland_, the exception must be _Lord Mansfield_, or--_Sir JohnPringle_[300]. '

He told me a good story of Dr. Goldsmith. Graham, who wrote _Telemachus, a Masque_[301], was sitting one night with him and Dr. Johnson, and washalf drunk. He rattled away to Dr. Johnson: 'You are a clever fellow, tobe sure; but you cannot write an essay like Addison, or verses like theRAPE OF THE LOCK. ' At last he said[302], '_Doctor_, I should be happy tosee you at Eaton[303]. ' 'I shall be glad to wait on you, ' answeredGoldsmith. 'No, (said Graham, ) 'tis not you I mean, Dr. _Minor_; 'tisDoctor _Major_, there. ' Goldsmith was excessively hurt by this. Heafterwards spoke of it himself. 'Graham, (said he, ) is a fellow to makeone commit suicide. '

We had received a polite invitation to Slains castle. We arrived therejust at three o'clock, as the bell for dinner was ringing. Though, fromits being just on the North-east Ocean, no trees will grow here, LordErrol has done all that can be done. He has cultivated his fields so asto bear rich crops of every kind, and he has made an excellentkitchen-garden, with a hot-house. I had never seen any of the family:but there had been a card of invitation written by the honourableCharles Boyd, the earl's brother[304]. We were conducted into thehouse, and at the dining-room door were met by that gentleman, whom bothof us at first took to be Lord Errol; but he soon corrected our mistake. My Lord was gone to dine in the neighbourhood, at an entertainment givenby Mr. Irvine of Drum. Lady Errol received us politely, and was veryattentive to us during the time of dinner. There was nobody at table buther ladyship, Mr. Boyd, and some of the children, their governour andgoverness. Mr. Boyd put Dr. Johnson in mind of having dined with him atCumming the Quaker's[305], along with a Mr. Hall and Miss Williams[306]:this was a bond of connection between them. For me, Mr. Boyd'sacquaintance with my father was enough. After dinner, Lady Errolfavoured us with a sight of her young family, whom she made stand up ina row. There were six daughters and two sons. It was a verypleasing sight. 

Dr. Johnson proposed our setting out. Mr. Boyd said, he hoped we wouldstay all night; his brother would be at home in the evening, and wouldbe very sorry if he missed us. Mr. Boyd was called out of the room. Iwas very desirous to stay in so comfortable a house, and I wished tosee Lord Errol. Dr Johnson, however, was right in resolving to go, if wewere not asked again, as it is best to err on the safe side in suchcases, and to be sure that one is quite welcome. To my great joy, whenMr. Boyd returned, he told Dr. Johnson that it was Lady Errol who hadcalled him out, and said that she would never let Dr. Johnson into thehouse again, if he went away that night; and that she had ordered thecoach, to carry us to view a great curiosity on the coast, after whichwe should see the house. We cheerfully agreed. 

Mr. Boyd was engaged, in 1745-6, on the same side with many unfortunatemistaken noblemen and gentlemen. He escaped, and lay concealed for ayear in the island of Arran, the ancient territory of the Boyds. He thenwent to France, and was about twenty years on the continent. He marrieda French Lady, and now lived very comfortably at Aberdeen, and was muchat Slains castle. He entertained us with great civility. He had apompousness or formal plenitude in his conversation, which I did notdislike. Dr. Johnson said, 'there was too much elaboration in his talk. 'It gave me pleasure to see him, a steady branch of the family, settingforth all its advantages with much zeal. He told us that Lady Errol wasone of the most pious and sensible women in the island; had a good head, and as good a heart. He said, she did not use force or fear in educatingher children. JOHNSON. 'Sir, she is wrong[307]; I would rather have therod to be the general terror to all, to make them learn, than tell achild if you do thus or thus, you will be more esteemed than yourbrothers or sisters. The rod produces an effect which terminates initself. A child is afraid of being whipped, and gets his task, andthere's an end on't; whereas, by exciting emulation, and comparisons ofsuperiority, you lay the foundation of lasting mischief; you makebrothers and sisters hate each other. '

During Mr. Boyd's stay in Arran, he had found a chest of medical books, left by a surgeon there, and had read them till he acquired some skillin physick, in consequence of which he is often consulted by the poor. There were several here waiting for him as patients. We walked round thehouse till stopped by a cut made by the influx of the sea. The house isbuilt quite upon the shore; the windows look upon the main ocean, andthe King of Denmark is Lord Errol's nearest neighbour on thenorth-east[308]. 

We got immediately into the coach, and drove to _Dunbui_, a rock nearthe shore, quite covered with sea-fowls; then to a circular bason oflarge extent, surrounded with tremendous rocks. On the quarter next thesea, there is a high arch in the rock, which the force of the tempesthas driven out. This place is called _Buchan's Buller_, or the _Bullerof Buchan_, and the country people call it the _Pot_. Mr. Boyd said itwas so called from the French _Bouloir_. It may be more simply tracedfrom _Boiler_ in our own language. We walked round this monstrouscauldron. In some places, the rock is very narrow; and on each sidethere is a sea deep enough for a man of war to ride in; so that it issomewhat horrid to move along. However, there is earth and grass uponthe rock, and a kind of road marked out by the print of feet; so thatone makes it out pretty safely: yet it alarmed me to see Dr. Johnsonstriding irregularly along. He insisted on taking a boat, and sailinginto the Pot. We did so. He was stout, and wonderfully alert. TheBuchan-men all shewing their teeth, and speaking with that strange sharpaccent which distinguishes them, was to me a matter of curiosity. He wasnot sensible of the difference of pronunciation in the South and Northof Scotland, which I wondered at. 

As the entry into the _Buller_ is so narrow that oars cannot be used asyou go in, the method taken is, to row very hard when you come near it, and give the boat such a rapidity of motion that it glides in. Dr. Johnson observed what an effect this scene would have had, were weentering into an unknown place. There are caves of considerable depth; Ithink, one on each side. The boatmen had never entered either of themfar enough to know the size. Mr. Boyd told us that it is customary forthe company at Peterhead well, to make parties, and come and dine in oneof the caves here. 

He told us, that, as Slains is at a considerable distance from Aberdeen, Lord Errol, who has a very large family, resolved to have a surgeon ofhis own. With this view he educated one of his tenant's sons, who is nowsettled in a very neat house and farm just by, which we saw from theroad. By the salary which the earl allows him, and the practice which hehas had, he is in very easy circumstances. He had kept an exact accountof all that had been laid out on his education, and he came to hislordship one day, and told him that he had arrived at a much highersituation than ever he expected; that he was now able to repay what hislordship had advanced, and begged he would accept of it. The earl waspleased with the generous gratitude and genteel offer of the man; butrefused it. Mr. Boyd also told us, Cumming the Quaker first began todistinguish himself by writing against Dr. Leechman on Prayer[309], toprove it unnecessary, as GOD knows best what should be, and will orderit without our asking:--the old hackneyed objection. 

When we returned to the house we found coffee and tea in thedrawing-room. Lady Errol was not there, being, as I supposed, engagedwith her young family. There is a bow-window fronting the sea. Dr. Johnson repeated the ode, _Jam satis terris_[310], while Mr. Boyd waswith his patients. He spoke well in favour of entails[311], to preservelines of men whom mankind are accustomed to reverence. His opinion wasthat so much land should be entailed as that families should never fallinto contempt, and as much left free as to give them all the advantagesof property in case of any emergency. 'If (said he, ) the nobility aresuffered to sink into indigence[312], they of course become corrupt;they are ready to do whatever the king chooses; therefore it is fit theyshould be kept from becoming poor, unless it is fixed that when theyfall below a certain standard of wealth they shall lose theirpeerages[313]. We know the House of Peers have made noble stands, whenthe House of Commons durst not. The two last years of parliament theydare not contradict the populace[314]. '

This room is ornamented with a number of fine prints, and with a wholelength picture of Lord Errol, by Sir Joshua Reynolds. This led Dr. Johnson and me to talk of our amiable and elegant friend, whosepanegyrick he concluded by saying, 'Sir Joshua Reynolds, Sir, is themost invulnerable man I know; the man with whom if you should quarrel, you would find the most difficulty how to abuse[315]. '

Dr. Johnson observed, the situation here was the noblest he had everseen, --better than Mount Edgecumbe, reckoned the first in England;because, at Mount Edgecumbe[316], the sea is bounded by land on theother side, and though there is there the grandeur of a fleet, there isalso the impression of there being a dock-yard, the circumstances ofwhich are not agreeable. At Slains is an excellent old house. The nobleowner has built of brick, along the square in the inside, a gallery, both on the first and second story, the house being no higher; so thathe has always a dry walk, and the rooms, to which formerly there was noapproach but through each other, have now all separate entries from thegallery, which is hung with Hogarth's works, and other prints. We wentand sat a while in the library. There is a valuable numerouscollection. It was chiefly made by Mr. Falconer, husband to the lateCountess of Errol in her own right. This earl has added a good manymodern books. 

About nine the Earl came home. Captain Gordon of Park was with him. HisLordship put Dr. Johnson in mind of their having dined together inLondon, along with Mr. Beauclerk. I was exceedingly pleased with LordErrol. His dignified person and agreeable countenance, with the mostunaffected affability, give me high satisfaction. From perhaps aweakness, or, as I rather hope, more fancy and warmth of feeling than isquite reasonable, my mind is ever impressed with admiration for personsof high birth, and I could, with the most perfect honesty, expatiate onLord Errol's good qualities; but he stands in no need of my praise. Hisagreeable manners and softness of address prevented that constraintwhich the idea of his being Lord High Constable of Scotland[317] mightotherwise have occasioned. He talked very easily and sensibly with hislearned guest. I observed that Dr. Johnson, though he shewed thatrespect to his lordship, which, from principle, he always does to highrank, yet, when they came to argument, maintained that manliness whichbecomes the force and vigour of his understanding. To shew externaldeference to our superiors, is proper: to seem to yield to them inopinion, is meanness[318]. The earl said grace, both before and aftersupper, with much decency. He told us a story of a man who was executedat Perth, some years ago, for murdering a woman who was with child byhim, and a former child he had by her. His hand was cut off: he was thenpulled up; but the rope broke, and he was forced to lie an hour on theground, till another rope was brought from Perth, the execution being ina wood at some distance, --at the place where the murders were committed. _'There_, (said my lord, ) _I see the hand of Providence_. ' I was reallyhappy here. I saw in this nobleman the best dispositions and bestprinciples; and I saw him, _in my mind's eye_[319], to be therepresentative of the ancient Boyds of Kilmarnock. I was afraid he mighthave urged drinking, as, I believe, he used formerly to do; but he drankport and water out of a large glass himself, and let us do as wepleased[320]. He went with us to our rooms at night; said, he took thevisit very kindly; and told me, my father and he were very oldacquaintance;--that I now knew the way to Slains, and he hoped to see methere again. 

I had a most elegant room; but there was a fire in it which blazed; andthe sea, to which my windows looked, roared; and the pillows were madeof the feathers of some sea-fowl, which had to me a disagreeable smell;so that, by all these causes, I was kept awake a good while. I saw, inimagination, Lord Errol's father, Lord Kilmarnock[321] (who was beheadedon Tower-hill in 1746), and I was somewhat dreary. But the thought didnot last long, and I fell asleep. 

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 25. 

We got up between seven and eight, and found Mr. Boyd in thedining-room, with tea and coffee before him, to give us breakfast. Wewere in an admirable humour. Lady Errol had given each of us a copy ofan ode by Beattie, on the birth of her son, Lord Hay. Mr. Boyd asked Dr. Johnson how he liked it. Dr. Johnson, who did not admire it, got offvery well, by taking it out, and reading the second and third stanzas ofit with much melody. This, without his saying a word, pleased Mr. Boyd. He observed, however, to Dr. Johnson, that the expression as to thefamily of Errol, 'A thousand years have seen it shine, '

compared with what went before, was an anticlimax, and that it wouldhave been better

 'Ages have seen, ' &c. 

Dr. Johnson said, 'So great a number as a thousand is better. _Doluslatet in universalibus_. Ages might be only two ages. ' He talked of theadvantage of keeping up the connections of relationship, which producemuch kindness. 'Every man (said he, ) who comes into the world, has needof friends. If he has to get them for himself, half his life is spentbefore his merit is known. Relations are a man's ready friends whosupport him. When a man is in real distress, he flies into the arms ofhis relations. An old lawyer, who had much experience in making wills, told me, that after people had deliberated long, and thought of many fortheir executors, they settled at last by fixing on their relations. Thisshews the universality of the principle. '

I regretted the decay of respect for men of family, and that a Nabob nowwould carry an election from them. JOHNSON. 'Why, Sir, the Nabob willcarry it by means of his wealth, in a country where money is highlyvalued, as it must be where nothing can be had without money; but, if itcomes to personal preference, the man of family will always carryit[322]. There is generally a _scoundrelism_ about a low man[323]. ' Mr. Boyd said, that was a good _ism_. 

I said, I believed mankind were happier in the ancient feudal state[324]of subordination, than they are in the modern state of independency. JOHNSON. 'To be sure, the _Chief_ was: but we must think of the numberof individuals. That _they_ were less happy, seems plain; for that statefrom which all escape as soon as they can, and to which none returnafter they have left it, must be less happy; and this is the case withthe state of dependance on a chief or great man. '

I mentioned the happiness of the French in their subordination, by thereciprocal benevolence and attachment between the great and those inlower rank[325]. Mr. Boyd gave us an instance of their gentlemanlyspirit. An old Chevalier de Malthe, of ancient _noblesse_, but in lowcircumstances, was in a coffee-house at Paris, where was Julien, thegreat manufacturer at the Gobelins, of the fine tapestry, so muchdistinguished both for the figures and the _colours_. The chevalier'scarriage was very old. Says Julien, with a plebeian insolence, 'I think, Sir, you had better have your carriage new painted. ' The chevalierlooked at him with indignant contempt, and answered, 'Well, Sir, you maytake it home and _dye_ it!' All the coffee-house rejoiced at Julien'sconfusion. 

We set out about nine. Dr. Johnson was curious to see one of thosestructures which northern antiquarians call a Druid's temple. I had arecollection of one at Strichen; which I had seen fifteen years ago; sowe went four miles out of our road, after passing Old Deer, and wentthither. Mr. Fraser, the proprietor, was at home, and shewed it to us. But I had augmented it in my mind; for all that remains is two stonesset up on end, with a long one laid upon them, as was usual, and onestone at a little distance from them. That stone was the capital one ofthe circle which surrounded what now remains. Mr. Fraser was veryhospitable[326]. There was a fair at Strichen; and he had several of hisneighbours from it at dinner. One of them, Dr. Fraser, who had been inthe army, remembered to have seen Dr. Johnson at a lecture onexperimental philosophy, at Lichfield. The doctor recollected being atthe lecture; and he was surprised to find here somebody who knew him. 

Mr. Fraser sent a servant to conduct us by a short passage into thehigh-road. I observed to Dr. Johnson, that I had a most disagreeablenotion of the life of country gentlemen; that I left Mr. Fraser justnow, as one leaves a prisoner in a jail. Dr. Johnson said, that I wasright in thinking them unhappy; for that they had not enough to keeptheir minds in motion[327]. 

I started a thought this afternoon which amused us a great part of theway. 'If, (said I, ) our club should come and set up in St. Andrews, as acollege, to teach all that each of us can, in the several departments oflearning and taste, we should rebuild the city: we should draw awonderful concourse of students. ' Dr. Johnson entered fully into thespirit of this project. We immediately fell to distributing the offices. I was to teach Civil and Scotch law[328]; Burke, politicks andeloquence; Garrick, the art of publick speaking; Langton was to be ourGrecian[329], Colman our Latin professor[330]; Nugent to teachphysick[331]; Lord Charlemont, modern history[332]; Beauclerk, naturalphilosophy[333]; Vesey, Irish antiquities, or Celtick learning[334];Jones, Oriental learning[335]; Goldsmith, poetry and ancient history;Chamier, commercial politicks[336]; Reynolds, painting, and the artswhich have beauty for their object; Chambers, the law of England[337]. Dr. Johnson at first said, 'I'll trust theology to nobody but myself. 'But, upon due consideration, that Percy is a clergyman, it was agreedthat Percy should teach practical divinity and British antiquities; Dr. Johnson himself, logick, metaphysicks[338], and scholastick divinity. Inthis manner did we amuse ourselves;--each suggesting, and each varyingor adding, till the whole was adjusted. Dr. Johnson said, we only wanteda mathematician since Dyer[339] died, who was a very good one; but as toevery thing else, we should have a very capital university[340]. 

We got at night to Banff. I sent Joseph on to Duff-house; but Earl Fifewas not at home, which I regretted much, as we should have had a veryelegant reception from his lordship. We found here but an indifferentinn[341]. Dr. Johnson wrote a long letter to Mrs. Thrale. I wondered tosee him write so much so easily. He verified his own doctrine that 'aman may always write when he will set himself _doggedly_ to it[342]. '

THURSDAY, AUGUST 26. 

We got a fresh chaise here, a very good one, and very good horses. Webreakfasted at Cullen. They set down dried haddocks broiled, along withour tea. I ate one; but Dr. Johnson was disgusted by the sight of them, so they were removed[343]. Cullen has a comfortable appearance, thoughbut a very small town, and the houses mostly poor buildings. 

I called on Mr. Robertson, who has the charge of Lord Findlater'saffairs, and was formerly Lord Monboddo's clerk, was three times inFrance with him, and translated Condamine's _Account of the SavageGirl_, to which his lordship wrote a preface, containing several remarksof his own. Robertson said, he did not believe so much as his lordshipdid; that it was plain to him, the girl confounded what she imaginedwith what she remembered: that, besides, she perceived Condamine andLord Monboddo forming theories, and she adapted her story to them. 

Dr. Johnson said, 'It is a pity to see Lord Monboddo publish suchnotions as he has done; a man of sense, and of so much elegant learning. There would be little in a fool doing it; we should only laugh; but whena wise man does it, we are sorry. Other people have strange notions; butthey conceal them. If they have tails, they hide them; but Monboddo isas jealous of his tail as a squirrel. ' I shall here put down some moreremarks of Dr. Johnson's on Lord Monboddo, which were not made exactlyat this time, but come in well from connection. He said, he did notapprove of a judge's calling himself _Farmer_ Burnett[344], and goingabout with a little round hat[345]. He laughed heartily at hislordship's saying he was an _enthusiastical_ farmer; 'for, (said he, )what can he do in farming by his _enthusiasm_?' Here, however, I thinkDr. Johnson mistaken. He who wishes to be successful, or happy, ought tobe enthusiastical, that is to say, very keen in all the occupations ordiversions of life. An ordinary gentleman-farmer will be satisfied withlooking at his fields once or twice a day: an enthusiastical farmer willbe constantly employed on them; will have his mind earnestly engaged;will talk perpetually, of them. But Dr. Johnson has much of the _niladmirari_[346] in smaller concerns. That survey of life which gave birthto his _Vanity of Human Wishes_ early sobered his mind. Besides, sogreat a mind as his cannot be moved by inferior objects: an elephantdoes not run and skip like lesser animals. Mr. Robertson sent aservant with us, to shew us through Lord Findlater's wood, by which ourway was shortened, and we saw some part of his domain, which is indeedadmirably laid out. Dr. Johnson did not choose to walk through it. Healways said, that he was not come to Scotland to see fine places, ofwhich there were enough in England; but wild objects, --mountains, --waterfalls, --peculiar manners; in short, things which he had not seenbefore. I have a notion that he at no time has had much taste for ruralbeauties. I have myself very little[347]. 

Dr. Johnson said, there was nothing more contemptible than a countrygentleman living beyond his income, and every year growing poorer andpoorer[348]. He spoke strongly of the influence which a man has by beingrich. 'A man, (said he, ) who keeps his money, has in reality more usefrom it, than he can have by spending it. ' I observed that this lookedvery like a paradox; but he explained it thus: 'If it were certain thata man would keep his money locked up for ever, to be sure he would haveno influence; but, as so many want money, and he has the power of givingit, and they know not but by gaining his favour they may obtain it, therich man will always have the greatest influence. He again who lavisheshis money, is laughed at as foolish, and in a great degree with justice, considering how much is spent from vanity. Even those who partake of aman's hospitality, have but a transient kindness for him. If he has notthe command of money, people know he cannot help them, if he would;whereas the rich man always can, if he will, and for the chance of that, will have much weight. ' BOSWELL. 'But philosophers and satirists haveall treated a miser as contemptible. ' JOHNSON. 'He is sophilosophically; but not in the practice of life[349]. ' BOSWELL. 'Let mesee now:--I do not know the instances of misers in England, so as toexamine into their influence. ' JOHNSON. 'We have had few misers inEngland. ' BOSWELL. 'There was Lowther[350]. ' JOHNSON. 'Why, Sir, Lowther, by keeping his money, had the command of the county, which thefamily has now lost, by spending it[351]; I take it he lent a greatdeal; and that is the way to have influence, and yet preserve one'swealth. A man may lend his money upon very good security, and yet havehis debtor much under his power. ' BOSWELL. 'No doubt, Sir. He can alwaysdistress him for the money; as no man borrows, who is able to pay ondemand quite conveniently. '

We dined at Elgin, and saw the noble ruins of the cathedral. Though itrained much, Dr. Johnson examined them with a most patient attention. He could not here feel any abhorrence at the Scottish reformers[352], for he had been told by Lord Hailes, that it was destroyed before theReformation, by the Lord of Badenoch[353], who had a quarrel with thebishop. The bishop's house, and those of the other clergy, which arestill pretty entire, do not seem to have been proportioned to themagnificence of the cathedral, which has been of great extent, and hadvery fine carved work. The ground within the walls of the cathedral isemployed as a burying-place. The family of Gordon have their vault here;but it has nothing grand. 

We passed Gordon Castle[354] this forenoon, which has a princelyappearance. Fochabers, the neighbouring village, is a poor place, manyof the houses being ruinous; but it is remarkable, they have in generalorchards well stored with apple-trees[355]. Elgin has what in Englandare called piazzas, that run in many places on each side of the street. It must have been a much better place formerly. Probably it had piazzasall along the town, as I have seen at Bologna. I approved much of suchstructures in a town, on account of their conveniency in wet weather. Dr. Johnson disapproved of them, 'because (said he) it makes the understory of a house very dark, which greatly over-balances the conveniency, when it is considered how small a part of the year it rains; how few areusually in the street at such times; that many who are might as well beat home; and the little that people suffer, supposing them to be as muchwet as they commonly are in walking a street. '

We fared but ill at our inn here; and Dr. Johnson said, this was thefirst time he had seen a dinner in Scotland that he could not eat[356]. 

In the afternoon, we drove over the very heath where Macbeth met thewitches, according to tradition[357]. Dr. Johnson again[358] solemnlyrepeated--

 'How far is't called to Fores? What are these, So wither'd, and so wild in their attire? That look not like the inhabitants o' the earth, And yet are on't?'

He repeated a good deal more of Macbeth. His recitation[359] was grandand affecting, and as Sir Joshua Reynolds has observed to me, had nomore tone than it should have: it was the better for it. He thenparodied the _All-hail_ of the witches to Macbeth, addressing himself tome. I had purchased some land called _Dalblair_; and, as in Scotland itis customary to distinguish landed men by the name of their estates, Ihad thus two titles, _Dalblair_ and Young _Auchinleck_. So my friend, inimitation of

 'All hail, Macbeth! hail to thee, Thane of Cawdor!'

condescended to amuse himself with uttering

 'All hail, Dalblair! hail to thee, Laird of Auchinleck[360]!'

We got to Fores[361] at night, and found an admirable inn, in which Dr. Johnson was pleased to meet with a landlord who styled himself'Wine-Cooper, from LONDON. '

FRIDAY, AUGUST 27. 

It was dark when we came to Fores last night; so we did not see what iscalled King Duncan's monument[362]. I shall now mark some gleanings ofDr. Johnson's conversation. I spoke of _Leonidas_[363], and said therewere some good passages in it. JOHNSON. 'Why, you must _seek_ for them. 'He said, Paul Whitehead's _Manners_[364] was a poor performance. Speaking of Derrick, he told me 'he had a kindness for him, and hadoften said, that if his letters had been written by one of a moreestablished name, they would have been thought very prettyletters[365]. '

This morning I introduced the subject of the origin of evil[366]. JOHNSON. 'Moral evil is occasioned by free will, which implies choicebetween good and evil. With all the evil that there is, there is no manbut would rather be a free agent, than a mere machine without the evil;and what is best for each individual, must be best for the whole. If aman would rather be the machine, I cannot argue with him. He is adifferent being from me. ' BOSWELL. 'A man, as a machine, may haveagreeable sensations; for instance, he may have pleasure in musick. 'JOHNSON. 'No, Sir, he cannot have pleasure in musick; at least no powerof producing musick; for he who can produce musick may let it alone: hewho can play upon a fiddle may break it: such a man is not a machine. 'This reasoning satisfied me. It is certain, there cannot be a freeagent, unless there is the power of being evil as well as good. We musttake the inherent possibilities of things into consideration, in ourreasonings or conjectures concerning the works of GOD. 

We came to Nairn to breakfast. Though a county town and a royal burgh, it is a miserable place. Over the room where we sat, a girl was spinningwool with a great wheel, and singing an Erse song[367]: 'I'll warrantyou, (said Dr. Johnson. ) one of the songs of Ossian. ' He then repeatedthese lines:---

 'Verse sweetens toil, however rude the sound. All at her work the village maiden sings; Nor while she turns the giddy wheel around, Revolves the sad vicissitude of things[368]. '

I thought I had heard these lines before. JOHNSON. 'I fancy not, Sir;for they are in a detached poem, the name of which I do not remember, written by one Giffard, a parson. '

I expected Mr. Kenneth M'Aulay[369], the minister of Calder, whopublished the history of St. Kilda[370], a book which Dr. Johnson liked, would have met us here, as I had written to him from Aberdeen. But Ireceived a letter from him, telling me that he could not leave home, ashe was to administer the sacrament the following Sunday, and earnestlyrequesting to see us at his manse. 'We'll go, ' said Dr. Johnson; whichwe accordingly did. Mrs. M'Aulay received us, and told us her husbandwas in the church distributing tokens[371]. We arrived between twelveand one o'clock, and it was near three before he came to us. 

Dr. Johnson thanked him for his book, and said 'it was a very prettypiece of topography. ' M'Aulay did not seem much to mind the compliment. From his conversation, Dr. Johnson was persuaded that he had not writtenthe book which goes under his name. I myself always suspected so; and Ihave been told it was written by the learned Dr. John M'Pherson ofSky[372], from the materials collected by M'Aulay. Dr. Johnson saidprivately to me, 'There is a combination in it of which M'Aulay is notcapable[373]. ' However, he was exceedingly hospitable; and, as heobligingly promised us a route for our Tour through the Western Isles, we agreed to stay with him all night. 

After dinner, we walked to the old castle of Calder (pronounced Cawder), the Thane of Cawdor's seat. I was sorry that my friend, this 'prosperousgentleman[374], ' was not there. The old tower must be of greatantiquity[375]. There is a draw-bridge--what has been a moat, --and anancient court. There is a hawthorn-tree, which rises like a woodenpillar through the rooms of the castle; for, by a strange conceit, thewalls have been built round it. The thickness of the walls, the smallslaunting windows, and a great iron door at the entrance on the secondstory as you ascend the stairs, all indicate the rude times in whichthis castle was erected. There were here some large venerable trees. 

I was afraid of a quarrel between Dr. Johnson and Mr. M'Aulay, whotalked slightingly of the lower English clergy. The Doctor gave him afrowning look, and said, 'This is a day of novelties; I have seen oldtrees in Scotland, and I have heard the English clergy treated withdisrespect[376]. '

I dreaded that a whole evening at Calder manse would be heavy; however, Mr. Grant, an intelligent and well-bred minister in the neighbourhood, was there, and assisted us by his conversation. Dr. Johnson, talking ofhereditary occupations in the Highlands, said, 'There is no harm in sucha custom as this; but it is wrong to enforce it, and oblige a man to bea taylor or a smith, because his father has been one. ' This custom, however, is not peculiar to our Highlands; it is well known that inIndia a similar practice prevails. 

Mr. M'Aulay began a rhapsody against creeds and confessions. Dr. Johnsonshewed, that 'what he called _imposition_, was only a voluntarydeclaration of agreement in certain articles of faith, which a churchhas a right to require, just as any other society can insist on certainrules being observed by its members. Nobody is compelled to be of thechurch, as nobody is compelled to enter into a society. ' This was a veryclear and just view of the subject: but, M'Aulay could not be driven outof his track. Dr. Johnson said, 'Sir, you are a _bigot to laxness_. '

Mr. M'Aulay and I laid the map of Scotland before us; and he pointed outa route for us from Inverness, by Fort Augustus, to Glenelg, Sky, Mull, Icolmkill, Lorn, and Inverary, which I wrote down. As my father was tobegin the northern circuit about the 18th of September, it was necessaryfor us either to make our tour with great expedition, so as to get toAuchinleck before he set out, or to protract it, so as not to be theretill his return, which would be about the 10th of October. By M'Aulay'scalculation, we were not to land in Lorn till the 2Oth of September. Ithought that the interruptions by bad days, or by occasionalexcursions, might make it ten days later; and I thought too, that wemight perhaps go to Benbecula, and visit Clanranald, which would take aweek of itself. 

Dr. Johnson went up with Mr. Grant to the library, which consisted of atolerable collection; but the Doctor thought it rather a lady's library, with some Latin books in it by chance, than the library of a clergyman. It had only two of the Latin fathers, and one of the Greek fathers inLatin. I doubted whether Dr. Johnson would be present at a Presbyterianprayer. I told Mr. M'Aulay so, and said that the Doctor might sit in thelibrary while we were at family worship. Mr. M'Aulay said, he would omitit, rather than give Dr. Johnson offence: but I would by no means agreethat an excess of politeness, even to so great a man, should preventwhat I esteem as one of the best pious regulations. I know nothing morebeneficial, more comfortable, more agreeable, than that the littlesocieties of each family should regularly assemble, and unite in praiseand prayer to our heavenly Father, from whom we daily receive so muchgood, and may hope for more in a higher state of existence. I mentionedto Dr. Johnson the over-delicate scrupulosity of our host. He said, hehad no objection to hear the prayer. This was a pleasing surprise to me;for he refused to go and hear Principal Robertson[377] preach. 'I willhear him, (said he, ) if he will get up into a tree and preach; but Iwill not give a sanction, by my presence, to a Presbyterianassembly[378]. '

Mr. Grant having prayed, Dr. Johnson said, his prayer was a very goodone; but objected to his not having introduced the Lord's Prayer[379]. He told us, that an Italian of some note in London said once to him, 'Wehave in our service a prayer called the _Pater Noster_, which is a veryfine composition. I wonder who is the author of it. ' A singular instanceof ignorance in a man of some literature and general inquiry[380]!

SATURDAY, AUGUST 28. 

Dr. Johnson had brought a _Sallust_ with him in his pocket fromEdinburgh. He gave it last night to Mr. M'Aulay's son, a smart young ladabout eleven years old. Dr. Johnson had given an account of theeducation at Oxford, in all its gradations. The advantage of being aservitor to a youth of little fortune struck Mrs. M'Aulay much[381]. Iobserved it aloud. Dr. Johnson very handsomely and kindly said, that, ifthey would send their boy to him, when he was ready for the university, he would get him made a servitor, and perhaps would do more for him. Hecould not promise to do more; but would undertake for theservitorship[382]. 

I should have mentioned that Mr. White, a Welshman, who has been manyyears factor (i. E. Steward) on the estate of Calder, drank tea with uslast night, and upon getting a note from Mr. M'Aulay, asked us to hishouse. We had not time to accept of his invitation. He gave us a letterof introduction to Mr. Ferne, master of stores at Fort George. He shewedit to me. It recommended 'two celebrated gentlemen; no less than Dr. Johnson, _author of his Dictionary_, --and Mr. Boswell, known atEdinburgh by the name of Paoli. ' He said he hoped I had no objection towhat he had written; if I had, he would alter it. I thought it was apity to check his effusions, and acquiesced; taking care, however, toseal the letter, that it might not appear that I had read it. 

A conversation took place about saying grace at breakfast (as we do inScotland) as well as at dinner and supper; in which Dr. Johnson said, 'It is enough if we have stated seasons of prayer; no matter when[383]. A man may as well pray when he mounts his horse, or a woman when shemilks her cow, (which Mr. Grant told us is done in the Highlands, ) as atmeals; and custom is to be followed[384]. '

We proceeded to Fort George. When we came into the square, I sent asoldier with the letter to Mr. Ferne. He came to us immediately, andalong with him came Major _Brewse_ of the Engineers, pronounced _Bruce_. He said he believed it was originally the same Norman name with Bruce. That he had dined at a house in London, where were three Bruces, one ofthe Irish line, one of the Scottish line, and himself of the Englishline. He said he was shewn it in the Herald's office spelt fourteendifferent ways[385]. I told him the different spellings of my name[386]. Dr Johnson observed, that there had been great disputes about thespelling of Shakspear's name; at last it was thought it would be settledby looking at the original copy of his will; but, upon examining it, hewas found to have written it himself no less than three different ways. 

Mr. Ferne and Major Brewse first carried us to wait on Sir EyreCoote[387], whose regiment, the 37th, was lying here, and who thencommanded the fort. He asked us to dine with him, which we agreed to do. 

Before dinner we examined the fort. The Major explained thefortification to us, and Mr. Ferne gave us an account of the stores. Dr. Johnson talked of the proportions of charcoal and salt-petre in makinggunpowder, of granulating it, and of giving it a gloss[388]. He made avery good figure upon these topicks. He said to me afterwards, that 'hehad talked _ostentatiously_[389]. ' We reposed ourselves a little in Mr. Ferne's house. He had every thing in neat order as in England; and atolerable collection of books. I looked into Pennant's _Tour inScotland_. He says little of this fort; but that 'the barracks, &c. Formseveral streets[390]. ' This is aggrandising. Mr. Ferne observed, if hehad said they form a square, with a row of buildings before it, he wouldhave given a juster description. Dr. Johnson remarked, 'how seldomdescriptions correspond with realities; and the reason is, that peopledo not write them till some time after, and then their imagination hasadded circumstances. '

We talked of Sir Adolphus Oughton[391]. The Major said, he knew a greatdeal for a military man. JOHNSON. 'Sir, you will find few men, of anyprofession, who know more. Sir Adolphus is a very extraordinary man; aman of boundless curiosity and unwearied diligence. '

I know not how the Major contrived to introduce the contest betweenWarburton and Lowth. JOHNSON. 'Warburton kept his temper all along, while Lowth was in a passion. Lowth published some of Warburton'sletters. Warburton drew _him_ on to write some very abusive letters, andthen asked his leave to publish them; which he knew Lowth could notrefuse, after what _he_ had done. So that Warburton contrived that heshould publish, apparently with Lowth's consent, what could not but shewLowth in a disadvantageous light[392]. '

At three the drum beat for dinner. I, for a little while, fancied myselfa military man, and it pleased me. We went to Sir Eyre Coote's, at thegovernour's house, and found him a most gentleman-like man. His lady isa very agreeable woman, with an uncommonly mild and sweet tone of voice. There was a pretty large company: Mr. Ferne, Major Brewse, and severalofficers. Sir Eyre had come from the East-Indies by land, through theDesarts of Arabia. He told us, the Arabs could live five days withoutvictuals, and subsist for three weeks on nothing else but the blood oftheir camels, who could lose so much of it as would suffice for thattime, without being exhausted. He highly praised the virtue of theArabs; their fidelity, if they undertook to conduct any person; andsaid, they would sacrifice their lives rather than let him be robbed. Dr. Johnson, who is always for maintaining the superiority of civilizedover uncivilized men[393], said, 'Why, Sir, I can see no superiourvirtue in this. A serjeant and twelve men, who are my guard, will die, rather than that I shall be robbed. ' Colonel Pennington, of the 37thregiment, took up the argument with a good deal of spirit andingenuity. PENNINGTON. 'But the soldiers are compelled to this by fearof punishment. 'JOHNSON. 'Well, Sir, the Arabs are compelled by the fearof infamy. ' PENNINGTON. 'The soldiers have the same fear of infamy, andthe fear of punishment besides; so have less virtue; because they actless voluntarily. ' Lady Coote observed very well, that it ought to beknown if there was not, among the Arabs, some punishment for not beingfaithful on such occasions. 

We talked of the stage. I observed, that we had not now such a companyof actors as in the last age; Wilks[394], Booth[395], &c. &c. JOHNSON. 'You think so, because there is one who excels all the rest so much: youcompare them with Garrick, and see the deficiency. Garrick's greatdistinction is his universality[396]. He can represent all modes oflife, but that of an easy fine bred gentleman[397]. ' PENNINGTON. 'Heshould give over playing young parts. ' JOHNSON. 'He does not take themnow; but he does not leave off those which he has been used to play, because he does them better than any one else can do them. If you hadgenerations of actors, if they swarmed like bees, the young ones mightdrive off the old. Mrs. Cibber[398], I think, got more reputation thanshe deserved, as she had a great sameness; though her expression wasundoubtedly very fine. Mrs. Clive[399] was the best player I ever saw. Mrs. Prichard[400] was a very good one; but she had something affectedin her manner: I imagine she had some player of the former age in hereye, which occasioned it. ' Colonel Pennington said, Garrick sometimesfailed in emphasis[401]; as for instance, in _Hamlet_, 'I will speak _daggers_ to her; but use _none_[402]. '

instead of

 'I will _speak_ daggers to her; but _use_ none. '

We had a dinner of two complete courses, variety of wines, and theregimental band of musick playing in the square, before the windows, after it. I enjoyed this day much. We were quite easy and cheerful. Dr. Johnson said, 'I shall always remember this fort with gratitude. ' Icould not help being struck with some admiration, at finding upon thisbarren sandy point, such buildings, --such a dinner, --such company: itwas like enchantment. Dr. Johnson, on the other hand, said to me morerationally, that 'it did not strike _him_ as any thing extraordinary;because he knew, here was a large sum of money expended in building afort; here was a regiment. If there had been less than what we found, itwould have surprised him. ' _He_ looked coolly and deliberately throughall the gradations: my warm imagination jumped from the barren sands tothe splendid dinner and brilliant company, to borrow the expression ofan absurd poet, 'Without ands or ifs, I leapt from off the sands upon the cliffs. '

The whole scene gave me a strong impression of the power and excellenceof human art. 

We left the fort between six and seven o'clock: Sir Eyre Coote, ColonelPennington, and several more accompanied us down stairs, and saw us intoour chaise. There could not be greater attention paid to any visitors. Sir Eyre spoke of the hardships which Dr. Johnson had before him. BOSWELL. 'Considering what he has said of us, we must make him feelsomething rough in Scotland. ' Sir Eyre said to him, 'You must changeyour name, Sir. ' BOSWELL. 'Ay, to Dr. M'Gregor[403]. ' We got safely toInverness, and put up at Mackenzie's inn. Mr. Keith, the collector ofExcise here, my old acquaintance at Ayr, who had seen us at the Fort, visited us in the evening, and engaged us to dine with him next day, promising to breakfast with us, and take us to the English chapel; sothat we were at once commodiously arranged. 

Not finding a letter here that I expected, I felt a momentary impatienceto be at home. Transient clouds darkened my imagination, and in thoseclouds I saw events from which I shrunk; but a sentence or two of the_Rambler's_ conversation gave me firmness, and I considered that I wasupon an expedition for which I had wished for years, and therecollection of which would be a treasure to me for life. 

SUNDAY, AUGUST 29. 

Mr. Keith breakfasted with us. Dr. Johnson expatiated rather toostrongly upon the benefits derived to Scotland from the Union[404], andthe bad state of our people before it. I am entertained with his copiousexaggeration upon that subject; but I am uneasy when people are by, whodo not know him as well as I do, and may be apt to think himnarrow-minded[405]. I therefore diverted the subject. 

The English chapel, to which we went this morning, was but mean. Thealtar was a bare fir table, with a coarse stool for kneeling on, coveredwith a piece of thick sail-cloth doubled, by way of cushion. Thecongregation was small. Mr. Tait, the clergyman, read prayers very well, though with much of the Scotch accent. He preached on '_Love yourEnemies_[406]. ' It was remarkable that, when talking of the connectionsamongst men, he said, that some connected themselves with men ofdistinguished talents, and since they could not equal them, tried todeck themselves with their merit, by being their companions. Thesentence was to this purpose. It had an odd coincidence with what mightbe said of my connecting myself with Dr. Johnson[407]. 

After church we walked down to the Quay. We then went to Macbeth'scastle[408]. I had a romantick satisfaction in seeing Dr. Johnsonactually in it. It perfectly corresponds with Shakspear's description, which Sir Joshua Reynolds has so happily illustrated, in one of hisnotes on our immortal poet[409]:

 'This castle hath a pleasant seat: the air Nimbly and sweetly recommends itself Unto our gentle sense, ' &c. [410]

Just as we came out of it, a raven perched on one of the chimney-tops, and croaked. Then I repeated

 '----The raven himself is hoarse, That croaks the fatal entrance of Duncan Under my battlements[411]. '

We dined at Mr. Keith's. Mrs. Keith was rather too attentive to Dr. Johnson, asking him many questions about his drinking only water. Herepressed that observation, by saying to me, 'You may remember that LadyErrol took no notice of this. '

Dr. Johnson has the happy art (for which I have heard my father praisethe old Earl of Aberdeen) of instructing himself, by making every man hemeets tell him something of what he knows best. He led Keith to talk tohim of the Excise in Scotland, and, in the course of conversation, mentioned that his friend Mr. Thrale, the great brewer, paid twentythousand pounds a year to the revenue; and that he had four casks, eachof which holds sixteen hundred barrels, --above a thousand hogsheads. 

After this there was little conversation that deserves to be remembered. I shall therefore here again glean what I have omitted on former days. Dr. Gerrard, at Aberdeen, told us, that when he was in Wales, he wasshewn a valley inhabited by Danes, who still retain their own language, and are quite a distinct people. Dr. Johnson thought it could not betrue, or all the kingdom must have heard of it. He said to me, as wetravelled, 'these people, Sir, that Gerrard talks of, may have somewhatof a _peregrinity_ in their dialect, which relation has augmented to adifferent language. ' I asked him if _peregrinity_ was an English word:he laughed, and said, 'No. ' I told him this was the second time that Ihad heard him coin a word[412]. When Foote broke his leg, I observedthat it would make him fitter for taking off George Faulkner as PeterParagraph[413], poor George having a wooden leg. Dr. Johnson at thattime said, 'George will rejoice at the _depeditation_ of Foote;' andwhen I challenged that word, laughed, and owned he had made it, andadded that he had not made above three or four in his _Dictionary_[414]. Having conducted Dr. Johnson to our inn, I begged permission to leavehim for a little, that I might run about and pay some short visits toseveral good people of Inverness. He said to me 'You have all theold-fashioned principles, good and bad' I acknowledge I have. That ofattention to relations in the remotest degree, or to worthy persons, inevery state whom I have once known, I inherit from my father. It gave memuch satisfaction to hear every body at Inverness speak of him withuncommon regard. Mr. Keith and Mr. Grant, whom we had seen at Mr. M'Aulay's, supped with us at the inn. We had roasted kid, which Dr. Johnson had never tasted before. He relished it much. 

MONDAY, AUGUST 30. 

This day we were to begin our _equitation, _ as I said; for _I_ wouldneeds make a word too. It is remarkable, that my noble, and to me mostconstant friend, the Earl of Pembroke[415], (who, if there is too muchease on my part, will please to pardon what his benevolent, gay, socialintercourse, and lively correspondence have insensibly produced, ) hassince hit upon the very same word. The title of the first edition of hislordship's very useful book was, in simple terms, _A Method of breakingHorses and teaching Soldiers to ride. _ The title of the second editionis, 'MILITARY EQUITATION[416]. '

We might have taken a chaise to Fort Augustus, but, had we not hiredhorses at Inverness, we should not have found them afterwards: so weresolved to begin here to ride. We had three horses, for Dr. Johnson, myself, and Joseph, and one which carried our portmanteaus, and twoHighlanders who walked along with us, John Hay and Lauchland Vass, whomDr. Johnson has remembered with credit in his JOURNEY[417], though hehas omitted their names. Dr. Johnson rode very well. About three milesbeyond Inverness, we saw, just by the road, a very complete specimen ofwhat is called a Druid's temple. There was a double circle, one of verylarge, the other of smaller stones. Dr. Johnson justly observed, that'to go and see one druidical temple is only to see that it is nothing, for there is neither art nor power in it; and seeing one isquite enough. '

It was a delightful day. Lochness, and the road upon the side of it, shaded with birch trees, and the hills above it, pleased us much. Thescene was as sequestered and agreeably wild as could be desired, and fora time engrossed all our attention[418]. 

To see Dr. Johnson in any new situation is always an interesting objectto me; and, as I saw him now for the first time on horseback, jauntingabout at his ease in quest of pleasure and novelty, the very differentoccupations of his former laborious life, his admirable productions, his_London_, his _Rambler_, &c. &c. , immediately presented themselves to mymind, and the contrast made a strong impression on my imagination. 

When we had advanced a good way by the side of Lochness, I perceived alittle hut, with an old-looking woman at the door of it. I thought heremight be a scene that would amuse Dr. Johnson; so I mentioned it to him. 'Let's go in, ' said he. We dismounted, and we and our guides entered thehut. It was a wretched little hovel of earth only, I think, and for awindow had only a small hole, which was stopped with a piece of turf, that was taken out occasionally to let in light. In the middle of theroom or space which we entered, was a fire of peat, the smoke going outat a hole in the roof. She had a pot upon it, with goat's flesh, boiling. There was at one end under the same roof, but divided by a kindof partition made of wattles, a pen or fold in which we saw a goodmany kids. 

Dr. Johnson was curious to know where she slept. I asked one of theguides, who questioned her in Erse. She answered with a tone of emotion, saying, (as he told us, ) she was afraid we wanted to go to bed to her. This _coquetry_, or whatever it may be called, of so wretched a being, was truly ludicrous. Dr. Johnson and I afterwards were merry upon it. Isaid it was he who alarmed the poor woman's virtue. 'No, Sir, (said he, )she'll say "there came a wicked young fellow, a wild dog, who I believewould have ravished me, had there not been with him a grave oldgentleman, who repressed him: but when he gets out of the sight of histutor, I'll warrant you he'll spare no woman he meets, young or old. "''No, Sir, (I replied, ) she'll say, "There was a terrible ruffian whowould have forced me, had it not been for a civil decent young man who, I take it, was an angel sent from heaven to protect me. "'

Dr. Johnson would not hurt her delicacy, by insisting on 'seeing herbed-chamber, ' like _Archer_ in the _Beaux Stratagem_[419]. But mycuriosity was more ardent; I lighted a piece of paper, and went into theplace where the bed was. There was a little partition of wicker, rathermore neatly done than that for the fold, and close by the wall was akind of bedstead of wood with heath upon it by way of bed! at the footof which I saw some sort of blankets or covering rolled up in a heap. The woman's name was Fraser; so was her husband's. He was a man ofeighty. Mr. Fraser of Balnain allows him to live in this hut, and keepsixty goats, for taking care of his woods, where he then was. They hadfive children, the eldest only thirteen. Two were gone to Inverness tobuy meal[420]; the rest were looking after the goats. This contentedfamily had four stacks of barley, twenty-four sheaves in each. They hada few fowls. We were informed that they lived all the spring withoutmeal, upon milk and curds and whey alone. What they get for their goats, kids, and fowls, maintains them during the rest of the year. She askedus to sit down and take a dram. I saw one chair. She said she was ashappy as any woman in Scotland. She could hardly speak any Englishexcept a few detached words. Dr. Johnson was pleased at seeing, for thefirst time, such a state of human life. She asked for snuff. It is herluxury, and she uses a great deal. We had none; but gave her sixpence apiece. She then brought out her whiskey bottle. I tasted it; as didJoseph and our guides, so I gave her sixpence more. She sent us awaywith many prayers in Erse. 

We dined at a publick house called the General's Hut[421], from GeneralWade, who was lodged there when he commanded in the North. Near it isthe meanest parish _Kirk_ I ever saw. It is a shame it should be on ahigh road. After dinner, we passed through a good deal of mountainouscountry. I had known Mr. Trapaud, the deputy governour of Fort Augustus, twelve years ago, at a circuit at Inverness, where my father was judge. I sent forward one of our guides, and Joseph, with a card to him, thathe might know Dr. Johnson and I were coming up, leaving it to him toinvite us or not[422]. It was dark when we arrived. The inn waswretched. Government ought to build one, or give the resident governouran additional salary; as in the present state of things, he mustnecessarily be put to a great expence in entertaining travellers. Josephannounced to us, when we alighted, that the governour waited for us atthe gate of the fort. We walked to it. He met us, and with much civilityconducted us to his house. It was comfortable to find ourselves in awell-built little square, and a neatly furnished house, in good company, and with a good supper before us; in short, with all the conveniences ofcivilised life in the midst of rude mountains. Mrs. Trapaud, and thegovernour's daughter, and her husband, Captain Newmarsh, were all mostobliging and polite. The governour had excellent animal spirits, theconversation of a soldier, and somewhat of a Frenchman, to which hisextraction entitles him. He is brother to General Cyrus Trapaud. Wepassed a very agreeable evening. [423]

TUESDAY, AUGUST 31. 

The governour has a very good garden. We looked at it, and at the restof the fort, which is but small, and may be commanded from a variety ofhills around. We also looked at the galley or sloop belonging to thefort, which sails upon the Loch, and brings what is wanted for thegarrison. Captains Urie and Darippe, of the 15th regiment of foot, breakfasted with us. They had served in America, and entertained Dr. Johnson much with an account of the Indians. [424] He said, he could makea very pretty book out of them, were he to stay there. Governour Trapaudwas much struck with Dr. Johnson. 'I like to hear him, (said he, ) it isso majestick. I should be glad to hear him speak in your court. ' Hepressed us to stay dinner; but I considered that we had a rude roadbefore us, which we could more easily encounter in the morning, and thatit was hard to say when we might get up, were we to sit down to goodentertainment, in good company: I therefore begged the governour wouldexcuse us. Here too, I had another very pleasing proof how much myfather is regarded. The governour expressed the highest respect for him, and bade me tell him, that, if he would come that way on the Northerncircuit, he would do him all the honours of the garrison. 

Between twelve and one we set out, and travelled eleven miles, through awild country, till we came to a house in Glenmorison, called _Anoch_, kept by a McQueen[425]. Our landlord was a sensible fellow; he hadlearned his grammar[426], and Dr. Johnson justly observed, that 'a manis the better for that as long as he lives. ' There were some books here:_a Treatise against Drunkenness_, translated from the French; a volumeof _The Spectator_; a volume of _Prideaux's Connection_, and _Cyrus'sTravels_[427]. McQueen said he had more volumes; and his pride seemed tobe much piqued that we were surprised at his having books. 

Near to this place we had passed a party of soldiers, under a serjeant'scommand, at work upon the road. We gave them two shillings to drink. They came to our inn, and made merry in the barn. We went and paid thema visit, Dr. Johnson saying, 'Come, let's go and give 'em anothershilling a-piece. ' We did so; and he was saluted 'MY LORD' by all ofthem. He is really generous, loves influence, and has the way of gainingit. He said, 'I am quite feudal, Sir. ' Here I agree with him. I said, Iregretted I was not the head of a clan; however, though not possessed ofsuch an hereditary advantage, I would always endeavour to make mytenants follow me. I could not be a _patriarchal_ chief, but I would bea _feudal_ chief. 

The poor soldiers got too much liquor. Some of them fought, and leftblood upon the spot, and cursed whiskey next morning. The house here wasbuilt of thick turfs, and thatched with thinner turfs and heath. It hadthree rooms in length, and a little room which projected. Where we sat, the side-walls were _wainscotted_, as Dr. Johnson said, with wicker, very neatly plaited. Our landlord had made the whole with his own hands. 

After dinner, McQueen sat by us a while, and talked with us. He said, all the Laird of Glenmorison's people would bleed for him if they werewell used; but that seventy men had gone out of the Glen to America. That he himself intended to go next year; for that the rent of his farm, which twenty years ago was only five pounds, was now raised to twentypounds. That he could pay ten pounds and live; but no more. [428] Dr. Johnson said, he wished M'Queen laird of Glenmorison, and the laird togo to America. M'Queen very generously answered, he should be sorry forit; for the laird could not shift for himself in America as he could do. 

I talked of the officers whom we had left to-day; how much service theyhad seen, and how little they got for it, even of fame. JOHNSON. 'Sir, asoldier gets as little as any man can get. ' BOSWELL. 'Goldsmith hasacquired more fame than all the officers last war, who were notGenerals. '[429] JOHNSON. 'Why, Sir, you will find ten thousand fit to dowhat they did, before you find one who does what Goldsmith has done. Youmust consider, that a thing is valued according to its rarity. A pebblethat paves the street is in itself more useful than the diamond upon alady's finger. ' I wish our friend Goldsmith had heard this. [430]

I yesterday expressed my wonder that John Hay, one of our guides, whohad been pressed aboard a man of war, did not choose to continue in itlonger than nine months, after which time he got off. JOHNSON. 'Why, Sir, no man will be a sailor, who has contrivance enough to get himselfinto a jail; for, being in a ship is being in a jail, with the chance ofbeing drowned. '[431] We had tea in the afternoon, and our landlord'sdaughter, a modest civil girl, very neatly drest, made it for us. Shetold us, she had been a year at Inverness, and learnt reading andwriting, sewing, knotting[432], working lace, and pastry. Dr. Johnsonmade her a present of a book which he had bought at Inverness[433]. 

The room had some deals laid across the joists, as a kind of ceiling. There were two beds in the room, and a woman's gown was hung on a ropeto make a curtain of separation between them. Joseph had sheets, whichmy wife had sent with us, laid on them. We had much hesitation, whetherto undress, or lie down with our clothes on. I said at last, 'I'llplunge in! There will be less harbour for vermin about me, when I amstripped!' Dr. Johnson said, he was like one hesitating whether to gointo the cold bath. At last he resolved too. I observed he might serve acampaign. JOHNSON. 'I could do all that can be done by patience: whetherI should have strength enough, I know not. ' He was in excellent humour. To see the Rambler as I saw him to-night, was really an amusement. Iyesterday told him, I was thinking of writing a poetical letter to him, _on his return from Scotland_, in the style of Swift's humorous epistlein the character of Mary Gulliver to her husband, Captain LemuelGulliver, on his return to England from the country of the HOUYHNHUMS:--

 'At early morn I to the market haste, Studious in ev'ry thing to please thy taste. A curious _fowl_ and _sparagrass_ I chose; (For I remember you were fond of those:) Three shillings cost the first, the last sev'n groats; Sullen you turn from both, and call for OATS[434]:'

He laughed, and asked in whose name I would write it. I said, in Mrs. Thrale's. He was angry. 'Sir, if you have any sense of decency ordelicacy, you won't do that!' BOSWELL. 'Then let it be in Cole's, thelandlord of the _Mitre tavern_; where we have so often sat together. 'JOHNSON. 'Ay, that may do. '

After we had offered up our private devotions, and had chatted a littlefrom our beds, Dr. Johnson said, 'GOD bless us both, for Jesus Christ'ssake! Good night!' I pronounced 'Amen. ' He fell asleep immediately. Iwas not so fortunate for a long time. I fancied myself bit byinnumerable vermin under the clothes; and that a spider was travellingfrom the _wainscot_ towards my mouth. At last I fell into insensibility. 

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 1. 

I awaked very early. I began to imagine that the landlord, being aboutto emigrate, might murder us to get our money, and lay it upon thesoldiers in the barn. Such groundless fears will arise in the mind, before it has resumed its vigour after sleep! Dr. Johnson had had thesame kind of ideas; for he told me afterwards, that he considered somany soldiers, having seen us, would be witnesses, should any harm bedone, and that circumstance, I suppose, he considered as asecurity. [435] When I got up, I found him sound asleep in his miserable_stye_, as I may call it, with a coloured handkerchief tied round hishead. With difficulty could I awaken him. It reminded me of Henry theFourth's fine soliloquy on sleep; for there was here as _uneasy apallet_[436] as the poet's imagination could possibly conceive. 

A _red coat_ of the 15th regiment, whether officer, or only serjeant, Icould not be sure, came to the house, in his way to the mountains toshoot deer, which it seems the Laird of Glenmorison does not hinder anybody to do. Few, indeed, can do them harm. We had him to breakfast withus. We got away about eight. M'Queen walked some miles to give us aconvoy. He had, in 1745, joined the Highland army at Fort Augustus, andcontinued in it till after the battle of Culloden. As he narrated theparticulars of that ill-advised, but brave attempt, I could not refrainfrom tears. There is a certain association of ideas in my mind upon thatsubject, by which I am strongly affected. The very Highland names, orthe sound of a bagpipe, will stir my blood, and fill me with a mixtureof melancholy and respect for courage; with pity for an unfortunate andsuperstitious regard for antiquity, and thoughtless inclination for war;in short, with a crowd of sensations with which sober rationality hasnothing to do. 

We passed through Glensheal, with prodigious mountains on each side. Wesaw where the battle was fought in the year 1719. [437] Dr. Johnsonowned he was now in a scene of as wild nature as he could see; but hecorrected me sometimes in my inaccurate observations. 'There, (said I, )is a mountain like a cone. ' JOHNSON. 'No, Sir. It would be called so ina book; and when a man comes to look at it, he sees it is not so. It isindeed pointed at the top; but one side of it is larger than theother[438]. ' Another mountain I called immense. JOHNSON. 'No; it is nomore than a considerable protuberance. '

We came to a rich green valley, comparatively speaking, and stopped awhile to let our horses rest and eat grass[439]. We soon afterwards cameto Auchnasheal, a kind of rural village, a number of cottages beingbuilt together, as we saw all along in the Highlands. We passed manymiles this day without seeing a house, but only little summer-huts, called _shielings_. Evan Campbell, servant to Mr. Murchison, factor tothe Laird of Macleod in Glenelg, ran along with us to-day. He was avery obliging fellow. At Auchnasheal, we sat down on a green turf seatat the end of a house; they brought us out two wooden dishes of milk, which we tasted. One of them was frothed like a syllabub. I saw a womanpreparing it with such a stick as is used for chocolate, and in the samemanner. We had a considerable circle about us, men, women, and children, all M'Craas, Lord Seaforth's people. Not one of them could speakEnglish. I observed to Dr. Johnson, it was much the same as being with atribe of Indians. JOHNSON. 'Yes, Sir; but not so terrifying[440]. ' Igave all who chose it, snuff and tobacco. Governour Trapaud had made usbuy a quantity at Fort Augustus, and put them up in small parcels. Ialso gave each person a bit of wheat bread, which they had never tastedbefore. I then gave a penny apiece to each child. I told Dr. Johnson ofthis; upon which he called to Joseph and our guides, for change for ashilling, and declared that he would distribute among the children. Uponthis being announced in Erse, there was a great stir; not only did somechildren come running down from neighbouring huts, but I observed oneblack-haired man, who had been with us all along, had gone off, andreturned, bringing a very young child. My fellow traveller then orderedthe children to be drawn up in a row; and he dealt about his copper, andmade them and their parents all happy. The poor M'Craas, whatever may betheir present state, were of considerable estimation in the year 1715, when there was a line in a song, 'And aw the brave M'Craas are coming[441]. '

There was great diversity in the faces of the circle around us: somewere as black and wild in their appearance as any American savageswhatever. One woman was as comely almost as the figure of Sappho, as wesee it painted. We asked the old woman, the mistress of the house wherewe had the milk, (which by the bye, Dr. Johnson told me, for I did notobserve it myself, was built not of turf, but of stone, ) what we shouldpay. She said, what we pleased. One of our guides asked her in Erse, ifa shilling was enough. She said, 'yes. ' But some of the men bade her askmore[442]. This vexed me; because it shewed a desire to impose uponstrangers, as they knew that even a shilling was high payment. Thewoman, however, honestly persisted in her first price; so I gave herhalf a crown. Thus we had one good scene of life uncommon to us. Thepeople were very much pleased, gave us many blessings, and said they hadnot had such a day since the old Laird of Macleod's time. 

Dr. Johnson was much refreshed by this repast. He was pleased when Itold him he would make a good Chief. He said, 'Were I a chief, I woulddress my servants better than myself, and knock a fellow down if helooked saucy to a Macdonald in rags: but I would not treat men asbrutes. I would let them know why all of my clan were to have attentionpaid to them. I would tell my upper servants why, and make them tell theothers. ' We rode on well[443], till we came to the high mountaincalled the Rattakin, by which time both Dr. Johnson and the horses werea good deal fatigued. It is a terrible steep to climb, notwithstandingthe road is formed slanting along it; however, we made it out. On thetop of it we met Captain M'Leod of Balmenoch (a Dutch officer who hadcome from Sky) riding with his sword slung across him. He asked, 'Isthis Mr. Boswell?' which was a proof that we were expected. Going downthe hill on the other side was no easy task. As Dr. Johnson was a greatweight, the two guides agreed that he should ride the horsesalternately. Hay's were the two best, and the Doctor would not ride butupon one or other of them, a black or a brown. But as Hay complainedmuch after ascending the _Rattakin_, the Doctor was prevailed with tomount one of Vass's greys. As he rode upon it down hill, it did not gowell; and he grumbled. I walked on a little before, but was excessivelyentertained with the method taken to keep him in good humour. Hay ledthe horse's head, talking to Dr. Johnson as much as he could; and(having heard him, in the forenoon, express a pastoral pleasure onseeing the goats browzing) just when the Doctor was uttering hisdispleasure, the fellow cried, with a very Highland accent, 'See, suchpretty goats!' Then he whistled, _whu!_ and made them jump. Little didhe conceive what Dr. Johnson was. Here now was a common ignorantHighland clown, imagining that he could divert, as one does achild, --_Dr. Samuel Johnson!_ The ludicrousness, absurdity, andextraordinary contrast between what the fellow fancied, and the reality, was truly comick. 

It grew dusky; and we had a very tedious ride for what was called fivemiles; but I am sure would measure ten. We had no conversation. I wasriding forward to the inn at Glenelg, on the shore opposite to Sky, thatI might take proper measures, before Dr. Johnson, who was now advancingin dreary silence, Hay leading his horse, should arrive. Vass alsowalked by the side of his horse, and Joseph followed behind: astherefore he was thus attended, and seemed to be in deep meditation, Ithought there could be no harm in leaving him for a little while. Hecalled me back with a tremendous shout, and was really in a passion withme for leaving him. I told him my intentions, but he was not satisfied, and said, 'Do you know, I should as soon have thought of picking apocket, as doing so?' BOSWELL. 'I am diverted with you, Sir. ' JOHNSON. 'Sir, I could never be diverted with incivility. Doing such a thing, makes one lose confidence in him who has done it, as one cannot tellwhat he may do next. ' His extraordinary warmth confounded me so much, that I justified myself but lamely to him; yet my intentions were notimproper. I wished to get on, to see how we were to be lodged, and howwe were to get a boat; all which I thought I could best settle myself, without his having any trouble. To apply his great mind to minuteparticulars, is wrong: it is like taking an immense balance, such as iskept on quays for weighing cargoes of ships, --to weigh a guinea. I knewI had neat little scales, which would do better; and that his attentionto every thing which falls in his way, and his uncommon desire to bealways in the right, would make him weigh, if he knew of theparticulars: it was right therefore for me to weigh them, and let himhave them only in effect. I however continued to ride by him, finding hewished I should do so. 

As we passed the barracks at Bernéra, I looked at them wishfully, assoldiers have always every thing in the best order: but there was only aserjeant and a few men there. We came on to the inn at Glenelg. Therewas no provender for our horses; so they were sent to grass, with a manto watch them. A maid shewed us up stairs into a room damp and dirty, with bare walls, a variety of bad smells, a coarse black greasy firtable, and forms of the same kind; and out of a wretched bed started afellow from his sleep, like Edgar in _King Lear_[444], '_Poor Tom's acold_[445]. ' This inn was furnished with not a single article that wecould either eat or drink[446]; but Mr. Murchison, factor to the Lairdof Macleod in Glenelg, sent us a bottle of rum and some sugar, with apolite message, to acquaint us, that he was very sorry that he did nothear of us till we had passed his house, otherwise he should haveinsisted on our sleeping there that night; and that, if he were notobliged to set out for Inverness early next morning, he would havewaited upon us. Such extraordinary attention from this gentleman, toentire strangers, deserves the most honourable commemoration. 

Our bad accommodation here made me uneasy, and almost fretful. Dr. Johnson was calm. I said, he was so from vanity. JOHNSON. 'No, Sir, itis from philosophy. ' It pleased me to see that the _Rambler_ couldpractise so well his own lessons. 

I resumed the subject of my leaving him on the road, and endeavoured todefend it better. He was still violent upon that head, and said, 'Sir, had you gone on, I was thinking that I should have returned with you toEdinburgh, and then have parted from you, and never spoken to you more. '

I sent for fresh hay, with which we made beds for ourselves, each in aroom equally miserable. Like Wolfe, we had a 'choice ofdifficulties[447]'. Dr. Johnson made things easier by comparison. AtM'Queen's, last night, he observed that few were so well lodged in aship. To-night he said, we were better than if we had been upon thehill. He lay down buttoned up in his great coat. I had my sheets spreadon the hay, and my clothes and great coat laid over me, by wayof blankets. 

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 2. 

I had slept ill. Dr. Johnson's anger had affected me much. I consideredthat, without any bad intention, I might suddenly forfeit hisfriendship; and was impatient to see him this morning. I told him howuneasy he had made me, by what he had said, and reminded him of his ownremark at Aberdeen, upon old friendships being hastily broken off. Heowned he had spoken to me in passion; that he would not have done whathe threatened; and that, if he had, he should have been ten times worsethan I; that forming intimacies, would indeed be 'limning thewater[448], ' were they liable to such sudden dissolution; and he added, 'Let's think no more on't. ' BOSWELL. 'Well then, Sir, I shall be easy. Remember, I am to have fair warning in case of any quarrel. You arenever to spring a mine upon me. It was absurd in me to believe you. 'JOHNSON. 'You deserved about as much, as to believe me from nightto morning. '

After breakfast, we got into a boat for Sky. It rained much when we setoff, but cleared up as we advanced. One of the boatmen, who spokeEnglish, said, that a mile at land was two miles at sea. I thenobserved, that from Glenelg to Armidale in Sky, which was our presentcourse, and is called twelve, was only six miles: but this he could notunderstand. 'Well, (said Dr. Johnson, ) never talk to me of the nativegood sense of the Highlanders. Here is a fellow who calls one mile two, and yet cannot comprehend that twelve such imaginary miles make intruth but six. '

We reached the shore of Armidale before one o'clock. Sir AlexanderM'Donald came down to receive us. He and his lady, (formerly MissBosville of Yorkshire[449], ) were then in a house built by a tenant atthis place, which is in the district of Slate, the family mansion herehaving been burned in Sir Donald Macdonald's time. The most ancientseat of the chief of the Macdonalds in the isle of Sky was at Duntulm, where there are the remains of a stately castle. The principal residenceof the family is now at Mugstot, at which there is a considerablebuilding. Sir Alexander and Lady Macdonald had come to Armidale in theirway to Edinburgh, where it was necessary for them to be soon after thistime. Armidale is situated on a pretty bay of the narrow sea, whichflows between the main land of Scotland and the Isle of Sky. In frontthere is a grand prospect of the rude mountains of Moidart andKnoidart[451]. Behind are hills gently rising and covered with a finerverdure than I expected to see in this climate, and the scene isenlivened by a number of little clear brooks. 

Sir Alexander Macdonald having been an Eton scholar[452], and being agentleman of talents, Dr. Johnson had been very well pleased with him inLondon[453]. But my fellow-traveller and I were now full of the oldHighland spirit, and were dissatisfied at hearing of racked rents andemigration, and finding a chief not surrounded by his clan. Dr. Johnsonsaid, 'Sir, the Highland chiefs should not be allowed to go farthersouth than Aberdeen. A strong-minded man, like Sir James Macdonald[454], may be improved by an English education; but in general, they will betamed into insignificance. '

We found here Mr. Janes of Aberdeenshire, a naturalist. Janes said hehad been at Dr. Johnson's in London, with Ferguson the astronomer[455]. JOHNSON. 'It is strange that, in such distant places, I should meet withany one who knows me. I should have thought I might hide myself in Sky. '

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 3. 

This day proving wet, we should have passed our time very uncomfortably, had we not found in the house two chests of books, which we eagerlyransacked. After dinner, when I alone was left at table with the fewHighland gentlemen who were of the company, having talked with very highrespect of Sir James Macdonald, they were all so much affected as toshed tears. One of them was Mr. Donald Macdonald, who had beenlieutenant of grenadiers in the Highland regiment, raised by ColonelMontgomery, now Earl of Eglintoune, in the war before last; one of thoseregiments which the late Lord Chatham prided himself in having broughtfrom 'the mountains of the North[456]:' by doing which he contributed toextinguish in the Highlands the remains of disaffection to the presentRoyal Family. From this gentleman's conversation, I first learnt howvery popular his Colonel was among the Highlanders; of which I had suchcontinued proofs, during the whole course of my Tour, that on my returnI could not help telling the noble Earl himself, that I did not beforeknow how great a man he was. 

We were advised by some persons here to visit Rasay, in our way toDunvegan, the seat of the Laird of Macleod. Being informed that the Rev. Mr. Donald M'Queen was the most intelligent man in Sky, and having beenfavoured with a letter of introduction to him, by the learned Sir JamesFoulis, I sent it to him by an express, and requested he would meet usat Rasay; and at the same time enclosed a letter to the Laird ofMacleod, informing him that we intended in a few days to have the honourof waiting on him at Dunvegan. 

Dr. Johnson this day endeavoured to obtain some knowledge of the stateof the country; but complained that he could get no distinct informationabout any thing, from those with whom he conversed[457]. 

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 4. 

My endeavours to rouse the English-bred Chieftain[458], in whose housewe were, to the feudal and patriarchal feelings, proving ineffectual, Dr. Johnson this morning tried to bring him to our way of thinking. JOHNSON. 'Were I in your place, Sir, in seven years I would make this anindependant island. I would roast oxen whole, and hang out a flag as asignal to the Macdonalds to come and get beef and whiskey. ' SirAlexander was still starting difficulties. JOHNSON. 'Nay, Sir; if youare born to object, I have done with you. Sir, I would have a magazineof arms. ' SIR ALEXANDER. 'They would rust. ' JOHNSON. 'Let there be mento keep them clean. Your ancestors did not use to let their armsrust[459]. '

We attempted in vain to communicate to him a portion of our enthusiasm. He bore with so polite a good nature our warm, and what some might callGothick, expostulations, on this subject, that I should not forgivemyself, were I to record all that Dr. Johnson's ardour led him tosay. --This day was little better than a blank. 

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 5. 

I walked to the parish church of Slate, which is a very poor one. Thereare no church bells in the island. I was told there were once some; whathas become of them, I could not learn. The minister not being at home, there was no service. I went into the church, and saw the monument ofSir James Macdonald, which was elegantly executed at Rome, and has thefollowing inscription, written by his friend, George Lord Lyttelton:--

 To the memory Of SIR JAMES MACDONALD, BART. Who in the flower of youth Had attained to so eminent a degree of knowledge, In Mathematics, Philosophy, Languages, And in every other branch of useful and polite learning As few have acquired in a long life Wholly devoted to study: Yet to this erudition he joined What can rarely be found with it, Great talents for business, Great propriety of behaviour, Great politeness of manners! His eloquence was sweet, correct, and flowing; His memory vast and exact; His judgement strong and acute; All which endowments, united With the most amiable temper And every private virtue, Procured him, not only in his own country, But also from foreign nations[460], The highest marks of esteem. In the year of our Lord 1766, The 25th of his life, After a long and extremely painful illness, Which he supported with admirable patience and fortitude, He died at Rome, Where, notwithstanding the difference of religion, Such extraordinary honours were paid to his memory, As had never graced that of any other British Subject, Since the death of Sir Philip Sidney. The fame he left behind him is the best consolation To his afflicted family, And to his countrymen in this isle, For whose benefit he had planned Many useful improvements, Which his fruitful genius suggested, And his active spirit promoted, Under the sober direction Of a clear and enlightened understanding. Reader, bewail our loss, And that of all Britain. In testimony of her love, And as the best return she can make To her departed son, For the constant tenderness and affection Which, even to his last moments, He shewed for her, His much afflicted mother, The LADY MARGARET MACDONALD, Daughter to the EARL of EGLINTOUNE, Erected this Monument, A. D. 1768[461]'

Dr. Johnson said, the inscription should have been in Latin, as everything intended to be universal and permanent should be[462]. 

This being a beautiful day, my spirits were cheered by the mere effectof climate. I had felt a return of spleen during my stay at Armidale, and had it not been that I had Dr. Johnson to contemplate, I should havesunk into dejection; but his firmness supported me. I looked at him, asa man whose head is turning giddy at sea looks at a rock, or any fixedobject. I wondered at his tranquillity. He said, 'Sir, when a manretires into an island, he is to turn his thoughts entirely to anotherworld. He has done with this. ' BOSWELL. 'It appears to me, Sir, to bevery difficult to unite a due attention to this world, and that which isto come; for, if we engage eagerly in the affairs of life, we are apt tobe totally forgetful of a future state; and, on the other hand, a steadycontemplation of the awful concerns of eternity renders all objects hereso insignificant, as to make us indifferent and negligent about them. 'JOHNSON. 'Sir, Dr. Cheyne has laid down a rule to himself on thissubject, which should be imprinted on every mind:--"_To neglect nothingto secure my eternal peace, more than if I had been certified I shoulddie within the day: nor to mind any thing that my secular obligationsand duties demanded of me, less than if I had been ensured to live fiftyyears more[463]_. "'

I must here observe, that though Dr. Johnson appeared now to bephilosophically calm, yet his genius did not shine forth as incompanies, where I have listened to him with admiration. The vigour ofhis mind was, however, sufficiently manifested, by his discovering nosymptoms of feeble relaxation in the dull, 'weary, flat andunprofitable[464]' state in which we now were placed. 

I am inclined to think that it was on this day he composed the followingOde upon the _Isle of Sky_, which a few days afterwards he shewed meat Rasay:--

 ODA, Ponti profundis clausa recessibus, Strepens procellis, rupibus obsita, Quam grata defesso virentem Skia sinum nebulosa pandis. 

 His cura, credo, sedibus exulat; His blanda certe pax habitat locis: Non ira, non moeror quietis Insidias meditatur horis. 

 At non cavata rupe latescere, Menti nec aegrae montibus aviis Prodest vagari, nec frementes E scopulo numerare fluctus. 

 Humana virtus non sibi sufficit, Datur nec aequum cuique animum sibi Parare posse, ut Stoicorum Secta crepet nimis alta fallax. 

 Exaestuantis pectoris impetum, Rex summe, solus tu regis arbiter, Mentisque, te tollente, surgunt, Te recidunt moderante fluctus[465]. 

After supper, Dr. Johnson told us, that Isaac Hawkins Browne drankfreely for thirty years, and that he wrote his poem, _De AnimiImmortalitate_, in some of the last of these years[466]. I listened tothis with the eagerness of one who, conscious of being himself fond ofwine, is glad to hear that a man of so much genius and good thinking asBrowne had the same propensity[467]. 

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 6. 

We set out, accompanied by Mr. Donald M'Leod, (late of Canna) as ourguide. We rode for some time along the district of Slate, near theshore. The houses in general are made of turf, covered with grass. Thecountry seemed well peopled. We came into the district of Strath, andpassed along a wild moorish tract of land till we arrived at the shore. There we found good verdure, and some curious whin-rocks, or collectionsof stones like the ruins of the foundations of old buildings. We sawalso three Cairns of considerable size. 

About a mile beyond Broadfoot, is Corrichatachin, a farm of SirAlexander Macdonald's, possessed by Mr. M'Kinnon[468], who received uswith a hearty welcome, as did his wife, who was what we call in Scotlanda _lady-like_ woman. Mr. Pennant in the course of his tour to theHebrides, passed two nights at this gentleman's house. On its beingmentioned, that a present had here been made to him of a curiousspecimen of Highland antiquity, Dr. Johnson said, 'Sir, it was more thanhe deserved; the dog is a Whig[469]. '

We here enjoyed the comfort of a table plentifully furnished[470], thesatisfaction of which was heightened by a numerous and cheerful company;and we for the first time had a specimen of the joyous social manners ofthe inhabitants of the Highlands. They talked in their own ancientlanguage, with fluent vivacity, and sung many Erse songs with suchspirit, that, though Dr. Johnson was treated with the greatest respectand attention, there were moments in which he seemed to be forgotten. For myself, though but a _Lowlander_, having picked up a few words ofthe language, I presumed to mingle in their mirth, and joined in thechoruses with as much glee as any of the company. Dr. Johnson beingfatigued with his journey, retired early to his chamber, where hecomposed the following Ode, addressed to Mrs. Thrale[471]:--

 ODA. 

 Permeo terras, ubi nuda rupes Saxeas miscet nebulis ruinas, Torva ubi rident steriles coloni Rura labores. 

 Pervagor gentes, hominum ferorum Vita ubi nullo decorata cultu Squallet informis, tugurique fumis Foeda latescit. 

 Inter erroris salebrosa longi, Inter ignotae strepitus loquelae, Quot modis mecum, quid agat, requiro, Thralia dulcis?

 Seu viri curas pia nupta mulcet, Seu fovet mater sobolem benigna, Sive cum libris novitate pascet Sedula mentem;

 Sit memor nostri, fideique merces, Stet fides constans, meritoque blandum Thraliae discant resonare nomen Littora Skiae. 

Scriptum in Skiá, Sept. 6, 1773[472]. 

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 7. 

Dr. Johnson was much pleased with his entertainment here. There weremany good books in the house: _Hector Boethius_ in Latin; Cave's _Livesof the Fathers_; Baker's _Chronicle_; Jeremy Collier's _Church History_;Dr. Johnson's small _Dictionary_; Craufurd's _Officers of State_, andseveral more[473]:--a mezzotinto of Mrs. Brooks the actress (by somestrange chance in Sky[474]), and also a print of Macdonald ofClanranald[475], with a Latin inscription about the cruelties after thebattle of Culloden, which will never be forgotten. 

It was a very wet stormy day; we were therefore obliged to remain here, it being impossible to cross the sea to Rasay. 

I employed a part of the forenoon in writing this Journal. The rest ofit was somewhat dreary, from the gloominess of the weather, and theuncertain state which we were in, as we could not tell but it mightclear up every hour. Nothing is more painful to the mind than a state ofsuspence, especially when it depends upon the weather, concerning whichthere can be so little calculation. As Dr. Johnson said of our wearinesson the Monday at Aberdeen, 'Sensation is sensation[476]:'Corrichatachin, which was last night a hospitable house, was, in mymind, changed to-day into a prison. After dinner I read some of Dr. Macpherson's _Dissertations on the Ancient Caledonians_[477]. I wasdisgusted by the unsatisfactory conjectures as to antiquity, before thedays of record. I was happy when tea came. Such, I take it, is the stateof those who live in the country. Meals are wished for from the cravingsof vacuity of mind, as well as from the desire of eating. I was hurt tofind even such a temporary feebleness, and that I was so far from beingthat robust wise man who is sufficient for his own happiness. I felt akind of lethargy of indolence. I did not exert myself to get Dr. Johnsonto talk, that I might not have the labour of writing down hisconversation. He enquired here if there were any remains of the secondsight[478]. Mr. M'Pherson, Minister of Slate, said, he was _resolved_not to believe it, because it was founded on no principle[479]. JOHNSON. 'There are many things then, which we are sure are true, that you willnot believe. What principle is there, why a loadstone attracts iron? whyan egg produces a chicken by heat? why a tree grows upwards, when thenatural tendency of all things is downwards? Sir, it depends upon thedegree of evidence that you have. ' Young Mr. M'Kinnon mentioned oneM'Kenzie, who is still alive, who had often fainted in his presence, andwhen he recovered, mentioned visions which had been presented to him. Hetold Mr. M'Kinnon, that at such a place he should meet a funeral, andthat such and such people would be the bearers, naming four; and threeweeks afterwards he saw what M'Kenzie had predicted. The naming the veryspot in a country where a funeral comes a long way, and the very peopleas bearers, when there are so many out of whom a choice may be made, seems extraordinary. We should have sent for M'Kenzie, had we not beeninformed that he could speak no English. Besides, the facts were notrelated with sufficient accuracy. 

Mrs. M'Kinnon, who is a daughter of old Kingsburgh, told us that herfather was one day riding in Sky, and some women, who were at work in afield on the side of the road, said to him they had heard two _taiscks_, (that is, two voices of persons about to die[480], ) and what wasremarkable, one of them was an _English taisck_, which they never heardbefore. When he returned, he at that very place met two funerals, andone of them was that of a woman who had come from the main land, andcould speak only English. This, she remarked, made a great impressionupon her father. 

How all the people here were lodged, I know not. It was partly done byseparating man and wife, and putting a number of men in one room, and ofwomen in another. 

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 8. 

When I waked, the rain was much heavier than yesterday; but the wind hadabated. By breakfast, the day was better, and in a little while it wascalm and clear. I felt my spirits much elated. The propriety of theexpression, '_the sunshine of the breast_[481], ' now struck me withpeculiar force; for the brilliant rays penetrated into my very soul. Wewere all in better humour than before. Mrs. M'Kinnon, with unaffectedhospitality and politeness, expressed her happiness in having suchcompany in her house, and appeared to understand and relish Dr. Johnson's conversation, as indeed all the company seemed to do. When Iknew she was old Kingsburgh's daughter, I did not wonder at the goodappearance which she made. 

She talked as if her husband and family would emigrate, rather than beoppressed by their landlord; and said, 'how agreeable would it be, ifthese gentlemen should come in upon us when we are in America. ' Somebodyobserved that Sir Alexander Macdonald was always frightened at sea. JOHNSON. '_He_ is frightened at sea; and his tenants are frightened whenhe comes to land. '

We resolved to set out directly after breakfast. We had about two milesto ride to the sea-side, and there we expected to get one of the boatsbelonging to the fleet of bounty[482] herring-busses then on the coast, or at least a good country fishing-boat. But while we were preparing toset out, there arrived a man with the following card from the ReverendMr. Donald M'Queen:--

'Mr. M'Queen's compliments to Mr. Boswell, and begs leave to acquainthim that, fearing the want of a proper boat, as much as the rain ofyesterday, might have caused a stop, he is now at Skianwden withMacgillichallum's[483] carriage, to convey him and Dr. Johnson to Rasay, where they will meet with a most hearty welcome, and where. Macleod, being on a visit, now attends their motions. ' 'Wednesday afternoon. '

This card was most agreeable; it was a prologue to that hospitable andtruly polite reception which we found at Rasay. In a little whilearrived Mr. Donald M'Queen himself; a decent minister, an elderly manwith his own black hair, courteous, and rather slow of speech, butcandid, sensible, and well informed, nay learned. Along with him came, as our pilot, a gentleman whom I had a great desire to see, Mr. MalcolmMacleod, one of the Rasay family, celebrated in the year 1745-6. He wasnow sixty-two years of age, hale, and well proportioned, --with a manlycountenance, tanned by the weather, yet having a ruddiness in hischeeks, over a great part of which his rough beard extended. His eye wasquick and lively, yet his look was not fierce, but he appeared at oncefirm and good-humoured. He wore a pair of brogues[484], --Tartan hosewhich came up only near to his knees, and left them bare, --a purplecamblet kilt[485], --a black waistcoat, --a short green cloth coat boundwith gold cord, --a yellowish bushy wig, --a large blue bonnet with a goldthread button. I never saw a figure that gave a more perfectrepresentation of a Highland gentleman. I wished much to have a pictureof him just as he was. I found him frank and _polite_, in the true senseof the word. 

The good family at Corrichatachin said, they hoped to see us on ourreturn. We rode down to the shore; but Malcolm walked withgraceful agility. 

We got into Rasay's _carriage_, which was a good strong open boat madein Norway. The wind had now risen pretty high, and was against us; butwe had four stout rowers, particularly a Macleod, a robust black-hairedfellow, half naked, and bare-headed, something between a wild Indian andan English tar. Dr. Johnson sat high, on the stern, like a magnificentTriton. Malcolm sung an Erse song, the chorus of which was '_Hatyin foamfoam eri_', with words of his own[486]. The tune resembled '_Owr themuir amang the heather_'. The boatmen and Mr. M'Queen chorused, and allwent well. At length Malcolm himself took an oar, and rowed vigorously. We sailed along the coast of Scalpa, a rugged island, about four milesin length. Dr. Johnson proposed that he and I should buy it, and found agood school, and an episcopal church, (Malcolm[487] said, he would cometo it, ) and have a printing-press, where he would print all the Ersethat could be found. Here I was strongly struck with our longprojected scheme of visiting the Hebrides being realized[488]. I calledto him, 'We are contending with seas;' which I think were the words ofone of his letters to me[489]. 'Not much, ' said he; and though the windmade the sea lash considerably upon us, he was not discomposed. After wewere out of the shelter of Scalpa, and in the sound between it andRasay, which extended about a league, the wind made the sea veryrough[490]. I did not like it. JOHNSON. 'This now is the Atlantick. If Ishould tell at a tea table in London, that I have crossed the Atlantickin an open boat, how they'd shudder, and what a fool they'd think me toexpose myself to such danger?' He then repeated Horace's ode, --

 'Otium Divos rogat in patenti Prensus Aegaeo----[491]'

In the confusion and hurry of this boisterous sail, Dr. Johnson's spurs, of which Joseph had charge, were carried over-board into the sea, andlost[492]. This was the first misfortune that had befallen us. Dr. Johnson was a little angry at first, observing that 'there was somethingwild in letting a pair of spurs be carried into the sea out of a boat;'but then he remarked, 'that, as Janes the naturalist had said uponlosing his pocket-book, it was rather an inconvenience than a loss. ' Hetold us, he now recollected that he dreamt the night before, that he puthis staff into a river, and chanced to let it go, and it was carrieddown the stream and lost. 'So now you see, (said he, ) that I have lostmy spurs; and this story is better than many of those which we haveconcerning second sight and dreams. ' Mr. M'Queen said he did not believethe second sight; that he never met with any well attested instances;and if he should, he should impute them to chance; because all whopretend to that quality often fail in their predictions, though theytake a great scope, and sometimes interpret literally, sometimesfiguratively, so as to suit the events. He told us, that, since he cameto be minister of the parish where he now is, the belief of witchcraft, or charms, was very common, insomuch that he had many prosecutionsbefore his _session_ (the parochial ecclesiastical court) against women, for having by these means carried off the milk from people's cows. Hedisregarded them; and there is not now the least vestige of thatsuperstition. He preached against it; and in order to give a strongproof to the people that there was nothing in it, he said from thepulpit that every woman in the parish was welcome to take the milk fromhis cows, provided she did not touch them[493]. 

Dr. Johnson asked him as to _Fingal_. He said he could repeat somepassages in the original, that he heard his grandfather had a copy ofit; but that he could not affirm that Ossian composed all that poem asit is now published. This came pretty much to what Dr. Johnson hadmaintained[494]; though he goes farther, and contends that it is nobetter than such an epick poem as he could make from the song of RobinHood[495]; that is to say, that, except a few passages, there is nothingtruly ancient but the names and some vague traditions. Mr. M'Queenalleged that Homer was made up of detached fragments. Dr. Johnson deniedthis; observing, that it had been one work originally, and that youcould not put a book of the _Iliad_ out of its place; and he believedthe same might be said of the _Odyssey_. 

The approach to Rasay was very pleasing. We saw before us a beautifulbay, well defended by a rocky coast; a good family mansion; a fineverdure about it, --with a considerable number of trees;--and beyond ithills and mountains in gradation of wildness. Our boatmen sung withgreat spirit. Dr. Johnson observed, that naval musick was very ancient. As we came near the shore, the singing of our rowers was succeeded bythat of reapers, who were busy at work, and who seemed to shout as muchas to sing, while they worked with a bounding activity[496]. Just as welanded, I observed a cross, or rather the ruins of one, upon a rock, which had to me a pleasing vestige of religion. I perceived a largecompany coming out from the house. We met them as we walked up. Therewere Rasay himself; his brother Dr. Macleod; his nephew the Laird ofM'Kinnon; the Laird of Macleod; Colonel Macleod of Talisker, an officerin the Dutch service, a very genteel man, and a faithful branch of thefamily; Mr. Macleod of Muiravenside, best known by the name of SandieMacleod, who was long in exile on account of the part which he took in1745; and several other persons. We were welcomed upon the green, andconducted into the house, where we were introduced to Lady Rasay, whowas surrounded by a numerous family, consisting of three sons and tendaughters. The Laird of Rasay is a sensible, polite, and most hospitablegentleman. I was told that his island of Rasay, and that of Rona, (fromwhich the eldest son of the family has his title, ) and a considerableextent of land which he has in Sky, do not altogether yield him a verylarge revenue[497]: and yet he lives in great splendour; and so far ishe from distressing his people, that, in the present rage foremigration, not a man has left his estate. It was past six o'clockwhen we arrived. Some excellent brandy was served round immediately, according to the custom of the Highlands, where a dram is generallytaken every day. They call it a _scalch_[498]. On a side-board wasplaced for us, who had come off the sea, a substantial dinner, and avariety of wines. Then we had coffee and tea. I observed in the roomseveral elegantly bound books, and other marks of improved life. Soonafterwards a fidler appeared, and a little ball began. Rasay himselfdanced with as much spirit as any man, and Malcolm bounded like a roe. Sandie Macleod, who has at times an excessive flow of spirits, and hadit now, was, in his days of absconding, known by the name of_M'Cruslick_[499], which it seems was the designation of a kind ofwild man in the Highlands, something between Proteus and Don Quixote;and so he was called here. He made much jovial noise. Dr. Johnson was sodelighted with this scene, that he said, 'I know not how we shall getaway. ' It entertained me to observe him sitting by, while we danced, sometimes in deep meditation, --sometimes smiling complacently, --sometimeslooking upon Hooke's _Roman History_, --and sometimes talking alittle, amidst the noise of the ball, to Mr. Donald M'Queen, whoanxiously gathered knowledge from him. He was pleased with M'Queen, andsaid to me, 'This is a critical man, Sir. There must be great vigour ofmind to make him cultivate learning so much in the isle of Sky, wherehe might do without it. It is wonderful how many of the new publicationshe has. There must be a snatch of every opportunity. ' Mr. M'Queen toldme that his brother (who is the fourth generation of the familyfollowing each other as ministers of the parish of Snizort, ) and hejoined together, and bought from time to time such books as hadreputation. Soon after we came in, a black cock and grey hen, which hadbeen shot, were shewn, with their feathers on, to Dr. Johnson, who hadnever seen that species of bird before. We had a company of thirty atsupper; and all was good humour and gaiety, without intemperance. 

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 9. 

At breakfast this morning, among a profusion of other things, there wereoat-cakes, made of what is called _graddaned_ meal, that is, meal madeof grain separated from the husks, and toasted by fire, instead of beingthreshed and kiln-dried. This seems to be bad management, as so muchfodder is consumed by it. Mr. M'Queen however defended it, by saying, that it is doing the thing much quicker, as one operation effects whatis otherwise done by two. His chief reason however was, that theservants in Sky are, according to him, a faithless pack, and steal whatthey can; so that much is saved by the corn passing but once throughtheir hands, as at each time they pilfer some. It appears to me, thatthe gradaning is a strong proof of the laziness of the Highlanders, whowill rather make fire act for them, at the expence of fodder, thanlabour themselves. There was also, what I cannot help disliking atbreakfast, cheese: it is the custom over all the Highlands to have it;and it often smells very strong, and poisons to a certain degree theelegance of an Indian repast[500]. The day was showery; however, Rasayand I took a walk, and had some cordial conversation. I conceived a morethan ordinary regard for this worthy gentleman. His family has possessedthis island above four hundred years[501]. It is the remains of theestate of Macleod of Lewis, whom he represents. When we returned, Dr. Johnson walked with us to see the old chapel. He was in fine spirits. Hesaid, ' This is truly the patriarchal life: this is what we came tofind. ' After dinner, M'Cruslick, Malcolm, and I, went out with guns, to try if we could find any black-cock; but we had no sport, owing to aheavy rain. I saw here what is called a Danish fort. Our evening waspassed as last night was. One of our company, I was told, had hurthimself by too much study, particularly of infidel metaphysicians; ofwhich he gave a proof, on second sight being mentioned. He immediatelyretailed some of the fallacious arguments of Voltaire and Hume againstmiracles in general. Infidelity in a Highland gentleman appeared to mepeculiarly offensive. I was sorry for him, as he had otherwise a goodcharacter. I told Dr. Johnson that he had studied himself intoinfidelity. JOHNSON. 'Then he must study himself out of it again. Thatis the way. Drinking largely will sober him again. '

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 10. 

Having resolved to explore the Island of Rasay, which could be done onlyon foot, I last night obtained my fellow-traveller's permission to leavehim for a day, he being unable to take so hardy a walk. Old Mr. MalcolmM'Cleod, who had obligingly promised to accompany me, was at my bed-sidebetween five and six. I sprang up immediately, and he and I, attended bytwo other gentlemen, traversed the country during the whole of this day. Though we had passed over not less than four-and-twenty miles of veryrugged ground, and had a Highland dance on the top of _Dun Can_, thehighest mountain in the island, we returned in the evening not at allfatigued, and piqued ourselves at not being outdone at the nightly ballby our less active friends, who had remained at home. 

My survey of Rasay did not furnish much which can interest my readers; Ishall therefore put into as short a compass as I can, the observationsupon it, which I find registered in my journal. It is about fifteenEnglish miles long, and four broad. On the south side is the laird'sfamily seat, situated on a pleasing low spot. The old tower of threestories, mentioned by Martin, was taken down soon after 1746, and amodern house supplies its place. There are very good grass-fields andcorn-lands about it, well-dressed. I observed, however, hardly anyinclosures, except a good garden plentifully stocked with vegetables, and strawberries, raspberries, currants, &c. 

On one of the rocks just where we landed, which are not high, there isrudely carved a square, with a crucifix in the middle. Here, it is said, the Lairds of Rasay, in old times, used to offer up their devotions. Icould not approach the spot, without a grateful recollection of theevent commemorated by this symbol. 

A little from the shore, westward, is a kind of subterraneous house. There has been a natural fissure, or separation of the rock, runningtowards the sea, which has been roofed over with long stones, and abovethem turf has been laid. In that place the inhabitants used to keeptheir oars. There are a number of trees near the house, which grow well;some of them of a pretty good size. They are mostly plane and ash. Alittle to the west of the house is an old ruinous chapel, unroofed, which never has been very curious. We here saw some human bones of anuncommon size. There was a heel-bone, in particular, which Dr. Macleodsaid was such, that if the foot was in proportion, it must have beentwenty-seven inches long. Dr. Johnson would not look at the bones. Hestarted back from them with a striking appearance of horrour[502]. Mr. M'Queen told us it was formerly much the custom, in these isles, to havehuman bones lying above ground, especially in the windows of churches. On the south of the chapel is the family burying-place. Above the door, on the east end of it, is a small bust or image of the Virgin Mary, carved upon a stone which makes part of the wall. There is no churchupon the island. It is annexed to one of the parishes of Sky; and theminister comes and preaches either in Rasay's house, or some otherhouse, on certain Sundays. I could not but value the family seat more, for having even the ruins of a chapel close to it. There was somethingcomfortable in the thought of being so near a piece of consecratedground. [503] Dr. Johnson said, 'I look with reverence upon every placethat has been set apart for religion;' and he kept off his hat while hewas within the walls of the chapel[504]. 

The eight crosses, which Martin mentions as pyramids for deceasedladies, stood in a semicircular line, which contained within it thechapel. They marked out the boundaries of the sacred territory withinwhich an asylum was to be had. One of them, which we observed upon ourlanding, made the first point of the semicircle. There are few of themnow remaining. A good way farther north, there is a row of buildingsabout four feet high; they run from the shore on the east along the topof a pretty high eminence, and so down to the shore on the west, in muchthe same direction with the crosses. Rasay took them to be the marks forthe asylum; but Malcolm thought them to be false sentinels, a commondeception, of which instances occur in Martin, to make invaders imaginean island better guarded. Mr. Donald M'Queen, justly in my opinion, supposed the crosses which form the inner circle to be the church'sland-marks. 

The south end of the island is much covered with large stones or rockystrata. The laird has enclosed and planted part of it with firs, and heshewed me a considerable space marked out for additional plantations. 

_Dun Can_ is a mountain three computed miles from the laird's house. Theascent to it is by consecutive risings, if that expression may be usedwhen vallies intervene, so that there is but a short rise at once; butit is certainly very high above the sea. The palm of altitude isdisputed for by the people of Rasay and those of Sky; the formercontending for Dun Can, the latter for the mountains in Sky, overagainst it. We went up the east side of Dun Can pretty easily. It ismostly rocks all around, the points of which hem the summit of it. Sailors, to whom it was a good object as they pass along, call itRasay's cap. Before we reached this mountain, we passed by two lakes. Ofthe first, Malcolm told me a strange fabulous tradition. He said, therewas a wild beast in it, a sea horse, which came and devoured a man'sdaughter; upon which the man lighted a great fire, and had a sow roastedat it, the smell of which attracted the monster. In the fire was put aspit. The man lay concealed behind a low wall of loose stones, and hehad an avenue formed for the monster, with two rows of large flatstones, which extended from the fire over the summit of the hill, tillit reached the side of the loch. The monster came, and the man with thered-hot spit destroyed it. Malcolm shewed me the little hiding-place, and the rows of stones. He did not laugh when he told this story. Irecollect having seen in the _Scots Magazine_, several years ago, a poemupon a similar tale, perhaps the same, translated from the Erse, orIrish, called _Albin and the Daughter of Mey_. 

There is a large tract of land, possessed as a common, in Rasay. Theyhave no regulations as to the number of cattle. Every man puts upon itas many as he chooses. From Dun Can northward, till you reach the otherend of the island, there is much good natural pasture unincumbered bystones. We passed over a spot, which is appropriated for the exercisingground. In 1745, a hundred fighting men were reviewed here, as Malcolmtold me, who was one of the officers that led them to the field[505]. They returned home all but about fourteen. What a princely thing is itto be able to furnish such a band! Rasay has the true spirit of a chief. He is, without exaggeration, a father to his people. 

There is plenty of lime-stone in the island, a great quarry offree-stone, and some natural woods, but none of any age, as they cut thetrees for common country uses. The lakes, of which there are many, arewell stocked with trout. Malcolm catched one of four-and-twenty poundsweight in the loch next to Dun Can, which, by the way, is certainly aDanish name, as most names of places in these islands are. 

The old castle, in which the family of Rasay formerly resided, issituated upon a rock very near the sea. The rock is not one mass ofstone, but a concretion of pebbles and earth, so firm that it does notappear to have mouldered. In this remnant of antiquity I found nothingworthy of being noticed, except a certain accommodation rarely to befound at the modern houses of Scotland, and which Dr. Johnson and Isought for in vain at the Laird of Rasay's new built mansion, wherenothing else was wanting. I took the liberty to tell the Laird it was ashame there should be such a deficiency in civilized times. Heacknowledged the justice of the remark. But perhaps some generations maypass before the want is supplied. Dr. Johnson observed to me, howquietly people will endure an evil, which they might at any time veryeasily remedy; and mentioned as an instance, that the present family ofRasay had possessed the island for more than four hundred years, andnever made a commodious landing place, though a few men with pickaxesmight have cut an ascent of stairs out of any part of the rock in aweek's time[506]. 

The north end of Rasay is as rocky as the south end. From it I saw thelittle isle of Fladda, belonging to Rasay, all fine green ground;--andRona, which is of so rocky a soil that it appears to be a pavement. Iwas told however that it has a great deal of grass in the interstices. The Laird has it all in his own hands. At this end of the island ofRasay is a cave in a striking situation. It is in a recess of a greatcleft, a good way up from the sea. Before it the ocean roars, beingdashed against monstrous broken rocks; grand and aweful _propugnacula_. On the right hand of it is a longitudinal cave, very low at theentrance, but higher as you advance. The sea having scooped it out, itseems strange and unaccountable that the interior part, where the watermust have operated with less force, should be loftier than that which ismore immediately exposed to its violence. The roof of it is all coveredwith a kind of petrifications formed by drops, which perpetually distilfrom it. The first cave has been a place of much safety. I find a greatdifficulty in describing visible objects[507]. I must own too that theold castle and cave, like many other things of which one hears much, didnot answer my expectations. People are every where apt to magnify thecuriosities of their country. 

This island has abundance of black cattle, sheep, and goats;--a goodmany horses, which are used for ploughing, carrying out dung, and otherworks of husbandry. I believe the people never ride. There are indeed noroads through the island, unless a few detached beaten tracks deservethat name. Most of the houses are upon the shore; so that all the peoplehave little boats, and catch fish. There is great plenty of potatoeshere. There are black-cock in extraordinary abundance, moorfowl, ploverand wild pigeons, which seemed to me to be the same as we have inpigeon-houses, in their state of nature. Rasay has no pigeon-house. There are no hares nor rabbits in the island, nor was there ever knownto be a fox[508], till last year, when one was landed on it by somemalicious person, without whose aid he could not have got thither, asthat animal is known to be a very bad swimmer. He has done muchmischief. There is a great deal of fish caught in the sea round Rasay;it is a place where one may live in plenty, and even in luxury. Thereare no deer; but Rasay told us he would get some. 

They reckon it rains nine months in the year in this island, owing toits being directly opposite to the western[509] coast of Sky, where thewatery clouds are broken by high mountains. The hills here, and indeedall the heathy grounds in general, abound with the sweet-smelling plantwhich the Highlanders call _gaul_, and (I think) with dwarf juniper inmany places. There is enough of turf, which is their fuel, and it isthought there is a mine of coal. --Such are the observations which I madeupon the island of Rasay, upon comparing it with the description givenby Martin, whose book we had with us. 

There has been an ancient league between the families of Macdonald andRasay. Whenever the head of either family dies, his sword is given tothe head of the other. The present Rasay has the late Sir JamesMacdonald's sword. Old Rasay joined the Highland army in 1745, butprudently guarded against a forfeiture, by previously conveying hisestate to the present gentleman, his eldest son[510]. On that occasion, Sir Alexander, father of the late Sir James Macdonald, was very friendlyto his neighbour. 'Don't be afraid, Rasay, ' said he; 'I'll use all myinterest to keep you safe; and if your estate should be taken, I'll buyit for the family. '--And he would have done it. 

Let me now gather some gold dust, --some more fragments of Dr. Johnson'sconversation, without regard to order of time. He said, 'he thought veryhighly of Bentley; that no man now went so far in the kinds of learningthat he cultivated[511]; that the many attacks on him were owing toenvy, and to a desire of being known, by being in competition with sucha man; that it was safe to attack him, because he never answered hisopponents, but let them die away[512]. It was attacking a man who wouldnot beat them, because his beating them would make them live the longer. And he was right not to answer; for, in his hazardous method of writing, he could not but be often enough wrong; so it was better to leave thingsto their general appearance, than own himself to have erred inparticulars. ' He said, 'Mallet was the prettiest drest puppet abouttown, and always kept good company[513]. That, from his way of talkinghe saw, and always said, that he had not written any part of the _Lifeof the Duke of Marlborough_, though perhaps he intended to do it at sometime, in which case he was not culpable in taking the pension[514]. Thathe imagined the Duchess furnished the materials for her _Apology_, whichHooke wrote, and Hooke furnished the words and the order, and all thatin which the art of writing consists. That the duchess had not superiorparts, but was a bold frontless woman, who knew how to make the most ofher opportunities in life. That Hooke got a _large_ sum of money forwriting her _Apology_[515]. That he wondered Hooke should have been weakenough to insert so profligate a maxim, as that to tell another's secretto one's friend is no breach of confidence[516]; though perhaps Hooke, who was a virtuous man[517], as his _History_ shews, and did not wishher well, though he wrote her _Apology_, might see its ill tendency, andyet insert it at her desire. He was acting only ministerially. ' Iapprehended, however, that Hooke was bound to give his best advice. Ispeak as a lawyer. Though I have had clients whose causes I could not, as a private man, approve; yet, if I undertook them, I would not do anything that might be prejudicial to them, even at their desire, withoutwarning them of their danger. 

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 11. 

It was a storm of wind and rain; so we could not set out. I wrote someof this _Journal_, and talked a while with Dr. Johnson in his room, andpassed the day, I cannot well say how, but very pleasantly. I was hereamused to find Mr. Cumberland's comedy of the _Fashionable Lover_[518], in which he has very well drawn a Highland character, Colin M'Cleod, ofthe same name with the family under whose roof we now were. Dr. Johnsonwas much pleased with the Laird of Macleod, who is indeed a mostpromising youth, and with a noble spirit struggles with difficulties, and endeavours to preserve his people. He has been left with anincumbrance of forty thousand pounds debt, and annuities to the amountof thirteen hundred pounds a year. Dr. Johnson said, 'If he gets thebetter of all this, he'll be a hero; and I hope he will[519]. I havenot met with a young man who had more desire to learn, or who has learntmore. I have seen nobody that I wish more to do a kindness to thanMacleod. ' Such was the honourable elogium, on this young chieftain, pronounced by an accurate observer, whose praise was neverlightly bestowed. 

There is neither justice of peace, nor constable in Rasay. Sky has Mr. M'Cleod of Ulinish, who is the sheriff substitute, and no other justiceof peace. The want of the execution of justice is much felt among theislanders. Macleod very sensibly observed, that taking away theheritable jurisdictions[520] had not been of such service in the islandsas was imagined. They had not authority enough in lieu of them. Whatcould formerly have been settled at once, must now either take much timeand trouble, or be neglected. Dr. Johnson said, 'A country is in a badstate which is governed only by laws; because a thousand things occurfor which laws cannot provide, and where authority ought to interpose. Now destroying the authority of the chiefs set the people loose. It didnot pretend to bring any positive good, but only to cure some evil; andI am not well enough acquainted with the country to know what degree ofevil the heritable jurisdictions occasioned[521]. ' I maintained hardlyany; because the chiefs generally acted right, for their own sakes. Dr. Johnson was now wishing to move. There was not enough ofintellectual entertainment for him, after he had satisfied hiscuriosity, which he did, by asking questions, till he had exhausted theisland; and where there was so numerous a company, mostly young people, there was such a flow of familiar talk, so much noise, and so muchsinging and dancing, that little opportunity was left for his energetickconversation[522]. He seemed sensible of this; for when I told him howhappy they were at having him there, he said, 'Yet we have not been ableto entertain them much. ' I was fretted, from irritability of nerves, byM'Cruslick's too obstreperous mirth. I complained of it to my friend, observing we should be better if he was, gone. 'No, Sir (said he). Heputs something into our society, and takes nothing out of it. ' Dr. Johnson, however, had several opportunities of instructing the company;but I am sorry to say, that I did not pay sufficient attention to whatpassed, as his discourse now turned chiefly on mechanicks, agricultureand such subjects, rather than on science and wit. Last night Lady Rasayshewed him the operation of _wawking_ cloth, that is, thickening it inthe same manner as is done by a mill. Here it is performed by women, whokneel upon the ground, and rub it with both their hands, singing an Ersesong all the time. He was asking questions while they were performingthis operation, and, amidst their loud and wild howl, his voice washeard even in the room above[523]. 

They dance here every night. The queen of our ball was the eldest MissMacleod, of Rasay, an elegant well-bred woman, and celebrated for herbeauty over all those regions, by the name of Miss Flora Rasay[524]. There seemed to be no jealousy, no discontent among them; and the gaietyof the scene was such, that I for a moment doubted whether unhappinesshad any place in Rasay. But my delusion was soon dispelled, byrecollecting the following lines of my fellow-traveller:--

 'Yet hope not life from pain or danger free, Or think the doom of man revers'd for thee[525]!'

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 12. 

It was a beautiful day, and although we did not approve of travelling onSunday, we resolved to set out, as we were in an island from whence onemust take occasion as it serves. Macleod and Talisker sailed in a boatof Rasay's for Sconser, to take the shortest way to Dunvegan. M'Cruslickwent with them to Sconser, from whence he was to go to Slate, and so tothe main land. We were resolved to pay a visit at Kingsburgh, and seethe celebrated Miss Flora Macdonald, who is married to the present Mr. Macdonald of Kingsburgh; so took that road, though not so near. All thefamily, but Lady Rasay, walked down to the shore to see us depart. Rasayhimself went with us in a large boat, with eight oars, built in hisisland[526]; as did Mr. Malcolm M'Cleod, Mr. Donald M'Queen, Dr. Macleod, and some others. We had a most pleasant sail between Rasay andSky; and passed by a cave, where Martin says fowls were caught bylighting fire in the mouth of it. Malcolm remembers this. But it is notnow practised, as few fowls come into it. 

We spoke of Death. Dr. Johnson on this subject observed, that theboastings of some men, as to dying easily, were idle talk[527], proceeding from partial views. I mentioned Hawthornden's_Cypress-grove_, where it is said that the world is a mere show; andthat it is unreasonable for a man to wish to continue in the show-room, after he has seen it. Let him go cheerfully out, and give place to otherspectators[528]. JOHNSON. 'Yes, Sir, if he is sure he is to be well, after he goes out of it. But if he is to grow blind after he goes out ofthe show-room, and never to see any thing again; or if he does not knowwhither he is to go next, a man will not go cheerfully out of ashow-room. No wise man will be contented to die, if he thinks he is togo into a state of punishment. Nay, no wise man will be contented todie, if he thinks he is to fall into annihilation: for however unhappyany man's existence may be, he yet would rather have it, than not existat all[529]. No; there is no rational principle by which a man can diecontented, but a trust in the mercy of GOD, through the merits of JesusChrist. ' This short sermon, delivered with an earnest tone, in a boatupon the sea, which was perfectly calm, on a day appropriated toreligious worship, while every one listened with an air of satisfaction, had a most pleasing effect upon my mind. 

Pursuing the same train of serious reflection, he added that it seemedcertain that happiness could not be found in this life, because so manyhad tried to find it, in such a variety of ways, and had not found it. 

We reached the harbour of Portree, in Sky, which is a large and goodone. There was lying in it a vessel to carry off the emigrants calledthe _Nestor_. It made a short settlement of the differences between achief and his clan:--

 '-----_Nestor_ componere lites Inter Peleiden festinat & inter Atriden. '[530]

We approached her, and she hoisted her colours. Dr. Johnsonand Mr. McQueen remained in the boat: Rasay and I, and therest went on board of her. She was a very pretty vessel, and, aswe were told, the largest in Clyde. Mr. Harrison, the captain, shewed her to us. The cabin was commodious, and even elegant. There was a little library, finely bound. _Portree_ has its namefrom King James the Fifth having landed there in his tourthrough the Western Isles, _Ree_ in Erse being King, as _Re_ is inItalian; so it is _Port Royal_. There was here a tolerable inn. On our landing, I had the pleasure of finding a letter fromhome; and there were also letters to Dr. Johnson and me, fromLord Elibank[531], which had been sent after us from Edinburgh. His Lordship's letter to me was as follows:--

'DEAR BOSWELL, 'I flew to Edinburgh the moment I heard of Mr. Johnson's arrival; but sodefective was my intelligence, that I came too late. 'It is but justiceto believe, that I could never forgive myself, nor deserve to beforgiven by others, if I was to fail in any mark of respect to that verygreat genius. --I hold him in the highest veneration; for that veryreason I was resolved to take no share in the merit, perhaps guilt, ofinticing him to honour this country with a visit. --I could not persuademyself there was any thing in Scotland worthy to have a Summer of SamuelJohnson bestowed on it; but since he has done us that compliment, forheaven's sake inform me of your motions. I will attend them mostreligiously; and though I should regret to let Mr. Johnson go a mile outof his way on my account, old as I am, [532] I shall be glad to go fivehundred miles to enjoy a day of his company. Have the charity to send acouncil-post[533] with intelligence; the post does not suit us in thecountry. --At any rate write to me. I will attend you in the north, whenI shall know where to find you. 

 I am, My dear Boswell, Your sincerely Obedient humble servant, 'ELIBANK. '

'August 21st, 1773. '

The letter to Dr. Johnson was in these words:--

'DEAR SIR, 'I was to have kissed your hands at Edinburgh, the moment I heard ofyou; but you was gone. 

'I hope my friend Boswell will inform me of your motions. It will becruel to deprive me an instant of the honour of attending you. As Ivalue you more than any King in Christendom, I will perform that dutywith infinitely greater alacrity than any courtier. I can contribute butlittle to your entertainment; but, my sincere esteem for you gives mesome title to the opportunity of expressing it. 

'I dare say you are by this time sensible that things are pretty muchthe same, as when Buchanan complained of being born _solo et seculoinerudito_. Let me hear of you, and be persuaded that none of youradmirers is more sincerely devoted to you, than, Dear Sir, Your most obedient, And most humble servant, 'ELIBANK. '

Dr. Johnson, on the following Tuesday, answered for both of us, thus:--

'My LORD, 'On the rugged shore of Skie, I had the honour of yourLordship's letter, and can with great truth declare, that no place is sogloomy but that it would be cheered by such a testimony of regard, froma mind so well qualified to estimate characters, and to deal outapprobation in its due proportions. If I have more than my share, it isyour Lordship's fault; for I have always reverenced your judgment toomuch, to exalt myself in your presence by any false pretensions. 

'Mr. Boswell and I are at present at the disposal of the winds, andtherefore cannot fix the time at which we shall have the honour ofseeing your lordship. But we should either of us think ourselves injuredby the supposition that we would miss your lordship's conversation, whenwe could enjoy it; for I have often declared that I never met youwithout going away a wiser man. [534]

 'I am, my Lord, Your Lordship's most obedient And most humble servant, Skie, Sept. 14, 1773. ' 'SAM. JOHNSON. '

At Portree, Mr. Donald McQueen went to church and officiated in Erse, and then came to dinner. Dr. Johnson and I resolved that we should treatthe company, so I played the landlord, or master of the feast, havingpreviously ordered Joseph to pay the bill. 

Sir James Macdonald intended to have built a village here, which wouldhave done great good. A village is like a heart to a country. Itproduces a perpetual circulation, and gives the people an opportunity tomake profit of many little articles, which would otherwise be in a goodmeasure lost. We had here a dinner, _et praeterea nihil_. Dr. Johnsondid not talk. When we were about to depart, we found that Rasay had beenbeforehand with us, and that all was paid: I would fain have contestedthis matter with him, but seeing him resolved, I declined it. We partedwith cordial embraces from him and worthy Malcolm. In the evening Dr. Johnson and I remounted our horses, accompanied by Mr. McQueen and Dr. Macleod. It rained very hard. We rode what they call six miles, uponRasay's lands in Sky, to Dr. Macleod's house. On the road Dr. Johnsonappeared to be somewhat out of spirits. When I talked of our meetingLord Elibank, he said, 'I cannot be with him much. I long to be again incivilized life; but can stay but a short while;' (he meant atEdinburgh. ) He said, 'let us go to Dunvegan to-morrow. ' 'Yes, (said I, )if it is not a deluge. ' 'At any rate, ' he replied. This shewed a kind offretful impatience; nor was it to be wondered at, considering ourdisagreeable ride. I feared he would give up Mull and Icolmkill, for hesaid something of his apprehensions of being detained by bad weather ingoing to Mull and _Iona_. However I hoped well. We had a dish of tea atDr. Macleod's, who had a pretty good house, where was his brother, ahalf-pay officer. His lady was a polite, agreeable woman. Dr. Johnsonsaid, he was glad to see that he was so well married, for he had anesteem for physicians. [535] The doctor accompanied us to Kingsburgh, which is called a mile farther; but the computation of Sky has noconnection whatever with real distance. [536] I was highly pleased tosee Dr. Johnson safely arrived at Kingsburgh, and received by thehospitable Mr. Macdonald, who, with a most respectful attention, supported him into the house. Kingsburgh was completely the figure of agallant Highlander, --exhibiting 'the graceful mien and manlylooks[537], ' which our popular Scotch song has justly attributed to thatcharacter. He had his Tartan plaid thrown about him, a large blue bonnetwith a knot of black ribband like a cockade, a brown short coat of akind of duffil, a Tartan waistcoat with gold buttons and goldbutton-holes, a bluish philibeg, and Tartan hose. He had jet black hairtied behind, and was a large stately man, with a steady sensiblecountenance. 

There was a comfortable parlour with a good fire, and a dram went round. By and by supper was served, at which there appeared the lady of thehouse, the celebrated Miss Flora Macdonald. She is a little woman, of agenteel appearance, and uncommonly mild and well-bred[538]. To see Dr. Samuel Johnson, the great champion of the English Tories, salute MissFlora Macdonald in the isle of Sky, was a striking sight; for thoughsomewhat congenial in their notions, it was very improbable they shouldmeet here. 

Miss Flora Macdonald (for so I shall call her) told me, she heard uponthe main land, as she was returning home about a fortnight before, thatMr. Boswell was coming to Sky, and one Mr. Johnson, a young Englishbuck[539], with him. He was highly entertained with this fancy. Givingan account of the afternoon which we passed, at _Anock_, he said, 'I, being a _buck_, had miss[540] in to make tea. ' He was rather quiescentto-night, and went early to bed. I was in a cordial humour, and promoteda cheerful glass. The punch was excellent. Honest Mr. M'Queen observedthat I was in high glee, 'my _governour_[541] being gone to bed. ' Yet inreality my heart was grieved, when I recollected that Kingsburgh wasembarrassed in his affairs, and intended to go to America[542]. However, nothing but what was good was present, and I pleased myself in thinkingthat so spirited a man would be well every where. I slept in the sameroom with Dr. Johnson. Each had a neat bed, with Tartan curtains, in anupper chamber. 

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 13. 

The room where we lay was a celebrated one. Dr. Johnson's bed was thevery bed in which the grandson of the unfortunate King James theSecond[543] lay, on one of the nights after the failure of his rashattempt in 1745-6, while he was eluding the pursuit of the emissaries ofgovernment, which had offered thirty thousand pounds as a reward forapprehending him. To see Dr. Samuel Johnson lying in that bed, in theisle of Sky, in the house of Miss Flora Macdonald, struck me with such agroup of ideas as it is not easy for words to describe, as they passedthrough the mind. He smiled, and said, 'I have had no ambitious thoughtsin it[544]. ' The room was decorated with a great variety of maps andprints. Among others, was Hogarth's print of Wilkes grinning, with a capof liberty on a pole by him. That too was a curious circumstance in thescene this morning; such a contrast was Wilkes to the above groupe. Itreminded me of Sir William Chambers's _Account of OrientalGardening_[545], in which we are told all odd, strange, ugly, and eventerrible objects, are introduced for the sake of variety; a wildextravagance of taste which is so well ridiculed in the celebratedEpistle to him[546]. The following lines of that poem immediatelyoccurred to me;

 'Here too, O king of vengeance! in thy fane, Tremendous Wilkes shall rattle his gold chain[547]. '

Upon the table in our room I found in the morning a slip of paper, onwhich Dr. Johnson had written with his pencil these words, 'Quantum cedat virtutibus aurum[548]. '

What he meant by writing them I could not tell[549]. He had caught colda day or two ago, and the rain yesterday having made it worse, he wasbecome very deaf. At breakfast he said, he would have given a good dealrather than not have lain in that bed. I owned he was the lucky man; andobserved, that without doubt it had been contrived between Mrs. Macdonald and him. She seemed to acquiesce; adding, 'You know young_bucks_ are always favourites of the ladies. ' He spoke of Prince Charlesbeing here, and asked Mrs. Macdonald, '_Who_ was with him? We were told, madam, in England, there was one Miss Flora Macdonald with him. ' Shesaid, 'they were very right;' and perceiving Dr. Johnson's curiosity, though he had delicacy enough not to question her, very obliginglyentertained him with a recital of the particulars which she herself knewof that escape, which does so much honour to the humanity, fidelity, andgenerosity of the Highlanders. Dr. Johnson listened to her with placidattention, and said, 'All this should be written down. '

From what she told us, and from what I was told by others personallyconcerned, and from a paper of information which Rasay was so good as tosend me, at my desire, I have compiled the following abstract, which, asit contains some curious anecdotes, will, I imagine, not beuninteresting to my readers, and even, perhaps, be of some use to futurehistorians. 

 * * * * *

Prince Charles Edward, after the battle of Culloden, was conveyed towhat is called the _Long Island_, where he lay for some time concealed. But intelligence having been obtained where he was, and a number oftroops having come in quest of him, it became absolutely necessary forhim to quit that country without delay. Miss Flora Macdonald, then ayoung lady, animated by what she thought the sacred principle ofloyalty, offered, with the magnanimity of a Heroine, to accompany him inan open boat to Sky, though the coast they were to quit was guarded byships. He dressed himself in women's clothes, and passed as her supposedmaid, by the name of Betty Bourke, an Irish girl. They got offundiscovered, though several shots were fired to bring them to, andlanded at Mugstot, the seat of Sir Alexander Macdonald. Sir Alexanderwas then at Fort Augustus, with the Duke of Cumberland; but his lady wasat home. Prince Charles took his post upon a hill near the house. FloraMacdonald waited on lady Margaret[550], and acquainted her of theenterprise in which she was engaged. Her ladyship, whose activebenevolence was ever seconded by superior talents, shewed a perfectpresence of mind, and readiness of invention, and at once settled thatPrince Charles should be conducted to old Rasay, who was himselfconcealed with some select friends. The plan was instantly communicatedto Kingsburgh, who was dispatched to the hill to inform the Wanderer, and carry him refreshments. When Kingsburgh approached, he started up, and advanced, holding a large knotted stick, and in appearance ready toknock him down, till he said, 'I am Macdonald of Kingsburgh, come toserve your highness. ' The Wanderer answered, 'It is well, ' and wassatisfied with the plan. 

Flora Macdonald dined with Lady Margaret, at whose table there sat anofficer of the army, stationed here with a party of soldiers, to watchfor Prince Charles in case of his flying to the isle of Sky. Sheafterwards often laughed in good-humour with this gentleman, on herhaving so well deceived him. After dinner, Flora Macdonald onhorseback, and her supposed maid, and Kingsburgh, with a servantcarrying some linen, all on foot, proceeded towards that gentleman'shouse. Upon the road was a small rivulet which they were obliged tocross. The Wanderer, forgetting his assumed sex, that his clothes mightnot be wet, held them up a great deal too high. Kingsburgh mentionedthis to him, observing, it might make a discovery. He said, he would bemore careful for the future. He was as good as his word; for the nextbrook they crossed, he did not hold up his clothes at all, but let themfloat upon the water. He was very awkward in his female dress. His sizewas so large, and his strides so great, that some women whom they metreported that they had seen a very big woman, who looked like a man inwoman's clothes, and that perhaps it was (as they expressed themselves)the _Prince_, after whom so much search was making. 

At Kingsburgh he met with a most cordial reception; seemed gay atsupper, and after it indulged himself in a cheerful glass with hisworthy host. As he had not had his clothes off for a long time, thecomfort of a good bed was highly relished by him, and he slept soundlytill next day at one o'clock. 

The mistress of Corrichatachin told me, that in the forenoon she wentinto her father's room, who was also in bed, and suggested to him herapprehensions that a party of the military might come up, and that hisguest and he had better not remain here too long. Her father said, 'Letthe poor man repose himself after his fatigues; and as for me, I carenot, though they take off this old grey head ten or eleven years soonerthan I should die in the course of nature. ' He then wrapped himself inthe bed-clothes, and again fell fast asleep. 

On the afternoon of that day, the Wanderer, still in the same dress, setout for Portree, with Flora Macdonald and a man servant. His shoes beingvery bad, Kingsburgh provided him with a new pair, and taking up the oldones, said, 'I will faithfully keep them till you are safely settled atSt. James's. I will then introduce myself by shaking them at you, to putyou in mind of your night's entertainment and protection under my roof. 'He smiled, and said, 'Be as good as your word!' Kingsburgh kept theshoes as long as he lived. After his death, a zealous Jacobite gentlemangave twenty guineas for them. Old Mrs. Macdonald, after her guest hadleft the house, took the sheets in which he had lain, folded themcarefully, and charged her daughter that they should be kept unwashed, and that, when she died, her body should be wrapped in them as a windingsheet. Her will was religiously observed. 

Upon the road to Portree, Prince Charles changed his dress, and put onman's clothes again; a tartan short coat and waistcoat, with philibegand short hose, a plaid, and a wig and bonnet. 

Mr. Donald M'Donald, called Donald Roy, had been sent express to thepresent Rasay, then the young laird, who was at that time at hissister's house, about three miles from Portree, attending his brother, Dr. Macleod, who was recovering of a wound he had received at the battleof Culloden. Mr. M'Donald communicated to young Rasay the plan ofconveying the Wanderer to where old Rasay was; but was told that oldRasay had fled to Knoidart, a part of Glengary's estate. There was thena dilemma what should be done. Donald Roy proposed that he shouldconduct the Wanderer to the main land; but young Rasay thought it toodangerous at that time, and said it would be better to conceal him inthe island of Rasay, till old Rasay could be informed where he was, andgive his advice what was best. But the difficulty was, how to get him toRasay. They could not trust a Portree crew, and all the Rasay boats hadbeen destroyed, or carried off by the military, except two belonging toMalcolm M'Leod, which he had concealed somewhere. 

Dr. Macleod being informed of this difficulty, said he would risk hislife once more for Prince Charles; and it having occurred, that therewas a little boat upon a fresh-water lake in the neighbourhood, youngRasay and Dr. Macleod, with the help of some women, brought it to thesea, by extraordinary exertion, across a Highland mile of land, one halfof which was bog, and the other a steep precipice. 

These gallant brothers, with the assistance of one little boy, rowed thesmall boat to Rasay, where they were to endeavour to find CaptainM'Leod, as Malcolm was then called, and get one of his good boats, withwhich they might return to Portree, and receive the Wanderer; or, incase of not finding him, they were to make the small boat serve, thoughthe danger was considerable. 

Fortunately, on their first landing, they found their cousin Malcolm, who, with the utmost alacrity, got ready one of his boats, with twostrong men, John M'Kenzie, and Donald M'Friar. Malcolm, being the oldestman, and most cautious, said, that as young Rasay had not hithertoappeared in the unfortunate business, he ought not to run any risk; butthat Dr. Macleod and himself, who were already publickly engaged, shouldgo on this expedition. Young Rasay answered, with an oath, that he wouldgo, at the risk of his life and fortune. 'In GOD'S name then (saidMalcolm) let us proceed. ' The two boatmen, however, now stopped short, till they should be informed of their destination; and M'Kenzie declaredhe would not move an oar till he knew where they were going. Upon whichthey were both sworn to secrecy; and the business being imparted tothem, they were eager to put off to sea without loss of time. The boatsoon landed about half a mile from the inn at Portree. 

All this was negotiated before the Wanderer got forward to Portree. Malcolm M'Leod and M'Friar were dispatched to look for him. In a shorttime he appeared, and went into the publick house. Here Donald Roy, whomhe had seen at Mugstot, received him, and informed him of what had beenconcerted. He wanted silver for a guinea, but the landlord had onlythirteen shillings. He was going to accept of this for his guinea; butDonald Roy very judiciously observed, that it would discover him to besome great man; so he desisted. He slipped out of the house, leaving hisfair protectress, whom he never again saw; and Malcolm Macleod waspresented to him by Donald Roy, as a captain in his army. Young Rasayand Dr. Macleod had waited, in impatient anxiety, in the boat. When hecame, their names were announced to him. He would not permit the usualceremonies of respect, but saluted them as his equals. 

Donald Roy staid in Sky, to be in readiness to get intelligence, andgive an alarm in case the troops should discover the retreat to Rasay;and Prince Charles was then conveyed in a boat to that island in thenight. He slept a little upon the passage, and they landed aboutday-break. There was some difficulty in accommodating him with alodging, as almost all the houses in the island had been burnt by thesoldiery. They repaired to a little hut, which some shepherds had latelybuilt, and having prepared it as well as they could, and made a bed ofheath for the stranger, they kindled a fire, and partook of someprovisions which had been sent with him from Kingsburgh. It wasobserved, that he would not taste wheat-bread, or brandy, whileoat-bread and whisky lasted; 'for these, said he, are my own countrybread and drink. '--This was very engaging to the Highlanders. 

Young Rasay being the only person of the company that durst appear withsafety, he went in quest of something fresh for them to eat: but thoughhe was amidst his own cows, sheep, and goats, he could not venture totake any of them for fear of a discovery, but was obliged to supplyhimself by stealth. He therefore caught a kid, and brought it to the hutin his plaid, and it was killed and drest, and furnished them a mealwhich they relished much. The distressed Wanderer, whose health was nowa good deal impaired by hunger, fatigue, and watching, slept a longtime, but seemed to be frequently disturbed. Malcolm told me he wouldstart from broken slumbers, and speak to himself in different languages, French, Italian, and English. I must however acknowledge, that it ishighly probable that my worthy friend Malcolm did not know precisely thedifference between French and Italian. One of his expressions in Englishwas, 'O GOD! poor Scotland!'

While they were in the hut, M'Kenzie and M'Friar, the two boatmen, wereplaced as sentinels upon different eminences; and one day an incidenthappened, which must not be omitted. There was a man wandering about theisland, selling tobacco. Nobody knew him, and he was suspected to be aspy. M'Kenzie came running to the hut, and told that this suspectedperson was approaching. Upon which the three gentlemen, young Rasay, Dr. Macleod, and Malcolm, held a council of war upon him, and wereunanimously of opinion that he should instantly be put to death. PrinceCharles, at once assuming a grave and even severe countenance, said, 'God forbid that we should take away a man's life, who may be innocent, while we can preserve our own. ' The gentlemen however persisted in theirresolution, while he as strenuously continued to take the merciful side. John M'Kenzie, who sat watching at the door of the hut, and overheardthe debate, said in Erse, 'Well, well; he must be shot. You are theking, but we are the parliament, and will do what we choose. ' PrinceCharles, seeing the gentlemen smile, asked what the man had said, andbeing told it in English, he observed that he was a clever fellow, and, notwithstanding the perilous situation in which he was, laughed loud andheartily. Luckily the unknown person did not perceive that there werepeople in the hut, at least did not come to it, but walked on past it, unknowing of his risk. It was afterwards found out that he was one ofthe Highland army, who was himself in danger. Had he come to them, theywere resolved to dispatch him; for, as Malcolm said to me, 'We could notkeep him with us, and we durst not let him go. In such a situation, Iwould have shot my brother, if I had not been sure of him. ' JohnM'Kenzie was at Rasay's house when we were there[551]. About eighteenyears before, he hurt one of his legs when dancing, and being obliged tohave it cut off, he now was going about with a wooden leg. The story ofhis being a _member of parliament_ is not yet forgotten. I took him outa little way from the house, gave him a shilling to drink Rasay'shealth, and led him into a detail of the particulars which I have justrelated. With less foundation, some writers have traced the idea of aparliament, and of the British constitution, in rude and early times. Iwas curious to know if he had really heard, or understood, any thing ofthat subject, which, had he been a greater man, would probably have beeneagerly maintained. 'Why, John, (said I, ) did you think the king shouldbe controuled by a parliament?' He answered, 'I thought, Sir, there weremany voices against one. '

The conversation then turning on the times, the Wanderer said, that, tobe sure, the life he had led of late was a very hard one; but he wouldrather live in the way he now did, for ten years, than fall into thehands of his enemies. The gentlemen asked him, what he thought hisenemies would do with him, should he have the misfortune to fall intotheir hands. He said, he did not believe they would dare to take hislife publickly, but he dreaded being privately destroyed by poison orassassination. He was very particular in his inquiries about the woundwhich Dr. Macleod had received at the battle of Culloden, from a ballwhich entered at one shoulder, and went cross to the other. The doctorhappened still to have on the coat which he wore on that occasion. Hementioned, that he himself had his horse shot under him at Culloden;that the ball hit the horse about two inches from his knee, and made himso unruly that he was obliged to change him for another. He threw outsome reflections on the conduct of the disastrous affair at Culloden, saying, however, that perhaps it was rash in him to do so. I am nowconvinced that his suspicions were groundless; for I have had a gooddeal of conversation upon the subject with my very worthy and ingeniousfriend, Mr. Andrew Lumisden, who was under secretary to Prince Charles, and afterwards principal secretary to his father at Rome, who, heassured me, was perfectly satisfied both of the abilities and honour ofthe generals who commanded the Highland army on that occasion. Mr. Lumisden has written an account of the three battles in 1745-6, at onceaccurate and classical[552]. Talking of the different Highland corps, the gentlemen who were present wished to have his opinion which were thebest soldiers. He said, he did not like comparisons among those corps:they were all best. 

He told his conductors, he did not think it advisable to remain long inany one place; and that he expected a French ship to come for him toLochbroom, among the Mackenzies. It then was proposed to carry him inone of Malcolm's boats to Lochbroom, though the distance was fifteenleagues coastwise. But he thought this would be too dangerous, anddesired that, at any rate, they might first endeavour to obtainintelligence. Upon which young Rasay wrote to his friend, Mr. M'Kenzieof Applecross, but received an answer, that there was no appearance ofany French ship. It was therefore resolved that they should return toSky, which they did, and landed in Strath, where they reposed in acow-house belonging to Mr. Niccolson of Scorbreck. The sea was veryrough, and the boat took in a good deal of water. The Wanderer asked ifthere was danger, as he was not used to such a vessel. Upon being toldthere was not, he sung an Erse song with much vivacity. He had by thistime acquired a good deal of the Erse language. 

Young Rasay was now dispatched to where Donald Roy was, that they mightget all the intelligence they could; and the Wanderer, with muchearnestness, charged Dr. Macleod to have a boat ready, at a certainplace about seven miles off, as he said he intended it should carry himupon a matter of great consequence; and gave the doctor a case, containing a silver spoon, knife, and fork, saying, 'keep you that tillI see you, ' which the doctor understood to be two days from that time. But all these orders were only blinds; for he had another plan in hishead, but wisely thought it safest to trust his secrets to no morepersons than was absolutely necessary. Having then desired Malcolm towalk with him a little way from the house, he soon opened his mind, saying, 'I deliver myself to you. Conduct me to the Laird of M'Kinnon'scountry. ' Malcolm objected that it was very dangerous, as so manyparties of soldiers were in motion. He answered, 'There is nothing nowto be done without danger. ' He then said, that Malcolm must be themaster, and he the servant; so he took the bag, in which his linen wasput up, and carried it on his shoulder; and observing that hiswaistcoat, which was of scarlet tartan, with a gold twist button, wasfiner than Malcolm's, which was of a plain ordinary tartan, he put onMalcolm's waistcoat, and gave him his; remarking at the same time, thatit did not look well that the servant should be better dressed thanthe master. 

Malcolm, though an excellent walker, found himself excelled by PrinceCharles, who told him, he should not much mind the parties that werelooking for him, were he once but a musket shot from them; but that hewas somewhat afraid of the Highlanders who were against him. He was wellused to walking in Italy, in pursuit of game; and he was even now sokeen a sportsman, that, having observed some partridges, he was goingto take a shot: but Malcolm cautioned him against it, observing that thefiring might be heard by the tenders[553] who were hovering uponthe coast. 

As they proceeded through the mountains, taking many a circuit to avoidany houses, Malcolm, to try his resolution, asked him what they shoulddo, should they fall in with a party of soldiers: he answered, 'Fight, to be sure!' Having asked Malcolm if he should be known in his presentdress, and Malcolm having replied he would, he said, 'Then I'll blackenmy face with powder. ' 'That, said Malcolm, would discover you at once. ''Then, said he, I must be put in the greatest dishabille possible. ' Sohe pulled off his wig, tied a handkerchief round his head, and put hisnight-cap over it, tore the ruffles from his shirt, took the buckles outof his shoes, and made Malcolm fasten them with strings; but stillMalcolm thought he would be known. 'I have so odd a face, (said he) thatno man ever saw me but he would know me again[554]. '

He seemed unwilling to give credit to the horrid narrative of men beingmassacred in cold blood, after victory had declared for the armycommanded by the Duke of Cumberland. He could not allow himself to thinkthat a general could be so barbarous[555]. When they came within twomiles of M'Kinnon's house, Malcolm asked if he chose to see the laird. 'No, (said he) by no means. I know M'Kinnon to be as good and as honesta man as any in the world, but he is not fit for my purpose at present. You must conduct me to some other house; but let it be a gentleman'shouse. ' Malcolm then determined that they should go to the house of hisbrother-in-law, Mr. John M'Kinnon, and from thence be conveyed to themain land of Scotland, and claim the assistance of Macdonald ofScothouse. The Wanderer at first objected to this, because Scothouse wascousin to a person of whom he had suspicions. But he acquiesced inMalcolm's opinion. 

When they were near Mr. John M'Kinnon's house, they met a man of thename of Ross, who had been a private soldier in the Highland army. Hefixed his eyes steadily on the Wanderer in his disguise, and having atonce recognized him, he clapped his hands, and exclaimed, 'Alas! is thisthe case?' Finding that there was now a discovery, Malcolm asked 'What'sto be done?' 'Swear him to secrecy, ' answered Prince Charles. Upon whichMalcolm drew his dirk, and on the naked blade, made him take a solemnoath, that he would say nothing of his having seen the Wanderer, tillhis escape should be made publick. 

Malcolm's sister, whose house they reached pretty early in the morning, asked him who the person was that was along with him. He said it was oneLewis Caw, from Crieff, who being a fugitive like himself, for the samereason, he had engaged him as his servant, but that he had fallen sick. 'Poor man! (said she) I pity him. At the same time my heart warms to aman of his appearance. ' Her husband was gone a little way from home; butwas expected every minute to return. She set down to her brother aplentiful Highland breakfast. Prince Charles acted the servant verywell, sitting at a respectful distance, with his bonnet off. Malcolmthen said to him, 'Mr. Caw, you have as much need of this as I have;there is enough for us both: you had better draw nearer and share withme. ' Upon which he rose, made a profound bow, sat down at table with hissupposed master, and eat very heartily. After this there came in an oldwoman, who, after the mode of ancient hospitality, brought warm water, and washed Malcolm's feet. He desired her to wash the feet of the poorman who attended him. She at first seemed averse to this, from pride, asthinking him beneath her, and in the periphrastick language of theHighlanders and the Irish, said warmly, 'Though I washed your father'sson's feet, why should I wash his father's son's feet?' She was howeverpersuaded to do it. 

They then went to bed, and slept for some time; and when Malcolm awaked, he was told that Mr. John M'Kinnon, his brother-in-law, was in sight. Hesprang out to talk to him before he should see Prince Charles. Aftersaluting him, Malcolm, pointing to the sea, said, 'What, John, if theprince should be prisoner on board one of those tenders?' 'GOD forbid!'replied John. 'What if we had him here?' said Malcolm. 'I wish we had, 'answered John; 'we should take care of him. ' 'Well, John, ' said Malcolm, 'he is in your house. ' John, in a transport of joy, wanted to rundirectly in, and pay his obeisance; but Malcolm stopped him, saying, 'Now is your time to behave well, and do nothing that can discover him. 'John composed himself, and having sent away all his servants upondifferent errands, he was introduced into the presence of his guest, andwas then desired to go and get ready a boat lying near his house, which, though but a small leaky one, they resolved to take, rather than go tothe Laird of M'Kinnon. John M'Kinnon, however, thought otherwise; andupon his return told them, that his Chief and lady M'Kinnon were comingin the laird's boat. Prince Charles said to his trusty Malcolm, 'I amsorry for this, but must make the best of it. ' M'Kinnon then walked upfrom the shore, and did homage to the Wanderer. His lady waited in acave, to which they all repaired, and were entertained with cold meatand wine. Mr. Malcolm M'Leod being now superseded by the Laird ofM'Kinnon, desired leave to return, which was granted him, and PrinceCharles wrote a short note, which he subscribed _James Thompson_, informing his friends that he had got away from Sky, and thanking themfor their kindness; and he desired this might be speedily conveyed toyoung Rasay and Dr. Macleod, that they might not wait longer inexpectation of seeing him again. He bade a cordial adieu to Malcolm, andinsisted on his accepting of a silver stock-buckle, and ten guineas fromhis purse, though, as Malcolm told me, it did not appear to containabove forty. Malcolm at first begged to be excused, saying, that he hada few guineas at his service; but Prince Charles answered, 'You willhave need of money. I shall get enough when I come upon the main land. '

The Laird of M'Kinnon then conveyed him to the opposite coast ofKnoidart. Old Rasay, to whom intelligence had been sent, was crossing atthe same time to Sky; but as they did not know of each other, and eachhad apprehensions, the two boats kept aloof. 

These are the particulars which I have collected concerning theextraordinary concealment and escapes of Prince Charles, in theHebrides. He was often in imminent danger. [556] The troops traced himfrom the Long Island, across Sky, to Portree, but there lost him. 

Here I stop, --having received no farther authentick information of hisfatigues and perils before he escaped to France. Kings and subjects mayboth take a lesson of moderation from the melancholy fate of the Houseof Stuart; that Kings may not suffer degradation and exile, and subjectsmay not be harassed by the evils of a disputed succession. 

Let me close the scene on that unfortunate House with the elegant andpathetick reflections of _Voltaire_, in his _Histoire Générale_:--

'Que les hommes privés (says that brilliant writer, speaking of PrinceCharles) qui se croyent malheureux, jettent les yeux sur ce prince etses ancêtres. '[557] In another place he thus sums up the sad story ofthe family in general:--

'Il n'y a aucun exemple dans l'histoire d'une maison si longtemsinfortunée. Le premier des Rois d'Écosse, [ses aïeux] qui eut le nom de_Jacques_, après avoir été dix-huit ans prisonnier en Angleterre, mourutassassiné, avec sa femme, par la main de ses sujets. _Jacques_ II, sonfils, fut tué à vingt-neuf ans en combattant contre les Anglois. _Jacques_ III, mis en prison par son peuple, fut tué ensuite par lesrévoltés, dans une bataille. _Jacques_ IV, périt dans un combat qu'ilperdit. _Marie Stuart_, sa petite-fille, chassée de son trône, fugitiveen Angleterre, ayant langui dix-huit ans en prison, se vit condamnée àmort par des juges Anglais, et eut la tête tranchée. _Charles_ Ier, petit-fils de _Marie_, Roi d'Écosse et d'Angleterre, vendu par lesÉcossois, et jugé à mort par les Anglais, mourut sur un échafaud dans laplace publique. _Jacques_, son fils, septième du nom, et deuxième enAngleterre, fut chassé de ses trois royaumes; et pour comble de malheuron contesta à son fils [jusqu'à] sa naissance. Ce fils ne tenta deremonter sur le trône de ses pères, que pour faire périr ses amis pardes bourreaux; et nous avons vu le Prince _Charles Édouard_, réunissanten vain les vertus de ses pères[558] et le courage du Roi _JeanSobieski_, son aïeul maternel, exécuter les exploits et essuyer lesmalheurs les plus incroyables. Si quelque chose justifie ceux quicroient une fatalité à laquelle rien ne peut se soustraire, c'est cettesuite continuelle de malheurs qui a persécuté la maison de _Stuart_, pendant plus de trois cents années. '[559]

The gallant Malcolm was apprehended in about ten days after theyseparated, put aboard a ship and carried prisoner to London. He said, the prisoners in general were very ill treated in their passage; butthere were soldiers on board who lived well, and sometimes invited himto share with them: that he had the good fortune not to be thrown intojail, but was confined in the house of a messenger, of the name of Dick. To his astonishment, only one witness could be found against him, thoughhe had been so openly engaged; and therefore, for want of sufficientevidence, he was set at liberty. He added, that he thought himself insuch danger, that he would gladly have compounded for banishment[560]. Yet, he said, 'he should never be so ready for death as he thenwas[561]. ' There is philosophical truth in this. A man will meet deathmuch more firmly at one time than another. The enthusiasm even of amistaken principle warms the mind, and sets it above the fear of death;which in our cooler moments, if we really think of it, cannot but beterrible, or at least very awful. 

Miss Flora Macdonald being then also in London, under the protection ofLady Primrose[562], that lady provided a post-chaise to convey her toScotland, and desired she might choose any friend she pleased toaccompany her. She chose Malcolm. 'So (said he, with a triumphant air) Iwent to London to be hanged, and returned in a post-chaise with MissFlora Macdonald. '

Mr. Macleod of Muiravenside, whom we saw at Rasay, assured us thatPrince Charles was in London in 1759[563], and that there was then aplan in agitation for restoring his family. Dr. Johnson could scarcelycredit this story, and said, there could be no probable plan at thattime. Such an attempt could not have succeeded, unless the King ofPrussia had stopped the army in Germany; for both the army and the fleetwould, even without orders, have fought for the King, to whom they hadengaged themselves. 

Having related so many particulars concerning the grandson of theunfortunate King James the Second; having given due praise to fidelityand generous attachment, which, however erroneous the judgment may be, are honourable for the heart; I must do the Highlanders the justice toattest, that I found every where amongst them a high opinion of thevirtues of the King now upon the throne, and an honest disposition to befaithful subjects to his majesty, whose family has possessed thesovereignty of this country so long, that a change, even for theabdicated family, would now hurt the best feelings of all his subjects. 

The _abstract_ point of _right_ would involve us in a discussion ofremote and perplexed questions; and after all, we should have no clearprinciple of decision. That establishment, which, from politicalnecessity, took place in 1688, by a breach in the succession of ourkings, and which, whatever benefits may have accrued from it, certainlygave a shock to our monarchy, [564]--the able and constitutionalBlackstone wisely rests on the solid footing of authority. 'Ourancestors having most indisputably a competent jurisdiction to decidethis great and important question, and having, in fact, decided it, itis now become our duty, at this distance of time, to acquiesce in theirdetermination. [565]'

Mr. Paley, the present Archdeacon of Carlisle, in his _Principles ofMoral and Political Philosophy_, having, with much clearness ofargument, shewn the duty of submission to civil government to be foundedneither on an indefeasible _jus divinum_, nor on _compact_, but on_expediency_, lays down this rational position:--

'Irregularity in the first foundation of a state, or subsequentviolence, fraud, or injustice, in getting possession of the supremepower, are not sufficient reasons for resistance, after the governmentis once peaceably settled. No subject of the _British_ empire conceiveshimself engaged to vindicate the justice of the _Norman_ claim orconquest, or apprehends that his duty in any manner depends upon thatcontroversy. So likewise, if the house of _Lancaster_, or even theposterity of _Cromwell_, had been at this day seated upon the throne of_England_, we should have been as little concerned to enquire how thefounder of the family came there[566]. ' In conformity with thisdoctrine, I myself, though fully persuaded that the House of _Stuart_had originally no right to the crown of _Scotland_; for that _Baliol_, and not _Bruce_, was the lawful heir; should yet have thought it veryculpable to have rebelled, on that account, against Charles the First, or even a prince of that house much nearer the time, in order to assertthe claim of the posterity of Baliol. 

However convinced I am of the justice of that principle, which holdsallegiance and protection to be reciprocal, I do however acknowledge, that I am not satisfied with the cold sentiment which would confine theexertions of the subject within the strict line of duty. I would haveevery breast animated with the _fervour_ of loyalty[567]; with thatgenerous attachment which delights in doing somewhat more than isrequired, and makes 'service perfect freedom[568]. ' And, therefore, asour most gracious Sovereign, on his accession to the throne, gloried inbeing _born a Briton_[569]; so, in my more private sphere, _Ego me nunc_denique natum, _gratulor_[570]. I am happy that a disputed succession nolonger distracts our minds; and that a monarchy, established by law, isnow so sanctioned by time, that we can fully indulge those feelings ofloyalty which I am ambitious to excite. They are feelings which haveever actuated the inhabitants of the Highlands and the Hebrides. Theplant of loyalty is there in full vigour, and the Brunswick graft nowflourishes like a native shoot. To that spirited race of people I maywith propriety apply the elegant lines of a modern poet, on the 'faciletemper of the beauteous sex[571]:'--

 'Like birds new-caught, who flutter for a time, And struggle with captivity in vain; But by-and-by they rest, they smooth their plumes, And to _new masters_ sing their former notes[572]. '

Surely such notes are much better than the querulous growlings ofsuspicious Whigs and discontented Republicans. 

 * * * * *

Kingsburgh conducted us in his boat across one of the lochs, as theycall them, or arms of the sea, which flow in upon all the coasts ofSky, --to a mile beyond a place called _Grishinish_. Our horses had beensent round by land to meet us. By this sail we saved eight miles of badriding. Dr. Johnson said, 'When we take into computation what we havesaved, and what we have gained, by this agreeable sail, it is a greatdeal. ' He observed, 'it is very disagreeable riding in Sky. The way isso narrow, one only at a time can travel, so it is quite unsocial; andyou cannot indulge in meditation by yourself, because you must be alwaysattending to the steps which your horse takes. ' This was a just andclear description of its inconveniences. 

The topick of emigration being again introduced[573], Dr. Johnson said, that 'a rapacious chief would make a wilderness of his estate. ' Mr. Donald M'Queen told us, that the oppression, which then made so muchnoise, was owing to landlords listening to bad advice in the letting oftheir lands; that interested and designed[574] people flattered themwith golden dreams of much higher rents than could reasonably be paid:and that some of the gentlemen _tacksmen_[575], or upper tenants, werethemselves in part the occasion of the mischief, by over-rating thefarms of others. That many of the _tacksmen_, rather than comply withexorbitant demands, had gone off to America, and impoverished thecountry, by draining it of its wealth; and that their places were filledby a number of poor people, who had lived under them, properly speaking, as servants, paid by a certain proportion of the produce of the lands, though called sub-tenants. I observed, that if the men of substance wereonce banished from a Highland estate, it might probably be greatlyreduced in its value; for one bad year might ruin a set of poor tenants, and men of any property would not settle in such a country, unless fromthe temptation of getting land extremely cheap; for an inhabitant of anygood county in Britain, had better go to America than to the Highlandsor the Hebrides. Here, therefore, was a consideration that ought toinduce a Chief to act a more liberal part, from a mere motive ofinterest, independent of the lofty and honourable principle of keeping aclan together, to be in readiness to serve his king. I added, that Icould not help thinking a little arbitrary power in the sovereign, tocontrol the bad policy and greediness of the Chiefs, might sometimes beof service. In France a Chief would not be permitted to force a numberof the king's subjects out of the country. Dr. Johnson concurred withme, observing, that 'were an oppressive chieftain a subject of theFrench king, he would probably be admonished by a _letter_. [576]'

During our sail, Dr. Johnson asked about the use of the dirk, with whichhe imagined the Highlanders cut their meat. He was told, they had aknife and fork besides, to eat with. He asked, how did the women do? andwas answered, some of them had a knife and fork too; but in general themen, when they had cut their meat, handed their knives and forks to thewomen, and they themselves eat with their fingers. The old tutor ofMacdonald always eat fish with his fingers, alledging that a knife andfork gave it a bad taste. I took the liberty to observe to Dr. Johnson, that he did so. 'Yes, said he; but it is because I am short-sighted, andafraid of bones, for which reason I am not fond of eating many kinds offish, because I must use my fingers. '

Dr. M'Pherson's _Dissertations on Scottish Antiquities_, which he hadlooked at when at Corrichatachin[577], being mentioned, he remarked, that 'you might read half an hour, and ask yourself what you had beenreading: there were so many words to so little matter, that there was nogetting through the book. '

As soon as we reached the shore, we took leave of Kingsburgh, andmounted our horses. We passed through a wild moor, in many places sosoft that we were obliged to walk, which was very fatiguing to Dr. Johnson. Once he had advanced on horseback to a very bad step. Therewas a steep declivity on his left, to which he was so near, that therewas not room for him to dismount in the usual way. He tried to alight onthe other side, as if he had been a _young buck_ indeed, but in theattempt he fell at his length upon the ground; from which, however, hegot up immediately without being hurt. During this dreary ride, we weresometimes relieved by a view of branches of the sea, that universalmedium of connection amongst mankind. A guide, who had been sent with usfrom Kingsburgh, explored the way (much in the same manner as, Isuppose, is pursued in the wilds of America, ) by observing certain marksknown only to the inhabitants. We arrived at Dunvegan late in theafternoon. The great size of the castle, which is partly old and partlynew, and is built upon a rock close to the sea, while the land around itpresents nothing but wild, moorish, hilly, and craggy appearances, gavea rude magnificence to the scene. Having dismounted, we ascended aflight of steps, which was made by the late Macleod, for theaccommodation of persons coming to him by land, there formerly being, for security, no other access to the castle but from the sea; so thatvisitors who came by the land were under the necessity of getting into aboat, and sailed round to the only place where it could be approached. We were introduced into a stately dining-room, and received by LadyMacleod, mother of the laird, who, with his friend Talisker, having beendetained on the road, did not arrive till some time after us. 

We found the lady of the house a very polite and sensible woman, who hadlived for some time in London, and had there been in Dr. Johnson'scompany. After we had dined, we repaired to the drawing-room, where someof the young ladies of the family, with their mother, were at tea[578]. This room had formerly been the bed-chamber of Sir Roderick Macleod, oneof the old Lairds; and he chose it, because, behind it, there was aconsiderable cascade[579], the sound of which disposed him to sleep. Above his bed was this inscription: 'Sir Rorie M'Leod of Dunvegan, Knight. GOD send good rest!' Rorie is the contraction of Roderick. Hewas called Rorie _More_, that is, great Rorie, not from his size, butfrom his spirit. Our entertainment here was in so elegant a style, andreminded my fellow-traveller so much of England, that he became quitejoyous. He laughed, and said, 'Boswell, we came in at the wrong end ofthis island. ' 'Sir, (said I, ) it was best to keep this for the last. ' Heanswered, 'I would have it both first and last. '

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 14. 

Dr. Johnson said in the morning, 'Is not this a fine lady[580]?' Therewas not a word now of his 'impatience to be in civilizedlife[581];--though indeed I should beg pardon, --he found it here. We hadslept well, and lain long. After breakfast we surveyed the castle, andthe garden. Mr. Bethune, the parish minister, --Magnus M'Leod, ofClaggan, brother to Talisker, and M'Leod of Bay, two substantialgentlemen of the clan, dined with us. We had admirable venison, generouswine; in a word, all that a good table has. This was really the hall ofa chief. Lady M'Leod had been much obliged to my father, who had settledby arbitration a variety of perplexed claims between her and herrelation, the Laird of Brodie, which she now repaid by particularattention to me. M'Leod started the subject of making women do penancein the church for fornication. JOHNSON. 'It is right, Sir. Infamy isattached to the crime, by universal opinion, as soon as it is known. Iwould not be the man who would discover it, if I alone knew it, for awoman may reform; nor would I commend a parson who divulges a woman'sfirst offence; but being once divulged, it ought to be infamous. Consider, of what importance to society the chastity of women is. Uponthat all the property in the world depends[582]. We hang a thief forstealing a sheep; but the unchastity of a woman transfers sheep, andfarm and all, from the right owner. I have much more reverence for acommon prostitute than for a woman who conceals her guilt. Theprostitute is known. She cannot deceive: she cannot bring a strumpetinto the arms of an honest man, without his knowledge. BOSWELL. 'Thereis, however, a great difference between the licentiousness of a singlewoman, and that of a married woman. ' JOHNSON. 'Yes, Sir; there is agreat difference between stealing a shilling, and stealing a thousandpounds; between simply taking a man's purse, and murdering him first, and then taking it. But when one begins to be vicious, it is easy to goon. Where single women are licentious, you rarely find faithful marriedwomen. ' BOSWELL. 'And yet we are told that in some nations in India, thedistinction is strictly observed. ' JOHNSON. 'Nay, don't give us India. That puts me in mind of Montesquieu, who is really a fellow of geniustoo in many respects; whenever he wants to support a strange opinion, hequotes you the practice of Japan or of some other distant country ofwhich he knows nothing. To support polygamy, he tells you of the islandof Formosa, where there are ten women born for one man[583]. He had butto suppose another island, where there are ten men born for one woman, and so make a marriage between them. [584]' At supper, Lady Macleodmentioned Dr. Cadogan's book on the gout[585]. JOHNSON. 'It is a goodbook in general, but a foolish one in particulars. It is good ingeneral, as recommending temperance and exercise, and cheerfulness. Inthat respect it is only Dr. Cheyne's book told in a new way; and thereshould come out such a book every thirty years, dressed in the mode ofthe times. It is foolish, in maintaining that the gout is nothereditary, and that one fit of it, when gone, is like a fever whengone. ' Lady Macleod objected that the author does not practise what heteaches[586]. JOHNSON. 'I cannot help that, madam. That does not makehis book the worse. People are influenced more by what a man says, ifhis practice is suitable to it, --because they are blockheads. The moreintellectual people are, the readier will they attend to what a mantells them. If it is just, they will follow it, be his practice what itwill. No man practises so well as he writes. I have, all my life long, been lying till noon[587]; yet I tell all young men, and tell them withgreat sincerity, that nobody who does not rise early will ever do anygood. Only consider! You read a book; you are convinced by it; you donot know the authour. Suppose you afterwards know him, and find that hedoes not practise what he teaches; are you to give up your formerconviction? At this rate you would be kept in a state of equilibrium, when reading every book, till you knew how the authour practised. [588]''But, ' said Lady M'Leod, 'you would think better of Dr. Cadogan, if heacted according to his principles. ' JOHNSON. 'Why, Madam, to be sure, aman who acts in the face of light, is worse than a man who does not knowso much; yet I think no man should be the worse thought of forpublishing good principles. There is something noble in publishingtruth, though it condemns one's self. [589]' I expressed some surprize atCadogan's recommending good humour, as if it were quite in our own powerto attain it. JOHNSON. 'Why, Sir, a man grows better humoured as hegrows older. He improves by experience. When young, he thinks himself ofgreat consequence, and every thing of importance. As he advances inlife, he learns to think himself of no consequence, and little things oflittle importance; and so he becomes more patient, and better pleased. All good-humour and complaisance are acquired. Naturally a child seizesdirectly what it sees, and thinks of pleasing itself only. By degrees, it is taught to please others, and to prefer others; and that this willultimately produce the greatest happiness. If a man is not convinced ofthat, he never will practise it. Common language speaks the truth as tothis: we say, a person is well _bred_. As it is said, that all materialmotion is primarily in a right line, and is never _per circuitum_, neverin another form, unless by some particular cause; so it may be saidintellectual motion is. ' Lady M'Leod asked, if no man was naturallygood? JOHNSON. 'No, Madam, no more than a wolf. ' BOSWELL. 'Nor no woman, Sir?' JOHNSON. 'No, Sir. [590]' Lady M'Leod started at this, saying, in alow voice, 'This is worse than Swift. '

M'Leod of Ulinish had come in the afternoon. We were a jovial company atsupper. The Laird, surrounded by so many of his clan, was to me apleasing sight. They listened with wonder and pleasure, while Dr. Johnson harangued. I am vexed that I cannot take down his full strain ofeloquence. 

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 15. 

The gentlemen of the clan went away early in the morning to the harbourof Lochbradale, to take leave of some of their friends who were going toAmerica. It was a very wet day. We looked at Rorie More's horn, which isa large cow's horn, with the mouth of it ornamented with silvercuriously carved. It holds rather more than a bottle and a half. EveryLaird of M'Leod, it is said, must, as a proof of his manhood, drink itoff full of claret, without laying it down. From Rorie More many of thebranches of the family are descended; in particular, the Taliskerbranch; so that his name is much talked of. We also saw his bow, whichhardly any man now can bend, and his _Glaymore>_, which was wielded withboth hands, and is of a prodigious size. We saw here some old pieces ofiron armour, immensely heavy. The broadsword now used, though called the_Glaymore, (i. E. _ the _great sword_) is much smaller than that used inRorie More's time. There is hardly a target now to be found in theHighlands. After the disarming act[591], they made them serve as coversto their butter-milk barrels; a kind of change, like beating spears intopruning-hooks[592]. 

Sir George Mackenzie's Works (the folio edition) happened to lie in awindow in the dining room. I asked Dr. Johnson to look at the_Characteres Advocatorum_. He allowed him power of mind, and that heunderstood very well what he tells[593]; but said, that there was toomuch declamation, and that the Latin was not correct. He found faultwith _appropinquabant_[594], in the character of Gilmour. I tried himwith the opposition between _gloria_ and _palma_, in the comparisonbetween Gilmour and Nisbet, which Lord Hailes, in his _Catalogue of theLords of Session_, thinks difficult to be understood. The words are, _'penes illum gloria, penes hunc palma_[595]. ' In a short _Account ofthe Kirk of Scotland_, which I published some years ago, I applied thesewords to the two contending parties, and explained them thus: 'Thepopular party has most eloquence; Dr. Robertson's party most influence. 'I was very desirous to hear Dr. Johnson's explication. JOHNSON. 'I seeno difficulty. Gilmour was admired for his parts; Nisbet carried hiscause by his skill in law. _Palma_ is victory. ' I observed, that thecharacter of Nicholson, in this book resembled that of Burke: for it issaid, in one place, _'in omnes lusos & jocos se saepe resolvebat_[596];'and, in another, _'sed accipitris more e conspectu aliquando astantiumsublimi se protrahens volatu, in praedam miro impetu descendebat[597]'. _JOHNSON. 'No, Sir; I never heard Burke make a good joke in mylife[598]. ' BOSWELL. 'But, Sir, you will allow he is a hawk. ' Dr. Johnson, thinking that I meant this of his joking, said, 'No, Sir, he isnot the hawk there. He is the beetle in the mire[599]. ' I still adheredto my metaphor, --'But he _soars_ as the hawk. ' JOHNSON. 'Yes, Sir; buthe catches nothing. ' M'Leod asked, what is the particular excellence ofBurke's eloquence? JOHNSON. 'Copiousness and fertility of allusion; apower of diversifying his matter, by placing it in various relations. Burke has great information, and great command of language; though, inmy opinion, it has not in every respect the highest elegance. ' BOSWELL. 'Do you think, Sir, that Burke has read Cicero much?' JOHNSON. 'I don'tbelieve it, Sir. Burke has great knowledge, great fluency of words, andgreat promptness of ideas, so that he can speak with great illustrationon any subject that comes before him. He is neither like Cicero, norlike Demosthenes[600], nor like any one else, but speaks as well ashe can. '

In the 65th page of the first volume of Sir George Mackenzie, Dr. Johnson pointed out a paragraph beginning with _Aristotle_, and told methere was an error in the text, which he bade me try to discover. I waslucky enough to hit it at once. As the passage is printed, it is saidthat the devil answers _even_ in _engines_. I corrected it to--_ever_ in_oenigmas_. 'Sir, (said he, ) you are a good critick. This would havebeen a great thing to do in the text of an ancient authour. '

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 16. 

Last night much care was taken of Dr. Johnson, who was still distressedby his cold. He had hitherto most strangely slept without a night-cap. Miss M'Leod made him a large flannel one, and he was prevailed with todrink a little brandy when he was going to bed. He has great virtue innot drinking wine or any fermented liquor, because, as he acknowledgedto us, he could not do it in moderation[601]. Lady M'Leod would hardlybelieve him, and said, 'I am sure, Sir, you would not carry it too far. 'JOHNSON. 'Nay, madam, it carried me. I took the opportunity of a longillness to leave it off. It was then prescribed to me not to drink wine;and, having broken off the habit, I have never returned to it[602]. '

In the argument on Tuesday night, about natural goodness, Dr. Johnsondenied that any child was better than another, but by difference ofinstruction; though, in consequence of greater attention being paid toinstruction by one child than another, and of a variety of imperceptiblecauses, such as instruction being counteracted by servants, a notion wasconceived, that of two children, equally well educated, one wasnaturally much worse than another. He owned, this morning, that onemight have a greater aptitude to learn than another, and that weinherit dispositions from our parents[603]. 'I inherited, (said he, ) avile melancholy from my father, which has made me mad all my life, atleast not sober[604]. ' Lady M'Leod wondered he should tell this. 'Madam, (said I, ) he knows that with that madness he is superior to other men. '

I have often been astonished with what exactness and perspicuity he willexplain the process of any art. He this morning explained to us all theoperation of coining, and, at night, all the operation of brewing, sovery clearly, that Mr. M'Queen said, when he heard the first, he thoughthe had been bred in the Mint; when he heard the second, that he had beenbred a brewer. 

I was elated by the thought of having been able to entice such a man tothis remote part of the world. A ludicrous, yet just image presenteditself to my mind, which I expressed to the company. I compared myselfto a dog who has got hold of a large piece of meat, and runs away withit to a corner, where he may devour it in peace, without any fear ofothers taking it from him. 'In London, Reynolds, Beauclerk, and all ofthem, are contending who shall enjoy Dr. Johnson's conversation. We arefeasting upon it, undisturbed, at Dunvegan. '

It was still a storm of wind and rain. Dr. Johnson however walked outwith M'Leod, and saw Rorie More's cascade in full perfection. ColonelM'Leod, instead of being all life and gaiety, as I have seen him, was atpresent grave, and somewhat depressed by his anxious concern aboutM'Leod's affairs, and by finding some gentlemen of the clan by no meansdisposed to act a generous or affectionate part to their Chief in hisdistress, but bargaining with him as with a stranger. However, he wasagreeable and polite, and Dr. Johnson said, he was a very pleasing man. My fellow-traveller and I talked of going to Sweden[605]; and, while wewere settling our plan, I expressed a pleasure in the prospect of seeingthe king. JOHNSON. 'I doubt, Sir, if he would speak to us. ' ColonelM'Leod said, 'I am sure Mr. Boswell would speak to _him_. ' But, seeingme a little disconcerted by his remark, he politely added, 'and withgreat propriety. ' Here let me offer a short defence of that propensityin my disposition, to which this gentleman alluded. It has procured memuch happiness. I hope it does not deserve so hard a name as eitherforwardness or impudence. If I know myself, it is nothing more than aneagerness to share the society of men distinguished either by their rankor their talents, and a diligence to attain what I desire[606]. If a manis praised for seeking knowledge, though mountains and seas are in hisway, may he not be pardoned, whose ardour, in the pursuit of the sameobject, leads him to encounter difficulties as great, though of adifferent kind?

After the ladies were gone from table, we talked of the Highlanders nothaving sheets; and this led us to consider the advantage of wearinglinen. JOHNSON. 'All animal substances are less cleanly than vegetable. Wool, of which flannel is made, is an animal substance; flanneltherefore is not so cleanly as linen. I remember I used to think tardirty; but when I knew it to be only a preparation of the juice of thepine, I thought so no longer. It is not disagreeable to have the gumthat oozes from a plum-tree upon your fingers, because it is vegetable;but if you have any candle-grease, any tallow upon your fingers, you areuneasy till you rub it off. I have often thought, that if I kept aseraglio, the ladies should all wear linen gowns, --or cotton; I meanstuffs made of vegetable substances. I would have no silk; you cannottell when it is clean: It will be very nasty before it is perceived tobe so. Linen detects its own dirtiness. '

To hear the grave Dr. Samuel Johnson, 'that majestick teacher of moraland religious wisdom, ' while sitting solemn in an armchair in the Isleof Sky, talk, _ex cathedra_, of his keeping a seraglio[607], andacknowledge that the supposition had _often_ been in his thoughts, struck me so forcibly with ludicrous contrast, that I could not butlaugh immoderately. He was too proud to submit, even for a moment, to bethe object of ridicule, and instantly retaliated with such keensarcastick wit, and such a variety of degrading images, of every one ofwhich I was the object, that, though I can bear such attacks as well asmost men, I yet found myself so much the sport of all the company, thatI would gladly expunge from my mind every trace of this severe retort. 

Talking of our friend Langton's house in Lincolnshire, he said, 'the oldhouse of the family was burnt. A temporary building was erected in itsroom; and to this day they have been always adding as the familyincreased. It is like a shirt made for a man when he was a child, andenlarged always as he grows older. '

We talked to-night of Luther's allowing the Landgrave of Hesse twowives, and that it was with the consent of the wife to whom he was firstmarried. JOHNSON. 'There was no harm in this, so far as she was onlyconcerned, because _volenti non fit injuria_. But it was an offenceagainst the general order of society, and against the law of the Gospel, by which one man and one woman are to be united. No man can have twowives, but by preventing somebody else from having one. '

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 17. 

After dinner yesterday, we had a conversation upon cunning. M'Leod saidthat he was not afraid of cunning people; but would let them play theirtricks about him like monkeys. 'But, (said I, ) they'll scratch;' and Mr. M'Queen added, 'they'll invent new tricks, as soon as you find out whatthey do. ' JOHNSON. 'Cunning has effect from the credulity of others, rather than from the abilities of those who are cunning. It requires noextraordinary talents to lie and deceive[608]. ' This led us to considerwhether it did not require great abilities to be very wicked. JOHNSON. 'It requires great abilities to have the _power_ of being very wicked;but not to _be_ very wicked. A man who has the power, which greatabilities procure him, may use it well or ill; and it requires moreabilities to use it well, than to use it ill. Wickedness is alwayseasier than virtue; for it takes the short cut to every thing. It ismuch easier to steal a hundred pounds, than to get it by labour, or anyother way. Consider only what act of wickedness requires great abilitiesto commit it, when once the person who is to do it has the power; for_there_ is the distinction. It requires great abilities to conquer anarmy, but none to massacre it after it is conquered. '

The weather this day was rather better than any that we had since wecame to Dunvegan. Mr. M'Queen had often mentioned a curious piece ofantiquity near this, which he called a temple of the Goddess ANAITIS. Having often talked of going to see it, he and I set out afterbreakfast, attended by his servant, a fellow quite like a savage. I mustobserve here, that in Sky there seems to be much idleness; for men andboys follow you, as colts follow passengers upon a road. The usualfigure of a Sky-boy, is a _lown_ with bare legs and feet, a dirty_kilt_, ragged coat and waistcoat, a bare head, and a stick in his hand, which, I suppose, is partly to help the lazy rogue to walk, partly toserve as a kind of a defensive weapon. We walked what is called twomiles, but is probably four, from the castle, till we came to the sacredplace. The country around is a black dreary moor on all sides, except tothe sea-coast, towards which there is a view through a valley; and thefarm of _Bay_ shews some good land. The place itself is green ground, being well drained by means of a deep glen on each side, in both ofwhich there runs a rivulet with a good quantity of water, formingseveral cascades, which make a considerable appearance and sound. Thefirst thing we came to was an earthen mound, or dyke, extending from theone precipice to the other. A little farther on was a strong stone-wall, not high, but very thick, extending in the same manner. On the outsideof it were the ruins of two houses, one on each side of the entry orgate to it. The wall is built all along of uncemented stones, but of solarge a size as to make a very firm and durable rampart. It has beenbuilt all about the consecrated ground, except where the precipice issteep enough to form an inclosure of itself. The sacred spot containsmore than two acres. There are within it the ruins of many houses, noneof them large, --a _cairn_, --and many graves marked by clusters ofstones. Mr. M'Queen insisted that the ruin of a small building, standingeast and west, was actually the temple of the Goddess ANAITIS, where herstatue was kept, and from whence processions were made to wash it in oneof the brooks. There is, it must be owned, a hollow road, visible for agood way from the entrance; but Mr. M'Queen, with the keen eye of anantiquary, traced it much farther than I could perceive it. There is notabove a foot and a half in height of the walls now remaining; and thewhole extent of the building was never, I imagine, greater than anordinary Highland house. Mr. M'Queen has collected a great deal oflearning on the subject of the temple of ANAITIS; and I had endeavoured, in my _Journal_, to state such particulars as might give some idea ofit, and of the surrounding scenery; but from the great difficulty ofdescribing visible objects[609], I found my account so unsatisfactory, that my readers would probably have exclaimed

 'And write about it, _Goddess_, and about it[610];'

and therefore I have omitted it. 

When we got home, and were again at table with Dr. Johnson, we firsttalked of portraits. He agreed in thinking them valuable in families. Iwished to know which he preferred, fine portraits, or those of which themerit was resemblance. JOHNSON. 'Sir, their chief excellence is beinglike. ' BOSWELL. 'Are you of that opinion as to the portraits ofancestors, whom one has never seen?' JOHNSON. 'It then becomes of moreconsequence that they should be like; and I would have them in the dressof the times, which makes a piece of history. One should like to see how_Rorie More_ looked. Truth, Sir, is of the greatest value in thesethings[611]. ' Mr. M'Queen observed, that if you think it of noconsequence whether portraits are like, if they are but well painted, you may be indifferent whether a piece of history is true or not, ifwell told. 

Dr. Johnson said at breakfast to-day, 'that it was but of late thathistorians bestowed pains and attention in consulting records, to attainto accuracy[1]. Bacon, in writing his history of Henry VII, does notseem to have consulted any, but to have just taken what he found inother histories, and blended it with what he learnt by tradition. ' Heagreed with me that there should be a chronicle kept in everyconsiderable family, to preserve the characters and transactions ofsuccessive generations. 

After dinner I started the subject of the temple of ANAITIS. Mr. M'Queenhad laid stress on the name given to the place by the countrypeople, --_Ainnit_; and added, 'I knew not what to make of this piece ofantiquity, till I met with the _Anaitidis delubrum_ in Lydia, mentionedby Pausanias and the elder Pliny. ' Dr. Johnson, with his usualacuteness, examined Mr. M'Queen as to the meaning of the word _Ainnit_, in Erse; and it proved to be a _water-place_, or a place near water, 'which, ' said Mr. M'Queen, 'agrees with all the descriptions of thetemples of that goddess, which were situated near rivers, that theremight be water to wash the statue. ' JOHNSON. 'Nay, Sir, the argumentfrom the name is gone. The name is exhausted by what we see. We have nooccasion to go to a distance for what we can pick up under our feet. Hadit been an accidental name, the similarity between it and Anaitis mighthave had something in it; but it turns out to be a mere physiologicalname. ' Macleod said, Mr. M'Queen's knowledge of etymology had destroyedhis conjecture. JOHNSON. 'Yes, Sir; Mr. M'Queen is like the eaglementioned by Waller, who was shot with an arrow feather'd from his ownwing[612]. ' Mr. M'Queen would not, however, give up his conjecture. JOHNSON. 'You have one possibility for you, and all possibilitiesagainst you. It is possible it may be the temple of Anaitis. But it isalso possible that it may be a fortification; or it may be a place ofChristian worship, as the first Christians often chose remote and wildplaces, to make an impression on the mind; or, if it was a heathentemple, it may have been built near a river, for the purpose oflustration; and there is such a multitude of divinities, to whom it mayhave been dedicated, that the chance of its being a temple of _Anaitis_is hardly any thing. It is like throwing a grain of sand upon thesea-shore to-day, and thinking you may find it to-morrow. No, Sir, thistemple, like many an ill-built edifice, tumbles down before it is roofedin. ' In his triumph over the reverend antiquarian, he indulged himselfin a _conceit_; for, some vestige of the _altar_ of the goddess beingmuch insisted on in support of the hypothesis, he said, 'Mr. M'Queen isfighting _pro_ aris _et focis'_. 

It was wonderful how well time passed in a remote castle, and in drearyweather. After supper, we talked of Pennant. It was objected that he wassuperficial. Dr. Johnson defended him warmly[613]. He said, 'Pennant hasgreater variety of enquiry than almost any man, and has told us morethan perhaps one in ten thousand could have done, in the time that hetook. He has not said what he was to tell; so you cannot find fault withhim, for what he has not told. If a man comes to look for fishes, youcannot blame him if he does not attend to fowls. ' 'But, ' said ColonelM'Leod, 'he mentions the unreasonable rise of rents in the Highlands, and says, "the gentlemen are for emptying the bag, without fillingit[614];" for that is the phrase he uses. Why does he not tell how tofill it?' JOHNSON. 'Sir, there is no end of negative criticism. He tellswhat he observes, and as much as he chooses. If he tells what is nottrue, you may find fault with him; but, though he tells that the land isnot well cultivated, he is not obliged to tell how it may be wellcultivated. If I tell that many of the Highlanders go bare-footed, I amnot obliged to tell how they may get shoes. Pennant tells a fact. Heneed go no farther, except he pleases. He exhausts nothing; and nosubject whatever has yet been exhausted. But Pennant has surely told agreat deal. Here is a man six feet high, and you are angry because he isnot seven. ' Notwithstanding this eloquent _Oratio pro Pennantio_, whichthey who have read this gentleman's _Tours_, and recollect the _Savage_and the _Shopkeeper_ at _Monboddo_[615], will probably impute to thespirit of contradiction, I still think that he had better have givenmore attention to fewer things, than have thrown together such a numberof imperfect accounts. 

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 18. 

Before breakfast, Dr. Johnson came up to my room to forbid me to mentionthat this was his birthday; but I told him I had done it already; atwhich he was displeased[616]; I suppose from wishing to have nothingparticular done on his account. Lady M'Leod and I got into a warmdispute. She wanted to build a house upon a farm which she has taken, about five miles from the castle, and to make gardens and otherornaments there; all of which I approved of; but insisted that the seatof the family should always be upon the rock of Dunvegan. JOHNSON. 'Ay, in time we'll build all round this rock. You may make a very good houseat the farm; but it must not be such as to tempt the Laird of M'Leod togo thither to reside. Most of the great families in England have asecondary residence, which is called a jointure-house: let the new housebe of that kind. ' The lady insisted that the rock was very inconvenient;that there was no place near it where a good garden could be made; thatit must always be a rude place; that it was a _Herculean_ labour to makea dinner here. I was vexed to find the alloy of modern refinement in alady who had so much old family spirit. 'Madam, (said I, ) if once youquit this rock, there is no knowing where you may settle. You move fivemiles first;--then to St. Andrews, as the late Laird did;--then toEdinburgh;--and so on till you end at Hampstead, or in France. No, no;keep to the rock: it is the very jewel of the estate. It looks as if ithad been let down from heaven by the four corners, to be the residenceof a Chief. Have all the comforts and conveniences of life upon it, butnever leave Rorie More's cascade. ' 'But, (said she, ) is it not enough ifwe keep it? Must we never have more convenience than Rorie More had? hehad his beef brought to dinner in one basket, and his bread in another. Why not as well be Rorie More all over, as live upon his rock? Andshould not we tire, in looking perpetually on this rock? It is very wellfor you, who have a fine place, and every thing easy, to talk thus, andthink of chaining honest folks to a rock. You would not live upon ityourself. ' 'Yes, Madam, (said I, ) I would live upon it, were I Laird ofM'Leod, and should be unhappy if I were not upon it. ' JOHNSON. (with astrong voice, and most determined manner), 'Madam, rather than quit theold rock, Boswell would live in the pit; he would make his bed in thedungeon. ' I felt a degree of elation, at finding my resolute feudalenthusiasm thus confirmed by such a sanction. The lady was puzzled alittle. She still returned to her pretty farm, --rich ground, --finegarden. 'Madam, (said Dr. Johnson, ) were they in Asia, I would not leavethe rock. ' My opinion on this subject is still the same. An ancientfamily residence ought to be a primary object; and though the situationof Dunvegan be such that little can be done here in gardening, orpleasure-ground, yet, in addition to the veneration required by thelapse of time, it has many circumstances of natural grandeur, suited tothe seat of a Highland Chief: it has the sea--islands--rocks, --hills, --a noble cascade; and when the family is again in opulence, somethingmay be done by art. Mr. Donald M'Queen went away to-day, in order topreach at Bracadale next day. We were so comfortably situated atDunvegan, that Dr. Johnson could hardly be moved from it. I proposed tohim that we should leave it on Monday. 'No, Sir, (said he, ) I will notgo before Wednesday. I will have some more of this good[617]. ' However, as the weather was at this season so bad, and so very uncertain, and wehad a great deal to do yet, Mr. M'Queen and I prevailed with him toagree to set out on Monday, if the day should be good. Mr. M'Queen, though it was inconvenient for him to be absent from his harvest, engaged to wait on Monday at Ulinish for us. When he was going away, Dr. Johnson said, 'I shall ever retain a great regard for you[618];' thenasked him if he had _The Rambler_. Mr. M'Queen said, 'No; but my brotherhas it. ' JOHNSON. 'Have you _The Idler_? M'QUEEN. 'No, Sir. ' JOHNSON. 'Then I will order one for you at Edinburgh, which you will keep inremembrance of me. ' Mr. M'Queen was much pleased with this. He expressedto me, in the strongest terms, his admiration of Dr. Johnson's wonderfulknowledge, and every other quality for which he is distinguished. Iasked Mr. M'Queen, if he was satisfied with being a minister in Sky. Hesaid he was; but he owned that his forefathers having been so longthere, and his having been born there, made a chief ingredient informing his contentment. I should have mentioned that on our left hand, between Portree and Dr. Macleod's house, Mr. M'Queen told me there hadbeen a college of the Knights Templars; that tradition said so; and thatthere was a ruin remaining of their church, which had been burnt: but Iconfess Dr. Johnson has weakened my belief in remote tradition. In thedispute about _Anaitis_, Mr. M'Queen said, Asia Minor was peopled byScythians, and, as they were the ancestors of the Celts, the samereligion might be in Asia Minor and Sky. JOHNSON. 'Alas! Sir, what can anation that has not letters tell of its original. I have alwaysdifficulty to be patient when I hear authours gravely quoted, as givingaccounts of savage nations, which accounts they had from the savagesthemselves. What can the _M'Craas_[619] tell about themselves a thousandyears ago? There is no tracing the connection of ancient nations, but bylanguage; and therefore I am always sorry when any language is lost, because languages are the pedigree of nations[620]. If you find the samelanguage in distant countries, you may be sure that the inhabitants ofeach have been the same people; that is to say, if you find thelanguages a good deal the same; for a word here and there being thesame, will not do. Thus Butler, in his _Hudibras_, remembering that_Penguin_, in the Straits of Magellan, signifies a bird with a whitehead, and that the same word has, in Wales, the signification of awhite-headed wench, (_pen_ head, and _guin_ white, ) by way of ridicule, concludes that the people of those Straits are Welsh[621]. '

A young gentleman of the name of M'Lean, nephew to the Laird of the isleof Muck, came this morning; and, just as we sat down to dinner, came theLaird of the isle, of Muck himself, his lady, sister to Talisker, twoother ladies their relations, and a daughter of the late M'Leod ofHamer, who wrote a treatise on the second sight, under the designationof THEOPHILUS INSULANUS[622]. It was somewhat droll to hear this Lairdcalled by his title. _Muck_ would have sounded ill; so he was called_Isle of Muck_, which went off with great readiness. The name, as nowwritten, is unseemly, but it is not so bad in the original Erse, whichis _Mouach_, signifying the Sows' Island. Buchanan calls it INSULAPORCORUM. It is so called from its form. Some call it Isle of _Monk_. The Laird insists that this is the proper name. It was formerlychurch-land belonging to Icolmkill, and a hermit lived in it. It is twomiles long, and about three quarters of a mile broad. The Laird said, hehad seven score of souls upon it. Last year he had eighty personsinoculated, mostly children, but some of them eighteen years of age. Heagreed with the surgeon to come and do it, at half a crown a head. It isvery fertile in corn, of which they export some; and its coasts aboundin fish. A taylor comes there six times in a year. They get a goodblacksmith from the isle of Egg. 

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 19. 

It was rather worse weather than any that we had yet. At breakfast Dr. Johnson said, 'Some cunning men choose fools for their wives, thinkingto manage them, but they always fail. There is a spaniel fool and a mulefool. The spaniel fool may be made to do by beating. The mule fool willneither do by words or blows; and the spaniel fool often turns mule atlast: and suppose a fool to be made do pretty well, you must have thecontinual trouble of making her do. Depend upon it, no woman is theworse for sense and knowledge. [623]' Whether afterwards he meant merelyto say a polite thing, or to give his opinion, I could not be sure; buthe added, 'Men know that women are an over-match for them, and thereforethey choose the weakest or most ignorant. If they did not think so, theynever could be afraid of women knowing as much as themselves. '[624] Injustice to the sex, I think it but candid to acknowledge, that, in asubsequent conversation, he told me that he was serious in what hehad said. 

He came to my room this morning before breakfast, to read my Journal, which he has done all along. He often before said, 'I take great delightin reading it. ' To-day he said, 'You improve: it grows better andbetter. ' I observed, there was a danger of my getting a habit of writingin a slovenly manner. 'Sir, ' said he, 'it is not written in a slovenlymanner. It might be printed, were the subject fit for printing[625]. 'While Mr. Beaton preached to us in the dining-room, Dr. Johnson sat inhis own room, where I saw lying before him a volume of Lord Bacon'sworks, _The Decay of Christian Piety_, Monboddo's _Origin of Language_, and Sterne's _Sermons_[626]. He asked me to-day how it happened that wewere so little together: I told him, my Journal took up much time. Yet, on reflection, it appeared strange to me, that although I will run fromone end of London to another to pass an hour with him, I should omit toseize any spare time to be in his company, when I am settled in the samehouse with him. But my Journal is really a task of much time and labour, and he forbids me to contract it. 

I omitted to mention, in its place, that Dr. Johnson told Mr. M'Queenthat he had found the belief of the second sight universal in Sky, except among the clergy, who seemed determined against it. I took theliberty to observe to Mr. M'Queen, that the clergy were actuated by akind of vanity. 'The world, (say they, ) takes us to be credulous men ina remote corner. We'll shew them that we are more enlightened than theythink. ' The worthy man said, that his disbelief of it was from his notfinding sufficient evidence; but I could perceive that he was prejudicedagainst it[627]. 

After dinner to-day, we talked of the extraordinary fact of LadyGrange's being sent to St. Kilda, and confined there for several years, without any means of relief[628]. Dr. Johnson said, if M'Leod would letit be known that he had such a place for naughty ladies, he might makeit a very profitable island. We had, in the course of our tour, heard ofSt. Kilda poetry. Dr. Johnson observed, 'it must be very poor, becausethey have very few images. ' BOSWELL. 'There may be a poetical geniusshewn in combining these, and in making poetry of them. ' JOHNSON. 'Sir, a man cannot make fire but in proportion as he has fuel. He cannot coinguineas but in proportion as he has gold. ' At tea he talked of hisintending to go to Italy in 1775. M'Leod said, he would like Parisbetter. JOHNSON. 'No, Sir; there are none of the French literati nowalive, to visit whom I would cross a sea. I can find in Buffon's bookall that he can say[629]. '

After supper he said, 'I am sorry that prize-fighting is gone out[630];every art should be preserved, and the art of defence is surelyimportant. It is absurd that our soldiers should have swords, and not betaught the use of them. Prize-fighting made people accustomed not to bealarmed at seeing their own blood, or feeling a little pain from awound. I think the heavy _glaymore_ was an ill-contrived weapon. A mancould only strike once with it. It employed both his hands, and he mustof course be soon fatigued with wielding it; so that if his antagonistcould only keep playing a while, he was sure of him. I would fight witha dirk against Rorie More's sword. I could ward off a blow with a dirk, and then run in upon my enemy. When within that heavy sword, I have him;he is quite helpless, and I could stab him at my leisure, like a calf. It is thought by sensible military men, that the English do not enoughavail themselves of their superior strength of body against the French;for that must always have a great advantage in pushing with bayonets. Ihave heard an officer say, that if women could be made to stand, theywould do as well as men in a mere interchange of bullets from adistance: but, if a body of men should come close up to them, then to besure they must be overcome; now, (said he, ) in the same manner theweaker-bodied French must be overcome by our strong soldiers. '

The subject of duelling was introduced[631] JOHNSON. 'There is no casein England where one or other of the combatants _must_ die: if you haveovercome your adversary by disarming him, that is sufficient, though youshould not kill him; your honour, or the honour of your family, isrestored, as much as it can be by a duel. It is cowardly to force yourantagonist to renew the combat, when you know that you have theadvantage of him by superior skill. You might just as well go and cuthis throat while he is asleep in his bed. When a duel begins, it issupposed there may be an equality; because it is not always skill thatprevails. It depends much on presence of mind; nay on accidents. Thewind may be in a man's face. He may fall. Many such things may decidethe superiority. A man is sufficiently punished, by being called out, and subjected to the risk that is in a duel. ' But on my suggesting thatthe injured person is equally subjected to risk, he fairly owned hecould not explain the rationality of duelling. 

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 20. 

When I awaked, the storm was higher still. It abated about nine, and thesun shone; but it rained again very soon, and it was not a day fortravelling. At breakfast, Dr. Johnson told us, 'there was once a prettygood tavern in Catherine-street in the Strand, where very good companymet in an evening, and each man called for his own half-pint of wine, orgill, if he pleased; they were frugal men, and nobody paid but for whathe himself drank. The house furnished no supper; but a woman attendedwith mutton-pies, which any body might purchase. I was introduced tothis company by Cumming the Quaker[632], and used to go there sometimeswhen I drank wine. In the last age, when my mother lived in London, there were two sets of people, those who gave the wall, and those whotook it; the peaceable and the quarrelsome. When I returned toLichfield, after having been in London, my mother asked me whether I wasone of those who gave the wall, or those who took it. Now, it is fixedthat every man keeps to the right; or, if one is taking the wall, another yields it, and it is never a dispute[633]. ' He was very severeon a lady, whose name was mentioned. He said, he would have sent her toSt. Kilda. That she was as bad as negative badness could be, and stoodin the way of what was good: that insipid beauty would not go a greatway; and that such a woman might be cut out of a cabbage, if there was askilful artificer. 

M'Leod was too late in coming to breakfast. Dr. Johnson said, lazinesswas worse than the tooth-ach. BOSWELL. 'I cannot agree with you, Sir; abason of cold water or a horse whip will cure laziness. ' JOHNSON. 'No, Sir, it will only put off the fit; it will not cure the disease. I havebeen trying to cure my laziness all my life, and could not do it. 'BOSWELL. 'But if a man does in a shorter time what might be the labourof a life, there is nothing to be said against him. ' JOHNSON (perceivingat once that I alluded to him and his _Dictionary_). 'Suppose thatflattery to be true, the consequence would be, that the world would haveno right to censure a man; but that will not justify him tohimself[634]. '

After breakfast, he said to me, 'A Highland Chief should now endeavourto do every thing to raise his rents, by means of the industry of hispeople. Formerly, it was right for him to have his house full of idlefellows; they were his defenders, his servants, his dependants, hisfriends. Now they may be better employed. The system of things is now somuch altered, that the family cannot have influence but by riches, because it has no longer the power of ancient feudal times. Anindividual of a family may have it; but it cannot now belong to afamily, unless you could have a perpetuity of men with the same views. M'Leod has four times the land that the Duke of Bedford has. I think, with his spirit, he may in time make himself the greatest man in theKing's dominions; for land may always be improved to a certain degree. Iwould never have any man sell land, to throw money into the funds, as isoften done, or to try any other species of trade. Depend upon it, thisrage of trade will destroy itself. You and I shall not see it; but thetime will come when there will be an end of it. Trade is like gaming. Ifa whole company are gamesters, play must cease; for there is nothing tobe won. When all nations are traders, there is nothing to be gained bytrade[635], and it will stop first where it is brought to the greatestperfection. Then the proprietors of land only will be the great men. ' Iobserved, it was hard that M'Leod should find ingratitude in so many ofhis people. JOHNSON. 'Sir, gratitude is a fruit of great cultivation;you do not find it among gross people. ' I doubt of this. Nature seems tohave implanted gratitude in all living creatures[636]. The lion, mentioned by Aulus Gellius, had it[637]. It appears to me that culture, which brings luxury and selfishness with it, has a tendency rather toweaken than promote this affection. 

Dr. Johnson said this morning, when talking of our setting out, that hewas in the state in which Lord Bacon represents kings. He desired theend, but did not like the means[638]. He wished much to get home, butwas unwilling to travel in Sky. 'You are like kings too in this, Sir, (said I, ) that you must act under the direction of others. '

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 21. 

The uncertainty of our present situation having prevented me fromreceiving any letters from home for some time, I could not help beinguneasy. Dr. Johnson had an advantage over me, in this respect, he havingno wife or child to occasion anxious apprehensions in his mind[639]. Itwas a good morning; so we resolved to set out. But, before quitting thiscastle, where we have been so well entertained, let me give a shortdescription of it. 

Along the edge of the rock, there are the remains of a wall, which isnow covered with ivy. A square court is formed by buildings of differentages, particularly some towers, said to be of great antiquity; and atone place there is a row of false cannon of stone[640]. There is a verylarge unfinished pile, four stories high, which we were told was herewhen _Leod_, the first of this family, came from the Isle of Man, married the heiress of the M'Crails, the ancient possessors of Dunvegan, and afterwards acquired by conquest as much land as he had got bymarriage. He surpassed the house of Austria; for he was _felix_ both_bella gerere_ et _nubere_[641]. John _Breck_ M'Leod, the grandfather ofthe late laird, began to repair the castle, or rather to complete it:but he did not live to finish his undertaking[642]. Not doubting, however, that he should do it, he, like those who have had theirepitaphs written before they died, ordered the following inscription, composed by the minister of the parish, to be cut upon a broad stoneabove one of the lower windows, where it still remains to celebrate whatwas not done, and to serve as a memento of the uncertainty of life, andthe presumption of man:--

'Joannes Macleod Beganoduni Dominus gentis suae Philarchus[643], Durinesiae Haraiae Vaternesiae, &c. : Baro D. Florae Macdonaldmatrimoniali vinculo conjugatus turrem hanc Beganodunensem proavorumhabitaculum longe vetustissimum diu penitus labefectatam Anno aeraevulgaris MDCLXXXVI. Instauravit. 

 'Quem stabilire juvat proavorum tecta vetusta, Omne scelus fugiat, justitiamque colat. Vertit in aerias turres magalia virtus, Inque casas humiles tecta superba nefas. '

M'Leod and Talisker accompanied us. We passed by the parish church of_Durinish_. The church-yard is not inclosed, but a pretty murmuringbrook runs along one side of it. In it is a pyramid erected to thememory of Thomas Lord Lovat, by his son Lord Simon, who suffered onTower-hill[644]. It is of free-stone, and, I suppose, about thirty feethigh. There is an inscription on a piece of white marble inserted in it, which I suspect to have been the composition of Lord Lovat himself, being much in his pompous style:--

'This pyramid was erected by SIMON LORD FRASER of LOVAT, in honour ofLord THOMAS his Father, a Peer of Scotland, and Chief of the great andancient Clan of the FRASERS. Being attacked for his birthright by thefamily of ATHOLL, then in power and favour with KING WILLIAM, yet, bythe valour and fidelity of his clan, and the assistance of theCAMPBELLS, the old friends and allies of his family, he defended hisbirthright with such greatness and fermety of soul, and such valour andactivity, that he was an honour to his name, and a good pattern to allbrave Chiefs of clans. He died in the month of May, 1699, in the 63rdyear of his age, in Dunvegan, the house of the LAIRD of MAC LEOD, whosesister he had married: by whom he had the above SIMON LORD FRASER, andseveral other children. And, for the great love he bore to the family ofMAC LEOD, he desired to be buried near his wife's relations, in theplace where two of her uncles lay. And his son LORD SIMON, to shew toposterity his great affection for his mother's kindred, the brave MACLEODS, chooses rather to leave his father's bones with them, than carrythem to his own burial-place, near Lovat. '

I have preserved this inscription[645], though of no great value, thinking it characteristical of a man who has made some noise in theworld. Dr. Johnson said, it was poor stuff, such as Lord Lovat's butlermight have written. 

I observed, in this church-yard, a parcel of people assembled at afuneral, before the grave was dug. The coffin, with the corpse in it, was placed on the ground, while the people alternately assisted inmaking a grave. One man, at a little distance, was busy cutting a longturf for it, with the crooked spade which is used in Sky; a very aukwardinstrument. The iron part of it is like a plough-coulter. It has a rudetree for a handle, in which a wooden pin is placed for the foot to pressupon. A traveller might, without further enquiry, have set this down asthe mode of burying in Sky. I was told, however, that the usual way isto have a grave previously dug. 

I observed to-day, that the common way of carrying home their grain hereis in loads on horseback. They have also a few sleds, or _cars_, as wecall them in Ayrshire, clumsily made, and rarely used[646]. 

We got to Ulinish about six o'clock, and found a very good farm-house, of two stories. Mr. M'Leod of Ulinish, the sheriff-substitute of theisland, was a plain honest gentleman, a good deal like an EnglishJustice of peace; not much given to talk, but sufficiently sagacious, and somewhat droll. His daughter, though she was never out of Sky, was avery well-bred woman. Our reverend friend, Mr. Donald M'Queen, kept hisappointment, and met us here. 

Talking of Phipps's voyage to the North Pole, Dr. Johnson observed, thatit 'was conjectured that our former navigators have kept too near land, and so have found the sea frozen far north, because the land hinders thefree motion of the tide; but, in the wide ocean, where the waves tumbleat their full convenience, it is imagined that the frost does not takeeffect. '[647]

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 22. 

In the morning I walked out, and saw a ship, the Margaret of Clyde, passby with a number of emigrants on board. It was a melancholy sight. Afterbreakfast, we went to see what was called a subterraneous house, about amile off. It was upon the side of a rising ground. It was discovered bya fox's having taken up his abode in it, and in chasing him, they duginto it. It was very narrow and low, and seemed about forty feet inlength. Near it, we found the foundations of several small huts, builtof stone. Mr. M'Queen, who is always for making every thing as ancientas possible, boasted that it was the dwelling of some of the firstinhabitants of the island, and observed, what a curiosity it was to findhere a specimen of the houses of the _Aborigines_, which he believedcould be found no where else; and it was plain that they lived withoutfire. Dr. Johnson remarked, that they who made this were not in therudest state; for that it was more difficult to make _it_ than to builda house; therefore certainly those who made it were in possession ofhouses, and had this only as a hiding-place. It appeared to me, that thevestiges of houses, just by it, confirmed Dr. Johnson's opinion. 

From an old tower, near this place, is an extensive view ofLoch-Braccadil, and, at a distance, of the isles of Barra and SouthUist; and on the land-side, the _Cuillin_, a prodigious range ofmountains, capped with rocky pinnacles in a strange variety of shapes. They resemble the mountains near Corté in Corsica, of which there is avery good print. They make part of a great range for deer, which, thoughentirely devoid of trees, is in these countries called a _forest_. 

In the afternoon, Ulinish carried us in his boat to an island possessedby him, where we saw an immense cave, much more deserving the title of_antrum immane_[648] than that of the Sybil described by Virgil, which Ilikewise have visited. It is one hundred and eighty feet long, aboutthirty feet broad, and at least thirty feet high. This cave, we weretold, had a remarkable echo; but we found none[649]. They said it wasowing to the great rains having made it damp. Such are the excuses bywhich the exaggeration of Highland narratives is palliated. There is aplentiful garden at Ulinish, (a great rarity in Sky, ) and several trees;and near the house is a hill, which has an Erse name, signifying, _'thehill of strife'_, where, Mr. M'Queen informed us, justice was of oldadministered. It is like the _mons placiti_ of Scone, or those hillswhich are called _laws_[650], such as Kelly _law_, North Berwick _law_, and several others. It is singular that this spot should happen now tobe the sheriff's residence. 

We had a very cheerful evening, and Dr. Johnson talked a good deal onthe subject of literature. Speaking of the noble family of Boyle, hesaid, that all the Lord Orrerys, till the present, had been writers. The first wrote several plays[651]; the second[652] was Bentley'santagonist; the third[653] wrote the _Life of Swift_, and several otherthings; his son Hamilton wrote some papers in the _Adventurer_ and_World_. He told us, he was well acquainted with Swift's Lord Orrery. Hesaid, he was a feebleminded man; that, on the publication of Dr. Delany's _Remarks_ on his book, he was so much alarmed that he wasafraid to read them. Dr. Johnson comforted him, by telling him they wereboth in the right; that Delany had seen most of the good side ofSwift, --Lord Orrery most of the bad. M'Leod asked, if it was not wrongin Orrery to expose the defects of a man with whom he lived in intimacy. JOHNSON. 'Why no, Sir, after the man is dead; for then it is donehistorically[654]. ' He added, 'If Lord Orrery had been rich, he wouldhave been a very liberal patron. His conversation was like his writings, neat and elegant, but without strength. He grasped at more than hisabilities could reach; tried to pass for a better talker, a betterwriter, and a better thinker than he was[655]. There was a quarrelbetween him and his father, in which his father was to blame; because itarose from the son's not allowing his wife to keep company with hisfather's mistress. The old lord shewed his resentment in hiswill[656], --leaving his library from his son, and assigning, as hisreason, that he could not make use of it. '

I mentioned the affectation of Orrery, in ending all his letters on the_Life of Swift_ in studied varieties of phrase[657], and never in thecommon mode of _'I am'_, &c. , an observation which I remember to havebeen made several years ago by old Mr. Sheridan. This species ofaffectation in writing, as a foreign lady of distinguished talents onceremarked to me, is almost peculiar to the English. I took up a volume ofDryden, containing the CONQUEST of GRANADA, and several other plays, ofwhich all the dedications had such studied conclusions. Dr. Johnsonsaid, such conclusions were more elegant, and in addressing persons ofhigh rank, (as when Dryden dedicated to the Duke of York[658], ) theywere likewise more respectful. I agreed that _there_ it was much better:it was making his escape from the Royal presence with a genteel suddentimidity, in place of having the resolution to stand still, and make aformal bow. 

Lord Orrery's unkind treatment of his son in his will, led us to talk ofthe dispositions a man should have when dying. I said, I did not see whya man should act differently with respect to those of whom he thoughtill when in health, merely because he was dying. JOHNSON. 'I should notscruple to speak against a party, when dying; but should not do itagainst an individual. It is told of Sixtus Quintus, that on hisdeath-bed, in the intervals of his last pangs, he signeddeath-warrants[659]. ' Mr. M'Queen said, he should not do so; he wouldhave more tenderness of heart. JOHNSON. 'I believe I should not either;but Mr. M'Queen and I are cowards[660]. It would not be from tendernessof heart; for the heart is as tender when a man is in health as when heis sick, though his resolution may be stronger[661]. Sixtus Quintus wasa sovereign as well as a priest; and, if the criminals deserved death, he was doing his duty to the last. You would not think a judge died ill, who should be carried off by an apoplectick fit while pronouncingsentence of death. Consider a class of men whose business it is todistribute death:--soldiers, who die scattering bullets. Nobody thinksthey die ill on that account. '

Talking of Biography, he said, he did not think that the life of anyliterary man in England had been well written[662]. Beside the commonincidents of life, it should tell us his studies, his mode of living, the means by which he attained to excellence, and his opinion of his ownworks. He told us, he had sent Derrick to Dryden's relations, to gathermaterials for his Life[663]; and he believed Derrick[664] had got allthat he himself should have got; but it was nothing. He added, he had akindness for Derrick, and was sorry he was dead. 

His notion as to the poems published by Mr. M'Pherson, as the works ofOssian, was not shaken here. Mr. M'Queen always evaded the point ofauthenticity, saying only that Mr. M'Pherson's pieces fell far short ofthose he knew in Erse, which were said to be Ossian's. JOHNSON. 'I hopethey do. I am not disputing that you may have poetry of great merit; butthat M'Pherson's is not a translation from ancient poetry. You do notbelieve it. I say before you, you do not believe it, though you are verywilling that the world should believe it. ' Mr. M'Queen made no answerto this[665]. Dr. Johnson proceeded. 'I look upon M'Pherson's _Fingal_to be as gross an imposition as ever the world was troubled with. Had itbeen really an ancient work, a true specimen how men thought at thattime, it would have been a curiosity of the first rate. As a modernproduction, it is nothing. ' He said, he could never get the meaning ofan _Erse_ song explained to him[666]. They told him, the chorus wasgenerally unmeaning. 'I take it, (said he, ) Erse songs are like a songwhich I remember: it was composed in Queen Elizabeth's time, on the Earlof Essex: and the burthen was

 "Radaratoo, radarate, radara tadara tandore. "'

'But surely, ' said Mr. M'Queen, 'there were words to it, which hadmeaning. ' JOHNSON. 'Why, yes, Sir; I recollect a stanza, and you shallhave it:--

 "O! then bespoke the prentices all, Living in London, both proper and tall, For Essex's sake they would fight all. Radaratoo, radarate, radara, tadara, tandore[667]. "'

When Mr. M'Queen began again to expatiate on the beauty of Ossian'spoetry, Dr. Johnson entered into no farther controversy, but, with apleasant smile, only cried, 'Ay, ay; _Radaratoo radarate'_. 

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 23. 

I took _Fingal_ down to the parlour in the morning, and tried a testproposed by Mr. Roderick M'Leod, son to Ulinish. Mr. M'Queen had said hehad some of the poem in the original. I desired him to mention anypassage in the printed book, of which he could repeat the original. Hepointed out one in page 50 of the quarto edition, and read the Erse, while Mr. Roderick M'Leod and I looked on the English;--and Mr. M'Leodsaid, that it was pretty like what Mr. M'Queen had recited. But when Mr. M'Queen read a description of Cuchullin's sword in Erse, together with atranslation of it in English verse, by Sir James Foulis, Mr. M'Leodsaid, that was much more like than Mr. M'Pherson's translation of theformer passage. Mr. M'Queen then repeated in Erse a description of oneof the horses in Cuchillin's car. Mr. M'Leod said, Mr. M'Pherson'sEnglish was nothing like it. 

When Dr. Johnson came down, I told him that I had now obtained someevidence concerning _Fingal_; for that Mr. M'Queen had repeated apassage in the original Erse, which Mr. M'Pherson's translation waspretty like; and reminded him that he himself had once said, he did notrequire Mr. M'Pherson's _Ossian_ to be more like the original thanPope's _Homer_. JOHNSON. 'Well, Sir, this is just what I alwaysmaintained. He has found names, and stories, and phrases, nay, passagesin old songs, and with them has blended his own compositions, and somade what he gives to the world as the translation of an ancient poem. 'If this was the case, I observed, it was wrong to publish it as a poemin six books. JOHNSON. 'Yes, Sir; and to ascribe it to a time too whenthe Highlanders knew nothing of _books_, and nothing of _six_;--orperhaps were got the length of counting six. We have been told, byCondamine, of a nation that could count no more than four[668]. Thisshould be told to Monboddo; it would help him. There is as much charityin helping a man down-hill, as in helping him up-hill. ' BOSWELL. 'Idon't think there is as much charity. ' JOHNSON. 'Yes, Sir, if his_tendency_ be downwards. Till he is at the bottom he flounders; get himonce there, and he is quiet. Swift tells, that Stella had a trick, whichshe learned from Addison, of encouraging a man in absurdity, instead ofendeavouring to extricate him[669]. '

Mr. M'Queen's answers to the inquiries concerning _Ossian_ were sounsatisfactory, that I could not help observing, that, were he examinedin a court of justice, he would find himself under a necessity of beingmore explicit. JOHNSON. 'Sir, he has told Blair a little too much, whichis published[670]; and he sticks to it. He is so much at the head ofthings here, that he has never been accustomed to be closely examined;and so he goes on quite smoothly. ' BOSWELL. 'He has never had any bodyto work[671] him. ' JOHNSON. 'No, Sir; and a man is seldom disposed towork himself; though he ought to work himself, to be sure. ' Mr. M'Queenmade no reply[672]. 

Having talked of the strictness with which witnesses are examined incourts of justice, Dr. Johnson told us, that Garrick, though accustomedto face multitudes, when produced as a witness in Westminster-hall, wasso disconcerted by a new mode of public appearance, that he could notunderstand what was asked[673]. It was a cause where an actor claimed a_free benefit_; that is to say, a benefit without paying the expence ofthe house; but the meaning of the term was disputed. Garrick was asked, 'Sir, have you a free benefit?' 'Yes. ' 'Upon what terms have you it?''Upon-the terms-of-a free benefit. ' He was dismissed as one from whom noinformation could be obtained. Dr. Johnson is often too hard on ourfriend Mr. Garrick. When I asked him why he did not mention him in thePreface to his _Shakspeare_[674] he said, 'Garrick has been liberallypaid for any thing he has done for Shakspeare. If I should praise him, Ishould much more praise the nation who paid him. He has not madeShakspeare better known[675]; he cannot illustrate Shakspeare; so I havereasons enough against mentioning him, were reasons necessary. Thereshould be reasons _for_ it. ' I spoke of Mrs. Montague's very highpraises of Garrick[676]. JOHNSON. 'Sir, it is fit she should say somuch, and I should say nothing. Reynolds is fond of her book, and Iwonder at it; for neither I, nor Beauclerk, nor Mrs. Thrale, could getthrough it[677]. ' Last night Dr. Johnson gave us an account of thewhole process of tanning and of the nature of milk, and the variousoperations upon it, as making whey, &c. His variety of information issurprizing[678]; and it gives one much satisfaction to find such a manbestowing his attention on the useful arts of life. Ulinish was muchstruck with his knowledge; and said, 'He is a great orator, Sir; it ismusick to hear this man speak. ' A strange thought struck me, to try ifhe knew any thing of an art, or whatever it should be called, which isno doubt very useful in life, but which lies far out of the way of aphilosopher and a poet; I mean the trade of a butcher. I enticed himinto the subject, by connecting it with the various researches into themanners and customs of uncivilized nations, that have been made by ourlate navigators into the South Seas. I began with observing, that Mr. (now Sir Joseph) Banks tells us, that the art of slaughtering animalswas not known in Otaheité, for, instead of bleeding to death theirdogs, (a common food with them, ) they strangle them. This he told mehimself; and I supposed that their hogs were killed in the same way. Dr. Johnson said, 'This must be owing to their not having knives, --thoughthey have sharp stones with which they can cut a carcase in piecestolerably. ' By degrees, he shewed that he knew something even ofbutchery. 'Different animals (said he) are killed differently. An ox isknocked down, and a calf stunned; but a sheep has its throat cut, without any thing being done to stupify it. The butchers have no view tothe ease of the animals, but only to make them quiet, for their ownsafety and convenience. A sheep can give them little trouble. Hales[679]is of opinion, that every animal should be blooded, without having anyblow given to it, because it bleeds better. ' BOSWELL. 'That would becruel. ' JOHNSON. 'No, Sir; there is not much pain, if the jugular veinbe properly cut. ' Pursuing the subject, he said, the kennels ofSouthwark ran with blood two or three days in the week; that he wasafraid there were slaughter-houses in more streets in London than onesupposes; (speaking with a kind of horrour of butchering;) and, yet headded, 'any of us would kill a cow rather than not have beef. ' I said we_could_ not. 'Yes, (said he, ) any one may. The business of a butcher isa trade indeed, that is to say, there is an apprenticeship served to it;but it may be learnt in a month[680]. '

I mentioned a club in London at the Boar's Head in Eastcheap, the verytavern[681] where Falstaff and his joyous companions met; the members ofwhich all assume Shakspeare's characters. One is Falstaff, anotherPrince Henry, another Bardolph, and so on. JOHNSON. 'Don't be of it, Sir. Now that you have a name, you must be careful to avoid many things, not bad in themselves, but which will lessen your character[682]. Thisevery man who has a name must observe. A man who is not publickly knownmay live in London as he pleases, without any notice being taken of him;but it is wonderful how a person of any consequence is watched. Therewas a member of parliament, who wanted to prepare himself to speak on aquestion that was to come on in the House; and he and I were to talk itover together. He did not wish it should be known that he talked withme; so he would not let me come to his house, but came to mine. Sometime after he had made his speech in the house, Mrs. Cholmondeley[683], a very airy[684] lady, told me, 'Well, you could make nothing of him!'naming the gentleman; which was a proof that he was watched. I had oncesome business to do for government, and I went to Lord North's. Precaution was taken that it should not be known. It was dark before Iwent; yet a few days after I was told, 'Well, you have been with LordNorth. ' That the door of the prime minister should be watched is notstrange; but that a member of parliament should be watched, or that mydoor should be watched, is wonderful. '

We set out this morning on our way to Talisker, in Ulinish's boat, having taken leave of him and his family. Mr. Donald M'Queen stillfavoured us with his company, for which we were much obliged to him. Aswe sailed along Dr. Johnson got into one of his fits of railing at theScots. He owned that they had been a very learned nation for a hundredyears, from about 1550 to about 1650; but that they afforded the onlyinstance of a people among whom the arts of civil life did not advancein proportion with learning; that they had hardly any trade, any money, or any elegance, before the Union; that it was strange that, with allthe advantages possessed by other nations, they had not any of thoseconveniencies and embellishments which are the fruit of industry, tillthey came in contact with a civilized people. 'We have taught you, (saidhe, ) and we'll do the same in time to all barbarous nations, --to theCherokees, --and at last to the Ouran-Outangs;' laughing with as muchglee as if Monboddo had been present. BOSWELL. 'We had wine before theUnion. ' JOHNSON. 'No, Sir; you had some weak stuff, the refuse ofFrance, which would not make you drunk. ' BOSWELL. 'I assure you, Sir, there was a great deal of drunkenness. ' JOHNSON. 'No, Sir; there werepeople who died of dropsies, which they contracted in trying to getdrunk[685]. '

I must here glean some of his conversation at Ulinish, which I haveomitted. He repeated his remark, that a man in a ship was worse than aman in a jail[686]. 'The man in a jail, (said he, ) has more room, betterfood, and commonly better company, and is in safety. ' 'Ay; but, (saidMr. M'Queen, ) the man in the ship has the pleasing hope of getting toshore. ' JOHNSON. 'Sir, I am not talking of a man's getting to shore; butof a man while he is in a ship: and then, I say, he is worse than a manwhile he is in a jail. A man in a jail _may_ have the _"pleasing hope"_of getting out. A man confined for only a limited time, actually _has_it. ' M'Leod mentioned his schemes for carrying on fisheries with spirit, and that he would wish to understand the construction of boats. Isuggested that he might go to a dock-yard and work, as Peter the Greatdid. JOHNSON. 'Nay, Sir, he need not work. Peter the Great had not thesense to see that the mere mechanical work may be done by any body, andthat there is the same art in constructing a vessel, whether the boardsare well or ill wrought. Sir Christopher Wren might as well have servedhis time to a bricklayer, and first, indeed, to a brick-maker. '

There is a beautiful little island in the Loch of Dunvegan, called_Isa_. M'Leod said, he would give it to Dr. Johnson, on condition of hisresiding on it three months in the year; nay one month. Dr. Johnson washighly amused with the fancy. I have seen him please himself with littlethings, even with mere ideas like the present. He talked a great deal ofthis island;--how he would build a house there, --how he would fortifyit, --how he would have cannon, --how he would plant, --how he would sallyout, and _take_ the isle of Muck;--and then he laughed with uncommonglee, and could hardly leave off. I have seen him do so at a smallmatter that struck him, and was a sport to no one else[687]. Mr. Langtontold me, that one night he did so while the company were all grave abouthim:--only Garrick, in his significant smart manner, darting his eyesaround, exclaimed, '_Very_ jocose, to be sure!' M'Leod encouraged thefancy of Doctor Johnson's becoming owner of an island; told him, that itwas the practice in this country to name every man by his lands; andbegged leave to drink to him in that mode: '_Island Isa_, your health!'Ulinish, Talisker, Mr. M'Queen, and I, all joined in our differentmanners, while Dr. Johnson bowed to each, with much good humour. 

We had good weather, and a fine sail this day. The shore was varied withhills, and rocks, and corn-fields, and bushes, which are here dignifiedwith the name of natural _wood_. We landed near the house of Ferneley, afarm possessed by another gentleman of the name of M'Leod, who, expecting our arrival, was waiting on the shore, with a horse for Dr. Johnson. The rest of us walked. At dinner, I expressed to M'Leod the joywhich I had in seeing him on such cordial terms with his clan. 'Government (said he) has deprived us of our ancient power; but itcannot deprive us of our domestick satisfactions. I would rather drinkpunch in one of their houses, (meaning the houses of his people, ) thanbe enabled by their hardships to have claret in my own. [688]' Thisshould be the sentiment of every Chieftain. All that he can get byraising his rents, is more luxury in his own house. Is it not better toshare the profits of his estate, to a certain degree, with his kinsmen, and thus have both social intercourse and patriarchal influence?

We had a very good ride, for about three miles, to Talisker, whereColonel M'Leod introduced us to his lady. We found here Mr. DonaldM'Lean, the young Laird of _Col_, (nephew to Talisker, ) to whom Idelivered the letter with which I had been favoured by his uncle, Professor M'Leod, at Aberdeen[689]. He was a little lively young man. Wefound he had been a good deal in England, studying farming, and wasresolved to improve the value of his father's lands, without oppressinghis tenants, or losing the ancient Highland fashions. 

Talisker is a better place than one commonly finds in Sky. It issituated in a rich bottom. Before it is a wide expanse of sea, on eachhand of which are immense rocks; and, at some distance in the sea, thereare three columnal rocks rising to sharp points. The billows break withprodigious force and noise on the coast of Talisker[690]. There are herea good many well-grown trees. Talisker is an extensive farm. Thepossessor of it has, for several generations, been the next heir toM'Leod, as there has been but one son always in that family. The courtbefore the house is most injudiciously paved with the round blueish-greypebbles which are found upon the sea-shore; so that you walk as if uponcannon-balls driven into the ground. 

After supper, I talked of the assiduity of the Scottish clergy, invisiting and privately instructing their parishioners, and observed howmuch in this they excelled the English clergy. Dr. Johnson would not letthis pass. He tried to turn it off, by saying, 'There are different waysof instructing. Our clergy pray and preach. ' M'Leod and I pressed thesubject, upon which he grew warm, and broke forth: 'I do not believeyour people are better instructed. If they are, it is the blind leadingthe blind; for your clergy are not instructed themselves. ' Thinking hehad gone a little too far, he checked himself, and added, 'When I talkof the ignorance of your clergy, I talk of them as a body: I do not meanthat there are not individuals who are learned (looking at Mr. M'Queen[691]). I suppose there are such among the clergy in Muscovy. Theclergy of England have produced the most valuable books in support ofreligion, both in theory and practice. What have your clergy done, sinceyou sunk into presbyterianism? Can you name one book of any value, on areligious subject, written by them[692]?' We were silent. 'I'll helpyou. Forbes wrote very well; but I believe he wrote before episcopacywas quite extinguished. ' And then pausing a little, he said, 'Yes, youhave Wishart AGAINST Repentance[693]. ' BOSWELL. 'But, Sir, we are notcontending for the superior learning of our clergy, but for theirsuperior assiduity. ' He bore us down again, with thundering againsttheir ignorance, and said to me, 'I see you have not been well taught;for you have not charity. ' He had been in some measure forced into thiswarmth, by the exulting air which I assumed; for, when he began, hesaid, 'Since you _will_ drive the nail!' He again thought of good Mr. M'Queen, and, taking him by the hand, said, 'Sir, I did not mean anydisrespect to you[694]. '

Here I must observe, that he conquered by deserting his ground, and notmeeting the argument as I had put it. The assiduity of the Scottishclergy is certainly greater than that of the English. His taking up thetopick of their not having so much learning, was, though ingenious, yeta fallacy in logick. It was as if there should be a dispute whether aman's hair is well dressed, and Dr. Johnson should say, 'Sir, his haircannot be well dressed; for he has a dirty shirt. No man who has notclean linen has his hair well dressed. ' When some days afterwards heread this passage, he said, 'No, Sir; I did not say that a man's haircould not be well dressed because he has not clean linen, but becausehe is bald. '

He used one argument against the Scottish clergy being learned, which Idoubt was not good. 'As we believe a man dead till we know that he isalive; so we believe men ignorant till we know that they are learned. 'Now our maxim in law is, to presume a man alive, till we know he isdead. However, indeed, it may be answered, that we must first know hehas lived; and that we have never known the learning of the Scottishclergy. Mr. M'Queen, though he was of opinion that Dr. Johnson haddeserted the point really in dispute, was much pleased with what hesaid, and owned to me, he thought it very just; and Mrs. M'Leod was somuch captivated by his eloquence, that she told me 'I was a goodadvocate for a bad cause. '

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 24. 

This was a good day. Dr. Johnson told us, at breakfast, that he rodeharder at a fox chace than any body[695]. 'The English (said he) are theonly nation who ride hard a-hunting. A Frenchman goes out, upon amanaged[696] horse, and capers in the field, and no more thinks ofleaping a hedge than of mounting a breach. Lord Powerscourt laid awager, in France, that he would ride a great many miles in a certainshort time. The French academicians set to work, and calculated that, from the resistance of the air, it was impossible. His lordship howeverperformed it. '

Our money being nearly exhausted, we sent a bill for thirty pounds, drawn on Sir William Forbes and Co. [697], to Lochbraccadale, but ourmessenger found it very difficult to procure cash for it; at length, however, he got us value from the master of a vessel which was to carryaway some emigrants. There is a great scarcity of specie in Sky[698]. Mr. M'Queen said he had the utmost difficulty to pay his servants'wages, or to pay for any little thing which he has to buy. The rents arepaid in bills[699], which the drovers give. The people consume a vastdeal of snuff and tobacco, for which they must pay ready money; andpedlars, who come about selling goods, as there is not a shop in theisland, carry away the cash. If there were encouragement given tofisheries and manufactures, there might be a circulation of moneyintroduced. I got one-and-twenty shillings in silver at Portree, whichwas thought a wonderful store. 

Talisker, Mr. M'Queen, and I, walked out, and looked at no less thanfifteen different waterfalls near the house, in the space of about aquarter of a mile[700]. We also saw Cuchillin's well, said to have beenthe favourite spring of that ancient hero. I drank of it. The water isadmirable. On the shore are many stones full of crystallizations inthe heart. 

Though our obliging friend, Mr. M'Lean, was but the young laird, he hadthe title of _Col_ constantly given him. After dinner he and I walked tothe top of Prieshwell, a very high rocky hill, from whence there is aview of Barra, --the Long Island, --Bernera, --the Loch of Dunvegan, --partof Rum--part of Rasay, and a vast deal of the isle of Sky. Col, thoughhe had come into Sky with an intention to be at Dunvegan, and pass aconsiderable time in the island, most politely resolved first toconduct us to Mull, and then to return to Sky. This was a very fortunatecircumstance; for he planned an expedition for us of more variety thanmerely going to Mull. He proposed we should see the islands of _Egg, Muck, Col, _ and _Tyr-yi_. In all these islands he could shew us everything worth seeing; and in Mull he said he should be as if at home, hisfather having lands there, and he a farm. 

Dr. Johnson did not talk much to-day, but seemed intent in listening tothe schemes of future excursion, planned by Col. Dr. Birch[701], however, being mentioned, he said, he had more anecdotes than any man. Isaid, Percy had a great many; that he flowed with them like one of thebrooks here. JOHNSON. 'If Percy is like one of the brooks here, Birchwas like the river Thames. Birch excelled Percy in that, as much asPercy excels Goldsmith. ' I mentioned Lord Hailes as a man of anecdote. He was not pleased with him, for publishing only such memorials andletters as were unfavourable for the Stuart family[702]. 'If, (said he, )a man fairly warns you, "I am to give all the ill; do you find thegood;" he may: but if the object which he professes be to give a view ofa reign, let him tell all the truth. I would tell truth of the twoGeorges, or of that scoundrel, King William[703]. Granger's_Biographical History_[704] is full of curious anecdote, but might havebeen better done. The dog is a Whig. I do not like much to see a Whig inany dress; but I hate to see a Whig in a parson's gown[705]. '

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 25. 

It was resolved that we should set out, in order to return to Slate, tobe in readiness to take boat whenever there should be a fair wind. Dr. Johnson remained in his chamber writing a letter, and it was long beforewe could get him into motion. He did not come to breakfast, but had itsent to him. When he had finished his letter, it was twelve o'clock, andwe should have set out at ten. When I went up to him, he said to me, 'Doyou remember a song which begins, "Every island is a prison[706] Strongly guarded by the sea; Kings and princes, for that reason, Prisoners are, as well as we?"'

I suppose he had been thinking of our confined situation[707]. He wouldfain have gone in a boat from hence, instead of riding back to Slate. Ascheme for it was proposed. He said, 'We'll not be driven tamely fromit:'-but it proved impracticable. 

We took leave of M'Leod and Talisker, from whom we parted with regret. Talisker, having been bred to physick, had a tincture of scholarship inhis conversation, which pleased Dr. Johnson, and he had some very goodbooks; and being a colonel in the Dutch service, he and his lady, inconsequence of having lived abroad, had introduced the ease andpoliteness of the continent into this rude region. 

Young Col was now our leader. Mr. M'Queen was to accompany us half a daymore. We stopped at a little hut, where we saw an old woman grindingwith the _quern_, the ancient Highland instrument, which it is said wasused by the Romans, but which, being very slow in its operation, isalmost entirely gone into disuse. 

The walls of the cottages in Sky, instead of being one compacted massof stones, are often formed by two exterior surfaces of stone, filled upwith earth in the middle, which makes them very warm. The roof isgenerally bad. They are thatched, sometimes with straw, sometimes withheath, sometimes with fern. The thatch is secured by ropes of straw, orof heath; and, to fix the ropes, there is a stone tied to the end ofeach. These stones hang round the bottom of the roof, and make it looklike a lady's hair in papers; but I should think that, when there iswind, they would come down, and knock people on the head. 

We dined at the inn at Sconser, where I had the pleasure to find aletter from my wife. Here we parted from our learned companion, Mr. Donald M'Queen. Dr. Johnson took leave of him very affectionately, saying, 'Dear Sir, do not forget me!' We settled, that he should writean account of the Isle of Sky, which Dr. Johnson promised to revise. Hesaid, Mr. M'Queen should tell all that he could; distinguishing what hehimself knew, what was traditional, and what conjectural. 

We sent our horses round a point of land, that we might shun some verybad road; and resolved to go forward by sea. It was seven o'clock whenwe got into our boat. We had many showers, and it soon grew pretty dark. Dr. Johnson sat silent and patient. Once he said, as he looked on theblack coast of Sky, -black, as being composed of rocks seen in thedusk, --'This is very solemn. ' Our boatmen were rude singers, and seemedso like wild Indians, that a very little imagination was necessary togive one an impression of being upon an American river. We landed at_Strolimus_, from whence we got a guide to walk before us, for twomiles, to _Corrichatachin_. Not being able to procure a horse for ourbaggage, I took one portmanteau before me, and Joseph another. We hadbut a single star to light us on our way. It was about eleven when wearrived. We were most hospitably received by the master and mistress, who were just going to bed, but, with unaffected ready kindness, made agood fire, and at twelve o'clock at night had supper on the table. 

James Macdonald, of _Knockow_, Kingsburgh's brother, whom we had seen atKingsburgh, was there. He shewed me a bond granted by the late Sir JamesMacdonald, to old Kingsburgh, the preamble of which does so much honourto the feelings of that much-lamented gentleman, that I thought it worthtranscribing. It was as follows:--

'I, Sir James Macdonald, of Macdonald, Baronet, now, after arriving atmy perfect age, from the friendship I bear to Alexander Macdonald ofKingsburgh, and in return for the long and faithful services done andperformed by him to my deceased father, and to myself during myminority, when he was one of my Tutors and Curators; being resolved, nowthat the said Alexander Macdonald is advanced in years, to contribute myendeavours for making his old age placid and comfortable, '--

therefore he grants him an annuity of fifty pounds sterling. 

Dr. Johnson went to bed soon. When one bowl of punch was finished, Irose, and was near the door, in my way up stairs to bed; butCorrichatachin said, it was the first time Col had been in his house, and he should have his bowl;-and would not I join in drinking it? Theheartiness of my honest landlord, and the desire of doing social honourto our very obliging conductor, induced me to sit down again. Col's bowlwas finished; and by that time we were well warmed. A third bowl wassoon made, and that too was finished. We were cordial, and merry to ahigh degree; but of what passed I have no recollection, with anyaccuracy. I remember calling _Corrichatachin_ by the familiarappellation of _Corri_, which his friends do. A fourth bowl was made, bywhich time Col, and young M'Kinnon, Corrichatachin's son, slipped awayto bed. I continued a little with Corri and Knockow; but at last I leftthem. It was near five in the morning when I got to bed. 

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 26

I awaked at noon, with a severe head-ach. I was much vexed that I shouldhave been guilty of such a riot, and afraid of a reproof from Dr. Johnson. I thought it very inconsistent with that conduct which I oughtto maintain, while the companion of the Rambler. About one he came intomy room, and accosted me, 'What, drunk yet?' His tone of voice was notthat of severe upbraiding; so I was relieved a little. 'Sir, (said I, )they kept me up. ' He answered, 'No, you kept them up, you drunkendog:'-This he said with good-humoured _English_ pleasantry. Soonafterwards, Corrichatachin, Col, and other friends assembled round mybed. Corri had a brandy-bottle and glass with him, and insisted I shouldtake a dram. 'Ay, said Dr. Johnson, fill him drunk again. Do it in themorning, that we may laugh at him all day. It is a poor thing for afellow to get drunk at night, and sculk to bed, and let his friends haveno sport. ' Finding him thus jocular, I became quite easy; and when Ioffered to get up, he very good naturedly said, 'You need be in no suchhurry now[708]. ' I took my host's advice, and drank some brandy, which Ifound an effectual cure for my head-ach. When I rose, I went into Dr. Johnson's room, and taking up Mrs. M'Kinnon's Prayer-book, I opened itat the twentieth Sunday after Trinity, in the epistle for which I read, 'And be not drunk with wine, wherein there is excess[709]. ' Some wouldhave taken this as a divine interposition. 

Mrs. M'Kinnon told us at dinner, that old Kingsburgh, her father, wasexamined at Mugstot, by General Campbell, as to the particulars of thedress of the person who had come to his house in woman's clothes alongwith Miss Flora M'Donald; as the General had received intelligence ofthat disguise. The particulars were taken down in writing, that it mightbe seen how far they agreed with the dress of the _Irish girl_ who wentwith Miss Flora from the Long Island. Kingsburgh, she said, had but onesong, which he always sung when he was merry over a glass. She dictatedthe words to me, which are foolish enough:--

 'Green sleeves[710] and pudding pies, Tell me where my mistress lies, And I'll be with her before she rise, Fiddle and aw' together. 

 May our affairs abroad succeed, And may our king come home with speed, And all pretenders shake for dread, And let _his_ health go round. 

 To all our injured friends in need, This side and beyond the Tweed!-- Let all pretenders shake for dread, And let _his_ health go round. Green sleeves, ' &c. 

While the examination was going on, the present Talisker, who was thereas one of M'Leod's militia, could not resist the pleasantry of askingKingsburgh, in allusion to his only song, 'Had she _green sleeves_?'Kingsburgh gave him no answer. Lady Margaret M'Donald was very angry atTalisker for joking on such a serious occasion, as Kingsburgh was reallyin danger of his life. Mrs. M'Kinnon added that Lady Margaret was quiteadored in Sky. That when she travelled through the island, the peopleran in crowds before her, and took the stones off the road, lest herhorse should stumble and she be hurt[711]. Her husband, Sir Alexander, is also remembered with great regard. We were told that every week ahogshead of claret was drunk at his table. 

This was another day of wind and rain; but good cheer and good societyhelped to beguile the time. I felt myself comfortable enough in theafternoon. I then thought that my last night's riot was no more thansuch a social excess as may happen without much moral blame; andrecollected that some physicians maintained, that a fever produced by itwas, upon the whole, good for health: so different are our reflectionson the same subject, at different periods; and such the excuses withwhich we palliate what we know to be wrong. 

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 27. 

Mr. Donald M'Leod, our original guide, who had parted from us atDunvegan, joined us again to-day. The weather was still so bad that wecould not travel. I found a closet here, with a good many books, besidethose that were lying about. Dr. Johnson told me, he found a library inhis room at Talisker; and observed, that it was one of the remarkablethings of Sky, that there were so many books in it. 

Though we had here great abundance of provisions, it is remarkable thatCorrichatachin has literally no garden: not even a turnip, a carrot, ora cabbage. After dinner, we talked of the crooked spade used in Sky, already described, and they maintained that it was better than the usualgarden-spade, and that there was an art in tossing it, by which thosewho were accustomed to it could work very easily with it. 'Nay, (saidDr. Johnson, ) it may be useful in land where there are many stones toraise; but it certainly is not a good instrument for digging good land. A man may toss it, to be sure; but he will toss a light spade muchbetter: its weight makes it an incumbrance. A man _may_ dig any landwith it; but he has no occasion for such a weight in digging good land. You may take a field piece to shoot sparrows; but all the sparrows youcan bring home will not be worth the charge. ' He was quite social andeasy amongst them; and, though he drank no fermented liquor, toastedHighland beauties with great readiness. His conviviality engaged them somuch, that they seemed eager to shew their attention to him, and viedwith each other in crying out, with a strong Celtick pronunciation, 'Toctor Shonson, Toctor Shonson, your health!'

This evening one of our married ladies, a lively pretty little woman, good-humouredly sat down upon Dr. Johnson's knee, and, being encouragedby some of the company, put her hands round his neck, and kissed him. 'Do it again, (said he, ) and let us see who will tire first. ' He kepther on his knee some time, while he and she drank tea. He was now like a_buck_[712] indeed. All the company were much entertained to find him soeasy and pleasant. To me it was highly comick, to see the gravephilosopher, --the Rambler, -toying with a Highland beauty[713]!--But whatcould he do? He must have been surly, and weak too, had he not behavedas he did. He would have been laughed at, and not more respected, thoughless loved. 

He read to-night, to himself, as he sat in company, a great deal of myJournal, and said to me, 'The more I read of this, I think the morehighly of you. ' The gentlemen sat a long time at their punch, after heand I had retired to our chambers. The manner in which they wereattended struck me as singular:--The bell being broken, a smart lad layon a table in the corner of the room, ready to spring up and bring thekettle, whenever it was wanted. They continued drinking, and singingErse songs, till near five in the morning, when they all came into myroom, where some of them had beds. Unluckily for me, they found a bottleof punch in a corner, which they drank; and Corrichatachin went foranother, which they also drank. They made many apologies for disturbingme. I told them, that, having been kept awake by their mirth, I had oncethoughts of getting up, and joining them again. Honest Corrichatachinsaid, 'To have had you done so, I would have given a cow. '

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 28. 

The weather was worse than yesterday. I felt as if imprisoned. Dr. Johnson said, it was irksome to be detained thus: yet he seemed to haveless uneasiness, or more patience, than I had. What made our situationworse here was, that we had no rooms that we could command; for the goodpeople had no notion that a man could have any occasion but for a meresleeping-place; so, during the day, the bed chambers were common to allthe house. Servants eat in Dr. Johnson's; and mine was a kind of generalrendezvous of all under the roof, children and dogs not excepted. As thegentlemen occupied the parlour, the ladies had no place to sit in, during the day, but Dr. Johnson's room. I had always some quiet time forwriting in it, before he was up; and, by degrees, I accustomed theladies to let me sit in it after breakfast, at my _Journal_, withoutminding me. 

Dr. Johnson was this morning for going to see as many islands as wecould; not recollecting the uncertainty of the season, which mightdetain us in one place for many weeks. He said to me, 'I have more thespirit of adventure than you. ' For my part, I was anxious to get toMull, from whence we might almost any day reach the main land. 

Dr. Johnson mentioned, that the few ancient Irish gentlemen yetremaining have the highest pride of family; that Mr. Sandford, a friendof his, whose mother was Irish, told him, that O'Hara (who was trueIrish, both by father and mother) and he, and Mr. Ponsonby, son to theEarl of Besborough, the greatest man of the three, but of an Englishfamily, went to see one of those ancient Irish, and that hedistinguished them thus: 'O'Hara, you are welcome! Mr. Sandford, yourmother's son is welcome! Mr. Ponsonby, you may sit down. '

He talked both of threshing and thatching. He said, it was verydifficult to determine how to agree with a thresher. 'If you pay him bythe day's wages, he will thresh no more than he pleases; though to besure, the negligence of a thresher is more easily detected than that ofmost labourers, because he must always make a sound while he works. Ifyou pay him by the piece, by the quantity of grain which he produces, hewill thresh only while the grain comes freely, and, though he leaves agood deal in the ear, it is not worth while to thresh the straw overagain; nor can you fix him to do it sufficiently, because it is sodifficult to prove how much less a man threshes than he ought to do. Here then is a dilemma: but, for my part, I would engage him by the day:I would rather trust his idleness than his fraud. ' He said, a roofthatched with Lincolnshire reeds would last seventy years, as he wasinformed when in that county; and that he told this in London to a greatthatcher, who said, he believed it might be true. Such are the painsthat Dr. Johnson takes to get the best information on everysubject[714]. 

He proceeded:--'It is difficult for a farmer in England to findday-labourers, because the lowest manufacturers can always get more thana day-labourer. It is of no consequence how high the wages ofmanufacturers are; but it would be of very bad consequence to raise thewages of those who procure the immediate necessaries of life, for thatwould raise the price of provisions. Here then is a problem forpoliticians. It is not reasonable that the most useful body of menshould be the worst paid; yet it does not appear how it can be orderedotherwise. It were to be wished, that a mode for its being otherwisewere found out. In the mean time, it is better to give temporaryassistance by charitable contributions to poor labourers, at times whenprovisions are high, than to raise their wages; because, if wages areonce raised, they will never get down again[715]. '

Happily the weather cleared up between one and two o'clock, and we gotready to depart; but our kind host and hostess would not let us gowithout taking a _snatch_, as they called it; which was in truth a verygood dinner. While the punch went round, Dr. Johnson kept a closewhispering conference with Mrs. M'Kinnon, which, however, was loudenough to let us hear that the subject of it was the particulars ofPrince Charles's escape. The company were entertained and pleased toobserve it. Upon that subject, there was something congenial between thesoul of Dr. Samuel Johnson, and that of an isle of Sky farmer's wife. Itis curious to see people, how far so ever removed from each other in thegeneral system of their lives, come close together on a particular pointwhich is common to each. We were merry with Corrichatachin, on Dr. Johnson's whispering with his wife. She, perceiving this, humourouslycried, 'I am in love with him. What is it to live and not to love?' Uponher saying something, which I did not hear, or cannot recollect, heseized her hand eagerly, and kissed it. 

As we were going, the Scottish phrase of '_honest man_!' which is anexpression of kindness and regard, was again and again applied by thecompany to Dr. Johnson. I was also treated with much civility; and Imust take some merit from my assiduous attention to him, and from mycontriving that he shall be easy wherever he goes, that he shall not beasked twice to eat or drink any thing (which always disgusts him), thathe shall be provided with water at his meals, and many such littlethings, which, if not attended to, would fret him. I also may be allowedto claim some merit in leading the conversation: I do not mean leading, as in an orchestra, by playing the first fiddle; but leading as one doesin examining a witness--starting topics, and making him pursue them. Heappears to me like a great mill, into which a subject is thrown to beground. It requires, indeed, fertile minds to furnish materials for thismill. I regret whenever I see it unemployed; but sometimes I feel myselfquite barren, and have nothing to throw in. I know not if this mill be agood figure; though Pope makes his mind a mill for turning verses[716]. 

We set out about four. Young Corrichatachin went with us. We had a fineevening, and arrived in good time at _Ostig_, the residence of Mr. Martin M'Pherson, minister of Slate. It is a pretty good house, built byhis father, upon a farm near the church. We were received here with muchkindness by Mr. And Mrs. M'Pherson, and his sister, Miss M'Pherson, whopleased Dr. Johnson much, by singing Erse songs, and playing on theguittar. He afterwards sent her a present of his _Rasselas_. In hisbed-chamber was a press stored with books, Greek, Latin, French, andEnglish, most of which had belonged to the father of our host, thelearned Dr. M'Pherson; who, though his _Dissertations_ have beenmentioned in a former page[717] as unsatisfactory, was a man ofdistinguished talents. Dr. Johnson looked at a Latin paraphrase of thesong of Moses, written by him, and published in the _Scots Magazine_ for1747, and said, 'It does him honour; he has a good deal of Latin, andgood Latin. ' Dr. M'Pherson published also in the same magazine, June1739, an original Latin ode, which he wrote from the isle of Barra, where he was minister for some years. It is very poetical, and exhibitsa striking proof how much all things depend upon comparison: for Barra, it seems, appeared to him so much worse than Sky, his _natalesolum_[718], that he languished for its 'blessed mountains, ' and thoughthimself buried alive amongst barbarians where he was. My readers willprobably not be displeased to have a specimen of this ode:--

 'Hei mihi! quantos patior dolores, Dum procul specto juga ter beata; Dum ferae Barrae steriles arenas Solus oberro. 'Ingemo, indignor, crucior, quod inter Barbaros Thulen lateam colentes; Torpeo languens, morior sepultus, Carcere coeco. '

After wishing for wings to fly over to his dear country, which was inhis view, from what he calls _Thule_, as being the most western isle ofScotland, except St. Kilda; after describing the pleasures of society, and the miseries of solitude, he at last, with becoming propriety, hasrecourse to the only sure relief of thinking men, --_Sursumcorda_[719]--the hope of a better world, disposes his mind toresignation:--

 'Interim fiat, tua, rex, voluntas: Erigor sursum quoties subit spes Certa migrandi Solymam supernam, Numinis aulam. '

He concludes in a noble strain of orthodox piety:--

 'Vita tum demum vocitanda vita est. Tum licet gratos socios habere, Seraphim et sanctos TRIADEM verendam Concelebrantes. '

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 29[720]. 

After a very good sleep, I rose more refreshed than I had been for somenights. We were now at but a little distance from the shore, and saw thesea from our windows, which made our voyage seem nearer. Mr. M'Pherson'smanners and address pleased us much. He appeared to be a man of suchintelligence and taste as to be sensible of the extraordinary powers ofhis illustrious guest. He said to me, 'Dr. Johnson is an honour tomankind; and, if the expression may be used, is an honour to religion. '

Col, who had gone yesterday to pay a visit at Camuscross, joined us thismorning at breakfast. Some other gentlemen also came to enjoy theentertainment of Dr. Johnson's conversation. The day was windy andrainy, so that we had just seized a happy interval for our journey lastnight. We had good entertainment here, better accommodation than atCorrichatachin, and time enough to ourselves. The hours slipped alongimperceptibly. We talked of Shenstone. Dr. Johnson said he was a goodlayer-out of land[721], but would not allow him to approach excellenceas a poet. He said, he believed he had tried to read all his _LovePastorals_, but did not get through them. I repeated the stanza, 'She gazed as I slowly withdrew; My path I could hardly discern; So sweetly she bade me adieu, I thought that she bade me return[722]. '

He said, 'That seems to be pretty. ' I observed that Shenstone, from hisshort maxims in prose, appeared to have some power of thinking; but Dr. Johnson would not allow him that merit[723]. He agreed, however, withShenstone, that it was wrong in the brother of one of his correspondentsto burn his letters[724]: 'for, (said he, ) Shenstone was a man whosecorrespondence was an honour. ' He was this afternoon full of criticalseverity, and dealt about his censures on all sides. He said, Hammond's_Love Elegies_ were poor things[725]. He spoke contemptuously of ourlively and elegant, though too licentious, Lyrick bard, HanburyWilliams, and said, 'he had no fame, but from boys who drank withhim[726]. '

While he was in this mood, I was unfortunate enough, simply perhaps, butI could not help thinking, undeservedly, to come within 'the whiff andwind of his fell sword[727]. ' I asked him, if he had ever beenaccustomed to wear a night-cap. He said 'No. ' I asked, if it was bestnot to wear one. JOHNSON. 'Sir, I had this custom by chance, and perhapsno man shall ever know whether it is best to sleep with or without anight-cap. ' Soon afterwards he was laughing at some deficiency in theHighlands, and said, 'One might as well go without shoes and stockings. 'Thinking to have a little hit at his own deficiency, I ventured toadd, ------' or without a night-cap, Sir. ' But I had better have beensilent; for he retorted directly. 'I do not see the connection there(laughing). Nobody before was ever foolish enough to ask whether it wasbest to wear a night-cap or not. This comes of being a littlewrong-headed. ' He carried the company along with him: and yet the truthis, that if he had always worn a night-cap, as is the common practice, and found the Highlanders did not wear one, he would have wondered attheir barbarity; so that my hit was fair enough. 

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 30. 

There was as great a storm of wind and rain as I have almost ever seen, which necessarily confined us to the house; but we were fullycompensated by Dr. Johnson's conversation. He said, he did not grudgeBurke's being the first man in the House of Commons, for he was thefirst man every where; but he grudged that a fellow who makes no figurein company, and has a mind as narrow as the neck of a vinegar cruet, should make a figure in the House of Commons, merely by having theknowledge of a few forms, and being furnished with a little occasionalinformation[728]. He told us, the first time he saw Dr. Young was at thehouse of Mr. Richardson, the author of _Clarissa_. He was sent for, thatthe doctor might read to him his _Conjectures on originalComposition_[729], which he did, and Dr. Johnson made his remarks; andhe was surprized to find Young receive as novelties, what he thoughtvery common maxims. He said, he believed Young was not a great scholar, nor had studied regularly the art of writing[730]; that there were veryfine things in his _Night Thoughts_[731], though you could not findtwenty lines together without some extravagance. He repeated twopassages from his _Love of Fame_, --the characters of Brunetta[732] andStella[733], which he praised highly. He said Young pressed him much tocome to Wellwyn. He always intended it, but never went[734]. He wassorry when Young died. The cause of quarrel between Young and his son, he told us, was, that his son insisted Young should turn away aclergyman's widow, who lived with him, and who, having acquired greatinfluence over the father, was saucy to the son. Dr. Johnson said, shecould not conceal her resentment at him, for saying to Young, that 'anold man should not resign himself to the management of any body. ' Iasked him, if there was any improper connection between them. 'No, Sir, no more than between two statues. He was past fourscore, and she a verycoarse woman. She read to him, and I suppose made his coffee, andfrothed his chocolate, and did such things as an old man wishes to havedone for him. '

Dr. Doddridge being mentioned, he observed that 'he was author of one ofthe finest epigrams in the English language. It is in Orton's Life ofhim. [735] The subject is his family motto, --_Dum vivimus, vivamus_;which, in its primary signification, is, to be sure, not very suitableto a Christian divine; but he paraphrased it thus:

 "Live, while you live, the _epicure_ would say, And seize the pleasures of the present day. Live, while you live, the sacred _preacher_ cries, And give to GOD each moment as it flies. Lord, in my views let both united be; I live in _pleasure_, when I live to _thee_. "'

I asked if it was not strange that government should permit so manyinfidel writings to pass without censure. JOHNSON. 'Sir, it is mightyfoolish. It is for want of knowing their own power. The present familyon the throne came to the crown against the will of nine tenths of thepeople. [736] Whether those nine tenths were right or wrong, it is notour business now to enquire. But such being the situation of the royalfamily, they were glad to encourage all who would be their friends. Nowyou know every bad man is a Whig; every man who has loose notions. Thechurch was all against this family. They were, as I say, glad toencourage any friends; and therefore, since their accession, there is noinstance of any man being kept back on account of his bad principles;and hence this inundation of impiety[737]. ' I observed that Mr. Hume, some of whose writings were very unfavourable to religion, was, however, a Tory. JOHNSON. 'Sir, Hume is a Tory by chance[738] as being aScotchman; but not upon a principle of duty; for he has no principle. Ifhe is any thing, he is a Hobbist. '

There was something not quite serene in his humour to-night, aftersupper; for he spoke of hastening away to London, without stopping muchat Edinburgh. I reminded him that he had General Oughton and many othersto see. JOHNSON. 'Nay, I shall neither go in jest, nor stay in jest. Ishall do what is fit. ' BOSWELL. 'Ay, Sir, but all I desire is, that youwill let me tell you when it is fit. ' JOHNSON. 'Sir, I shall not consultyou. ' BOSWELL. 'If you are to run away from us, as soon as you getloose, we will keep you confined in an island. ' He was, however, on thewhole, very good company. Mr. Donald McLeod expressed very well thegradual impression made by Dr. Johnson on those who are so fortunate asto obtain his acquaintance. 'When you see him first, you are struck withawful reverence;--then you admire him;--and then you love himcordially. '

I read this evening some part of Voltaire's _History of the War_ in1741[739], and of Lord Kames against Hereditary Indefeasible Right. Thisis a very slight circumstance, with which I should not trouble myreader, but for the sake of observing that every man should keep minutesof whatever he reads. Every circumstance of his studies should berecorded; what books he has consulted; how much of them he has read; atwhat times; how often the same authors; and what opinions he formed ofthem, at different periods of his life. Such an account would muchillustrate the history of his mind. [740]

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 1. 

I shewed to Dr. Johnson verses in a magazine, on his _Dictionary_, composed of uncommon words taken from it:--

 'Little of _Anthropopathy_[741] has he, ' &c. 

He read a few of them, and said, 'I am not answerable for all the wordsin my _Dictionary_'. I told him that Garrick kept a book of all who hadeither praised or abused him. On the subject of his own reputation, hesaid, ' Now that I see it has been so current a topick, I wish I had doneso too; but it could not well be done now, as so many things arescattered in newspapers. ' He said he was angry at a boy of Oxford, whowrote in his defence against Kenrick; because it was doing him hurt toanswer Kenrick. He was told afterwards, the boy was to come to him toask a favour. He first thought to treat him rudely, on account of hismeddling in that business; but then he considered, he had meant to dohim all the service in his power, and he took another resolution; hetold him he would do what he could for him, and did so; and the boy wassatisfied. He said, he did not know how his pamphlet was done, as he had'read very little of it. The boy made a good figure at Oxford, butdied. [742] He remarked, that attacks on authors did them much service. 'A man who tells me my play is very bad, is less my enemy than he wholets it die in silence. A man whose business it is to be talked of, ismuch helped by being attacked. '[743] Garrick, I observed, had been oftenso helped. JOHNSON. 'Yes, Sir; though Garrick had more opportunitiesthan almost any man, to keep the publick in mind of him, by exhibitinghimself to such numbers, he would not have had so much reputation, hadhe not been so much attacked. Every attack produces a defence; and soattention is engaged. There is no sport in mere praise, when people areall of a mind. ' BOSWELL. 'Then Hume is not the worse for Beattie'sattack?[744]' JOHNSON. 'He is, because Beattie has confuted him. I donot say, but that there may be some attacks which will hurt an author. Though Hume suffered from Beattie, he was the better for other attacks. '(He certainly could not include in that number those of Dr. Adams[745], and Mr. Tytler[746]. ) BOSWELL. 'Goldsmith is the better for attacks. 'JOHNSON. 'Yes, Sir; but he does not think so yet. When Goldsmith and Ipublished, each of us something, at the same time[747], we were given tounderstand that we might review each other. Goldsmith was for acceptingthe offer. I said, No; set Reviewers at defiance. It was said to oldBentley, upon the attacks against him, "Why, they'll write you down. ""No, Sir, " he replied; "depend upon it, no man was ever written down butby himself[748]. " 'He observed to me afterwards, that the advantagesauthors derived from attacks, were chiefly in subjects of taste, whereyou cannot confute, as so much may be said on either side. [749] He toldme he did not know who was the authour of the _Adventures of aGuinea_[750], but that the bookseller had sent the first volume to himin manuscript, to have his opinion if it should be printed; and hethought it should. 

The weather being now somewhat better, Mr. James McDonald, factor to SirAlexander McDonald in Slate, insisted that all the company at Ostigshould go to the house at Armidale, which Sir Alexander had left, havinggone with his lady to Edinburgh, and be his guests, till we had anopportunity of sailing to Mull. We accordingly got there to dinner; andpassed our day very cheerfully, being no less than fourteen in number. 

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 2. 

Dr. Johnson said, that 'a Chief and his Lady should make their houselike a court. They should have a certain number of the gentlemen'sdaughters to receive their education in the family, to learn pastry andsuch things from the housekeeper, and manners from my lady. That was theway in the great families in Wales; at Lady Salisbury's, [751] Mrs. Thrale's grandmother, and at Lady Philips's. [752] I distinguish thefamilies by the ladies, as I speak of what was properly their province. There were always six young ladies at Sir John Philips's: when one wasmarried, her place was filled up. There was a large school-room, wherethey learnt needle-work and other things. ' I observed, that, at somecourts in Germany, there were academies for the pages, who are the sonsof gentlemen, and receive their education without any expence to theirparents. Dr. Johnson said, that manners were best learned at thosecourts. ' You are admitted with great facility to the prince's company, and yet must treat him with much respect. At a great court, you are atsuch a distance that you get no good. ' I said, 'Very true: a man seesthe court of Versailles, as if he saw it on a theatre. ' He said, 'Thebest book that ever was written upon good breeding, _Il Corteggiano_, byCastiglione[753], grew up at the little court of Urbino, and you shouldread it. ' I am glad always to have his opinion of books. At Mr. McPherson's, he commended Whitby's _Commentary_[754], and said, he hadheard him called rather lax; but he did not perceive it. He had lookedat a novel, called _The Man of the World_[755], at Rasay, but thoughtthere was nothing in it. He said to-day, while reading my _Journal_, 'This will be a great treasure to us some years hence. '

Talking of a very penurious gentleman of our acquaintance[756], heobserved, that he exceeded _L'Avare_ in the play[757]. I concurred withhim, and remarked that he would do well, if introduced in one of Foote'sfarces; that the best way to get it done, would be to bring Foote to beentertained at his house for a week, and then it would be _facitindignatio_[758]. JOHNSON. 'Sir, I wish he had him. I, who have eatenhis bread, will not give him to him; but I should be glad he camehonestly by him. '

He said, he was angry at Thrale, for sitting at General Oglethorpe'swithout speaking. He censured a man for degrading himself to anon-entity. I observed, that Goldsmith was on the other extreme; for hespoke at all ventures. [759] JOHNSON. 'Yes, Sir; Goldsmith, rather thannot speak, will talk of what he knows himself to be ignorant, which canonly end in exposing him. ' 'I wonder, (said I, ) if he feels that heexposes himself. If he was with two taylors, ' 'Or with two founders, (said Dr. Johnson, interrupting me, ) he would fall a talking on themethod of making cannon, though both of them would soon see that he didnot know what metal a cannon is made of. ' We were very social and merryin his room this forenoon. In the evening the company danced as usual. We performed, with much activity, a dance which, I suppose, theemigration from Sky has occasioned. They call it _America_. Each of thecouples, after the common _involutions_ and _evolutions_, successivelywhirls round in a circle, till all are in motion; and the dance seemsintended to shew how emigration catches, till a whole neighbourhood isset afloat. Mrs. M'Kinnon told me, that last year when a ship sailedfrom Portree for America, the people on shore were almost distractedwhen they saw their relations go off, they lay down on the ground, tumbled, and tore the grass with their teeth. This year there was not atear shed. The people on shore seemed to think that they would soonfollow. This indifference is a mortal sign for the country. 

We danced to-night to the musick of the bagpipe, which made us beat theground with prodigious force. I thought it better to endeavour toconciliate the kindness of the people of Sky, by joining heartily intheir amusements, than to play the abstract scholar. I looked on thisTour to the Hebrides as a copartnership between Dr. Johnson and me. Eachwas to do all he could to promote its success; and I have some reason toflatter myself, that my gayer exertions were of service to us. Dr. Johnson's immense fund of knowledge and wit was a wonderful source ofadmiration and delight to them; but they had it only at times; and theyrequired to have the intervals agreeably filled up, and even littleelucidations of his learned text. I was also fortunate enough frequentlyto draw him forth to talk, when he would otherwise have been silent. Thefountain was at times locked up, till I opened the spring. It wascurious to hear the Hebridians, when any dispute happened while he wasout of the room, saying, 'Stay till Dr. Johnson comes: say thatto _him!_

Yesterday, Dr. Johnson said, 'I cannot but laugh, to think of myselfroving among the Hebrides at sixty[760]. I wonder where I shall rove atfourscore[761]!' This evening he disputed the truth of what is said, asto the people of St. Kilda catching cold whenever strangers come. 'Howcan there (said he) be a physical effect without a physical cause[762]?'He added, laughing, 'the arrival of a ship full of strangers would killthem; for, if one stranger gives them one cold, two strangers must givethem two colds; and so in proportion. ' I wondered to hear him ridiculethis, as he had praised M'Aulay for putting it in his book: saying, thatit was manly in him to tell a fact, however strange, if he himselfbelieved it[763]. He said, the evidence was not adequate to theimprobability of the thing; that if a physician, rather disposed to beincredulous, should go to St. Kilda, and report the fact, then he wouldbegin to look about him. They said, it was annually proved by M'Leod'ssteward, on whose arrival all the inhabitants caught cold. He jocularlyremarked, 'the steward always comes to demand something from them; andso they fall a coughing. I suppose the people in Sky all take a cold, when--(naming a certain person[764]) comes. ' They said, he came only insummer. JOHNSON. 'That is out of tenderness to you. Bad weather and he, at the same time, would be too much. '

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 3. 

Joseph reported that the wind was still against us. Dr. Johnson said, 'Awind, or not a wind? that is the question[765];' for he can amusehimself at times with a little play of words, or rather sentences. Iremember when he turned his cup at Aberbrothick, where we drank tea, hemuttered _Claudite jam rivos, pueri'_[766]. I must again and againapologize to fastidious readers, for recording such minute particulars. They prove the scrupulous fidelity of my _Journal_. Dr. Johnson said itwas a very exact picture of a portion of his life. 

While we were chatting in the indolent stile of men who were to stayhere all this day at least, we were suddenly roused at being told thatthe wind was fair, that a little fleet of herring-busses was passing byfor Mull, and that Mr. Simpson's vessel was about to sail. HughM'Donald, the skipper, came to us, and was impatient that we should getready, which we soon did. Dr. Johnson, with composure and solemnity, repeated the observation of Epictetus, that, 'as man has the voyage ofdeath before him, --whatever may be his employment, he should be ready atthe master's call; and an old man should never be far from the shore, lest he should not be able to get himself ready. ' He rode, and I and theother gentlemen walked, about an English mile to the shore, where thevessel lay. Dr. Johnson said, he should never forget Sky, and returnedthanks for all civilities. We were carried to the vessel in a small boatwhich she had, and we set sail very briskly about one o'clock. I wasmuch pleased with the motion for many hours. Dr. Johnson grew sick, andretired under cover, as it rained a good deal. I kept above, that Imight have fresh air, and finding myself not affected by the motion ofthe vessel, I exulted in being a stout seaman, while Dr. Johnson wasquite in a state of annihilation. But I was soon humbled; for afterimagining that I could go with ease to America or the East-Indies, Ibecame very sick, but kept above board, though it rained hard. 

As we had been detained so long in Sky by bad weather, we gave up thescheme that Col had planned for us of visiting several islands, andcontented ourselves with the prospect of seeing Mull, and Icolmkill andInchkenneth, which lie near to it. 

Mr. Simpson was sanguine in his hopes for awhile, the wind being fairfor us. He said, he would land us at Icolmkill that night. But when thewind failed, it was resolved we should make for the sound of Mull, andland in the harbour of Tobermorie. We kept near the five herring vesselsfor some time; but afterwards four of them got before us, and one littlewherry fell behind us. When we got in full view of the point ofArdnamurchan, the wind changed, and was directly against our gettinginto the Sound. We were then obliged to tack, and get forward in thattedious manner. As we advanced, the storm grew greater, and the sea veryrough. Col then began to talk of making for Egg, or Canna, or his ownisland. Our skipper said, he would get us into the Sound. Havingstruggled for this a good while in vain, he said, he would push forwardtill we were near the land of Mull, where we might cast anchor, and lietill the morning; for although, before this, there had been a good moon, and I had pretty distinctly seen not only the land of Mull, but up theSound, and the country of Morven as at one end of it, the night was nowgrown very dark. Our crew consisted of one M'Donald, our skipper, andtwo sailors, one of whom had but one eye: Mr. Simpson himself, Col, andHugh M'Donald his servant, all helped. Simpson said, he would willinglygo for Col, if young Col or his servant would undertake to pilot us toa harbour; but, as the island is low land, it was dangerous to run uponit in the dark. Col and his servant appeared a little dubious. Thescheme of running for Canna seemed then to be embraced; but Canna wasten leagues off, all out of our way; and they were afraid to attempt theharbour of Egg. All these different plans were successively inagitation. The old skipper still tried to make for the land of Mull; butthen it was considered that there was no place there where we couldanchor in safety. Much time was lost in striving against the storm. Atlast it became so rough, and threatened to be so much worse, that Coland his servant took more courage, and said they would undertake to hitone of the harbours in Col. 'Then let us run for it in GOD'S name, ' saidthe skipper; and instantly we turned towards it. The little wherry whichhad fallen behind us had hard work. The master begged that, if we madefor Col, we should put out a light to him. Accordingly one of thesailors waved a glowing peat for some time. The various difficultiesthat were started, gave me a good deal of apprehension, from which I wasrelieved, when I found we were to run for a harbour before the wind. Butmy relief was but of short duration: for I soon heard that our sailswere very bad, and were in danger of being torn in pieces, in which casewe should be driven upon the rocky shore of Col. It was very dark, andthere was a heavy and incessant rain. The sparks of the burning peatflew so much about, that I dreaded the vessel might take fire. Then, asCol was a sportsman, and had powder on board, I figured that we might beblown up. Simpson and he appeared a little frightened, which made memore so; and the perpetual talking, or rather shouting, which wascarried on in Erse, alarmed me still more. A man is always suspicious ofwhat is saying in an unknown tongue; and, if fear be his passion at thetime, he grows more afraid. Our vessel often lay so much on one side, that I trembled lest she should be overset, and indeed they told meafterwards, that they had run her sometimes to within an inch of thewater, so anxious were they to make what haste they could before thenight should be worse. I now saw what I never saw before, a prodigioussea, with immense billows coming upon a vessel, so as that it seemedhardly possible to escape. There was something grandly horrible in thesight. I am glad I have seen it once. Amidst all these terrifyingcircumstances, I endeavoured to compose my mind. It was not easy to doit; for all the stories that I had heard of the dangerous sailing amongthe Hebrides, which is proverbial[767], came full upon my recollection. When I thought of those who were dearest to me, and would sufferseverely, should I be lost, I upbraided myself, as not having asufficient cause for putting myself in such danger. Piety afforded mecomfort; yet I was disturbed by the objections that have been madeagainst a particular providence, and by the arguments of those whomaintain that it is in vain to hope that the petitions of an individual, or even of congregations, can have any influence with the Deity;objections which have been often made, and which Dr. Hawkesworth haslately revived, in his Preface to the _Voyages to the South Seas_[768];but Dr. Ogden's excellent doctrine on the efficacy of intercessionprevailed. 

It was half an hour after eleven before we set ourselves in the coursefor Col. As I saw them all busy doing something, I asked Col, with muchearnestness, what I could do. He, with a happy readiness, put into myhand a rope, which was fixed to the top of one of the masts, and told meto hold it till he bade me pull. If I had considered the matter, I mighthave seen that this could not be of the least service; but his objectwas to keep me out of the way of those who were busy working the vessel, and at the same time to divert my fear, by employing me, and making methink that I was of use. Thus did I stand firm to my post, while thewind and rain beat upon me, always expecting a call to pull my rope. The man with one eye steered; old M'Donald, and Col and his servant, layupon the fore-castle, looking sharp out for the harbour. It wasnecessary to carry much _cloth_, as they termed it, that is to say, muchsail, in order to keep the vessel off the shore of Col. This madeviolent plunging in a rough sea. At last they spied the harbour ofLochiern, and Col cried, 'Thank GOD, we are safe!' We ran up till wewere opposite to it, and soon afterwards we got into it, andcast anchor. 

Dr. Johnson had all this time been quiet and unconcerned. He had laindown on one of the beds, and having got free from sickness, wassatisfied. The truth is, he knew nothing of the danger we were in[769]but, fearless and unconcerned, might have said, in the words which hehas chosen for the motto to his _Rambler_, 'Quo me cunque rapit tempestas, deferor hospes. [770]'

Once, during the doubtful consultations, he asked whither we were going;and upon being told that it was not certain whether to Mull or Col, hecried, 'Col for my money!' I now went down, with Col and Mr. Simpson, tovisit him. He was lying in philosophick tranquillity with a greyhound ofCol's at his back, keeping him warm. Col is quite the _Juvenis quigaudet canibus_[771]. He had, when we left Talisker, two greyhounds, two terriers, a pointer, and a large Newfoundland water-dog. He lost oneof his terriers by the road, but had still five dogs with him. I wasvery ill, and very desirous to get to shore. When I was told that wecould not land that night, as the storm had now increased, I looked somiserably, as Col afterwards informed me, that what Shakspeare has madethe Frenchman say of the English soldiers, when scantily dieted, _'Piteous they will look, like drowned mice!'_[772] might, I believe, have been well applied to me. There was in the harbour, before us, aCampbelltown vessel, the Betty, Kenneth Morrison master, taking inkelp, and bound for Ireland. We sent our boat to beg beds for twogentlemen, and that the master would send his boat, which was largerthan ours. He accordingly did so, and Col and I were accommodated in hisvessel till the morning. 

MONDAY, OCTOBER 4. 

About eight o'clock we went in the boat to Mr. Simpson's vessel, andtook in Dr. Johnson. He was quite well, though he had tasted nothing buta dish of tea since Saturday night. On our expressing some surprise atthis, he said, that, 'when he lodged in the Temple, and had no regularsystem of life, he had fasted for two days at a time, during which hehad gone about visiting, though not at the hours of dinner or supper;that he had drunk tea, but eaten no bread; that this was no intentionalfasting, but happened just in the course of a literary life. '[773]

There was a little miserable publick-house close upon the shore, towhich we should have gone, had we landed last night: but this morningCol resolved to take us directly to the house of Captain LauchlanM'Lean, a descendant of his family, who had acquired a fortune in theEast-Indies, and taken a farm in Col[774]. We had about an English mileto go to it. Col and Joseph, and some others, ran to some little horses, called here _Shelties_, that were running wild on a heath, and catchedone of them. We had a saddle with us, which was clapped upon it, and astraw halter was put on its head. Dr. Johnson was then mounted, andJoseph very slowly and gravely led the horse. I said to Dr. Johnson, 'Iwish, Sir, _the Club_ saw you in this attitude. [775]'

It was a very heavy rain, and I was wet to the skin. Captain M'Lean hadbut a poor temporary house, or rather hut; however, it was a very goodhaven to us. There was a blazing peat-fire, and Mrs. M'Lean, daughter ofthe minister of the parish, got us tea. I felt still the motion of thesea. Dr. Johnson said, it was not in imagination, but a continuation ofmotion on the fluids, like that of the sea itself after the stormis over. 

There were some books on the board which served as a chimney-piece. Dr. Johnson took up Burnet's _History of his own Times_[776]. He said, 'Thefirst part of it is one of the most entertaining books in the Englishlanguage; it is quite dramatick: while he went about every where, sawevery where, and heard every where. By the first part, I mean so far asit appears that Burnet himself was actually engaged in what he has told;and this may be easily distinguished. ' Captain M'Lean censured Burnet, for his high praise of Lauderdale in a dedication[777], when he shewshim in his history to have been so bad a man. JOHNSON. 'I do not myselfthink that a man should say in a dedication what he could not say in ahistory. However, allowance should be made; for there is a greatdifference. The known style of a dedication is flattery: it professesto flatter. There is the same difference between what a man says in adedication, and what he says in a history, as between a lawyer'spleading a cause, and reporting it. '

The day passed away pleasantly enough. The wind became fair for Mull inthe evening, and Mr. Simpson resolved to sail next morning: but havingbeen thrown into the island of Col we were unwilling to leave itunexamined, especially as we considered that the Campbelltown vesselwould sail for Mull in a day or two, and therefore we determinedto stay. 

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 5. 

I rose, and wrote my _Journal_ till about nine; and then went to Dr. Johnson, who sat up in bed and talked and laughed. I said, it wascurious to look back ten years, to the time when we first thought ofvisiting the Hebrides[778]. How distant and improbable the scheme thenappeared! Yet here we were actually among them. 'Sir, (said he, ) peoplemay come to do any thing almost, by talking of it. I really believe, Icould talk myself into building a house upon island Isa[779], though Ishould probably never come back again to see it. I could easily persuadeReynolds to do it; and there would be no great sin in persuading him todo it. Sir, he would reason thus: "What will it cost me to be there oncein two or three summers? Why, perhaps, five hundred pounds; and what isthat, in comparison of having a fine retreat, to which a man can go, orto which he can send a friend?" He would never find out that he may havethis within twenty miles of London. Then I would tell him, that he maymarry one of the Miss M'Leods, a lady of great family. Sir, it issurprising how people will go to a distance for what they may have athome. I knew a lady who came up from Lincolnshire to Knightsbridge withone of her daughters, and gave five guineas a week for a lodging and awarm bath; that is, mere warm water. _That_, you know, could not be hadin _Lincolnshire_! She said, it was made either too hot or toocold there. '

After breakfast, Dr. Johnson and I, and Joseph, mounted horses, and Coland the Captain walked with us about a short mile across the island. Wepaid a visit to the Reverend Mr. Hector M'Lean. His parish consists ofthe islands of Col and Tyr-yi. He was about seventy-seven years of age, a decent ecclesiastick, dressed in a full suit of black clothes, and ablack wig. He appeared like a Dutch pastor, or one of the assembly ofdivines at Westminster. Dr. Johnson observed to me afterwards, 'that hewas a fine old man, and was as well-dressed, and had as much dignity inhis appearance as the dean of a cathedral. ' We were told, that he had avaluable library, though but poor accommodation for it, being obliged tokeep his books in large chests. It was curious to see him and Dr. Johnson together. Neither of them heard very distinctly; so each of themtalked in his own way, and at the same time. Mr. M'Lean said, he had aconfutation of Bayle, by Leibnitz. JOHNSON. 'A confutation of Bayle, Sir! What part of Bayle do you mean? The greatest part of his writingsis not confutable: it is historical and critical. ' Mr. M'Lean said, 'theirreligious part;' and proceeded to talk of Leibnitz's controversy withClarke, calling Leibnitz a great man. JOHNSON. 'Why, Sir, Leibnitzpersisted in affirming that Newton called space _sensorium numinis_, notwithstanding he was corrected, and desired to observe that Newton'swords were QUASI _sensorium numinis_[780]. No, Sir; Leibnitz was aspaltry a fellow as I know. Out of respect to Queen Caroline, whopatronised him, Clarke treated him too well. [781]' During the timethat Dr. Johnson was thus going on, the old minister was standing withhis back to the fire, cresting up erect, pulling down the front of hisperiwig, and talking what a great man Leibnitz was. To give an idea ofthe scene, would require a page with two columns; but it ought rather tobe represented by two good players. The old gentleman said, Clarke wasvery wicked, for going so much into the Arian system[782]. 'I will notsay he was wicked, said Dr. Johnson; he might be mistaken. ' M'LEAN. 'Hewas wicked, to shut his eyes against the Scriptures; and worthy men inEngland have since confuted him to all intents and purposes. ' JOHNSON. 'I know not _who_ has confuted him to _all intents and purposes_. ' Hereagain there was a double talking, each continuing to maintain his ownargument, without hearing exactly what the other said. 

I regretted that Dr. Johnson did not practice the art of accommodatinghimself to different sorts of people. Had he been softer with thisvenerable old man, we might have had more conversation; but his forciblespirit, and impetuosity of manner, may be said to spare neither sex norage. I have seen even Mrs. Thrale stunned; but I have often maintained, that it is better he should retain his own manner[783]. Pliability ofaddress I conceive to be inconsistent with that majestick power of mindwhich he possesses, and which produces such noble effects. A lofty oakwill not bend like a supple willow. 

He told me afterwards, he liked firmness in an old man, and was pleasedto see Mr. M'Lean so orthodox. 'At his age, it is too late for a man tobe asking himself questions as to his belief[784]. ' We rode to thenorthern part of the island, where we saw the ruins of a church orchapel[785]. We then proceeded to a place called Grissipol, or therough Pool. 

At Grissipol we found a good farm house, belonging to the Laird of Col, and possessed by Mr. M'Sweyn. On the beach here there is a singularvariety of curious stones. I picked up one very like a small cucumber. By the by, Dr. Johnson told me, that Gay's line in _The Beggars Opera_, 'As men should serve a cucumber[786], ' &c. Has no waggish meaning, withreference to men flinging away cucumbers as too _cooling_, which somehave thought; for it has been a common saying of physicians in England, that a cucumber should be well sliced, and dressed with pepper andvinegar, and then thrown out, as good for nothing. Mr. M'Sweyn'spredecessors had been in Sky from a very remote period, upon the estatebelonging to M'Leod; probably before M'Leod had it The name is certainlyNorwegian, from _Sueno_, King of Norway. The present Mr. M'Sweyn leftSky upon the late M'Leod's raising his rents. He then got this farmfrom Col. 

He appeared to be near fourscore; but looked as fresh, and was as strongas a man of fifty. His son Hugh looked older; and, as Dr. Johnsonobserved, had more the manners of an old man than he. I had often heardof such instances, but never saw one before. Mrs. M'Sweyn was a decentold gentlewoman. She was dressed in tartan, and could speak nothing butErse. She said, she taught Sir James M'Donald Erse, and would teach mesoon. I could now sing a verse of the song _Hatyin foam'eri_[787], madein honour of Allan, the famous Captain of Clanranald, who fell atSherrif-muir[788]; whose servant, who lay on the field watching hismaster's dead body, being asked next day who that was, answered, 'He wasa man yesterday. '

We were entertained here with a primitive heartiness. Whiskey was servedround in a shell, according to the ancient Highland custom. Dr. Johnsonwould not partake of it; but, being desirous to do honour to the modes'of other times, ' drank some water out of the shell. 

In the forenoon Dr. Johnson said, 'it would require great resignation tolive in one of these islands. ' BOSWELL. 'I don't know, Sir; I have feltmyself at times in a state of almost mere physical existence, satisfiedto eat, drink, and sleep, and walk about, and enjoy my own thoughts; andI can figure a continuation of this. ' JOHNSON. 'Ay, Sir; but if you wereshut up here, your own thoughts would torment you. You would think ofEdinburgh or London, and that you could not be there. '

We set out after dinner for _Breacacha_, the family seat of the Laird ofCol, accompanied by the young laird, who had now got a horse, and by theyounger Mr. M'Sweyn, whose wife had gone thither before us, to prepareevery thing for our reception, the laird and his family being absent atAberdeen. It is called _Breacacha_, or the Spotted Field, because insummer it is enamelled with clover and daisies, as young Col told me. Wepassed by a place where there is a very large stone, I may call it a_rock_;--'a vast weight for Ajax[789]. ' The tradition is, that a giantthrew such another stone at his mistress, up to the top of a hill, at asmall distance; and that she in return, threw this mass down tohim[790]. It was all in sport. 

 'Malo me petit lasciva puella[791]. '

As we advanced, we came to a large extent of plain ground. I had notseen such a place for a long time. Col and I took a gallop upon it byway of race. It was very refreshing to me, after having been so longtaking short steps in hilly countries. It was like stretching a man'slegs after being cramped in a short bed. We also passed close by a largeextent of sand-hills, near two miles square. Dr. Johnson said, 'he neverhad the image before. It was horrible, if barrenness and danger could beso. ' I heard him, after we were in the house of _Breacacha_, repeatingto himself, as he walked about the room, 'And smother'd in the dusty whirlwind, dies[792]. '

Probably he had been thinking of the whole of the simile in _Cato_, ofwhich that is the concluding line; the sandy desart had struck him sostrongly. The sand has of late been blown over a good deal of meadow, and the people of the island say, that their fathers remembered much ofthe space which is now covered with sand, to have been undertillage[793]. Col's house is situated on a bay called _Breacacha_ Bay. We found here a neat new-built gentleman's house, better than any we hadbeen in since we were at Lord Errol's. Dr. Johnson relished it much atfirst, but soon remarked to me, that 'there was nothing becoming a Chiefabout it: it was a mere tradesman's box[794]. ' He seemed quite at home, and no longer found any difficulty in using the Highland address; for assoon as we arrived, he said, with a spirited familiarity, 'Now, _Col_, if you could get us a dish of tea. ' Dr. Johnson and I had each anexcellent bed-chamber. We had a dispute which of us had the bestcurtains. His were rather the best, being of linen; but I insisted thatmy bed had the best posts, which was undeniable. 'Well, (said he, ) ifyou _have_ the best _posts_, we will have you tied to them and whipped. 'I mention this slight circumstance, only to shew how ready he is, evenin mere trifles, to get the better of his antagonist, by placing him ina ludicrous view. I have known him sometimes use the same art, when hardpressed in serious disputation. Goldsmith, I remember, to retaliate formany a severe defeat which he has suffered from him, applied to him alively saying in one of Cibber's comedies, which puts this part of hischaracter in a strong light. --'There is no arguing with Johnson; for, _if his pistol misses fire, he knocks you down with the butt end ofit_[795]. '

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 6. 

After a sufficiency of sleep, we assembled at breakfast. We were just asif in barracks. Every body was master. We went and viewed the old castleof Col, which is not far from the present house, near the shore, andfounded on a rock. It has never been a large feudal residence, and hasnothing about it that requires a particular description. Like other oldinconvenient buildings of the same age, it exemplified Gray'spicturesque lines, 'Huge[796] windows that exclude the light, And passages that lead to nothing. '

It may however be worth mentioning, that on the second story we saw avault, which was, and still is, the family prison. There was a woman putinto it by the laird, for theft, within these ten years; and anyoffender would be confined there yet; for, from the necessity of thething, as the island is remote from any power established by law, thelaird must exercise his jurisdiction to a certain degree. 

We were shewn, in a corner of this vault, a hole, into which Col saidgreater criminals used to be put. It was now filled up with rubbish ofdifferent kinds. He said, it was of a great depth, 'Ay, (said Dr. Johnson, smiling, ) all such places, that _are filled up_, were of agreat depth. ' He is very quick in shewing that he does not give creditto careless or exaggerated accounts of things. After seeing the castle, we looked at a small hut near it. It is called _Teigh Franchich, i. E. _the Frenchman's House. Col could not tell us the history of it. A poorman with a wife and children now lived in it. We went into it, and Dr. Johnson gave them some charity. There was but one bed for all thefamily, and the hut was very smoky. When he came out, he said to me, _'Et hoc secundum sententiam philosophorum est esse beatus_[797]. 'BOSWELL. 'The philosophers, when they placed happiness in a cottage, supposed cleanliness and no smoke. ' JOHNSON. 'Sir, they did not thinkabout either. '

We walked a little in the laird's garden, in which endeavours have beenused to rear some trees; but, as soon as they got above the surroundingwall, they died. Dr. Johnson recommended sowing the seeds of hardytrees, instead of planting. 

Col and I rode out this morning, and viewed a part of the island. In thecourse of our ride, we saw a turnip-field, which he had hoed with hisown hands. He first introduced this kind of husbandry into the Westernislands[798]. We also looked at an appearance of lead, which seemed verypromising. It has been long known; for I found letters to the latelaird, from Sir John Areskine and Sir Alexander Murray, respecting it. 

After dinner came Mr. M'Lean, of Corneck, brother to Isle of Muck, whois a cadet of the family of Col. He possesses the two ends of Col, whichbelong to the Duke of Argyll. Corneck had lately taken a lease of themat a very advanced rent, rather than let the Campbells get a footing inthe island, one of whom had offered nearly as much as he. Dr. Johnsonwell observed, that, 'landlords err much when they calculate merelywhat their land _may_ yield. The rent must be in a proportionate ratioof what the land may yield, and of the power of the tenant to make ityield. A tenant cannot make by his land, but according to the corn andcattle which he has. Suppose you should give him twice as much land ashe has, it does him no good, unless he gets also more stock. It is clearthen, that the Highland landlords, who let their substantial tenantsleave them, are infatuated; for the poor small tenants cannot give themgood rents, from the very nature of things. They have not the means ofraising more from their farms[799]. ' Corneck, Dr. Johnson said, was themost distinct man that he had met with in these isles: he did not shuthis eyes, or put his fingers in his ears, which he seemed to think was agood deal the mode with most of the people whom we have seen of late. 

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 7. 

Captain M'Lean joined us this morning at breakfast. There came on adreadful storm of wind and rain, which continued all day, and ratherincreased at night. The wind was directly against our getting to Mull. We were in a strange state of abstraction from the world: we couldneither hear from our friends, nor write to them. Col had brought Daille_on the Fathers_[800], Lucas _on Happiness_[801], and More's_Dialogues_[802], from the Reverend Mr. M'Lean's, and Burnet's _Historyof his own Times_, from Captain M'Lean's; and he had of his own somebooks of farming, and Gregory's _Geometry_[803]. Dr. Johnson read a gooddeal of Burnet, and of Gregory, and I observed he made some geometricalnotes in the end of his pocket-book. I read a little of Young's _SixWeeks' Tour through the Southern Counties_; and Ovid's _Epistles_, whichI had bought at Inverness, and which helped to solace many a weary hour. 

We were to have gone with Dr. Johnson this morning to see the mine; butwere prevented by the storm. While it was raging, he said, 'We may beglad we are not _damnati ad metalla_. '

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 8. 

Dr. Johnson appeared to-day very weary of our present confinedsituation. He said, 'I want to be on the main land, and go on withexistence. This is a waste of life. '

I shall here insert, without regard to chronology, some of hisconversation at different times. 

'There was a man some time ago, who was well received for two years, among the gentlemen of Northamptonshire, by calling himself my brother. At last he grew so impudent as by his influence to get tenants turnedout of their farms. Allen the Printer[804], who is of that county, cameto me, asking, with much appearance of doubtfulness, if I had a brother;and upon being assured I had none alive, he told me of the imposition, and immediately wrote to the country, and the fellow was dismissed. Itpleased me to hear that so much was got by using my name. It is notevery name that can carry double; do both for a man's self and hisbrother (laughing). I should be glad to see the fellow. However, I couldhave done nothing against him. A man can have no redress for his namebeing used, or ridiculous stories being told of him in the newspapers, except he can shew that he has suffered damage. Some years ago a foolishpiece was published, said to be written _by S. Johnson_. Some of myfriends wanted me to be very angry about this. I said, it would be invain; for the answer would be, "_S. Johnson_ may be Simon Johnson, orSimeon Johnson, or Solomon Johnson;" and even if the full name, SamuelJohnson, had been used, it might be said; "it is not you; it is a muchcleverer fellow. "

'Beauclerk and I, and Langton, and Lady Sydney Beauclerk, mother to ourfriend, were one day driving in a coach by Cuper's Gardens[805], whichwere then unoccupied. I, in sport, proposed that Beauclerk and Langton, and myself should take them; and we amused ourselves with scheming howwe should all do our parts. Lady Sydney grew angry, and said, "an oldman should not put such things in young people's heads. " She had nonotion of a joke, Sir; had come late into life, and had a mightyunpliable understanding. 

'_Carte's Life of the Duke of Ormond_ is considered as a book ofauthority; but it is ill-written. The matter is diffused in too manywords; there is no animation, no compression, no vigour. Two goodvolumes in duodecimo might be made out of the two in folio[806]. 

Talking of our confinement here, I observed, that our discontent andimpatience could not be considered as very unreasonable; for that wewere just in the state of which Seneca complains so grievously, while inexile in Corsica[807]. 'Yes, (said Dr. Johnson, ) and he was not fartherfrom home than we are. ' The truth is, he was much nearer. 

There was a good deal of rain to-day, and the wind was still contrary. Corneck attended me, while I amused myself in examining a collection ofpapers belonging to the family of Col. The first laird was a younger sonof the Chieftain M'Lean, and got the middle part of Col for hispatrimony. Dr. Johnson having given a very particular account[808] ofthe connection between this family and a branch of the family ofCamerons, called M'Lonich, I shall only insert the following document, (which I found in Col's cabinet, ) as a proof of its continuance, even toa late period:--

TO THE LAIRD OF COL. 

'DEAR SIR, 'The long-standing tract of firm affectionate friendship 'twixt yourworthy predecessors and ours affords us such assurance, as that we mayhave full relyance on your favour and undoubted friendship, inrecommending the bearer, Ewen Cameron, our cousin, son to the deceastDugall M'Connill of Innermaillie, sometime in Glenpean, to your favourand conduct, who is a man of undoubted honesty and discretion, onlythat he has the misfortune of being alledged to have been accessory tothe killing of one of M'Martin's family about fourteen years ago, uponwhich alledgeance the M'Martins are now so sanguine on revenging, thatthey are fully resolved for the deprivation of his life; to thepreventing of which you are relyed on by us, as the only fit instrument, and a most capable person. Therefore your favour and protection isexpected and intreated, during his good behaviour; and failing of whichbehaviour, you'll please to use him as a most insignificantperson deserves. 

'Sir, he had, upon the alledgeance foresaid, been transported, atLochiel's desire, to France, to gratify the M'Martins, and upon hisreturn home, about five years ago, married: But now he is so muchthreatened by the M'Martins, that he is not secure enough to stay wherehe is, being Ardmurchan, which occasions this trouble to you. Wishingprosperity and happiness to attend still yourself, worthy Lady, and goodfamily, we are, in the most affectionate manner, 'Dear Sir, 'Your most obliged, affectionate, 'And most humble Servants, 'DUGALL CAMERON, _of Strone_. DUGALL CAMERON, _of Barr_. DUGALL CAMERON, _of Inveriskvouilline_. DUGALL CAMERON, _of Invinvalie_. '

'Strone, 11th March, 1737. '

Ewen Cameron was protected, and his son has now a farm from the Laird ofCol, in Mull. 

The family of Col was very loyal in the time of the great Montrose[809], from whom I found two letters in his own handwriting. The first isas follows:--

FOR MY VERY LOVING FRIEND THE LAIRD OF COALL. 

'Sir, 'I must heartily thank you for all your willingness and good affectionto his Majesty's service, and particularly the sending alongs of yourson, to who I will heave ane particular respect, hopeing also that youwill still continue ane goode instrument for the advanceing ther of theKing's service, for which, and all your former loyal carriages, beconfident you shall find the effects of his Ma's favour, as they can bewitnessed you by

 'Your very faithful friende, 'MONTROSE. '

'Strethearne, 20 Jan. 1646. '

The other is:--

 'FOR THE LAIRD OF COL. 

'SIR, 'Having occasion to write to your fields, I cannot be forgetful of yourwillingness and good affection to his Majesty's service. I acknowledgeto you, and thank you heartily for it, assuring, that in what lies in mypower, you shall find the good. Meanwhile, I shall expect that you willcontinue your loyal endeavours, in wishing those slack people that areabout you, to appear more obedient than they do, and loyal in theirprince's service; whereby I assure you, you shall find me ever

 'Your faithful friend, 'MONTROSE[810]. '

'Petty, 17 April, 1646. '

I found some uncouth lines on the death of the present laird's father, intituled 'Nature's Elegy upon the death of Donald Maclean of Col. ' Theyare not worth insertion. I shall only give what is called his Epitaph, which Dr. Johnson said, 'was not so very bad. '

 'Nature's minion, Virtue's wonder, Art's corrective here lyes under. '

I asked, what 'Art's corrective' meant. 'Why, Sir, (said he, ) that thelaird was so exquisite, that he set art right, when she was wrong. '

I found several letters to the late Col, from my father's old companionat Paris, Sir Hector M'Lean, one of which was written at the time ofsettling the colony in Georgia[811]. It dissuades Col from lettingpeople go there, and assures him there will soon be an opportunity ofemploying them better at home. Hence it appears that emigration fromthe Highlands, though not in such numbers at a time as of late, hasalways been practised. Dr. Johnson observed that 'the Lairds, instead ofimproving their country, diminished their people. '

There are several districts of sandy desart in Col. There areforty-eight lochs of fresh water; but many of them are very small, --meerpools. About one half of them, however, have trout and eel. There is agreat number of horses in the island, mostly of a small size. Beingover-stocked, they sell some in Tir-yi, and on the main land. Theirblack cattle, which are chiefly rough-haired, are reckoned remarkablygood. The climate being very mild in winter, they never put their beastsin any house. The lakes are never frozen so as to bear a man; and snownever lies above a few hours. They have a good many sheep, which theyeat mostly themselves, and sell but a few. They have goats in severalplaces. There are no foxes; no serpents, toads, or frogs, nor anyvenomous creature. They have otters and mice here; but had no rats tilllately that an American vessel brought them. There is a rabbit-warren onthe north-east of the island, belonging to the Duke of Argyle. Young Colintends to get some hares, of which there are none at present. There areno black-cock, muir-fowl[812], nor partridges; but there are snipe, wild-duck, wild-geese, and swans, in winter; wild-pidgeons, plover, andgreat number of starlings; of which I shot some, and found them prettygood eating. Woodcocks come hither, though there is not a tree upon theisland. There are no rivers in Col; but only some brooks, in which thereis a great variety of fish. In the whole isle there are but three hills, and none of them considerable for a Highland country. The people arevery industrious. Every man can tan. They get oak, and birch-bark, andlime, from the main land. Some have pits; but they commonly use tubs. Isaw brogues[813] very well tanned; and every man can make them. They allmake candles of the tallow of their beasts, both moulded and dipped; andthey all make oil of the livers of fish. The little fish called Cuddiesproduce a great deal. They sell some oil out of the island, and they useit much for light in their houses, in little iron lamps, most of whichthey have from England; but of late their own blacksmith makes them. Heis a good workman; but he has no employment in shoeing horses, for theyall go unshod here, except some of a better kind belonging to young Col, which were now in Mull. There are two carpenters in Col; but most of theinhabitants can do something as boat-carpenters. They can all dye. Heathis used for yellow; and for red, a moss which grows on stones. They makebroad-cloth, and tartan, and linen, of their own wool and flax, sufficient for their own use; as also stockings. Their bonnets come fromthe mainland. Hard-ware and several small articles are brought annuallyfrom Greenock, and sold in the only shop in the island, which is keptnear the house, or rather hut, used for publick worship, there being nochurch in the island. The inhabitants of Col have increased considerablywithin these thirty years, as appears from the parish registers. Thereare but three considerable tacksmen on Col's part of the island[814]:the rest is let to small tenants, some of whom pay so low a rent asfour, three, or even two guineas. The highest is seven pounds, paid by afarmer, whose son goes yearly on foot to Aberdeen for education, and insummer returns, and acts as a schoolmaster in Col. Dr. Johnson said, 'There is something noble in a young man's walking two hundred miles andback again, every year, for the sake of learning[815]. '

This day a number of people came to Col, with complaints of each others'trespasses. Corneck, to prevent their being troublesome, told them, thatthe lawyer from Edinburgh was here, and if they did not agree, he wouldtake them to task. They were alarmed at this; said, they had never beenused to go to law, and hoped Col would settle matters himself. In theevening Corneck left us. 

As, in our present confinement, any thing that had even the name ofcurious was an object of attention, I proposed that Col should shew methe great stone, mentioned in a former page[816], as having been thrownby a giant to the top of a mountain. Dr. Johnson, who did not like to beleft alone, said he would accompany us as far as riding was practicable. We ascended a part of the hill on horseback, and Col and I scrambled upthe rest. A servant held our horses, and Dr. Johnson placed himself onthe ground, with his back against a large fragment of rock. The windbeing high, he let down the cocks of his hat, and tied it with hishandkerchief under his chin. While we were employed in examining thestone, which did not repay our trouble in getting to it, he amusedhimself with reading _Gataker on Lots and on the Christian Watch[817], _a very learned book, of the last age, which had been found in the garretof Col's house, and which he said was a treasure here. When we descriedhim from above, he had a most eremitical appearance; and on our returntold us, he had been so much engaged by Gataker, that he had nevermissed us. His avidity for variety of books, while we were in Col, wasfrequently expressed; and he often complained that so few were withinhis reach. Upon which I observed to him, that it was strange he shouldcomplain of want of books, when he could at any time make suchgood ones. 

We next proceeded to the lead mine. In our way we came to a strand ofsome extent, where we were glad to take a gallop, in which my learnedfriend joined with great alacrity. Dr. Johnson, mounted on a large baymare without shoes, and followed by a foal, which had some difficulty inkeeping up with him, was a singular spectacle. 

After examining the mine, we returned through a very uncouth district, full of sand hills; down which, though apparent precipices, our horsescarried us with safety, the sand always gently sliding away from theirfeet. Vestiges of houses were pointed out to us, which Col, and twoothers who had joined us, asserted had been overwhelmed with sand blownover them. But, on going close to one of them, Dr. Johnson shewed theabsurdity of the notion, by remarking, that 'it was evidently only ahouse abandoned, the stones of which had been taken away for otherpurposes; for the large stones, which form the lower part of the walls, were still standing higher than the sand. If _they_ were not blown over, it was clear nothing higher than they could be blown over. ' This wasquite convincing to me; but it made not the least impression on Col andthe others, who were not to be argued out of a Highland tradition. 

We did not sit down to dinner till between six and seven. We livedplentifully here, and had a true welcome. In such a season good firingwas of no small importance. The peats were excellent, and burnedcheerfully. Those at Dunvegan, which were damp, Dr. Johnson called 'asullen fuel. ' Here a Scottish phrase was singularly applied to him. Oneof the company having remarked that he had gone out on a stormy evening, and brought in a supply of peats from the stack, old Mr. M'Sweyn said, 'that was _main honest_[818]!'

Blenheim being occasionally mentioned, he told me he had never seenit[819]: he had not gone formerly; and he would not go now, just as acommon spectator, for his money: he would not put it in the power ofsome man about the Duke of Marlborough to say, 'Johnson was here; I knewhim, but I took no notice of him[820]. ' He said, he should be very gladto see it, if properly invited, which in all probability would never bethe case, as it was not worth his while to seek for it. I observed, thathe might be easily introduced there by a common friend of ours, nearlyrelated to the duke[821]. He answered, with an uncommon attention todelicacy of feeling, 'I doubt whether our friend be on such a footingwith the duke as to carry any body there; and I would not give him theuneasiness of seeing that I knew he was not, or even of being himselfreminded of it. '

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 10. 

There was this day the most terrible storm of wind and rain that I everremember[822]. It made such an awful impression on us all, as toproduce, for some time, a kind of dismal quietness in the house. The daywas passed without much conversation: only, upon my observing that theremust be something bad in a man's mind, who does not like to give leasesto his tenants, but wishes to keep them in a perpetual wretcheddependance on his will, Dr. Johnson said, 'You are right: it is a man'sduty to extend comfort and security among as many people as he can. Heshould not wish to have his tenants mere _Ephemerae_, --mere beings of anhour[823]. ' BOSWELL. 'But, Sir, if they have leases is there not somedanger that they may grow insolent? I remember you yourself once toldme, an English tenant was so independent, that, if provoked, he would_throw_ his rent at his landlord. ' JOHNSON. 'Depend upon it, Sir, it isthe landlord's own fault, if it is thrown at him. A man may always keephis tenants in dependence enough, though they have leases. He must be agood tenant indeed, who will not fall behind in his rent, if hislandlord will let him; and if he does fall behind, his landlord has himat his mercy. Indeed, the poor man is always much at the mercy of therich; no matter whether landlord or tenant. If the tenant lets hislandlord have a little rent beforehand, or has lent him money, then thelandlord is in his power. There cannot be a greater man than a tenantwho has lent money to his landlord; for he has under subjection the veryman to whom he should be subjected. '

MONDAY, OCTOBER II. 

We had some days ago engaged the Campbelltown vessel to carry us toMull, from the harbour where she lay. The morning was fine, and the windfair and moderate; so we hoped at length to get away. 

Mrs. M'Sweyn, who officiated as our landlady here, had never been on themain land. On hearing this, Dr. Johnson said to me, before her, 'That israther being behind-hand with life. I would at least go and seeGlenelg. ' BOSWELL. 'You yourself, Sir, have never seen, till now, anything but your native island. ' JOHNSON. 'But, Sir, by seeing London, Ihave seen as much of life as the world can shew[824]. ' BOSWELL. 'Youhave not seen Pekin. ' JOHNSON. 'What is Pekin? Ten thousand Londonerswould _drive_ all the people of Pekin: they would drive them like deer. '

We set out about eleven for the harbour; but, before we reached it, soviolent a storm came on, that we were obliged again to take shelter inthe house of Captain M'Lean, where we dined, and passed the night. 

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 12. 

After breakfast, we made a second attempt to get to the harbour; butanother storm soon convinced us that it would be in vain. CaptainM'Lean's house being in some confusion, on account of Mrs. M'Lean beingexpected to lie-in, we resolved to go to Mr. M'Sweyn's, where we arrivedvery wet, fatigued, and hungry. In this situation, we were somewhatdisconcerted by being told that we should have no dinner till late inthe evening, but should have tea in the mean time. Dr. Johnson opposedthis arrangement; but they persisted, and he took the tea very readily. He said to me afterwards, 'You must consider, Sir, a dinner here is amatter of great consequence. It is a thing to be first planned, and thenexecuted. I suppose the mutton was brought some miles off, from someplace where they knew there was a sheep killed. '

Talking of the good people with whom we were, he said, 'Life has not gotat all forward by a generation in M'Sweyn's family; for the son isexactly formed upon the father. What the father says, the son says; andwhat the father looks, the son looks. '

There being little conversation to-night, I must endeavour to recollectwhat I may have omitted on former occasions. When I boasted, at Rasay, of my independency of spirit, and that I could not be bribed, he said, 'Yes, you may be bribed by flattery. ' At the Reverend Mr. M'Lean's, Dr. Johnson asked him, if the people of Col had any superstitions. He said, 'No. ' The cutting peats at the increase of the moon was mentioned asone; but he would not allow it, saying, it was not a superstition, but awhim. Dr. Johnson would not admit the distinction. There were manysuperstitions, he maintained, not connected with religion; and this wasone of them[825]. On Monday we had a dispute at the Captain's, whethersand-hills could be fixed down by art. Dr. Johnson said, 'How _thedevil_ can you do it?' but instantly corrected himself, 'How can you doit[826]?' I never before heard him use a phrase of that nature. 

He has particularities which it is impossible to explain[827]. He neverwears a night-cap, as I have already mentioned; but he puts ahandkerchief on his head in the night. The day that we left Talisker, hebade us ride on. He then turned the head of his horse back towardsTalisker, stopped for some time; then wheeled round to the samedirection with ours, and then came briskly after us. He sets open awindow in the coldest day or night, and stands before it. It may do withhis constitution; but most people, amongst whom I am one, would say, with the frogs in the fable, 'This may be sport to you; but it is deathto us. ' It is in vain to try to find a meaning in every one of hisparticularities, which, I suppose, are mere habits, contracted bychance; of which every man has some that are more or less remarkable. His speaking to himself, or rather repeating, is a common habit withstudious men accustomed to deep thinking; and, in consequence of theirbeing thus rapt, they will even laugh by themselves, if the subjectwhich they are musing on is a merry one. Dr. Johnson is often utteringpious ejaculations, when he appears to be talking to himself; forsometimes his voice grows stronger, and parts of the Lord's Prayer areheard[828]. I have sat beside him with more than ordinary reverence onsuch occasions[829]. 

In our Tour, I observed that he was disgusted whenever he met withcoarse manners. He said to me, 'I know not how it is, but I cannot bearlow life[830]: and I find others, who have as good a right as I to befastidious, bear it better, by having mixed more with different sorts ofmen. You would think that I have mixed pretty well too. '

He read this day a good deal of my _Journal_, written in a small bookwith which he had supplied me, and was pleased, for he said, 'I wish thybooks were twice as big. ' He helped me to fill up blanks which I hadleft in first writing it, when I was not quite sure of what he had said, and he corrected any mistakes that I had made. 'They call me a scholar, (said he, ) and yet how very little literature is there in myconversation. ' BOSWELL. 'That, Sir, must be according to your company. You would not give literature to those who cannot taste it. Stay till wemeet Lord Elibank. '

We had at last a good dinner, or rather supper, and were very wellsatisfied with our entertainment. 

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 13. 

Col called me up, with intelligence that it was a good day for a passageto Mull; and just as we rose, a sailor from the vessel arrived for us. We got all ready with dispatch. Dr. Johnson was displeased at mybustling, and walking quickly up and down. He said, 'It does not hastenus a bit. It is getting on horseback in a ship[831]. All boys do it; andyou are longer a boy than others. ' He himself has no alertness, orwhatever it may be called; so he may dislike it, as _Oderunt hilaremtristes[832]. _

Before we reached the harbour, the wind grew high again. However, thesmall boat was waiting and took us on board. We remained for some timein uncertainty what to do: at last it was determined, that, as a goodpart of the day was over, and it was dangerous to be at sea at night, insuch a vessel, and such weather, we should not sail till the morningtide, when the wind would probably be more gentle. We resolved not to goashore again, but lie here in readiness. Dr. Johnson and I had each abed in the cabin. Col sat at the fire in the fore-castle, with thecaptain, and Joseph, and the rest. I eat some dry oatmeal, of which Ifound a barrel in the cabin. I had not done this since I was a boy. Dr. Johnson owned that he too was fond of it when a boy[833]; a circumstancewhich I was highly pleased to hear from him, as it gave me anopportunity of observing that, notwithstanding his joke on the articleof OATS[834], he was himself a proof that this kind of _food_ was notpeculiar to the people of Scotland. 

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 14. 

When Dr. Johnson awaked this morning, he called _'Lanky!'_ having, Isuppose, been thinking of Langton; but corrected himself instantly, andcried, _'Bozzy!'_ He has a way of contracting the names of his friends. Goldsmith feels himself so important now, as to be displeased at it. Iremember one day, when Tom Davies was telling that Dr. Johnson said, Weare all in labour for a name to _Goldy's_ play, ' Goldsmith cried 'I haveoften desired him not to call me _Goldy[835]. '_

Between six and seven we hauled our anchor, and set sail with a fairbreeze; and, after a pleasant voyage, we got safely and agreeably intothe harbour of Tobermorie, before the wind rose, which it always hasdone, for some days, about noon. Tobermorie is an excellent harbour. An island lies before it, and it is surrounded by a hilly theatre[836]. The island is too low, otherwise this would be quite a secure port; but, the island not being a sufficient protection, some storms blow very hardhere. Not long ago, fifteen vessels were blown from their moorings. There are sometimes sixty or seventy sail here: to-day there were twelveor fourteen vessels. To see such a fleet was the next thing to seeing atown. The vessels were from different places; Clyde, Campbelltown, Newcastle, &c. One was returning to Lancaster from Hamburgh. Afterhaving been shut up so long in Col, the sight of such an assemblage ofmoving habitations, containing such a variety of people, engaged indifferent pursuits, gave me much gaiety of spirit. When we had landed, Dr. Johnson said, 'Boswell is now all alive. He is like Antaeus; he getsnew vigour whenever he touches the ground. ' I went to the top of a hillfronting the harbour, from whence I had a good view of it. We had here atolerable inn. Dr. Johnson had owned to me this morning, that he was outof humour. Indeed, he shewed it a good deal in the ship; for when I wasexpressing my joy on the prospect of our landing in Mull, he said, hehad no joy, when he recollected that it would be five days before heshould get to the main land. I was afraid he would now take a suddenresolution to give up seeing Icolmkill. A dish of tea, and some goodbread and butter, did him service, and his bad humour went off. I toldhim, that I was diverted to hear all the people whom we had visited inour tour, say, _'Honest man!_ he's pleased with every thing; he's alwayscontent!'--'Little do they know, ' said I. He laughed, and said, 'Yourogue[837]!'

We sent to hire horses to carry us across the island of Mull to theshore opposite to Inchkenneth, the residence of Sir Allan M'Lean, uncleto young Col, and Chief of the M'Leans, to whose house we intended to gothe next day. Our friend Col went to visit his aunt, the wife of Dr. Alexander M'Lean, a physician, who lives about a mile from Tobermorie. 

Dr. Johnson and I sat by ourselves at the inn, and talked a good deal. Itold him, that I had found, in Leandro Alberti's Description of Italy, much of what Addison has given us in his _Remarks_[838]. He said, 'Thecollection of passages from the Classicks has been made by anotherItalian: it is, however, impossible to detect a man as a plagiary insuch a case, because all who set about making such a collection mustfind the same passages; but, if you find the same applications inanother book, then Addison's learning in his _Remarks_ tumbles down. Itis a tedious book; and, if it were not attached to Addison's previousreputation, one would not think much of it. Had he written nothing else, his name would not have lived. Addison does not seem to have gone deepin Italian literature: he shews nothing of it in his subsequentwritings. He shews a great deal of French learning. There is, perhaps, more knowledge circulated in the French language than in any other[839]. There is more original knowledge in English. ' 'But the French (said I)have the art of accommodating[840] literature. ' JOHNSON. 'Yes, Sir: wehave no such book as Moreri's _Dictionary_[841]. ' BOSWELL. 'Their_Ana_[842] are good. ' JOHNSON. 'A few of them are good; but we have onebook of that kind better than any of them; Selden's _Table-talk_. As tooriginal literature, the French have a couple of tragick poets who goround the world, Racine and Corneille, and one comick poet, Moliere. 'BOSWELL. 'They have Fenelon. ' JOHNSON. 'Why, Sir, _Telemachus_ is prettywell. ' BOSWELL. 'And Voltaire, Sir. ' JOHNSON. 'He has not stood histrial yet. And what makes Voltaire chiefly circulate is collection; suchas his _Universal History_. ' BOSWELL. 'What do you say to the Bishop ofMeaux?' JOHNSON. 'Sir, nobody reads him[843]. ' He would not allowMassilon and Bourdaloue to go round the world. In general, however, hegave the French much praise for their industry. 

He asked me whether he had mentioned, in any of the papers of the_Rambler_, the description in Virgil of the entrance into Hell, with anapplication to the press; 'for (said he) I do not much remember them. ' Itold him, 'No. ' Upon which he repeated it:--

 'Vestibulum ante ipsum, primisque in faucibus orci, Luctus et ultrices posuere cubilia Curae; Pallentesque habitant Morbi, tristisque Senectus, Et metus, et malesuada Fames, et turpis Egestas, Terribiles visu formae; Lethumque, Laborque[844]. '

'Now, (said he) almost all these apply exactly to an authour: all theseare the concomitants of a printing-house. I proposed to him to dictatean essay on it, and offered to write it. He said, he would not do itthen, but perhaps would write one at some future period. 

The Sunday evening that we sat by ourselves at Aberdeen, I asked himseveral particulars of his life, from his early years, which he readilytold me; and I wrote them down before him. This day I proceeded in myinquiries, also writing them in his presence. I have them on detachedsheets. I shall collect authentick materials for THE LIFE OF SAMUELJOHNSON, LL. D. ; and, if I survive him, I shall be one who will mostfaithfully do honour to his memory. I have now a vast treasure of hisconversation, at different times, since the year 1762[845], when I firstobtained his acquaintance; and, by assiduous inquiry, I can make up fornot knowing him sooner[846]. 

A Newcastle ship-master, who happened to be in the house, intrudedhimself upon us. He was much in liquor, and talked nonsense about hisbeing a man for _Wilkes and Liberty_, and against the ministry. Dr. Johnson was angry, that 'a fellow should come into _our_ company, whowas fit for _no_ company. ' He left us soon. 

Col returned from his aunt, and told us, she insisted that we shouldcome to her house that night. He introduced to us Mr. Campbell, the Dukeof Argyle's factor in Tyr-yi. He was a genteel, agreeable man. He wasgoing to Inverary, and promised to put letters into the post-office forus[847]. I now found that Dr. Johnson's desire to get on the main land, arose from his anxiety to have an opportunity of conveying letters tohis friends. 

After dinner, we proceeded to Dr. M'Lean's, which was about a mile fromour inn. He was not at home, but we were received by his lady anddaughter, who entertained us so well, that Dr. Johnson seemed quitehappy. When we had supped, he asked me to give him some paper to writeletters. I begged he would write short ones, and not _expatiate_, as weought to set off early. He was irritated by this, and said, 'What mustbe done; must be done: the thing is past a joke. ' 'Nay, Sir, (said I, )write as much as you please; but do not blame me, if we are kept sixdays before we get to the main land. You were very impatient in themorning: but no sooner do you find yourself in good quarters, than youforget that you are to move. ' I got him paper enough, and we parted ingood humour. 

Let me now recollect whatever particulars I have omitted. In the morningI said to him, before we landed at Tobermorie, 'We shall see Dr. M'Lean, who has written _The History of the M'Leans'_. JOHNSON. 'I have no greatpatience to stay to hear the history of the M'Leans. I would rather hearthe History of the Thrales. ' When on Mull, I said, 'Well, Sir, this isthe fourth of the Hebrides that we have been upon. ' JOHNSON. 'Nay, wecannot boast of the number we have seen. We thought we should see manymore. We thought of sailing about easily from island to island; and sowe should, had we come at a better season[848]; but we, being wise men, thought it would be summer all the year where _we_ were. However, Sir, we have seen enough to give us a pretty good notion of the system ofinsular life. '

Let me not forget, that he sometimes amused himself with very slightreading; from which, however, his conversation shewed that he contrivedto extract some benefit. At Captain M'Lean's he read a good deal in _TheCharmer_, a collection of songs[849]. 

We this morning found that we could not proceed, there being a violentstorm of wind and rain, and the rivers being impassable. When Iexpressed my discontent at our confinement, Dr. Johnson said, 'Now thatI have had an opportunity of writing to the main land, I am in no suchhaste. ' I was amused with his being so easily satisfied; for the truthwas, that the gentleman who was to convey our letters, as I was nowinformed, was not to set out for Inverary for some time; so that it wasprobable we should be there as soon as he: however, I did not undeceivemy friend, but suffered him to enjoy his fancy. 

Dr. Johnson asked, in the evening, to see Dr. M'Lean's books. He tookdown Willis _de Anima Brutorum_[850], and pored over it a good deal. 

Miss M'Lean produced some Erse poems by John M'Lean, who was a famousbard in Mull, and had died only a few years ago. He could neither readnor write. She read and translated two of them; one, a kind of elegy onSir John M'Lean's being obliged to fly his country in 1715; another, adialogue between two Roman Catholick young ladies, sisters, whether itwas better to be a nun or to marry. I could not perceive much poeticalimagery in the translation. Yet all of our company who understood Erse, seemed charmed with the original. There may, perhaps, be some choice ofexpression, and some excellence of arrangement, that cannot be shewn intranslation. 

After we had exhausted the Erse poems, of which Dr. Johnson saidnothing, Miss M'Lean gave us several tunes on a spinnet, which, thoughmade so long ago as in 1667, was still very well toned. She sung alongwith it. Dr. Johnson seemed pleased with the musick, though he owns heneither likes it, nor has hardly any perception of it. At Mr. M'Pherson's, in Slate, he told us, that 'he knew a drum from a trumpet, and a bagpipe from a guittar, which was about the extent of hisknowledge of musick. ' To-night he said, that, 'if he had learnt musick, he should have been afraid he would have done nothing else but play. Itwas a method of employing the mind without the labour of thinking atall, and with some applause from a man's self[851]. '

We had the musick of the bagpipe every day, at Armidale, Dunvegan, andCol. Dr. Johnson appeared fond of it, and used often to stand for sometime with his ear close to the great drone. 

The penurious gentleman of our acquaintance, formerly alluded to[852], afforded us a topick of conversation to-night. Dr. Johnson said, I oughtto write down a collection of the instances of his narrowness, as theyalmost exceeded belief. Col told us, that O'Kane, the famous Irishharper, was once at that gentleman's house. He could not find in hisheart to give him any money, but gave him a key for a harp, which wasfinely ornamented with gold and silver, and with a precious stone, andwas worth eighty or a hundred guineas. He did not know the value of it;and when he came to know it, he would fain have had it back; but O'Kanetook care that he should not. JOHNSON. 'They exaggerate the value; everybody is so desirous that he should be fleeced. I am very willing itshould be worth eighty or a hundred guineas; but I do not believe it. 'BOSWELL. 'I do not think O'Kane was obliged to give it back. ' JOHNSON. 'No, Sir. If a man with his eyes open, and without any means used todeceive him, gives me a thing, I am not to let him have it again when hegrows wiser. I like to see how avarice defeats itself: how, whenavoiding to part with money, the miser gives something more valuable. 'Col said, the gentleman's relations were angry at his giving away theharp-key, for it had been long in the family. JOHNSON. 'Sir, he values anew guinea more than an old friend. '

Col also told us, that the same person having come up with a serjeantand twenty men, working on the high road, he entered into discourse withthe serjeant, and then gave him sixpence for the men to drink. Theserjeant asked, 'Who is this fellow?'. Upon being informed, he said, 'IfI had known who he was, I should have thrown it in his face. ' JOHNSON. 'There is much want of sense in all this. He had no business to speakwith the serjeant. He might have been in haste, and trotted on. He hasnot learnt to be a miser: I believe we must take him apprentice. 'BOSWELL. 'He would grudge giving half a guinea to be taught. ' JOHNSON. 'Nay, Sir, you must teach him _gratis_. You must give him an opportunityto practice your precepts. '

Let me now go back, and glean _Johnsoniana_. The Saturday before wesailed from Slate, I sat awhile in the afternoon, with Dr. Johnson inhis room, in a quiet serious frame. I observed, that hardly any man wasaccurately prepared for dying; but almost every one left somethingundone, something in confusion; that my father, indeed, told me he knewone man, (Carlisle of Limekilns, ) after whose death all his papers werefound in exact order; and nothing was omitted in his will. JOHNSON. 'Sir, I had an uncle who died so; but such attention requires greatleisure, and great firmness of mind. If one was to think constantly ofdeath, the business of life would stand still. I am no friend to makingreligion appear too hard. Many good people have done harm by givingsevere notions of it. In the same way, as to learning: I never frightenyoung people with difficulties; on the contrary, I tell them that theymay very easily get as much as will do very well. I do not indeed tellthem that they will be _Bentleys_!

The night we rode to Col's house, I said, 'Lord Elibank is probablywondering what is become of us. ' JOHNSON. 'No, no; he is not thinking ofus. ' BOSWELL. 'But recollect the warmth with which he wrote[853]. Are wenot to believe a man, when he says he has a great desire to see another?Don't you believe that I was very impatient for your coming toScotland?' JOHNSON. 'Yes, Sir; I believe you were; and I was impatientto come to you. A young man feels so, but seldom an old man. ' I howeverconvinced him that Lord Elibank, who has much of the spirit of a youngman, might feel so. He asked me if our jaunt had answered expectation. Isaid it had much exceeded it. I expected much difficulty with him, andhad not found it. 'And (he added) wherever we have come, we have beenreceived like princes in their progress. '

He said, he would not wish not to be disgusted in the Highlands; forthat would be to lose the power of distinguishing, and a man might thenlie down in the middle of them. He wished only to conceal his disgust. 

At Captain M'Lean's, I mentioned Pope's friend, Spence. JOHNSON. 'He wasa weak conceited man[854]. ' BOSWELL. 'A good scholar, Sir?' JOHNSON. 'Why, no, Sir. ' BOSWELL. 'He was a pretty scholar. ' JOHNSON. 'You haveabout reached him. '

Last night at the inn, when the factor in Tyr-yi spoke of his havingheard that a roof was put on some part of the buildings at Icolmkill, Iunluckily said, 'It will be fortunate if we find a cathedral with a roofon it. ' I said this from a foolish anxiety to engage Dr. Johnson'scuriosity more. He took me short at once. 'What, Sir? how can you talkso? If we shall _find_ a cathedral roofed! as if we were going to a_terra incognita_; when every thing that is at Icolmkill is so wellknown. You are like some New-England-men who came to the mouth of theThames. "Come, (say they, ) let us go up and see what sort of inhabitantsthere are here. " They talked, Sir, as if they had been to go up theSusquehannah, or any other American river. '

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 16. 

This day there was a new moon, and the weather changed for the better. Dr. Johnson said of Miss M'Lean, 'She is the most accomplished lady thatI have found in the Highlands. She knows French, musick, and drawing, sews neatly, makes shellwork, and can milk cows; in short, she can doevery thing. She talks sensibly, and is the first person whom I havefound, that can translate Erse poetry literally[855]. ' We set out, mounted on little Mull horses. Mull corresponded exactly with the ideawhich I had always had of it; a hilly country, diversified with heathand grass, and many rivulets. Dr. Johnson was not in very good humour. He said, it was a dreary country, much worse than Sky. I differed fromhim. 'O, Sir, (said he, ) a most dolorous country[856]!'

We had a very hard journey to-day. I had no bridle for my sheltie, butonly a halter; and Joseph rode without a saddle. At one place, a lochhaving swelled over the road, we were obliged to plunge through prettydeep water. Dr. Johnson observed, how helpless a man would be, were hetravelling here alone, and should meet with any accident; and said, 'helonged to get to _a country of saddles and bridles_' He was more out ofhumour to-day, than he has been in the course of our Tour, being frettedto find that his little horse could scarcely support his weight; andhaving suffered a loss, which, though small in itself, was of someconsequence to him, while travelling the rugged steeps of Mull, where hewas at times obliged to walk. The loss that I allude to was that of thelarge oak-stick, which, as I formerly mentioned, he had brought with himfrom London[857]. It was of great use to him in our wild peregrination;for, ever since his last illness in 1766[858], he has had a weakness inhis knees, and has not been able to walk easily. It had too theproperties of a measure; for one nail was driven into it at the lengthof a foot; another at that of a yard. In return for the services it haddone him, he said, this morning he would make a present of it to someMuseum; but he little thought he was so soon to lose it. As hepreferred riding with a switch, it was entrusted to a fellow to bedelivered to our baggage-man, who followed us at some distance; but wenever saw it more. I could not persuade him out of a suspicion that ithad been stolen. 'No, no, my friend, (said he, ) it is not to be expectedthat any man in Mull, who has got it, will part with it. Consider, Sir, the value of such a _piece of timber_ here!'

As we travelled this forenoon, we met Dr. McLean, who expressed muchregret at his having been so unfortunate as to be absent while we wereat his house. 

We were in hopes to get to Sir Allan Maclean's at Inchkenneth, to-night;but the eight miles, of which our road was said to consist, were so verylong, that we did not reach the opposite coast of Mull till seven atnight, though we had set out about eleven in the forenoon; and when wedid arrive there, we found the wind strong against us. Col determinedthat we should pass the night at M'Quarrie's, in the island of Ulva, which lies between Mull and Inchkenneth; and a servant was sent forwardto the ferry, to secure the boat for us; but the boat was gone to theUlva side, and the wind was so high that the people could not hear himcall; and the night so dark that they could not see a signal. We shouldhave been in a very bad situation, had there not fortunately been lyingin the little sound of Ulva an Irish vessel, the Bonnetta, ofLondonderry, Captain M'Lure, master. He himself was at M'Quarrie's; buthis men obligingly came with their long-boat, and ferried us over. M'Quarrie's house was mean; but we were agreeably surprized with theappearance of the master, whom we found to be intelligent, polite, andmuch a man of the world. Though his clan is not numerous, he is a veryancient Chief, and has a burial place at Icolmkill. He told us, hisfamily had possessed Ulva for nine hundred years; but I was distressedto hear that it was soon to be sold for payment of his debts. 

Captain M'Lure, whom we found here, was of Scotch extraction, andproperly a McLeod, being descended of some of the M'Leods who went withSir Normand of Bernera to the battle of Worcester; and after the defeatof the royalists, fled to Ireland, and, to conceal themselves, took adifferent name. He told me, there was a great number of them aboutLondonderry; some of good property. I said, they should now resumetheir real name. The Laird of M'Leod should go over, and assemble them, and make them all drink the large horn full[859], and from that timethey should be M'Leods. The captain informed us, he had named his shipthe Bonnetta, out of gratitude to Providence; for once, when he wassailing to America with a good number of passengers, the ship in whichhe then sailed was becalmed for five weeks, and during all that time, numbers of the fish Bonnetta swam close to her, and were caught forfood; he resolved therefore, that the ship he should next get, should becalled the Bonnetta. 

M'Quarrie told us a strong instance of the second sight. He had gone toEdinburgh, and taken a man-servant along with him. An old woman, who wasin the house, said one day, 'M'Quarrie will be at home to-morrow, andwill bring two gentlemen with him;' and she said, she saw his servantreturn in red and green. He did come home next day. He had two gentlemenwith him; and his servant had a new red and green livery, whichM'Quarrie had bought for him at Edinburgh, upon a sudden thought, nothaving the least intention when he left home to put his servant inlivery; so that the old woman could not have heard any previous mentionof it. This, he assured us, was a true story. 

M'Quarrie insisted that the _Mercheta Mulierum_, mentioned in our oldcharters, did really mean the privilege which a lord of the manor, or abaron, had, to have the first night of all his vassals' wives. Dr. Johnson said, the belief of such a custom having existed was also heldin England, where there is a tenure called _Borough English_, by whichthe eldest child does not inherit, from a doubt of his being the son ofthe tenant[860]. M'Quarrie told us, that still, on the marriage of eachof his tenants, a sheep is due to him; for which the composition isfixed at five shillings[861]. I suppose, Ulva is the only place wherethis custom remains. 

Talking of the sale of an estate of an ancient family, which was said tohave been purchased much under its value by the confidential lawyer ofthat family, and it being mentioned that the sale would probably be setaside by a suit in equity, Dr. Johnson said, 'I am very willing thatthis sale should be set aside, but I doubt much whether the suit will besuccessful; for the argument for avoiding the sale is founded on vagueand indeterminate principles, as that the price was too low, and thatthere was a great degree of confidence placed by the seller in theperson who became the purchaser. Now, how low should a price be? or whatdegree of confidence should there be to make a bargain be set aside? abargain, which is a wager of skill between man and man. If, indeed, anyfraud can be proved, that will do. '

When Dr. Johnson and I were by ourselves at night, I observed of ourhost, '_aspectum generosum habet;'--'et generosum animum_', he added. For fear of being overheard in the small Highland houses, I often talkedto him in such Latin as I could speak, and with as much of the Englishaccent as I could assume, so as not to be understood, in case ourconversation should be too loud for the space. 

We had each an elegant bed in the same room; and here it was that acircumstance occurred, as to which he has been strangely misunderstood. From his description of his chamber, it has erroneously been supposed, that his bed being too short for him, his feet during the night were inthe mire; whereas he has only said, that when he undressed, he felt hisfeet in the mire: that is, the clay-floor of the room, on which he stoodupon before he went into bed, was wet, in consequence of the windowsbeing broken, which let in the rain[862]. 

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 17. 

Being informed that there was nothing worthy of observation in Ulva, wetook boat, and proceeded to Inchkenneth, where we were introduced by ourfriend Col to Sir Allan M'Lean, the Chief of his clan, and to two youngladies, his daughters. Inchkenneth is a pretty little island, a milelong, and about half a mile broad, all good land[863]. 

As we walked up from the shore, Dr. Johnson's heart was cheered by thesight of a road marked with cart-wheels, as on the main land; a thingwhich we had not seen for a long time. It gave us a pleasure similar tothat which a traveller feels, when, whilst wandering on what he fears isa desert island, he perceives the print of human feet. Military menacquire excellent habits of having all conveniences about them. SirAllan M'Lean, who had been long in the army, and had now a lease of theisland, had formed a commodious habitation, though it consisted but of afew small buildings, only one story high[864]. He had, in his littleapartments, more things than I could enumerate in a page or two. 

Among other agreeable circumstances, it was not the least, to find herea parcel of the _Caledonian Mercury_, published since we left Edinburgh;which I read with that pleasure which every man feels who has been forsome time secluded from the animated scenes of the busy world. 

Dr. Johnson found books here. He bade me buy Bishop Gastrell's_Christian Institutes_[865], which was lying in the room. He said, 'I donot like to read any thing on a Sunday, but what is theological; notthat I would scrupulously refuse to look at any thing which a friendshould shew me in a newspaper; but in general, I would read only what istheological. I read just now some of Drummond's _Travels_[866], before Iperceived what books were here. I then took up Derham's_Physico-Theology_[867]. '

Every particular concerning this island having been so well described byDr. Johnson, it would be superfluous in me to present the publick withthe observations that I made upon it, in my _Journal_. 

I was quite easy with Sir Allan almost instantaneously. He knew thegreat intimacy that had been between my father and his predecessor, SirHector, and was himself of a very frank disposition. After dinner, SirAllan said he had got Dr. Campbell about an hundred subscribers to his_Britannia Elucidata_, (a work since published under the title of _APolitical Survey of Great Britain_[868], ) of whom he believed twentywere dead, the publication having been so long delayed. JOHNSON. 'Sir, Iimagine the delay of publication is owing to this;--that, afterpublication, there will be no more subscribers, and few will send theadditional guinea to get their books: in which they will be wrong; forthere will be a great deal of instruction in the work. I think highly ofCampbell[869]. In the first place, he has very good parts. In the secondplace, he has very extensive reading; not, perhaps, what is properlycalled learning, but history, politicks, and, in short, that popularknowledge which makes a man very useful. In the third place, he haslearned much by what is called the _vox viva_. He talks with a greatmany people. '

Speaking of this gentleman, at Rasay, he told us, that he one day calledon him, and they talked of Tull's _Husbandry_[870]. Dr. Campbell saidsomething. Dr. Johnson began to dispute it. 'Come, (said Dr. Campbell, )we do not want to get the better of one another: we want to encreaseeach other's ideas. ' Dr. Johnson took it in good part, and theconversation then went on coolly and instructively. His candour inrelating this anecdote does him much credit, and his conduct on thatoccasion proves how easily he could be persuaded to talk from a bettermotive than 'for victory[871]. '

Dr. Johnson here shewed so much of the spirit of a Highlander, that hewon Sir Allan's heart: indeed, he has shewn it during the whole of ourTour. One night, in Col, he strutted about the room with a broad swordand target, and made a formidable appearance; and, another night, I tookthe liberty to put a large blue bonnet on his head. His age, his size, and his bushy grey wig, with this covering on it, presented the imageof a venerable _Senachi_[872]: and, however unfavourable to the LowlandScots, he seemed much pleased to assume the appearance of an ancientCaledonian. We only regretted that he could not be prevailed with topartake of the social glass. One of his arguments against drinking, appears to me not convincing. He urged, that 'in proportion as drinkingmakes a man different from what he is before he has drunk, it is bad;because it has so far affected his reason. ' But may it not be answered, that a man may be altered by it _for the better_; that his spirits maybe exhilarated, without his reason being affected[873]. On the generalsubject of drinking, however, I do not mean positively to take the otherside. I am _dubius, non improbus_. 

In the evening, Sir Allan informed us that it was the custom of hishouse to have prayers every Sunday; and Miss M'Lean read the eveningservice, in which we all joined. I then read Ogden's second and ninth_Sermons on Prayer_, which, with their other distinguished excellence, have the merit of being short. Dr. Johnson said, that it was the mostagreeable Sunday he had ever passed[874]; and it made such an impressionon his mind, that he afterwards wrote the following Latin verses uponInchkenneth[875]:--

 INSULA SANCTI KENNETHI. 

 Parva quidem regio, sed relligione priorum Nota, Caledonias panditur inter aquas; Voce ubi Cennethus populos domuisse feroces Dicitur, et vanos dedocuisse deos. Hue ego delatus placido per coerula cursu Scire locum volui quid daret ille novi. Illic Leniades humili regnabat in aula, Leniades magnis nobilitatus avis: Una duas habuit casa cum genitore puellas, Quas Amor undarum fingeret esse deas: Non tamen inculti gelidis latuere sub antris, Accola Danubii qualia saevus habet; Mollia non decrant vacuae solatia vitae, Sive libros poscant otia, sive lyram. Luxerat ilia dies, legis gens docta supernae Spes hominum ac curas cum procul esse jubet, Ponti inter strepitus sacri non munera cultus Cessarunt; pietas hic quoque cura fuit: Quid quod sacrifici versavit femina libros, Legitimas faciunt pectora pura preces[876]. Quo vagor ulterius? quod ubique requiritur hic est; Hic secura quies, hic et honestus amor[877]. 

MONDAY, OCTOBER 18. 

We agreed to pass this day with Sir Allan, and he engaged to have everything in order for our voyage to-morrow. 

Being now soon to be separated from our amiable friend young Col, hismerits were all remembered. At Ulva he had appeared in a new character, having given us a good prescription for a cold. On my mentioning himwith warmth, Dr. Johnson said, 'Col does every thing for us: we willerect a statue to Col. ' 'Yes, said I, and we will have him with hisvarious attributes and characters, like Mercury, or any other of theheathen gods. We will have him as a pilot; we will have him as afisherman, as a hunter, as a husbandman, as a physician. '

I this morning took a spade, and dug a little grave in the floor of aruined chapel[878], near Sir Allan M'Lean's house, in which I buriedsome human bones I found there. Dr. Johnson praised me for what I haddone, though he owned, he could not have done it. He shewed in thechapel at Rasay[879] his horrour at dead men's bones. He shewed it againat Col's house. In the Charter-room there was a remarkable largeshin-bone, which was said to have been a bone of _John Garve_[880], oneof the lairds. Dr. Johnson would not look at it; but started away. 

At breakfast, I asked, 'What is the reason that we are angry at atrader's having opulence[881]?' JOHNSON. 'Why, Sir, the reason is, (though I don't undertake to prove that there is a reason, ) we see noqualities in trade that should entitle a man to superiority. We are notangry at a soldier's getting riches, because we see that he possessesqualities which we have not. If a man returns from a battle, having lostone hand, and with the other full of gold, we feel that he deserves thegold; but we cannot think that a fellow, by sitting all day at a desk, is entitled to get above us. ' BOSWELL. 'But, Sir, may we not suppose amerchant to be a man of an enlarged mind, such as Addison in the_Spectator_ describes Sir Andrew Freeport to have been?' JOHNSON. 'Why, Sir, we may suppose any fictitious character. We may suppose aphilosophical day-labourer, who is happy in reflecting that, by hislabour, he contributes to the fertility of the earth, and to the supportof his fellow-creatures; but we find no such philosophical day-labourer. A merchant may, perhaps, be a man of an enlarged mind; but there isnothing in trade connected with an enlarged mind[882]. '

I mentioned that I had heard Dr. Solander say he was a SwedishLaplander[883]. JOHNSON. 'Sir, I don't believe he is a Laplander. TheLaplanders are not much above four feet high. He is as tall as you; andhe has not the copper colour of a Laplander. ' BOSWELL. 'But what motivecould he have to make himself a Laplander?' JOHNSON. 'Why, Sir, he musteither mean the word Laplander in a very extensive sense, or may mean avoluntary degradation of himself. "For all my being the great man thatyou see me now, I was originally a Barbarian;" as if Burke should say, "I came over a wild Irishman. " Which he might say in his present stateof exaltation. '

Having expressed a desire to have an island like Inchkenneth, Dr. Johnson set himself to think what would be necessary for a man in such asituation. 'Sir, I should build me a fortification, if I came to livehere; for, if you have it not, what should hinder a parcel of ruffiansto land in the night, and carry off every thing you have in the house, which, in a remote country, would be more valuable than cows and sheep?add to all this the danger of having your throat cut. ' BOSWELL. 'I wouldhave a large dog. ' JOHNSON. 'So you may, Sir; but a large dog is of nouse but to alarm. ' He, however, I apprehend, thinks too lightly of thepower of that animal. I have heard him say, that he is afraid of no dog. 'He would take him up by the hinder legs, which would render him quitehelpless, --and then knock his head against a stone, and beat out hisbrains. ' Topham Beauclerk told me, that at his house in the country, twolarge ferocious dogs were fighting. Dr. Johnson looked steadily at themfor a little while; and then, as one would separate two little boys, whowere foolishly hurting each other, he ran up to them, and cuffed theirheads till he drove them asunder[884]. But few men have his intrepidity, Herculean strength, or presence of mind. Most thieves or robbers wouldbe afraid to encounter a mastiff. 

I observed, that, when young Col talked of the lands belonging to hisfamily, he always said, '_my_ lands[885]. ' For this he had a plausiblepretence; for he told me, there has been a custom in this family, thatthe laird resigns the estate to the eldest son when he comes of age, reserving to himself only a certain life-rent. He said, it was avoluntary custom; but I think I found an instance in the charter-room, that there was such an obligation in a contract of marriage. If thecustom was voluntary, it was only curious; but if founded on obligation, it might be dangerous; for I have been told, that in Otaheité, whenevera child is born, (a son, I think, ) the father loses his right to theestate and honours, and that this unnatural, or rather absurd custom, occasions the murder of many children. 

Young Col told us he could run down a greyhound; 'for, (said he, ) thedog runs himself out of breath, by going too quick, and then I get upwith him[886]. ' I accounted for his advantage over the dog, by remarkingthat Col had the faculty of reason, and knew how to moderate his pace, which the dog had not sense enough to do. Dr. Johnson said, 'He is anoble animal. He is as complete an islander as the mind can figure. Heis a farmer, a sailor, a hunter, a fisher: he will run you down a dog:if any man has a _tail_[887], it is Col. He is hospitable; and he has anintrepidity of talk, whether he understands the subject or not. I regretthat he is not more intellectual. '

Dr. Johnson observed, that there was nothing of which he would notundertake to persuade a Frenchman in a foreign country. 'I'll carry aFrenchman to St. Paul's Church-yard, and I'll tell him, "by our law youmay walk half round the church; but, if you walk round the whole, youwill be punished capitally, " and he will believe me at once. Now, noEnglishman would readily swallow such a thing: he would go and inquireof somebody else[888]. ' The Frenchman's credulity, I observed, must beowing to his being accustomed to implicit submission; whereas everyEnglishman reasons upon the laws of his country, and instructs hisrepresentatives, who compose the legislature. This day was passed inlooking at a small island adjoining Inchkenneth, which afforded nothingworthy of observation; and in such social and gay entertainments as ourlittle society could furnish. 

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 19. 

After breakfast we took leave of the young ladies, and of our excellentcompanion Col, to whom we had been so much obliged. He had now put usunder the care of his Chief; and was to hasten back to Sky. We partedfrom him with very strong feelings of kindness and gratitude; and wehoped to have had some future opportunity of proving to him thesincerity of what we felt; but in the following year he wasunfortunately lost in the Sound between Ulva and Mull[889]; and thisimperfect memorial, joined to the high honour of being tenderly andrespectfully mentioned by Dr. Johnson, is the only return which theuncertainty of human events has permitted us to make to this deservingyoung man. 

Sir Allan, who obligingly undertook to accompany us to Icolmkill[890], had a strong good boat, with four stout rowers. We coasted along Mulltill we reached _Gribon_, where is what is called Mackinnon's cave, compared with which that at Ulinish[891] is inconsiderable. It is in arock of a great height, close to the sea. Upon the left of its entrancethere is a cascade, almost perpendicular from the top to the bottom ofthe rock. There is a tradition that it was conducted thitherartificially, to supply the inhabitants of the cave with water. Dr. Johnson gave no credit to this tradition. As, on the one hand, his faithin the Christian religion is firmly founded upon good grounds; so, onthe other, he is incredulous when there is no sufficient reason forbelief[892]; being in this respect just the reverse of modern infidels, who, however nice and scrupulous in weighing the evidences of religion, are yet often so ready to believe the most absurd and improbable talesof another nature, that Lord Hailes well observed, a good essay might bewritten _Sur la crédulité des Incrédules_. 

The height of this cave I cannot tell with any tolerable exactness; butit seemed to be very lofty, and to be a pretty regular arch. Wepenetrated, by candlelight, a great way; by our measurement, no lessthan four hundred and eighty-five feet. Tradition says, that a piper andtwelve men once advanced into this cave, nobody can tell how far; andnever returned. At the distance to which we proceeded the air was quitepure; for the candle burned freely, without the least appearance of theflame growing globular; but as we had only one, we thought it dangerousto venture farther, lest, should it have been extinguished, we shouldhave had no means of ascertaining whether we could remain withoutdanger. Dr. Johnson said, this was the greatest natural curiosity he hadever seen. 

We saw the island of Staffa, at no very great distance, but could notland upon it, the surge was so high on its rocky coast[893]. 

Sir Allan, anxious for the honour of Mull, was still talking of its_woods_, and pointing them out to Dr. Johnson, as appearing at adistance on the skirts of that island, as we sailed along. JOHNSON. 'Sir, I saw at Tobermorie what they called a wood, which I unluckilytook for _heath_. If you shew me what I shall take for _furze_, it willbe something. '

In the afternoon we went ashore on the coast of Mull, and partook of acold repast, which we carried with us. We hoped to have procured somerum or brandy for our boatmen and servants, from a publick-house nearwhere we landed; but unfortunately a funeral a few days before hadexhausted all their store[894]. Mr. Campbell, however, one of the Dukeof Argyle's tacksmen, who lived in the neighbourhood, on receiving amessage from Sir Allan, sent us a liberal supply. 

We continued to coast along Mull, and passed by Nuns' Island, which, itis said, belonged to the nuns of Icolmkill, and from which, we weretold, the stone for the buildings there was taken. As we sailed along bymoon-light, in a sea somewhat rough, and often between black and gloomyrocks, Dr. Johnson said, 'If this be not _roving among the Hebrides_, nothing is[895]. The repetition of words which he had so oftenpreviously used, made a strong impression on my imagination; and, by anatural course of thinking, led me to consider how our presentadventures would appear to me at a future period. 

I have often experienced, that scenes through which a man has passed, improve by lying in the memory: they grow mellow. _Acti labores suntjucundi_[896]. This may be owing to comparing them with present listlessease. Even harsh scenes acquire a softness by length of time[897]; andsome are like very loud sounds, which do not please, or at least do notplease so much, till you are removed to a certain distance. They may becompared to strong coarse pictures, which will not bear to be viewednear. Even pleasing scenes improve by time, and seem more exquisite inrecollection, than when they were present; if they have not faded todimness in the memory. Perhaps, there is so much evil in every humanenjoyment, when present, --so much dross mixed with it, that it requiresto be refined by time; and yet I do not see why time should not meltaway the good and the evil in equal proportions;--why the shade shoulddecay, and the light remain in preservation. 

After a tedious sail, which, by our following various turnings of thecoast of Mull, was extended to about forty miles, it gave us no smallpleasure to perceive a light in the village at Icolmkill, in whichalmost all the inhabitants of the island live, close to where theancient building stood. As we approached the shore, the tower of thecathedral, just discernible in the air, was a picturesque object. 

When we had landed upon the sacred place, which, as long as I canremember, I had thought on with veneration, Dr. Johnson and I cordiallyembraced. We had long talked of visiting Icolmkill; and, from thelateness of the season, were at times very doubtful whether we should beable to effect our purpose. To have seen it, even alone, would havegiven me great satisfaction; but the venerable scene was rendered muchmore pleasing by the company of my great and pious friend, who was noless affected by it than I was; and who has described the impressions itshould make on the mind, with such strength of thought, and energy oflanguage, that I shall quote his words, as conveying my own sensationsmuch more forcibly than I am capable of doing:--

'We were now treading that illustrious Island, which was once theluminary of the Caledonian regions, whence savage clans and rovingbarbarians derived the benefits of knowledge, and the blessings ofreligion. To abstract the mind from all local emotion would beimpossible, if it were endeavoured, and would be foolish if it werepossible. Whatever withdraws us from the power of our senses, whatevermakes the past, the distant, or the future, predominate over thepresent, advances us in the dignity of thinking beings. Far from me, andfrom my friends, be such frigid philosophy as may conduct us indifferentand unmoved over any ground which has been dignified by wisdom, bravery, or virtue. That man is little to be envied, whose patriotism would notgain force upon the plain of _Marathon_, or whose piety would not growwarmer among the ruins of _Iona_[898]!'

Upon hearing that Sir Allan M'Lean was arrived, the inhabitants, whostill consider themselves as the people of M'Lean, to whom the islandformerly belonged, though the Duke of Argyle has at present possessionof it, ran eagerly to him. 

We were accommodated this night in a large barn, the island, affordingno lodging that we should have liked so well. Some good hay was strewedat one end of it, to form a bed for us, upon which we lay with ourclothes on; and we were furnished with blankets from the village[899]. Each of us had a portmanteau for a pillow. When I awaked in the morning, and looked round me, I could not help smiling at the idea of the chiefof the M'Leans, the great English Moralist, and myself, lying thusextended in such a situation. 

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 20. 

Early in the morning we surveyed the remains of antiquity at this place, accompanied by an illiterate fellow, as _Cicerone_, who called himself adescendant of a cousin of Saint Columba, the founder of the religiousestablishment here. As I knew that many persons had already examinedthem, and as I saw Dr. Johnson inspecting and measuring several of theruins of which he has since given so full an account, my mind wasquiescent; and I resolved to stroll among them at my ease, to take notrouble to investigate minutely, and only receive the general impressionof solemn antiquity, and the particular ideas of such objects as shouldof themselves strike my attention. 

We walked from the monastery of Nuns to the great church or cathedral, as they call it, along an old broken causeway. They told us, that thishad been a street; and that there were good houses built on each side. Dr. Johnson doubted if it was any thing more than a paved road for thenuns. The convent of Monks, the great church, Oran's chapel, and fourother chapels, are still to be discerned. But I must own that Icolmkilldid not answer my expectations; for they were high, from what I had readof it, and still more from what I had heard and thought of it, from myearliest years. Dr. Johnson said, it came up to his expectations, because he had taken his impression from an account of it subjoined toSacheverel's _History of the Isle of Man_[900], where it is said, thereis not much to be seen here. We were both disappointed, when we wereshewn what are called the monuments of the kings of Scotland, Ireland, and Denmark, and of a King of France. There are only some grave-stonesflat on the earth, and we could see no inscriptions. How far short wasthis of marble monuments, like those in Westminster Abbey, which I hadimagined here! The grave-stones of Sir Allan M'Lean's family, and ofthat of M'Quarrie, had as good an appearance as the royal grave-stones;if they were royal, we doubted. 

My easiness to give credit to what I heard in the course of our Tour wastoo great. Dr. Johnson's peculiar accuracy of investigation detectedmuch traditional fiction, and many gross mistakes. It is not to bewondered at, that he was provoked by people carelessly telling him, withthe utmost readiness and confidence, what he found, on questioning thema little more, was erroneous[901]. Of this there were innumerableinstances. 

I left him and Sir Allan at breakfast in our barn, and stole back againto the cathedral, to indulge in solitude and devout meditation[902]. While contemplating the venerable ruins, I refleeted with muchsatisfaction, that the solemn scenes of piety never lose their sanctityand influence, though the cares and follies of life may prevent us fromvisiting them, or may even make us fancy that their effects are only 'asyesterday, when it is past[903], ' and never again to be perceived. Ihoped, that, ever after having been in this holy place, I shouldmaintain an exemplary conduct. One has a strange propensity to fix uponsome point of time from whence a better course of life may begin[904]. 

Being desirous to visit the opposite shore of the island, where SaintColumba is said to have landed, I procured a horse from oneM'Ginnis[905], who ran along as my guide. The M'Ginnises are said to bea branch of the clan of M'Lean. Sir Allan had been told that this manhad refused to send him some rum, at which the knight was in greatindignation. 'You rascal! (said he, ) don't you know that I can hang you, if I please?' Not adverting to the Chieftain's power over his clan, Iimagined that Sir Allan had known of some capital crime that the fellowhad committed, which he could discover, and so get him condemned; andsaid, 'How so?' 'Why, (said Sir Allan, ) are they not all my people?'Sensible of my inadvertency, and most willing to contribute what I couldtowards the continuation of feudal authority, 'Very true, ' said I. SirAllan went on: 'Refuse to send rum to me, you rascal! Don't you knowthat, if I order you to go and cut a man's throat, you are to do it?''Yes, an't please your honour! and my own too, and hang myself too. ' Thepoor fellow denied that he had refused to send the rum. His making theseprofessions was not merely a pretence in presence of his Chief; forafter he and I were out of Sir Allan's hearing, he told me, 'Had he senthis dog for the rum, I would have given it: I would cut my bones forhim. ' It was very remarkable to find such an attachment to a Chief, though he had then no connection with the island, and had not been therefor fourteen years. Sir Allan, by way of upbraiding the fellow, said, 'Ibelieve you are a _Campbell_. '

The place which I went to see is about two miles from the village. Theycall it _Portawherry_, from the wherry in which Columba came; though, when they shew the length of his vessel, as marked on the beach by twoheaps of stones, they say, 'Here is the length of the _Currach_', usingthe Erse word. 

Icolmkill is a fertile island. The inhabitants export some cattle andgrain; and I was told, they import nothing but iron and salt. They areindustrious, and make their own woollen and linen cloth; and they brew agood deal of beer, which we did not find in any of the otherislands[906]. 

We set sail again about mid-day, and in the evening landed on Mull, nearthe house of the Reverend Mr. Neal M'Leod, who having been informed ofour coming, by a message from Sir Allan, came out to meet us. We werethis night very agreeably entertained at his house. Dr. Johnson observedto me, that he was the cleanest-headed man that he had met with in theWestern islands. He seemed to be well acquainted with Dr. Johnson'swritings, and courteously said, 'I have been often obliged to you, though I never had the pleasure of seeing you before. '

He told us, he had lived for some time in St. Kilda, under the tuitionof the minister or catechist there, and had there first read Horace andVirgil. The scenes which they describe must have been a strong contrastto the dreary waste around him. 

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 21. 

This morning the subject of politicks was introduced. JOHNSON. 'Pulteneywas as paltry a fellow as could be[907]. He was a Whig, who pretended tobe honest; and you know it is ridiculous for a Whig to pretend to behonest. He cannot hold it out[908]. ' He called Mr. Pitt a meteor; SirRobert Walpole a fixed star[909]. He said, 'It is wonderful to thinkthat all the force of government was required to prevent Wilkes frombeing chosen the chief magistrate of London[910], though the liverymenknew he would rob their shops, --knew he would debauch theirdaughters[911]. '

BOSWELL. 'The History of England is so strange, that, if it were not sowell vouched as it is, it would hardly be credible. '

JOHNSON. 'Sir, if it were told as shortly, and with as littlepreparation for introducing the different events, as the History of theJewish Kings, it would be equally liable to objections ofimprobability. ' Mr. M'Leod was much pleased with the justice and noveltyof the thought. Dr. Johnson illustrated what he had said, as follows:'Take, as an instance, Charles the First's concessions to hisparliament, which were greater and greater, in proportion as theparliament grew more insolent, and less deserving of trust. Had theseconcessions been related nakedly, without any detail of thecircumstances which generally led to them, they would not have beenbelieved. '

Sir Allan M'Lean bragged, that Scotland had the advantage of England, byits having more water. JOHNSON. 'Sir, we would not have your water, totake the vile bogs which produce it. You have too much! A man who isdrowned has more water than either of us;'--and then he laughed. (Butthis was surely robust sophistry: for the people of taste in England, who have seen Scotland, own that its variety of rivers and lakes makesit naturally more beautiful than England, in that respect. ) Pursuing hisvictory over Sir Allan, he proceeded: 'Your country consists of twothings, stone and water. There is, indeed, a little earth above thestone in some places, but a very little; and the stone is alwaysappearing. It is like a man in rags; the naked skin is stillpeeping out. '

He took leave of Mr. M'Leod, saying, 'Sir, I thank you for yourentertainment, and your conversation. '

Mr. Campbell, who had been so polite yesterday, came this morning onpurpose to breakfast with us, and very obligingly furnished us withhorses to proceed on our journey to Mr. M'Lean's of _Lochbuy_, where wewere to pass the night. We dined at the house of Dr. Alexander M'Lean, another physician in Mull, who was so much struck with the uncommonconversation of Dr. Johnson, that he observed to me, 'This man is just a_hogshead_ of sense. '

Dr. Johnson said of the _Turkish Spy_[912], which lay in the room, thatit told nothing but what every body might have known at that time; andthat what was good in it, did not pay you for the trouble of readingto find it. 

After a very tedious ride, through what appeared to me the most gloomyand desolate country I had ever beheld[913], we arrived, between sevenand eight o'clock, at May, the seat of the Laird of _Lochbuy_. _Buy_, inErse, signifies yellow, and I at first imagined that the loch or branchof the sea here, was thus denominated, in the same manner as the _RedSea_; but I afterwards learned that it derived its name from a hillabove it, which being of a yellowish hue has the epithet of _Buy_. 

We had heard much of Lochbuy's being a great roaring braggadocio, a kindof Sir John Falstaff, both in size and manners; but we found that theyhad swelled him up to a fictitious size, and clothed him with imaginaryqualities. Col's idea of him was equally extravagant, though verydifferent: he told us he was quite a Don Quixote; and said, he wouldgive a great deal to sec him and Dr. Johnson together. The truth is, that Lochbuy proved to be only a bluff, comely, noisy old gentleman, proud of his hereditary consequence, and a very hearty and hospitablelandlord. Lady Lochbuy was sister to Sir Allan M'Lean, but much older. He said to me, 'They are quite _Antediluvians_. ' Being told that Dr. Johnson did not hear well, Lochbuy bawled out to him, 'Are you of theJohnstons of Glencro, or of Ardnamurchan[914]?' Dr. Johnson gave him asignificant look, but made no answer; and I told Lochbuy that he was notJohns_ton_, but John_son_, and that he was an Englishman[915]. Lochbuysome years ago tried to prove himself a weak man, liable to imposition, or, as we term it in Scotland, a _facile_ man, in order to set aside alease which he had granted; but failed in the attempt. On my mentioningthis circumstance to Dr. Johnson, he seemed much surprized that such asuit was admitted by the Scottish law, and observed, that 'In England noman is allowed to _stultify_ himself[916]. '

Sir Allan, Lochbuy, and I, had the conversation chiefly to ourselvesto-night: Dr. Johnson, being extremely weary, went to bed soonafter supper. 

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 22. 

Before Dr. Johnson came to breakfast, Lady Lochbuy said, 'he was a_dungeon_ of wit;' a very common phrase in Scotland to express aprofoundness of intellect, though he afterwards told me, that he neverhad heard it. She proposed that he should have some cold sheep's-headfor breakfast. Sir Allan seemed displeased at his sister's vulgarity, and wondered how such a thought should come into her head. From amischievous love of sport, I took the lady's part; and very gravelysaid, 'I think it is but fair to give him an offer of it. If he does notchoose it, he may let it alone. ' 'I think so, ' said the lady, looking ather brother with an air of victory. Sir Allan, finding the matterdesperate, strutted about the room, and took snuff. When Dr. Johnsoncame in, she called to him, 'Do you choose any cold sheep's-head, Sir?''No, MADAM, ' said he, with a tone of surprise and anger[917]. 'It ishere, Sir, ' said she, supposing he had refused it to save the trouble ofbringing it in. They thus went on at cross purposes, till he confirmedhis refusal in a manner not to be misunderstood; while I sat quietly by, and enjoyed my success. 

After breakfast, we surveyed the old castle, in the pit or dungeon ofwhich Lochbuy had some years before taken upon him to imprison severalpersons[918]; and though he had been fined in a considerable sum by theCourt of Justiciary, he was so little affected by it, that while we wereexamining the dungeon, he said to me, with a smile, 'Your father knowssomething of this;' (alluding to my father's having sat as one of thejudges on his trial. ) Sir Allan whispered me, that the laird could notbe persuaded that he had lost his heritable jurisdiction[919]. 

We then set out for the ferry, by which we were to cross to the mainland of Argyleshire. Lochbuy and Sir Allan accompanied us. We were toldmuch of a war-saddle, on which this reputed Don Quixote used to bemounted; but we did not see it, for the young laird had applied it to aless noble purpose, having taken it to Falkirk fair _with a drove ofblack cattle. _ We bade adieu to Lochbuy, and to our very kindconductor[920], Sir Allan M'Lean, on the shore of Mull, and then gotinto the ferry-boat, the bottom of which was strewed with branches oftrees or bushes, upon which we sat. We had a good day and a finepassage, and in the evening landed at Oban, where we found a tolerableinn. After having been so long confined at different times in islands, from which it was always uncertain when we could get away, it wascomfortable to be now on the mainland, and to know that, if in health, we might get to any place in Scotland or England in a certain numberof days. 

Here we discovered from the conjectures which were formed, that thepeople on the main land were entirely ignorant of our motions; for in aGlasgow newspaper we found a paragraph, which, as it contains a justand well-turned compliment to my illustrious friend, I shallhere insert:--

'We are well assured that Dr. Johnson is confined by tempestuous weatherto the isle of Sky; it being unsafe to venture, in a small boat, uponsuch a stormy surge as is very common there at this time of the year. Such a philosopher, detained on an almost barren island, resembles awhale left upon the strand. The latter will be welcome to every body, onaccount of his oil, his bone, &c. , and the other will charm hiscompanions, and the rude inhabitants, with his superior knowledge andwisdom, calm resignation, and unbounded benevolence. '

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 23. 

After a good night's rest, we breakfasted at our leisure. We talked ofGoldsmith's _Traveller_, of which Dr. Johnson spoke highly; and, while Iwas helping him on with his great coat, he repeated from it thecharacter of the British nation, which he did with such energy, that thetear started into his eye:--

 'Stern o'er each bosom reason holds her state, With daring aims irregularly great, Pride in their port, defiance in their eye, I see the lords of human kind pass by, Intent on high designs, a thoughtful band, By forms unfashion'd, fresh from nature's hand; Fierce in their native hardiness of soul, True to imagin'd right, above control, While ev'n the peasant boasts these rights to scan, And learns to venerate himself as man. '

We could get but one bridle here, which, according to the maxim _deturdigniori_, was appropriated to Dr. Johnson's sheltie. I and Joseph rodewith halters. We crossed in a ferry-boat a pretty wide lake[921], and onthe farther side of it, close by the shore, found a hut for our inn. Wewere much wet. I changed my clothes in part, and was at pains to getmyself well dried. Dr. Johnson resolutely kept on all his clothes, wetas they were, letting them steam before the smoky turf fire. I thoughthim in the wrong; but his firmness was, perhaps, a species of heroism. 

I remember but little of our conversation. I mentioned Shenstone'ssaying of Pope, that he had the art of condensing sense more than anybody[922]. Dr. Johnson said, 'It is not true, Sir. There is more sensein a line of Cowley than in a page (or a sentence, or ten lines, --I amnot quite certain of the very phrase) of Pope. ' He maintained thatArchibald, Duke of Argyle[923], was a narrow man. I wondered at this;and observed, that his building so great a house at Inverary was notlike a narrow man. 'Sir, (said he, ) when a narrow man has resolved tobuild a house, he builds it like another man. But Archibald, Duke ofArgyle, was narrow in his ordinary expences, in his quotidianexpences. '

The distinction is very just. It is in the ordinary expences of lifethat a man's liberality or narrowness is to be discovered. I never heardthe word _quotidian_ in this sense, and I imagined it to be a word ofDr. Johnson's own fabrication; but I have since found it in _Young'sNight Thoughts_, (Night fifth, )

 'Death's a destroyer of quotidian prey, '

and in my friend's _Dictionary_, supported by the authorities of CharlesI. And Dr. Donne. 

It rained very hard as we journied on after dinner. The roar of torrentsfrom the mountains, as we passed along in the dusk, and the othercircumstances attending our ride in the evening, have been mentionedwith so much animation by Dr. Johnson, that I shall not attempt to sayany thing on the subject[924]. 

We got at night to Inverary, where we found an excellent inn. Even here, Dr. Johnson would not change his wet clothes. 

The prospect of good accommodation cheered us much. We supped well; andafter supper, Dr. Johnson, whom I had not seen taste any fermentedliquor during all our travels, called for a gill of whiskey. 'Come, (said he, ) let me know what it is that makes a Scotchman happy[925]!' Hedrank it all but a drop, which I begged leave to pour into my glass, that I might say we had drunk whisky together. I proposed Mrs. Thraleshould be our toast. He would not have _her_ drunk in whisky, but rather'some insular lady;' so we drank one of the ladies whom we had latelyleft. He owned to-night, that he got as good a room and bed as at anEnglish inn. 

I had here the pleasure of finding a letter from home, which relieved mefrom the anxiety I had suffered, in consequence of not having receivedany account of my family for many weeks. I also found a letter from Mr. Garrick, which was a regale[926] as agreeable as a pine-apple would bein a desert[927]. He had favoured me with his correspondence for manyyears; and when Dr. Johnson and I were at Inverness, I had written tohim as follows:--

 Inverness, Sunday, 29 August, 1773. 

 MY DEAR SIR, 'Here I am, and Mr. Samuel Johnson actually with me. We were a night atFores, in coming to which, in the dusk of the evening, we passed overthe bleak and blasted heath where Macbeth met the witches[928]. Your oldpreceptor[929] repeated, with much solemnity, the speech--

 "How far is't called to Fores? What are these, So wither'd and so wild in their attire, " &c. 

This day we visited the ruins of Macbeth's castle at Inverness. I havehad great romantick satisfaction in seeing Johnson upon the classicalscenes of Shakspeare in Scotland; which I really looked upon as almostas improbable as that "Birnam wood should come to Dunsinane[930]. "Indeed, as I have always been accustomed to view him as a permanentLondon object, it would not be much more wonderful to me to see St. Paul's Church moving along where we now are. As yet we have travelledin post-chaises; but to-morrow we are to mount on horseback, and ascendinto the mountains by Fort Augustus, and so on to the ferry, where weare to cross to Sky. We shall see that island fully, and then visit somemore of the Hebrides; after which we are to land in Argyleshire, proceedby Glasgow to Auchinleck, repose there a competent time, and then returnto Edinburgh, from whence the Rambler will depart for old England again, as soon as he finds it convenient. Hitherto we have had a veryprosperous expedition. I flatter myself, _servetur ad imum, qualis abincepto processerit_[931]. He is in excellent spirits, and I have a richjournal of his conversation. Look back, Davy[932], to Litchfield, --runup through the time that has elapsed since you first knew Mr. Johnson, --and enjoy with me his present extraordinary Tour. I could notresist the impulse of writing to you from this place. The situation ofthe old castle corresponds exactly to Shakspeare's description. While wewere there to-day[933], it happened oddly, that a raven perched upon oneof the chimney-tops, and croaked. Then I in my turn repeated--

 "The raven himself is hoarse, That croaks the fatal entrance of Duncan, Under my battlements. "

'I wish you had been with us. Think what enthusiastick happiness I shallhave to see Mr. Samuel Johnson walking among the romantick rocks andwoods of my ancestors at Auchinleck[934]! Write to me at Edinburgh. Youowe me his verses on great George and tuneful Cibber, and the bad verseswhich led him to make his fine ones on Philips the musician[935]. Keepyour promise, and let me have them. I offer my very best compliments toMrs. Garrick, and ever am, 'Your warm admirer and friend, 'JAMES BOSWELL. '

'_To David Garrick, Esq. , London. _'

His answer was as follows:--

 'Hampton, September 14, 1773. 

'DEAR SIR, 'You stole away from London, and left us all in the lurch; for weexpected you one night at the club, and knew nothing of your departure. Had I payed you what I owed you, for the book you bought for me, Ishould only have grieved for the loss of your company, and slept with aquiet conscience; but, wounded as it is, it must remain so till I seeyou again, though I am sure our good friend Mr. Johnson will dischargethe debt for me, if you will let him. Your account of your journey to_Fores_, the _raven_, _old castle_, &c. , &c. , made me half mad. Are younot rather too late in the year for fine weather, which is the life andsoul of seeing places? I hope your pleasure will continue _qualis abincepto_, &c. 

'Your friend[936] ------ threatens me much. I only wish that he wouldput his threats in execution, and, if he prints his play, I will forgivehim. I remember he complained to you, that his bookseller called for themoney for some copies of his ------, which I subscribed for, and that Idesired him to call again. The truth is, that my wife was not athome[937], and that for weeks together I have not ten shillings in mypocket. --However, had it been otherwise, it was not so great a crime todraw his poetical vengeance upon me. I despise all that he can do, andam glad that I can so easily get rid of him and his ingratitude. I amhardened both to abuse and ingratitude. 

'You, I am sure, will no more recommend your poetasters to my civilityand good offices. 

'Shall I recommend to you a play of Eschylus, (the Prometheus, )published and translated by poor old Morell, who is a good scholar[938], and an acquaintance of mine? It will be but half a guinea, and your nameshall be put in the list I am making for him. You will be in verygood company. 

'Now for the Epitaphs!

[_These, together with the verses on George the Second, and ColleyCibber, as his Poet Laureat, of which imperfect copies are gone about, will appear in my Life of Dr. Johnson[939]. _]

'I have no more paper, or I should have said more to you. My love[940]and respects to Mr. Johnson. 

'Yours ever, 'D. GARRICK. '

'I can't write. I have the gout in my hand. '

'_To James Boswell, Esq. , Edinburgh. _'

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 24. 

We passed the forenoon calmly and placidly. I prevailed on Dr. Johnsonto read aloud Ogden's sixth sermon on Prayer, which he did with adistinct expression, and pleasing solemnity. He praised my favouritepreacher, his elegant language, and remarkable acuteness; and said, hefought infidels with their own weapons. 

As a specimen of Ogden's manner, I insert the following passage from thesermon which Dr. Johnson now read. The preacher, after arguing againstthat vain philosophy which maintains, in conformity with the hardprinciple of eternal necessity, or unchangeable predetermination, thatthe only effect of prayer for others, although we are exhorted to prayfor them, is to produce good dispositions in ourselves towards them;thus expresses himself:--

'A plain man may be apt to ask, But if this then, though enjoined in theholy scriptures, is to be my real aim and intention, when I am taught topray for other persons, why is it that I do not plainly so express it?Why is not the form of the petition brought nearer to the meaning? Givethem, say I to our heavenly father, what is good. But this, I am tounderstand, will be as it will be, and is not for me to alter. What isit then that I am doing? I am desiring to become charitable myself; andwhy may I not plainly say so? Is there shame in it, or impiety? The wishis laudable: why should I form designs to hide it?

'Or is it, perhaps, better to be brought about by indirect means, and inthis artful manner? Alas! who is it that I would impose on? From whomcan it be, in this commerce, that I desire to hide any thing? When, asmy Saviour commands me, I have _entered into my closet, and shut mydoor_, there are but two parties privy to my devotions, GOD and my ownheart; which of the two am I deceiving?'

He wished to have more books, and, upon inquiring if there were any inthe house, was told that a waiter had some, which were brought to him;but I recollect none of them, except Hervey's _Meditations_. He thoughtslightingly of this admired book. He treated it with ridicule, and wouldnot allow even the scene of the dying Husband and Father to bepathetick[941]. I am not an impartial judge; for Hervey's _Meditations_engaged my affections in my early years. He read a passage concerningthe moon, ludicrously, and shewed how easily he could, in the samestyle, make reflections on that planet, the very reverse ofHervey's[942], representing her as treacherous to mankind. He did thiswith much humour; but I have not preserved the particulars. He thenindulged a playful fancy, in making a _Meditation on a Pudding_[943], ofwhich I hastily wrote down, in his presence, the following note; which, though imperfect, may serve to give my readers some idea of it. 

MEDITATION ON A PUDDING. 

'Let us seriously reflect of what a pudding is composed. It is composedof flour that once waved in the golden grain, and drank the dews of themorning; of milk pressed from the swelling udder by the gentle hand ofthe beauteous milk-maid, whose beauty and innocence might haverecommended a worse draught; who, while she stroked the udder, indulgedno ambitious thoughts of wandering in palaces, formed no plans for thedestruction of her fellow-creatures: milk, which is drawn from the cow, that useful animal, that eats the grass of the field, and supplies uswith that which made the greatest part of the food of mankind in the agewhich the poets have agreed to call golden. It is made with an egg, thatmiracle of nature, which the theoretical Burnet[944] has compared tocreation. An egg contains water within its beautiful smooth surface; andan unformed mass, by the incubation of the parent, becomes a regularanimal, furnished with bones and sinews, and covered with feathers. Letus consider; can there be more wanting to complete the Meditation on aPudding? If more is wanting, more may be found. It contains salt, whichkeeps the sea from putrefaction: salt, which is made the image ofintellectual excellence, contributes to the formation of a pudding. '

In a Magazine I found a saying of Dr. Johnson's, something to thispurpose; that the happiest part of a man's life is what he passes lyingawake in bed in the morning. I read it to him. He said, 'I may, perhaps, have said this; for nobody, at times, talks more laxly than I do[945]. 'I ventured to suggest to him, that this was dangerous from one of hisauthority. 

I spoke of living in the country, and upon what footing one should bewith neighbours. I observed that some people were afraid of being on tooeasy a footing with them, from an apprehension that their time would notbe their own. He made the obvious remark, that it depended much on whatkind of neighbours one has, whether it was desirable to be on an easyfooting with them, or not. I mentioned a certain baronet, who told me, he never was happy in the country, till he was not on speaking termswith his neighbours, which he contrived in different ways to bringabout. 'Lord ----------(said he) stuck long; but at last the fellowpounded my pigs, and then I got rid of him. ' JOHNSON. 'Nay, Sir, My Lordgot rid of Sir John, and shewed how little he valued him, by putting hispigs in the pound. '

I told Dr. Johnson I was in some difficulty how to act at Inverary. Ihad reason to think that the Duchess of Argyle disliked me, on accountof my zeal in the Douglas cause[946]; but the Duke of Argyle had alwaysbeen pleased to treat me with great civility. They were now at thecastle, which is a very short walk from our inn; and the question was, whether I should go and pay my respects there. Dr. Johnson, to whom Ihad stated the case, was clear that I ought; but, in his usual way, hewas very shy of discovering a desire to be invited there himself. Thoughfrom a conviction of the benefit of subordination[947] to society, hehas always shewn great respect to persons of high rank, when he happenedto be in their company, yet his pride of character has ever made himguard against any appearance of courting the great. Besides, he wasimpatient to go to Glasgow, where he expected letters. At the same timehe was, I believe, secretly not unwilling to have attention paid him byso great a Chieftain, and so exalted a nobleman. He insisted that Ishould not go to the castle this day before dinner, as it would looklike seeking an invitation. 'But, (said I, ) if the Duke invites us todine with him to-morrow, shall we accept?' 'Yes, Sir;' I think he said, 'to be sure. ' But, he added, 'He won't ask us!' I mentioned, that I wasafraid my company might be disagreeable to the duchess. He treated thisobjection with a manly disdain: '_That_, Sir, he must settle with hiswife. ' We dined well. I went to the castle just about the time when Isupposed the ladies would be retired from dinner. I sent in my name;and, being shewn in, found the amiable Duke sitting at the head of histable with several gentlemen. I was most politely received, and gave hisgrace some particulars of the curious journey which I had been makingwith Dr. Johnson. When we rose from table, the Duke said to me, 'I hopeyou and Dr. Johnson will dine with us to-morrow. ' I thanked his grace;but told him, my friend was in a great hurry to get back to London. TheDuke, with a kind complacency, said, 'He will stay one day; and I willtake care he shall see this place to advantage. ' I said, I should besure to let him know his grace's invitation. As I was going away, theDuke said, 'Mr. Boswell, won't you have some tea ?' I thought it best toget over the meeting with the duchess this night; so respectfullyagreed. I was conducted to the drawing room by the Duke, who announcedmy name; but the duchess, who was sitting with her daughter, Lady BettyHamilton[948], and some other ladies, took not the least notice of me. Ishould have been mortified at being thus coldly received by a lady ofwhom I, with the rest of the world, have always entertained a very highadmiration, had I not been consoled by the obliging attention ofthe Duke. 

When I returned to the inn, I informed Dr. Johnson of the Duke ofArgyle's invitation, with which he was much pleased, and readilyaccepted of it. We talked of a violent contest which was then carryingon, with a view to the next general election for Ayrshire; where one ofthe candidates, in order to undermine the old and established interest, had artfully held himself out as a champion for the independency of thecounty against aristocratick influence, and had persuaded severalgentlemen into a resolution to oppose every candidate who was supportedby peers[949]. 'Foolish fellows! (said Dr. Johnson), don't they see thatthey are as much dependent upon the Peers one way as the other. ThePeers have but to _oppose_ a candidate to ensure him success. It is saidthe only way to make a pig go forward, is to pull him back by the tail. These people must be treated like pigs. '

MONDAY, OCTOBER 25. 

My acquaintance, the Reverend Mr. John M'Aulay[950], one of theMinisters of Inverary, and brother to our good friend at Calder[951], came to us this morning, and accompanied us to the castle, where Ipresented Dr. Johnson to the Duke of Argyle. We were shewn through thehouse; and I never shall forget the impression made upon my fancy bysome of the ladies' maids tripping about in neat morning dresses. Afterseeing for a long time little but rusticity, their lively manner, andgay inviting appearance, pleased me so much, that I thought, for themoment, I could have been a knight-errant for them[952]. 

We then got into a low one-horse chair, ordered for us by the Duke, inwhich we drove about the place. Dr. Johnson was much struck by thegrandeur and elegance of this princely seat. He thought, however, thecastle too low, and wished it had been a story higher. He said, 'What Iadmire here, is the total defiance of expence. ' I had a particular pridein shewing him a great number of fine old trees, to compensate for thenakedness which had made such an impression on him on the eastern coastof Scotland. 

When we came in, before dinner, we found the duke and some gentlemen inthe hall. Dr. Johnson took much notice of the large collection of arms, which are excellently disposed there. I told what he had said to SirAlexander M'Donald, of his ancestors not suffering their arms torust[953]. 'Well, (said the doctor, ) but let us be glad we live in timeswhen arms _may_ rust. We can sit to-day at his grace's table, withoutany risk of being attacked, and perhaps sitting down again wounded ormaimed. ' The duke placed Dr. Johnson next himself at table. I was infine spirits; and though sensible that I had the misfortune of not beingin favour with the duchess, I was not in the least disconcerted, andoffered her grace some of the dish that was before me. It must be ownedthat I was in the right to be quite unconcerned, if I could. I was theDuke of Argyle's guest; and I had no reason to suppose that he adoptedthe prejudices and resentments of the Duchess of Hamilton. 

I knew it was the rule of modern high life not to drink to any body; butthat I might have the satisfaction for once to look the duchess in theface, with a glass in my hand, I with a respectful air addressedher, --'My Lady Duchess, I have the honour to drink your grace's goodhealth. ' I repeated the words audibly, and with a steady countenance. This was, perhaps, rather too much; but some allowance must be made forhuman feelings. 

The duchess was very attentive to Dr. Johnson. I know not how a _middlestate[954]_ came to be mentioned. Her grace wished to hear him on thatpoint. 'Madam, (said he, ) your own relation, Mr. Archibald Campbell, cantell you better about it than I can. He was a bishop of the nonjuringcommunion, and wrote a book upon the subject[955]. ' He engaged to get itfor her grace. He afterwards gave a full history of Mr. ArchibaldCampbell, which I am sorry I do not recollect particularly. He said, Mr. Campbell had been bred a violent Whig, but afterwards 'kept bettercompany, and became a Tory. ' He said this with a smile, in pleasantallusion, as I thought, to the opposition between his own politicalprinciples and those of the duke's clan. He added that Mr. Campbell, after the revolution, was thrown into gaol on account of his tenets;but, on application by letter to the old Lord Townshend[956], wasreleased; that he always spoke of his Lordship with great gratitude, saying, 'though a _Whig_, he had humanity. '

Dr. Johnson and I passed some time together, in June 1784[957], atPembroke College, Oxford, with the Reverend Dr. Adams, the master; and Ihaving expressed a regret that my note relative to Mr. ArchibaldCampbell was imperfect, he was then so good as to write with his ownhand, on the blank page of my _Journal_, opposite to that which containswhat I have now mentioned, the following paragraph; which, however, isnot quite so full as the narrative he gave at Inverary:--

'_The Honourable_ ARCHIBALD CAMPBELL _was, I believe, the Nephew[958] ofthe Marquis of Argyle. He began life by engaging in Monmouth'srebellion, and, to escape the law, lived some time in Surinam. When hereturned, he became zealous for episcopacy and monarchy; and at theRevolution adhered not only to the Nonjurors, but to those who refusedto communicate with the Church of England, or to be present at anyworship where the usurper was mentioned as king. He was, I believe, morethan once apprehended in the reign of King William, and once at theaccession of George. He was the familiar friend of Hicks[959] andNelson[960]; a man of letters, but injudicious; and very curious andinquisitive, but credulous. He lived[961] in 1743, or 44, about 75 yearsold. '_ The subject of luxury having been introduced, Dr. Johnsondefended it. 'We have now (said he) a splendid dinner before us; whichof all these dishes is unwholesome?' The duke asserted, that he hadobserved the grandees of Spain diminished in their size by luxury. Dr. Johnson politely refrained from opposing directly an observation whichthe duke himself had made; but said, 'Man must be very different fromother animals, if he is diminished by good living; for the size of allother animals is increased by it[962]. ' I made some remark that seemedto imply a belief in _second sight_. The duchess said, 'I fancy you willbe a _Methodist_. ' This was the only sentence her grace deigned to utterto me; and I take it for granted, she thought it a good hit on my_credulity_ in the Douglas cause. 

A gentleman in company, after dinner, was desired by the duke to go toanother room, for a specimen of curious marble, which his grace wishedto shew us. He brought a wrong piece, upon which the duke sent him backagain. He could not refuse; but, to avoid any appearance of servility, he whistled as he walked out of the room, to shew his independency. Onmy mentioning this afterwards to Dr. Johnson, he said, it was a nicetrait of character. 

Dr. Johnson talked a great deal, and was so entertaining, that LadyBetty Hamilton, after dinner, went and placed her chair close to his, leaned upon the back of it, and listened eagerly. It would have made afine picture to have drawn the Sage and her at this time in theirseveral attitudes. He did not know, all the while, how much he washonoured. I told him afterwards. I never saw him so gentle andcomplaisant as this day. 

We went to tea. The duke and I walked up and down the drawing-room, conversing. The duchess still continued to shew the same marked coldnessfor me; for which, though I suffered from it, I made every allowance, considering the very warm part that I had taken for Douglas, in thecause in which she thought her son deeply interested. Had not her gracediscovered some displeasure towards me, I should have suspected her ofinsensibility or dissimulation. 

Her grace made Dr. Johnson come and sit by her, and asked him why hemade his journey so late in the year. 'Why, madam, (said he, ) you knowMr. Boswell must attend the Court of Session, and it does not rise tillthe twelfth of August. ' She said, with some sharpness, 'I _know nothing_of Mr. Boswell. ' Poor Lady Lucy Douglas[963], to whom I mentioned this, observed, 'She knew _too much_ of Mr. Boswell. ' I shall make no remarkon her grace's speech. I indeed felt it as rather too severe; but when Irecollected that my punishment was inflicted by so dignified a beauty, Ihad that kind of consolation which a man would feel who is strangled bya _silken cord_. Dr. Johnson was all attention to her grace. He usedafterwards a droll expression, upon her enjoying the three titles ofHamilton, Brandon, and Argyle[964]. Borrowing an image from the Turkishempire, he called her a _Duchess_ with _three tails_. 

He was much pleased with our visit at the castle of Inverary. The Dukeof Argyle was exceedingly polite to him, and upon his complaining of theshelties which he had hitherto ridden being too small for him, his gracetold him he should be provided with a good horse to carry him next day. 

Mr. John M'Aulay passed the evening with us at our inn. When Dr. Johnsonspoke of people whose principles were good, but whose practice wasfaulty, Mr. M'Aulay said, he had no notion of people being in earnest intheir good professions, whose practice was not suitable to them. TheDoctor grew warm, and said, 'Sir, you are so grossly ignorant of humannature, as not to know that a man may be very sincere in goodprinciples, without having good practice[965]!'

Dr. Johnson was unquestionably in the right; and whoever examineshimself candidly, will be satisfied of it, though the inconsistencybetween principles and practice is greater in some men than in others. 

I recollect very little of this night's conversation. I am sorry thatindolence came upon me towards the conclusion of our journey, so that Idid not write down what passed with the same assiduity as during thegreatest part of it. 

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 26. 

Mr. M'Aulay breakfasted with us, nothing hurt or dismayed by his lastnight's correction. Being a man of good sense, he had a just admirationof Dr. Johnson. 

Either yesterday morning, or this, I communicated to Dr. Johnson, fromMr. M'Aulay's information, the news that Dr. Beattie had got a pensionof two hundred pounds a year[966]. He sat up in his bed, clapped hishands, and cried, 'O brave we[967]!'--a peculiar exclamation of hiswhen he rejoices[968]. 

As we sat over our tea, Mr. Home's tragedy of _Douglas_ was mentioned. Iput Dr. Johnson in mind, that once, in a coffee house at Oxford, hecalled to old Mr. Sheridan, 'How came you, Sir, to give Home a goldmedal for writing that foolish play?' and defied Mr. Sheridan to shewten good lines in it. He did not insist they should be together; butthat there were not ten good lines in the whole play[969]. He nowpersisted in this. I endeavoured to defend that pathetick and beautifultragedy, and repeated the following passage:--

 --'Sincerity, Thou first of virtues! let no mortal leave Thy onward path, although the earth should gape, And from the gulph of hell destruction cry, To take dissimulation's winding way[970]. '

JOHNSON. 'That will not do, Sir. Nothing is good but what is consistentwith truth or probability, which this is not. Juvenal, indeed, gives usa noble picture of inflexible virtue:--

 "Esto bonus miles, tutor bonus, arbiter idem Integer: ambiguae si quando citabere testis, Incertaeque rei, Phalaris licet imperet ut sis, Falsus, et admoto dictet perjuria tauro, Summum crede nefas animam praeferre pudori, Et propter vitam vivendi perdere causas[2]. "'

He repeated the lines with great force and dignity; thenadded, 'And, after this, comes Johnny Home, with his _earthgaping_, and his _destruction crying_:--Pooh[971]!'

While we were lamenting the number of ruined religious buildings whichwe had lately seen, I spoke with peculiar feeling of the miserableneglect of the chapel belonging to the palace of Holyrood-house, inwhich are deposited the remains of many of the Kings of Scotland, andmany of our nobility. I said, it was a disgrace to the country that itwas not repaired: and particularly complained that my friend Douglas, the representative of a great house and proprietor of a vast estate, should suffer the sacred spot where his mother lies interred, to beunroofed, and exposed to all the inclemencies of the weather. Dr. Johnson, who, I know not how, had formed an opinion on the Hamiltonside, in the Douglas cause, slily answered, 'Sir, Sir, don't be toosevere upon the gentleman; don't accuse him of want of filial piety!Lady Jane Douglas was not _his_ mother. ' He roused my zeal so much thatI took the liberty to tell him he knew nothing of the cause: which I domost seriously believe was the case[972]. 

We were now 'in a country of bridles and saddles[973], ' and set outfully equipped. The Duke of Argyle was obliging enough to mount Dr. Johnson on a stately steed from his grace's stable. My friend was highlypleased, and Joseph said, 'He now looks like a bishop. '

We dined at the inn at Tarbat, and at night came to Rosedow, thebeautiful seat of Sir James Colquhoun, on the banks of Lochlomond, whereI, and any friends whom I have introduced, have ever been received withkind and elegant hospitality. 

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 27. 

When I went into Dr. Johnson's room this morning, I observed to him howwonderfully courteous he had been at Inveraray, and said, 'You werequite a fine gentleman, when with the duchess. ' He answered, in goodhumour, 'Sir, I look upon myself as a very polite man:' and he wasright, in a proper manly sense of the word[974]. As an immediate proofof it, let me observe, that he would not send back the Duke of Argyle'shorse without a letter of thanks, which I copied. 

'TO HIS GRACE THE DUKE OF ARGYLE. 

'MY LORD, 'That kindness which disposed your grace to supply me with the horse, which I have now returned, will make you pleased to hear that he hascarried me well. 

'By my diligence in the little commission with which I was honoured bythe duchess[975], I will endeavour to shew how highly I value thefavours which I have received, and how much I desire to be thought, 'My Lord, 'Your Grace's most obedient, 'And most humble servant, 'SAM. JOHNSON. '

'Rosedow, Oct. 29, 1773. '

The duke was so attentive to his respectable[976] guest, that on thesame day, he wrote him an answer, which was received at Auchinleck:--

'TO DR. JOHNSON, AUCHINLECK, AYRSHIRE. 

'SIR, 'I am glad to hear your journey from this place was notunpleasant, in regard to your horse. I wish I could have supplied youwith good weather, which I am afraid you felt the want of. 

'The Duchess of Argyle desires her compliments to you, and is muchobliged to you for remembering her commission. 

'I am, Sir, 'Your most obedient humble servant, 'ARGYLE. '

'Inveraray, Oct. 29, 1773. '

I am happy to insert every memorial of the honour done to my greatfriend. Indeed, I was at all times desirous to preserve the letterswhich he received from eminent persons, of which, as of all otherpapers, he was very negligent; and I once proposed to him, that theyshould be committed to my care, as his _Custos Rotulorum_. I wish he hadcomplied with my request, as by that means many valuable writings mighthave been preserved, that are now lost[977]. 

After breakfast, Dr. Johnson and I were furnished with a boat, andsailed about upon Lochlomond, and landed on some of the islands whichare interspersed[978]. He was much pleased with the scene, which is sowell known by the accounts of various travellers, that it is unnecessaryfor me to attempt any description of it. 

I recollect none of his conversation, except that, when talking ofdress, he said, 'Sir, were I to have any thing fine, it should be veryfine. Were I to wear a ring, it should not be a bauble, but a stone ofgreat value. Were I to wear a laced or embroidered waistcoat, it shouldbe very rich. I had once a very rich laced waistcoat, which I wore thefirst night of my tragedy[979]. ' Lady Helen Colquhoun being a verypious woman, the conversation, after dinner, took a religious turn. Herladyship defended the presbyterian mode of publick worship; upon whichDr. Johnson delivered those excellent arguments for a form of prayerwhich he has introduced into his _Journey_[980]. I am myself fullyconvinced that a form of prayer for publick worship is in general mostdecent and edifying. _Solennia verba_ have a kind of prescriptivesanctity, and make a deeper impression on the mind than extemporaneouseffusions, in which, as we know not what they are to be, we cannotreadily acquiesce. Yet I would allow also of a certain portion ofextempore address, as occasion may require. This is the practice of theFrench Protestant churches. And although the office of formingsupplications to the throne of Heaven is, in my mind, too great a trustto be indiscriminately committed to the discretion of every minister, Ido not mean to deny that sincere devotion may be experienced whenjoining in prayer with those who use no Liturgy. 

We were favoured with Sir James Colquhoun's coach to convey us in theevening to Cameron, the seat of Commissary Smollet[981]. Oursatisfaction of finding ourselves again in a comfortable carriage wasvery great. We had a pleasing conviction of the commodiousness ofcivilization, and heartily laughed at the ravings of those absurdvisionaries who have attempted to persuade us of the superior advantagesof a _state of nature_[982]. 

Mr. Smollet was a man of considerable learning, with abundance of animalspirits; so that he was a very good companion for Dr. Johnson, who saidto me, 'We have had more solid talk here than at any place where wehave been. '

I remember Dr. Johnson gave us this evening an able and eloquentdiscourse on the _Origin of Evil_[983], and on the consistency of moralevil with the power and goodness of GOD. He shewed us how it arose fromour free agency, an extinction of which would be a still greater evilthan any we experience. I know not that he said any thing absolutelynew, but he said a great deal wonderfully well; and perceiving us to bedelighted and satisfied, he concluded his harangue with an air ofbenevolent triumph over an objection which has distressed many worthyminds: 'This then is the answer to the question, _Pothen to Kakon_?'Mrs. Smollet whispered me, that it was the best sermon she had everheard. Much do I upbraid myself for having neglected to preserve it. 

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 28. 

Mr. Smollet pleased Dr. Johnson, by producing a collection ofnewspapers in the time of the Usurpation, from which it appeared thatall sorts of crimes were very frequent during that horrible anarchy. Bythe side of the high road to Glasgow, at some distance from his house, he had erected a pillar to the memory of his ingenious kinsman, Dr. Smollet; and he consulted Dr. Johnson as to an inscription for it. LordKames, who, though he had a great store of knowledge, with muchingenuity, and uncommon activity of mind, was no profound scholar, hadit seems recommended an English inscription[984]. Dr. Johnson treatedthis with great contempt, saying, 'An English inscription would be adisgrace to Dr. Smollet[985];' and, in answer to what Lord Kames hadurged, as to the advantage of its being in English, because it would begenerally understood, I observed, that all to whom Dr. Smollet's meritcould be an object of respect and imitation, would understand it as wellin Latin; and that surely it was not meant for the Highland drovers, orother such people, who pass and repass that way. 

We were then shewn a Latin inscription, proposed for this monument. Dr. Johnson sat down with an ardent and liberal earnestness to revise it, and greatly improved it by several additions and variations. Iunfortunately did not take a copy of it, as it originally stood; but Ihave happily preserved every fragment of what Dr. Johnson wrote:--

 Quisquis ades, viator[986], Vel mente felix, vel studiis cultus, Immorare paululum memoriae TOBIAE SMOLLET, M. D. Viri iis virtutibus Quas in homine et cive Et laudes, et imiteris, Postquam mira-- Se ----

 Tali tantoque viro, suo patrueli, Hanc columnam, Amoris eheu! inane monumentum, In ipsis Leviniae ripis, Quas primis infans vagitibus personuit, Versiculisque jam fere moriturus illustravit[987], Ponendam curavit[988]. 

We had this morning a singular proof of Dr. Johnson's quick andretentive memory. Hay's translation of _Martial_ was lying in a window. I said, I thought it was pretty well done, and shewed him a particularepigram, I think, of ten, but am certain of eight, lines. He read it, and tossed away the book, saying--'No, it is not pretty well. ' As Ipersisted in my opinion, he said, 'Why, Sir, the original isthus, '--(and he repeated it;) 'and this man's translation is thus, '--andthen he repeated that also, exactly, though he had never seen it before, and read it over only once, and that too, without any intention ofgetting it by heart[989]. 

Here a post-chaise, which I had ordered from Glasgow, came for us, andwe drove on in high spirits. We stopped at Dunbarton, and though theapproach to the castle there is very steep, Dr. Johnson ascended it withalacrity, and surveyed all that was to be seen. During the whole of ourTour he shewed uncommon spirit, could not bear to be treated like an oldor infirm man, and was very unwilling to accept of any assistance, insomuch that, at our landing at Icolmkill, when Sir Allan M'Lean and Isubmitted to be carried on men's shoulders from the boat to the shore, as it could not be brought quite close to land, he sprang into the sea, and waded vigorously out. On our arrival at the Saracen's Head Inn, atGlasgow, I was made happy by good accounts from home; and Dr. Johnson, who had not received a single letter since we left Aberdeen[990], foundhere a great many, the perusal of which entertained him much. He enjoyedin imagination the comforts which we could now command, and seemed to bein high glee. I remember, he put a leg up on each side of the grate, andsaid, with a mock solemnity, by way of soliloquy, but loud enough for meto hear it, 'Here am I, an ENGLISH man, sitting by a _coal_ fire. '

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 29. 

The professors[991] of the University being informed of our arrival, Dr. Stevenson, Dr. Reid[992], and Mr. Anderson breakfasted with us. Mr. Anderson accompanied us while Dr. Johnson viewed this beautiful city. Hehad told me, that one day in London, when Dr. Adam Smith was boasting ofit, he turned to him and said, 'Pray, Sir, have you ever seenBrentford[993]?' This was surely a strong instance of his impatience, and spirit of contradiction. I put him in mind of it to-day, while heexpressed his admiration of the elegant buildings, and whispered him, 'Don't you feel some remorse[994]?'

We were received in the college by a number of the professors, whoshewed all due respect to Dr. Johnson; and then we paid a visit to theprincipal, Dr. Leechman[995], at his own house, where Dr. Johnson hadthe satisfaction of being told that his name had been gratefullycelebrated in one of the parochial congregations in the Highlands, asthe person to whose influence it was chiefly owing that the NewTestament was allowed to be translated into the Erse language. It seemssome political members of the Society in Scotland for propagatingChristian Knowledge had opposed this pious undertaking, as tending topreserve the distinction between the Highlanders and Lowlanders. Dr. Johnson wrote a long letter upon the subject to a friend, which beingshewn to them, made them ashamed, and afraid of being publickly exposed;so they were forced to a compliance. It is now in my possession, and is, perhaps, one of the best productions of his masterly pen[996]. 

Professors Reid and Anderson, and the two Messieurs Foulis, the Elzevirsof Glasgow, dined and drank tea with us at our inn, after which theprofessors went away; and I, having a letter to write, left myfellow-traveller with Messieurs Foulis. Though good and ingenious men, they had that unsettled speculative mode of conversation which isoffensive to a man regularly taught at an English school and university. I found that, instead of listening to the dictates of the Sage, theyhad teazed him with questions and doubtful disputations. He came in aflutter to me, and desired I might come back again, for he could notbear these men. 'O ho! Sir, (said I, ) you are flying to me for refuge!'He never, in any situation, was at a loss for a ready repartee. Heanswered, with a quick vivacity, 'It is of two evils choosing theleast. ' I was delighted with this flash bursting from the cloud whichhung upon his mind, closed my letter directly, and joined the company. 

We supped at Professor Anderson's. The general impression upon my memoryis, that we had not much conversation at Glasgow, where the professors, like their brethren at Aberdeen[997], did not venture to exposethemselves much to the battery of cannon which they knew might play uponthem[998]. Dr. Johnson, who was fully conscious of his own superiorpowers, afterwards praised Principal Robertson for his caution in thisrespect[999]. He said to me, 'Robertson, Sir, was in the right. Robertson is a man of eminence, and the head of a college at Edinburgh. He had a character to maintain, and did well not to risk its beinglessened. '

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 30. 

We set out towards Ayrshire. I sent Joseph on to Loudoun, with amessage, that, if the Earl was at home, Dr. Johnson and I would have thehonour to dine with him. Joseph met us on the road, and reported thatthe Earl '_jumped for joy, _' and said, 'I shall be very happy to seethem. ' We were received with a most pleasing courtesy by his Lordship, and by the Countess his mother, who, in her ninety-fifth year, had allher faculties quite unimpaired[1000]. This was a very cheering sight toDr. Johnson, who had an extraordinary desire for long life. Herladyship was sensible and well-informed, and had seen a great deal ofthe world. Her lord had held several high offices, and she was sister tothe great Earl of Stair[1001]. 

I cannot here refrain from paying a just tribute to the character ofJohn Earl of Loudoun, who did more service to the county of Ayr ingeneral, as well as to the individuals in it, than any man we have everhad. It is painful to think that he met with much ingratitude frompersons both in high and low rank: but such was his temper, such hisknowledge of 'base mankind[1002], ' that, as if he had expected no otherreturn, his mind was never soured, and he retained his good-humour andbenevolence to the last. The tenderness of his heart was proved in1745-6, when he had an important command in the Highlands, and behavedwith a generous humanity to the unfortunate. I cannot figure a morehonest politician; for, though his interest in our county was great, andgenerally successful, he not only did not deceive by fallaciouspromises, but was anxious that people should not deceive themselves bytoo sanguine expectations. His kind and dutiful attention to his motherwas unremitted. At his house was true hospitality; a plain but aplentiful table; and every guest, being left at perfect freedom, felthimself quite easy and happy. While I live, I shall honour the memory ofthis amiable man[1003]. 

At night, we advanced a few miles farther, to the house of Mr. Campbellof Treesbank, who was married to one of my wife's sisters, and wereentertained very agreeably by a worthy couple. 

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 31. 

We reposed here in tranquillity. Dr. Johnson was pleased to find anumerous and excellent collection of books, which had mostly belonged tothe Reverend Mr. John Campbell, brother of our host. I was desirous tohave procured for my fellow-traveller, to-day, the company of Sir JohnCuninghame, of Caprington, whose castle was but two miles from us. Hewas a very distinguished scholar, was long abroad, and during part ofthe time lived much with the learned Cuninghame[1004], the opponent ofBentley as a critick upon Horace. He wrote Latin with great elegance, and, what is very remarkable, read Homer and Ariosto through every year. I wrote to him to request he would come to us; but unfortunately he wasprevented by indisposition. 

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 1. 

Though Dr. Johnson was lazy, and averse to move, I insisted that heshould go with me, and pay a visit to the Countess of Eglintoune, motherof the late and present earl. I assured him, he would find himself amplyrecompensed for the trouble; and he yielded to my solicitations, thoughwith some unwillingness. We were well mounted, and had not many miles toride. He talked of the attention that is necessary in order todistribute our charity judiciously. 'If thoughtlessly done, we mayneglect the most deserving objects; and, as every man has but a certainproportion to give, if it is lavished upon those who first presentthemselves, there may be nothing left for such as have a better claim. Aman should first relieve those who are nearly connected with him, bywhatever tie; and then, if he has any thing to spare, may extend hisbounty to a wider circle. [1005]'

As we passed very near the castle of Dundonald, which was one of themany residences of the kings of Scotland, and in which Robert the Secondlived and died, Dr. Johnson wished to survey it particularly. It standson a beautiful rising ground, which is seen at a great distance onseveral quarters, and from whence there is an extensive prospect of therich district of Cuninghame, the western sea, the isle of Arran, and apart of the northern coast of Ireland. It has long been unroofed; and, though of considerable size, we could not, by any power of imagination, figure it as having been a suitable habitation for majesty[1006]. Dr. Johnson, to irritate my _old Scottish_[1007] enthusiasm, was veryjocular on the homely accommodation of 'King _Bob_, ' and roared andlaughed till the ruins echoed. 

Lady Eglintoune, though she was now in her eighty-fifth year, and hadlived in the retirement of the country for almost half a century, wasstill a very agreeable woman. She was of the noble house of Kennedy, andhad all the elevation which the consciousness of such birth inspires. Her figure was majestick, her manners high-bred, her reading extensive, and her conversation elegant. She had been the admiration of the gaycircles of life, and the patroness of poets[1008]. Dr. Johnson wasdelighted with his reception here. Her principles in church and statewere congenial with his. She knew all his merit, and had heard much ofhim from her son, Earl Alexander[1009], who loved to cultivate theacquaintance of men of talents, in every department. 

All who knew his lordship, will allow that his understanding andaccomplishments were of no ordinary rate. From the gay habits which hehad early acquired, he spent too much of his time with men, and inpursuits far beneath such a mind as his. He afterwards became sensibleof it, and turned his thoughts to objects of importance; but was cut offin the prime of his life. I cannot speak, but with emotions of the mostaffectionate regret, of one, in whose company many of my early days werepassed, and to whose kindness I was much indebted. 

Often must I have occasion to upbraid myself, that soon after our returnto the main land, I allowed indolence to prevail over me so much, as toshrink from the labour of continuing my journal with the same minutenessas before; sheltering myself in the thought, that we had done with theHebrides; and not considering, that Dr. Johnson's Memorabilia werelikely to be more valuable when we were restored to a more polishedsociety. Much has thus been irrecoverably lost. 

In the course of our conversation this day, it came out, that LadyEglintoune was married the year before Dr. Johnson was born; upon whichshe graciously said to him, that she might have been his mother; andthat she now adopted him; and when we were going away, she embraced him, saying, 'My dear son, farewell[1010]!' My friend was much pleased withthis day's entertainment, and owned that I had done well to forcehim out. 

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 2. 

We were now in a country not only '_of saddles and bridles_[1011], ' butof post-chaises; and having ordered one from Kilmarnock, we got toAuchinleck[1012] before dinner. 

My father was not quite a year and a half older than Dr. Johnson; buthis conscientious discharge of his laborious duty as a judge inScotland, where the law proceedings are almost all in writing, --a severecomplaint which ended in his death, --and the loss of my mother, a womanof almost unexampled piety and goodness, --had before this time in somedegree affected his spirits[1013], and rendered him less disposed toexert his faculties: for he had originally a very strong mind, andcheerful temper. He assured me, he never had felt one moment of what iscalled low spirits, or uneasiness, without a real cause. He had a greatmany good stories, which he told uncommonly well, and he was remarkablefor 'humour, _incolumi gravitate_[1014], ' as Lord Monboddo used tocharacterise it. His age, his office, and his character, had long givenhim an acknowledged claim to great attention, in whatever company hewas; and he could ill brook any diminution of it. He was as sanguine aWhig and Presbyterian, as Dr. Johnson was a Tory and Church of Englandman: and as he had not much leisure to be informed of Dr. Johnson'sgreat merits by reading his works, he had a partial and unfavourablenotion of him, founded on his supposed political tenets; which were sodiscordant to his own, that instead of speaking of him with that respectto which he was entitled, he used to call him 'a _Jacobite fellow_. 'Knowing all this, I should not have ventured to bring them together, hadnot my father, out of kindness to me, desired me to invite Dr. Johnsonto his house. 

I was very anxious that all should be well; and begged of my friend toavoid three topicks, as to which they differed very widely; Whiggism, Presbyterianism, and--Sir John Pringle. [1015] He said courteously, 'Ishall certainly not talk on subjects which I am told are disagreeable toa gentleman under whose roof I am; especially, I shall not do so to_your father_. '

Our first day went off very smoothly. It rained, and we could not getout; but my father shewed Dr. Johnson his library, which in curiouseditions of the Greek and Roman classicks, is, I suppose, not excelledby any private collection in Great Britain. My father had studied atLeyden, and been very intimate with the Gronovii, and other learned menthere. He was a sound scholar, and, in particular, had collatedmanuscripts and different editions of _Anacreon_, and others of theGreek Lyrick poets, with great care; so that my friend and he had muchmatter for conversation, without touching on the fatal topicks ofdifference. 

Dr. Johnson found here Baxter's _Anacreon_[1016], which he told me hehad long enquired for in vain, and began to suspect there was no suchbook. Baxter was the keen antagonist of Barnes[1017]. His life is inthe _Biographia Britannica_[1018]. My father has written many notes onthis book, and Dr. Johnson and I talked of having it reprinted. 

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 3. 

It rained all day, and gave Dr. Johnson an impression of thatincommodiousness of climate in the west, of which he has taken notice inhis _Journey_[1019]; but, being well accommodated, and furnished withvariety of books, he was not dissatisfied. 

Some gentlemen of the neighbourhood came to visit my father; but therewas little conversation. One of them asked Dr. Johnson how he liked theHighlands. The question seemed to irritate him, for he answered, 'How, Sir, can you ask me what obliges me to speak unfavourably of a countrywhere I have been hospitably entertained? Who _can_ like theHighlands[1020]? I like the inhabitants very well[1021]. ' The gentlemanasked no more questions. 

Let me now make up for the present neglect, by again gleaning from thepast. At Lord Monboddo's, after the conversation upon the decrease oflearning in England, his Lordship mentioned _Hermes_, by Mr. Harris ofSalisbury[1022], as the work of a living authour, for whom he had agreat respect. Dr. Johnson said nothing at the time; but when we were inour post-chaise, he told me, he thought Harris 'a coxcomb. ' This hesaid of him, not as a man, but as an authour[1023]; and I give hisopinions of men and books, faithfully, whether they agree with my own ornot. I do admit, that there always appeared to me something ofaffectation in Mr. Harris's manner of writing; something of a habit ofclothing plain thoughts in analytick and categorical formality. But allhis writings are imbued with learning; and all breathe that philanthropyand amiable disposition, which distinguished him as a man[1024]. 

At another time, during our Tour, he drew the character of a rapaciousHighland Chief[1025] with the strength of Theophrastus or la Bruyère;concluding with these words:--'Sir, he has no more the soul of a Chief, than an attorney who has twenty houses in a street, and considers howmuch he can make by them. '

He this day, when we were by ourselves, observed, how common it was forpeople to talk from books; to retail the sentiment's of others, and nottheir own; in short, to converse without any originality of thinking. Hewas pleased to say, 'You and I do not talk from books[1026]. '

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 4. 

I was glad to have at length a very fine day, on which I could shew Dr. Johnson the _Place_ of my family, which he has honoured with so muchattention in his _Journey_. He is, however, mistaken in thinking thatthe Celtick name, _Auchinleck_, has no relation to the naturalappearance of it. I believe every Celtick name of a place will be foundvery descriptive. _Auchinleck_ does not signify a _stony field_, as hehas said, but a _field of flag stones_; and this place has a number ofrocks, which abound in strata of that kind. The 'sullen dignity of theold castle, ' as he has forcibly expressed it, delighted himexceedingly. [1027] On one side of the rock on which its ruins stand, runs the river Lugar, which is here of considerable breadth, and isbordered by other high rocks, shaded with wood. On the other side runs abrook, skirted in the same manner, but on a smaller scale. I cannotfigure a more romantick scene. 

I felt myself elated here, and expatiated to my illustrious Mentor onthe antiquity and honourable alliances of my family, and on the meritsof its founder, Thomas Boswell, who was highly favoured by hissovereign, James IV. Of Scotland, and fell with him at the battle ofFlodden-field[1028]; and in the glow of what, I am sensible, will, in acommercial age, be considered as genealogical enthusiasm, did not omitto mention what I was sure my friend would not think lightly of, myrelation[1029] to the Royal Personage, whose liberality, on hisaccession to the throne, had given him comfort and independence[1030]. I have, in a former page[1031], acknowledged my pride of ancient blood, in which I was encouraged by Dr. Johnson: my readers therefore will notbe surprised at my having indulged it on this occasion. 

Not far from the old castle is a spot of consecrated earth, on which maybe traced the foundations of an ancient chapel, dedicated to St. Vincent, and where in old times 'was the place of graves' for thefamily. It grieves me to think that the remains of sanctity here, whichwere considerable, were dragged away, and employed in building a part ofthe house of Auchinleck, of the middle age; which was the familyresidence, till my father erected that 'elegant modern mansion, ' ofwhich Dr. Johnson speaks so handsomely. Perhaps this chapel may one daybe restored. 

Dr. Johnson was pleased when I shewed him some venerable old trees, under the shade of which my ancestors had walked. He exhorted me toplant assiduously[1032], as my father had done to a great extent. 

As I wandered with my reverend friend in the groves of Auchinleck, Itold him, that, if I survived him, it was my intention to erect amonument to him here, among scenes which, in my mind, were allclassical; for in my youth I had appropriated to them many of thedescriptions of the Roman poets. He could not bear to have deathpresented to him in any shape; for his constitutional melancholy madethe king of terrours more frightful. He turned off the subject, saying, 'Sir, I hope to see your grand-children!'

This forenoon he observed some cattle without horns, of which he hastaken notice in his _Journey_[1033], and seems undecided whether they beof a particular race. His doubts appear to have had no foundation; formy respectable neighbour, Mr. Fairlie, who, with all his attention toagriculture, finds time both for the classicks and his friends, assuresme they are a distinct species, and that, when any of their calves havehorns, a mixture of breed can be traced. In confirmation of his opinion, he pointed out to me the following passage in Tacitus, --'_Ne armentisquidem suus honor, aut gloria frontis_[1034];' (_De mor. Germ. § 5_)which he wondered had escaped Dr. Johnson. 

On the front of the house of Auchinleck is this inscription:--

 'Quod petis, hic est; Est Ulubris; animus si te non deficit aequus[1035]. '

It is characteristick of the founder; but the _animus aequus_ is, alas!not inheritable, nor the subject of devise. He always talked to me as ifit were in a man's own power to attain it; but Dr. Johnson told me thathe owned to him, when they were alone, his persuasion that it was in agreat measure constitutional, or the effect of causes which do notdepend on ourselves, and that Horace boasts too much, when he says, _aequum mi animum ipse parabo_[1036]. 

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 5. 

The Reverend Mr. Dun, our parish minister, who had dined with usyesterday, with some other company, insisted that Dr. Johnson and Ishould dine with him to-day. This gave me an opportunity to shew myfriend the road to the church, made by my father at a great expence, forabove three miles, on his own estate, through a range of well enclosedfarms, with a row of trees on each side of it. He called it the _Viasacra_, and was very fond of it. [1037]Dr. Johnson, though he heldnotions far distant from those of the Presbyterian clergy, yet couldassociate on good terms with them. He indeed occasionally attackedthem. One of them discovered a narrowness of information concerning thedignitaries of the Church of England, among whom may be found men of thegreatest learning, virtue, and piety, and of a truly apostoliccharacter. He talked before Dr. Johnson, of fat bishops and drowsydeans; and, in short, seemed to believe the illiberal and profanescoffings of professed satyrists, or vulgar railers. Dr. Johnson was sohighly offended, that he said to him, 'Sir, you know no more of ourChurch than a Hottentot[1038]. ' I was sorry that he brought thisupon himself. 

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 6. 

I cannot be certain, whether it was on this day, or a former, that Dr. Johnson and my father came in collision. If I recollect right, thecontest began while my father was shewing him his collection of medals;and Oliver Cromwell's coin unfortunately introduced Charles the First, and Toryism. They became exceedingly warm, and violent, and I was verymuch distressed by being present at such an altercation between two men, both of whom I reverenced; yet I durst not interfere. It would certainlybe very unbecoming in me to exhibit my honoured father, and my respectedfriend, as intellectual gladiators, for the entertainment of thepublick: and therefore I suppress what would, I dare say, make aninteresting scene in this dramatick sketch, --this account of thetransit of Johnson over the Caledonian Hemisphere[1039]. 

Yet I think I may, without impropriety, mention one circumstance, as aninstance of my father's address. Dr. Johnson challenged him, as he didus all at Talisker[1040], to point out any theological works of meritwritten by Presbyterian ministers in Scotland. My father, whose studiesdid not lie much in that way, owned to me afterwards, that he wassomewhat at a loss how to answer, but that luckily he recollected havingread in catalogues the title of _Durham on the Galatians_; upon which heboldly said, 'Pray, Sir, have you read Mr. Durham's excellent commentaryon the Galatians?' 'No, Sir, ' said Dr. Johnson. By this lucky thought myfather kept him at bay, and for some time enjoyed his triumph[1041]; buthis antagonist soon made a retort, which I forbear to mention. 

In the course of their altercation, Whiggism and Presbyterianism, Toryism and Episcopacy, were terribly buffeted. My worthy hereditaryfriend, Sir John Pringle, never having been mentioned, happily escapedwithout a bruise. 

My father's opinion of Dr. Johnson may be conjectured from the name heafterwards gave him, which was URSA MAJOR[1042]. But it is not true, ashas been reported, that it was in consequence of my saying that he was a_constellation_[1043] of genius and literature. It was a sly abruptexpression to one of his brethren on the bench of the Court of Session, in which Dr. Johnson was then standing; but it was not said inhis hearing. 

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 7. 

My father and I went to publick worship in our parish-church, in which Iregretted that Dr. Johnson would not join us; for, though we have thereno form of prayer, nor magnificent solemnity, yet, as GOD is worshippedin spirit and in truth, and the same doctrines preached as in the Churchof England, my friend would certainly have shewn more liberality, had heattended. I doubt not, however, but he employed his time in private tovery good purpose. His uniform and fervent piety was manifested on manyoccasions during our Tour, which I have not mentioned. His reason fornot joining in Presbyterian worship has been recorded in a formerpage[1044]. 

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 8. 

Notwithstanding the altercation that had passed, my father, who had thedignified courtesy of an old Baron, was very civil to Dr. Johnson, andpolitely attended him to the post-chaise, which was to convey us toEdinburgh[1045]. 

Thus they parted. They are now in another, and a higher, state ofexistence: and as they were both worthy Christian men, I trust they havemet in happiness. But I must observe, in justice to my friend'spolitical principles, and my own, that they have met in a place wherethere is no room for _Whiggism_[1046]. 

We came at night to a good inn at Hamilton. I recollect no more. 

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 9. 

I wished to have shewn Dr. Johnson the Duke of Hamilton's house, commonly called the _Palace_ of Hamilton, which is close by the town. Itis an object which, having been pointed out to me as a splendid edifice, from my earliest years, in travelling between Auchinleck and Edinburgh, has still great grandeur in my imagination. My friend consented to stop, and view the outside of it, but could not be persuaded to go into it. 

We arrived this night at Edinburgh, after an absence of eighty-threedays. For five weeks together, of the tempestuous season, there had beenno account received of us. I cannot express how happy I was on findingmyself again at home. 

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 10. 

Old Mr. Drummond, the bookseller[1047], came to breakfast. Dr. Johnsonand he had not met for ten years. There was respect on his side, andkindness on Dr. Johnson's. Soon afterwards Lord Elibank came in, and wasmuch pleased at seeing Dr. Johnson in Scotland. His lordship said, 'hardly any thing seemed to him more improbable. ' Dr. Johnson had avery high opinion of him. Speaking of him to me, he characterized himthus: 'Lord Elibank has read a great deal. It is true, I can find inbooks all that he has read; but he has a great deal of what is in books, proved by the test of real life. ' Indeed, there have been few men whoseconversation discovered more knowledge enlivened by fancy. He publishedseveral small pieces of distinguished merit; and has left some inmanuscript, in particular an account of the expedition againstCarthagena, in which he served as an officer in the army. His writingsdeserve to be collected. He was the early patron of Dr. Robertson, thehistorian, and Mr. Home, the tragick poet; who, when they were ministersof country parishes, lived near his seat. He told me, 'I saw these ladshad talents, and they were much with me. ' I hope they will pay agrateful tribute to his memory[1048]. 

The morning was chiefly taken up by Dr. Johnson's giving him an accountof our Tour. The subject of difference in political principles wasintroduced. JOHNSON. 'It is much increased by opposition. There was aviolent Whig, with whom I used to contend with great eagerness. Afterhis death I felt my Toryism much abated. ' I suppose he meant Mr. Walmsley of Lichfield, whose character he has drawn so well in his _Lifeof Edmund Smith_[1049]. Mr. Nairne[1050] came in, and he and Iaccompanied Dr. Johnson to Edinburgh Castle, which he owned was 'a greatplace. ' But I must mention, as a striking instance of that spirit ofcontradiction to which he had a strong propensity, when Lord Elibank wassome days after talking of it with the natural elation of a Scotchman, or of any man who is proud of a stately fortress in his own country, Dr. Johnson affected to despise it, observing that 'it would make a good_prison_ in ENGLAND. '

Lest it should be supposed that I have suppressed one of his salliesagainst my country, it may not be improper here to correct a mistakenaccount that has been circulated, as to his conversation this day. Ithas been said, that being desired to attend to the noble prospect fromthe Castle-hill, he replied, 'Sir, the noblest prospect that a Scotchmanever sees, is the high road that leads him to London. ' This livelysarcasm was thrown out at a tavern[1051] in London, in my presence, manyyears before. 

We had with us to-day at dinner, at my house, the Lady Dowager Colvill, and Lady Anne Erskine, sisters of the Earl of Kelly[1052]; theHonourable Archibald Erskine, who has now succeeded to that title; LordElibank; the Reverend Dr. Blair; Mr. Tytler, the acute vindicator ofMary Queen of Scots[1053], and some other friends[1054]. 

_Fingal_ being talked of, Dr. Johnson, who used to boast that he had, from the first, resisted both Ossian[1055] and the Giants ofPatagonia[1056], averred his positive disbelief of its authenticity. Lord Elibank said, 'I am sure it is not M'Pherson's. Mr. Johnson, I keepcompany a great deal with you; it is known I do. I may borrow from youbetter things than I can say myself, and give them as my own; but, if Ishould, every body will know whose they are. ' The Doctor was notsoftened by this compliment. He denied merit to _Fingal_, supposing itto be the production of a man who has had the advantages that thepresent age affords; and said, 'nothing is more easy than to writeenough in that style if once you begin[1057]. '[1058]One gentleman incompany[1059] expressing his opinion 'that _Fingal_ was certainlygenuine, for that he had heard a great part of it repeated in theoriginal, ' Dr. Johnson indignantly asked him whether he understood theoriginal; to which an answer being given in the negative, 'Why then, (said Dr. Johnson, ) we see to what _this_ testimony comes:--thus it is. '

I mentioned this as a remarkable proof how liable the mind of man is tocredulity, when not guarded by such strict examination as that which Dr. Johnson habitually practised. [1060]The talents and integrity of thegentleman who made the remark, are unquestionable; yet, had not Dr. Johnson made him advert to the consideration, that he who does notunderstand a language, cannot know that something which is recited tohim is in that language, he might have believed, and reported to thishour, that he had 'heard a great part of _Fingal_ repeated in theoriginal. '

For the satisfaction of those on the north of the Tweed, who may thinkDr. Johnson's account of Caledonian credulity and inaccuracy toostrong, [1061] it is but fair to add, that he admitted the same kind ofready belief might be found in his own country. 'He would undertake, (hesaid) to write an epick poem on the story of _Robin Hood_, [1062] andhalf England, to whom the names and places he should mention in it arefamiliar, would believe and declare they had heard it from theirearliest years. '

One of his objections to the authenticity of _Fingal_, during theconversation at Ulinish, [1063] is omitted in my _Journal_, but Iperfectly recollect it. 'Why is not the original deposited in somepublick library, instead of exhibiting attestations of itsexistence?[1064] Suppose there were a question in a court of justice, whether a man be dead or alive: You aver he is alive, and you bringfifty witnesses to swear it: I answer, "Why do you not produce theman?"' This is an argument founded upon one of the first principles ofthe _law of evidence_, which _Gilbert_[1065] would have held to beirrefragable. 

I do not think it incumbent on me to give any precise decided opinionupon this question, as to which I believe more than some, and less thanothers. [1066]

The subject appears to have now become very uninteresting to thepublick. That _Fingal_ is not from beginning to end a translation fromthe Gallick, but that _some_ passages have been supplied by the editorto connect the whole, I have heard admitted by very warm advocates forits authenticity. If this be the case, why are not these distinctlyascertained? Antiquaries, and admirers of the work, may complain, thatthey are in a situation similar to that of the unhappy gentleman, whosewife informed him, on her death-bed, that one of their reputed childrenwas not his; and, when he eagerly begged her to declare which of them itwas, she answered, '_That_ you shall never know;' and expired, leavinghim in irremediable doubt as to them all. 

I beg leave now to say something upon _second sight_, of which I haverelated two instances, [1067] as they impressed my mind at the time. Iown, I returned from the Hebrides with a considerable degree of faith inthe many stories of that kind which I heard with a too easyacquiescence, without any close examination of the evidence: but, sincethat time, my belief in those stories has been much weakened, [1068] byreflecting on the careless inaccuracy of narrative in common matters, from which we may certainly conclude that there may be the same in whatis more extraordinary. It is but just, however, to add, that the beliefin second sight is not peculiar to the Highlands and Isles. [1069]

Some years after our Tour, a cause[1070] was tried in the Court ofSession, where the principal fact to be ascertained was, whether aship-master, who used to frequent the Western Highlands and Isles, wasdrowned in one particular year, or in the year after. A great number ofwitnesses from those parts were examined on each side, and sworedirectly contrary to each other, upon this simple question. One of them, a very respectable Chieftain, who told me a story of second sight, whichI have not mentioned, but which I too implicitly believed, had in thiscase, previous to this publick examination, not only said, but attestedunder his hand, that he had seen the ship-master in the year subsequentto that in which the court was finally satisfied he was drowned. Wheninterrogated with the strictness of judicial inquiry, and under the aweof an oath, he recollected himself better, and retracted what he hadformerly asserted, apologising for his inaccuracy, by telling thejudges, 'A man will _say_ what he will not _swear_. ' By many he was muchcensured, and it was maintained that every gentleman would be asattentive to truth without the sanction of an oath, as with it. Dr. Johnson, though he himself was distinguished at all times by ascrupulous adherence to truth, controverted this proposition; and as aproof that this was not, though it ought to be, the case, urged the verydifferent decisions of elections under Mr. Grenville's Act, [1071] fromthose formerly made. 'Gentlemen will not pronounce upon oath what theywould have said, and voted in the house, without that sanction. '

However difficult it may be for men who believe in preternaturalcommunications, in modern times, to satisfy those who are of a differentopinion, they may easily refute the doctrine of their opponents, whoimpute a belief in _second sight_ to _superstition_. To entertain avisionary notion that one sees a distant or future event, may be called_superstition_: but the correspondence of the fact or event with such animpression on the fancy, though certainly very wonderful, _if proved_, has no more connection with superstition, than magnetism or electricity. 

After dinner, various topicks were discussed; but I recollect only oneparticular. Dr. Johnson compared the different talents of Garrick andFoote, [1072] as companions, and gave Garrick greatly the preference forelegance, though he allowed Foote extraordinary powers of entertainment. He said, 'Garrick is restrained by some principle; but Foote has theadvantage of an unlimited range. Garrick has some delicacy of feeling;it is possible to put him out; you may get the better of him; but Footeis the most incompressible fellow that I ever knew; when you have drivenhim into a corner, and think you are sure of him, he runs throughbetween your legs, or jumps over your head, and makes his escape. '

Dr. Erskine[1073] and Mr. Robert Walker, two very respectable ministersof Edinburgh, supped with us, as did the Reverend Dr. Webster. [1074] Theconversation turned on the Moravian missions, and on the Methodists. Dr. Johnson observed in general, that missionaries were too sanguine intheir accounts of their success among savages, and that much of whatthey tell is not to be believed. He owned that the Methodists had donegood; had spread religious impressions among the vulgar part ofmankind:[1075] but, he said, they had great bitterness against otherChristians, and that he never could get a Methodist to explain in whathe excelled others; that it always ended in the indispensible necessityof hearing one of their preachers. [1076]

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 11. 

Principal Robertson came to us as we sat at breakfast, he advanced toDr. Johnson, repeating a line of Virgil, which I forget. Isuppose, either

 Post varios casus, per tot discrimina rerum[1077]--

or

 --multum ille et terris jactatus, et alto[1078]. 

Every body had accosted us with some studied compliment on our return. Dr. Johnson said, 'I am really ashamed of the congratulations which wereceive. We are addressed as if we had made a voyage to Nova Zembla, andsuffered five persecutions in Japan[1079]. ' And he afterwards remarked, that, 'to see a man come up with a formal air and a Latin line, when wehad no fatigue and no danger, was provoking[1080]. ' I told him, he wasnot sensible of the danger, having lain under cover in the boat duringthe storm[1081]: he was like the chicken, that hides its head under itswing, and then thinks itself safe. 

Lord Elibank came to us, as did Sir William Forbes. The rash attempt in1745 being mentioned, I observed, that it would make a fine piece ofHistory. Dr. Johnson said it would. [1082] Lord Elibank doubted whetherany man of this age could give it impartially. JOHNSON. 'A man, bytalking with those of different sides, who were actors in it, andputting down all that he hears, may in time collect the materials of agood narrative. You are to consider, all history was at first oral. Isuppose Voltaire was fifty years[1083] in collecting his _Louis XIV_. Which he did in the way that I am proposing. ' ROBERTSON. 'He did so. Helived much with all the great people who were concerned in that reign, and heard them talk of everything: and then either took Mr. Boswell'sway, of writing down what he heard, or, which is as good, preserved itin his memory; for he has a wonderful memory. ' With the leave, however, of this elegant historian, no man's memory can preserve facts or sayingswith such fidelity as may be done by writing them down when they arerecent. Dr. Robertson said, 'it was now full time to make such acollection as Dr. Johnson suggested; for many of the people who werethen in arms, were dropping off; and both Whigs and Jacobites were nowcome to talk with moderation. ' Lord Elibank said to him, 'Mr. Robertson, the first thing that gave me a high opinion of you, was your saying inthe _Select Society_[1084], while parties ran high, soon after the year1745, that you did not think worse of a man's moral character for hishaving been in rebellion. This was venturing to utter a liberalsentiment, while both sides had a detestation of each other. ' Dr. Johnson observed, that being in rebellion from a notion of another'sright, was not connected with depravity; and that we had this proof ofit, that all mankind applauded the pardoning of rebels; which they wouldnot do in the case of robbers and murderers. He said, with a smile, that'he wondered that the phrase of _unnatural_ rebellion should be so muchused, for that all rebellion was natural to man. '

 * * * * *

As I kept no Journal of anything that passed after this morning, Ishall, from memory, group together this and the other days, till that onwhich Dr. Johnson departed for London. They were in all nine days; onwhich he dined at Lady Colvill's, Lord Hailes's, Sir Adolphus Oughton's, Sir Alexander Dick's, Principal Robertson's, Mr. M'Laurin's[1085], andthrice at Lord Elibank's seat in the country, where we also passed twonights[1086]. He supped at the Honourable Alexander Gordon's[1087], nowone of our judges, by the title of Lord Rockville; at Mr. Nairne's, nowalso one of our judges, by the title of Lord Dunsinan; at Dr. Blair's, and Mr. Tytler's; and at my house thrice, one evening with a numerouscompany, chiefly gentlemen of the law; another with Mr. Menzies ofCuldares, and Lord Monboddo, who disengaged himself on purpose to meethim; and the evening on which we returned from Lord Elibank's, he suppedwith my wife and me by ourselves[1088]. 

He breakfasted at Dr. Webster's, at old Mr. Drummond's, and at Dr. Blacklock's; and spent one forenoon at my uncle Dr. Boswell's[1089], whoshewed him his curious museum; and, as he was an elegant scholar, and aphysician bred in the school of Boerhaave[1090], Dr. Johnson was pleasedwith his company. On the mornings when he breakfasted at my house, hehad, from ten o'clock till one or two, a constant levee of variouspersons, of very different characters and descriptions. I could notattend him, being obliged to be in the Court of Session; but my wife wasso good as to devote the greater part of the morning to the endless taskof pouring out tea for my friend and his visitors. 

Such was the disposition of his time at Edinburgh. He said one eveningto me, in a fit of languor, 'Sir, we have been harassed by invitations. 'I acquiesced. 'Ay, Sir, ' he replied; but how much worse would it havebeen, if we had been neglected[1091]?'

From what has been recorded in this _Journal_, it may well be supposedthat a variety of admirable conversation has been lost, by my neglect topreserve it. I shall endeavour to recollect some of it, as well asI can. 

At Lady Colvill's, to whom I am proud to introduce any stranger ofeminence, that he may see what dignity and grace is to be found inScotland, an officer observed, that he had heard Lord Mansfield was nota great English lawyer. JOHNSON. 'Why, Sir, supposing Lord Mansfield notto have the splendid talents which he possesses, he must be a greatEnglish lawyer, from having been so long at the bar, and having passedthrough so many of the great offices of the law. Sir, you may as wellmaintain that a carrier, who has driven a packhorse between Edinburghand Berwick for thirty years, does not know the road, as that LordMansfield does not know the law of England[1092]. '

At Mr. Nairne's, he drew the character of Richardson, the authour of_Clarissa_, with a strong yet delicate pencil. I lament much that I havenot preserved it; I only remember that he expressed a high opinion ofhis talents and virtues; but observed, that 'his perpetual study was toward off petty inconveniences, and procure petty pleasures; that hislove of continual superiority was such, that he took care to be alwayssurrounded by women[1093], who listened to him implicitly, and did notventure to controvert his opinions; and that his desire of distinctionwas so great, that he used to give large vails to the Speaker Onslow'sservants, that they might treat him with respect. '

On the same evening, he would not allow that the private life of aJudge, in England, was required to be so strictly decorous as Isupposed. 'Why then, Sir, (said I, ) according to your account, anEnglish judge may just live like a gentleman. ' JOHNSON. 'Yes, Sir[1094], --if he _can_. '

At Mr. Tytler's, I happened to tell that one evening, a great many yearsago, when Dr. Hugh Blair and I were sitting together in the pit ofDrury-lane play-house, in a wild freak of youthful extravagance, Ientertained the audience _prodigiously_[1095], by imitating the lowingof a cow. A little while after I had told this story, I differed fromDr. Johnson, I suppose too confidently, upon some point, which I nowforget. He did not spare me. 'Nay, Sir, (said he, ) if you cannot talkbetter as a man, I'd have you bellow like a cow[1096]. '

At Dr. Webster's, he said, that he believed hardly any man died withoutaffectation. This remark appears to me to be well founded, and willaccount for many of the celebrated death-bed sayings which arerecorded[1097]. 

On one of the evenings at my house, when he told that Lord Lovat boastedto an English nobleman, that though he had not his wealth, he had twothousand men whom he could at any time call into the field, theHonourable Alexander Gordon observed, that those two thousand menbrought him to the block. 'True, Sir, (said Dr. Johnson:) but you mayjust as well argue, concerning a man who has fallen over a precipice towhich he has walked too near, --"His two legs brought him to that, " is henot the better for having two legs?'

At Dr. Blair's I left him, in order to attend a consultation, duringwhich he and his amiable host were by themselves. I returned to supper, at which were Principal Robertson, Mr. Nairne, and some other gentlemen. Dr. Robertson and Dr. Blair, I remember, talked well uponsubordination[1098] and government; and, as my friend and I were walkinghome, he said to me, 'Sir, these two doctors are good men, and wisemen[1099]. ' I begged of Dr. Blair to recollect what he could of the longconversation that passed between Dr. Johnson and him alone, thisevening, and he obligingly wrote to me as follows:--

'_March_ 3, 1785. 

'DEAR SIR, '--As so many years have intervened, since I chanced to have thatconversation with Dr. Johnson in my house, to which you refer, I haveforgotten most of what then passed, but remember that I was bothinstructed and entertained by it. Among other subjects, the discoursehappening to turn on modern Latin poets, the Dr. Expressed a veryfavourable opinion of Buchanan, and instantly repeated, from beginningto end, an ode of his, intituled _Calendae Maiae_, (the eleventh in his_Miscellaneorum Liber_), beginning with these words, '_Salvete sacrisdeliciis sacrae_, ' with which I had formerly been unacquainted; but uponperusing it, the praise which he bestowed upon it, as one of thehappiest of Buchanan's poetical compositions, appeared to me very just. He also repeated to me a Latin ode he had composed in one of the westernislands, from which he had lately returned. We had much discourseconcerning his excursion to those islands, with which he expressedhimself as having been highly pleased; talked in a favourable manner ofthe hospitality of the inhabitants; and particularly spoke much of hishappiness in having you for his companion; and said, that the longer heknew you, he loved and esteemed you the more. This conversation passedin the interval between tea and supper, when we were by ourselves. You, and the rest of the company who were with us at supper, have often takennotice that he was uncommonly bland and gay that evening, and gave muchpleasure to all who were present. This is all that I can recollectdistinctly of that long conversation. 

'Your's sincerely, 'HUGH BLAIR. '

At Lord Hailes's, we spent a most agreeable day; but again I must lamentthat I was so indolent as to let almost all that passed evaporate intooblivion. Dr. Johnson observed there, that 'it is wonderful how ignorantmany officers of the army are, considering how much leisure they havefor study, and the acquisition of knowledge[1100]. ' I hope he wasmistaken; for he maintained that many of them were ignorant of thingsbelonging immediately to their own profession; 'for instance, manycannot tell how far a musket will carry a bullet;' in proof of which, Isuppose, he mentioned some particular person, for Lord Hailes, from whomI solicited what he could recollect of that day, writes to me asfollows:--

'As to Dr. Johnson's observation about the ignorance of officers, in thelength that a musket will carry, my brother, Colonel Dalrymple, waspresent, and he thought that the doctor was either mistaken, by puttingthe question wrong, or that he had conversed on the subject with someperson out of service. 

'Was it upon that occasion that he expressed no curiosity to see theroom at Dumfermline, where Charles I. Was born? "I know that he wasborn, (said he;) no matter where. "--Did he envy us the birth-place ofthe king?'

Near the end of his _Journey_, Dr. Johnson has given liberal praise toMr. Braidwood's academy for the deaf and dumb[1101]. When he visited it, a circumstance occurred which was truly characteristical of our greatLexicographer. 'Pray, (said he, ) can they pronounce any _long_ words?'Mr. Braidwood informed him they could. Upon which Dr. Johnson wrote oneof his _sesquipedalia verba_[1102], which was pronounced by thescholars, and he was satisfied. My readers may perhaps wish to know whatthe word was; but I cannot gratify their curiosity. Mr. Braidwood toldme, it remained long in his school, but had been lost before I made myinquiry[1103]. 

Dr. Johnson one day visited the Court of Session[1104]. He thought themode of pleading there too vehement, and too much addressed to thepassions of the judges. 'This (said he) is not the Areopagus. '

At old Mr. Drummond's, Sir John Dalrymple quaintly said, the two noblestanimals in the world were, a Scotch Highlander and an Englishsailor[1105]. 'Why, Sir, (said Dr. Johnson, ) I shall say nothing as tothe Scotch Highlander; but as to the English Sailor, I cannot agree withyou. ' Sir John said, he was generous in giving away his money. ' JOHNSON. 'Sir, he throws away his money, without thought, and without merit. I donot call a tree generous, that sheds its fruit at every breeze. ' SirJohn having affected to complain of the attacks made upon his_Memoirs_[1106], Dr. Johnson said, 'Nay, Sir, do not complain. It isadvantageous to an authour, that his book should be attacked as well aspraised. Fame is a shuttlecock. If it be struck only at one end of theroom, it will soon fall to the ground. To keep it up, it must be struckat both ends[1107]. ' Often have I reflected on this since; and, insteadof being angry at many of those who have written against me, have smiledto think that they were unintentionally subservient to my fame, by usinga battledoor to make me _virum volitare per ora_[1108]. 

At Sir Alexander Dick's, from that absence of mind to which every man isat times subject, I told, in a blundering manner, Lady Eglingtoune'scomplimentary adoption of Dr. Johnson as her son; for I unfortunatelystated that her ladyship adopted him as her son, in consequence of herhaving been married the year _after_ he was born. Dr. Johnson instantlycorrected me. 'Sir, don't you perceive that you are defaming thecountess? For, supposing me to be her son, and that she was not marriedtill the year after my birth, I must have been her _natural_ son. ' Ayoung lady of quality, who was present, very handsomely said, 'Might notthe son have justified the fault?' My friend was much flattered by thiscompliment, which he never forgot. When in more than ordinary spirits, and talking of his journey in Scotland, he has called to me, 'Boswell, what was it that the young lady of quality said of me at Sir AlexanderDick's ?' Nobody will doubt that I was happy in repeating it. 

My illustrious friend, being now desirous to be again in the greattheatre of life and animated exertion, took a place in the coach, whichwas to set out for London on Monday the 22nd of November[1109]. Sir JohnDalrymple pressed him to come on the Saturday before, to his house atCranston, which being twelve miles from Edinburgh, upon the middle roadto Newcastle, (Dr. Johnson had come to Edinburgh by Berwick, and alongthe naked coast[1110], ) it would make his journey easier, as the coachwould take him up at a more seasonable hour than that at which it setsout. Sir John, I perceived, was ambitious of having such a guest; but, as I was well assured, that at this very time he had joined with some ofhis prejudiced countrymen in railing at Dr. Johnson[1111], and had said, he 'wondered how any gentleman of Scotland could keep company with him, 'I thought he did not deserve the honour: yet, as it might be aconvenience to Dr. Johnson, I contrived that he should accept theinvitation, and engaged to conduct him. I resolved that, on our way toSir John's, we should make a little circuit by Roslin Castle, andHawthornden, and wished to set out soon after breakfast; but young Mr. Tytler came to shew Dr. Johnson some essays which he had written; and mygreat friend, who was exceedingly obliging when thus consulted[1112], was detained so long, that it was, I believe, one o'clock before we gotinto our post-chaise. I found that we should be too late for dinner atSir John Dalrymple's, to which we were engaged: but I would by no meanslose the pleasure of seeing my friend at Hawthornden, --of seeing _SamJohnson_ at the very spot where _Ben Jonson_ visited the learned andpoetical Drummond[1113]. 

We surveyed Roslin Castle, the romantick scene around it, and thebeautiful Gothick chapel[1114], and dined and drank tea at the inn;after which we proceeded to Hawthornden, and viewed the caves; and Iall the while had _Rare Ben_[1115] in my mind, and was pleased to thinkthat this place was now visited by another celebrated wit of England. 

By this time 'the waning night was growing old, ' and we were yet severalmiles from Sir John Dalrymple's. Dr. Johnson did not seem much troubledat our having treated the baronet with so little attention topoliteness; but when I talked of the grievous disappointment it musthave been to him that we did not come to the _feast_ that he hadprepared for us, (for he told us he had killed a seven-year old sheep onpurpose, ) my friend got into a merry mood, and jocularly said, 'I daresay, Sir, he has been very sadly distressed: Nay, we do not know but theconsequence may have been fatal. Let me try to describe his situation inhis own historical style, I have as good a right to make him think andtalk, as he has to tell us how people thought and talked a hundred yearsago, of which he has no evidence. All history, so far as it is notsupported by contemporary evidence, is romance[1116]--Stay now. --Let usconsider!' He then (heartily laughing all the while) proceeded in hisimitation, I am sure to the following effect, though now, at thedistance of almost twelve years, I cannot pretend to recollect all theprecise words:--

'Dinner being ready, he wondered that his guests were not yet come. His wonder was soon succeeded by impatience. He walked about theroom in anxious agitation; sometimes he looked at his watch, sometimeshe looked out at the window with an eager gaze of expectation, and revolved in his mind the various accidents of human life. Hisfamily beheld him with mute concern. "Surely (said he, with a sigh, )they will not fail me. " The mind of man can bear a certain pressure;but there is a point when it can bear no more. A rope was in his view, and he died a Roman death[1117]. 

It was very late before we reached the seat of Sir John Dalrymple, who, certainly with some reason, was not in very good humour. Ourconversation was not brilliant. We supped, and went to bed in ancientrooms, which would have better suited the climate of Italy in summer, than that of Scotland in the month of November. 

I recollect no conversation of the next day, worth preserving, exceptone saying of Dr. Johnson, which will be a valuable text for many decentold dowagers, and other good company, in various circles to descantupon. He said, 'I am sorry I have not learnt to play at cards. It isvery useful in life: it generates kindness, and consolidatessociety[1118]. ' He certainly could not mean deep play. 

My friend and I thought we should be more comfortable at the inn atBlackshields, two miles farther on. We therefore went thither in theevening, and he was very entertaining; but I have preserved nothing butthe pleasing remembrance, and his verses on George the Second andCibber[1119], and his epitaph on Parnell[1120], which he was then sogood as to dictate to me. We breakfasted together next morning, and thenthe coach came, and took him up. He had, as one of his companions in it, as far as Newcastle, the worthy and ingenious Dr. Hope, botanicalprofessor at Edinburgh. Both Dr. Johnson and he used to speak of theirgood fortune in thus accidentally meeting; for they had much instructiveconversation, which is always a most valuable enjoyment, and, when foundwhere it is not expected, is peculiarly relished. 

I have now completed my account of our Tour to the Hebrides. I havebrought Dr. Johnson down to Scotland, and seen him into the coach whichin a few hours carried him back into England. He said to me often, thatthe time he spent in this Tour was the pleasantest part of hislife[1121], and asked me if I would lose the recollection of it for fivehundred pounds. I answered I would not; and he applauded my setting sucha value on an accession of new images in my mind[1122]. 

Had it not been for me, I am persuaded Dr. Johnson never would haveundertaken such a journey; and I must be allowed to assume some meritfrom having been the cause that our language has been enriched with sucha book as that which he published on his return; a book which I neverread but with the utmost admiration, as I had such opportunities ofknowing from what very meagre materials it was composed. 

But my praise may be supposed partial; and therefore I shall insert twotestimonies, not liable to that objection, both written by gentlemen ofScotland, to whose opinions I am confident the highest respect will bepaid, Lord Hailes[1123], and Mr. Dempster[1124]. 'TO JAMESBOSWELL, ESQ. 

'SIR, 'I have received much pleasure and much instruction, from perusing _TheJourney to the Hebrides_. 

'I admire the elegance and variety of description, and the livelypicture of men and manners. I always approve of the moral, often of thepolitical, reflections. I love the benevolence of the authour. 

'They who search for faults, may possibly find them in this, as well asin every other work of literature. 

'For example, the friends of the old family say that _the aera ofplanting_ is placed too late, at the Union of the two kingdoms[1125]. Iam known to be no friend of the old family; yet I would place the aeraof planting at the Restoration; after the murder of Charles I. Had beenexpiated in the anarchy which succeeded it. 

'Before the Restoration, few trees were planted, unless by themonastick drones: their successors, (and worthy patriots they were, ) thebarons, first cut down the trees, and then sold the estates. Thegentleman at St. Andrews, who said that there were but two trees inFife[1126], ought to have added, that the elms of Balmerino[1127] weresold within these twenty years, to make pumps for the fire-engines. 

'In J. Major de _Gestis Scotorum_, L. I. C. 2. Last edition, there is asingular passage:--

'"Davidi Cranstoneo conterraneo, dum de prima theologiae licentia foret, duo ei consocii et familiares, et mei cum eo in artibus auditores, scilicet Jacobus Almain Senonensis, et Petrus Bruxcellensis, Praedicatoris ordinis, in Sorbonae curia die Sorbonico commilitonibussuis publice objecerunt, _quod pane avenaceo plebeii Scoti_, sicut aquodam religioso intellexerant, _vescebantur, ut virum, quem cholericumnoverant, honestis salibus tentarent, qui hoc inficiari tanquam patriaededecus nisus est_. "

'Pray introduce our countryman, Mr. Licentiate David Cranston, tothe acquaintance of Mr. Johnson. 

'The syllogism seems to have been this:

 'They who feed on oatmeal are barbarians; But the Scots feed on oatmeal: Ergo--

The licentiate denied the _minor_, I am, Sir, Your most obedient servant, 'DAV. DALRYMPLE. '

'Newhailes, 6th Feb. 1775. '

 To JAMES BOSWELL, ESQ. , EDINBURGH. Dunnichen, 16th February, 1775. 

'MY DEAR BOSWELL, 'I cannot omit a moment to return you my best thanks for theentertainment you have furnished me, my family, and guests, by theperusal of Dr. Johnson's _Journey to the Western Islands_; and now formy sentiments of it. I was well entertained. His descriptions areaccurate and vivid. He carried me on the Tour along with him. I ampleased with the justice he has done to your humour and vivacity. "Thenoise of the wind being all its own, " is a _bon-mot_, that it would havebeen a pity to have omitted, and a robbery not to have ascribed to itsauthor[1128]. 

'There is nothing in the book, from beginning to end, that a Scotchmanneed to take amiss[1129]. What he says of the country is true, and hisobservations on the people are what must naturally occur to a sensible, observing, and reflecting inhabitant of a _convenient_ Metropolis, wherea man on thirty pounds a year may be better accommodated with all thelittle wants of life, than _Col. _ or _Sir Allan_. He reasons candidlyabout the _second sight_; but I wish he had enquired more, before heventured to say he even doubted of the possibility of such an unusualand useless deviation from all the known laws of nature[1130]. Thenotion of the second sight I consider as a remnant of superstitiousignorance and credulity, which a philosopher will set down as such, tillthe contrary is clearly proved, and then it will be classed among theother certain, though unaccountable parts of our nature, likedreams[1131], and-I do not know what. 'In regard to the language, ithas the merit of being all his own. Many words of foreign extraction areused, where, I believe, common ones would do as well, especially onfamiliar occasions. Yet I believe he could not express himself soforcibly in any other stile. I am charmed with his researches concerningthe Erse language, and the antiquity of their manuscripts. I am quiteconvinced; and I shall rank _Ossian_, and his _Fingals_ and _Oscars_, amongst the Nursery Tales, not the true history of our country, in alltime to come. 

'Upon the whole, the book cannot displease, for it has no pretensions. The author neither says he is a Geographer, nor an Antiquarian, nor verylearned in the History of Scotland, nor a Naturalist, nor aFossilist[1132]. The manners of the people, and the face of the country, are all he attempts to describe, or seems to have thought of. Much wereit to be wished, that they who have travelled into more remote, and ofcourse, more curious, regions, had all possessed his good sense. Of thestate of learning, his observations on Glasgow University[1133] shew hehas formed a very sound judgement. He understands our climate too, andhe has accurately observed the changes, however slow and imperceptibleto us, which Scotland has undergone, in consequence of the blessings ofliberty and internal peace. I could have drawn my pen through the storyof the old woman at St. Andrews, being the only silly thing in thebook[1134]. He has taken the opportunity of ingrafting into the workseveral good observations, which I dare say he had made upon men andthings, before he set foot on Scotch ground, by which it is considerablyenriched[1135]. A long journey, like a tall May-pole, though not verybeautiful itself, yet is pretty enough, when ornamented with flowers andgarlands; it furnishes a sort of cloak-pins for hanging the furniture ofyour mind upon; and whoever sets out upon a journey, without furnishinghis mind previously with much study and useful knowledge, erects aMay-pole in December, and puts up very useless cloak-pins[1136]. 

'I hope the book will induce many of his countrymen to make the samejaunt, and help to intermix the more liberal part of them still morewith us, and perhaps abate somewhat of that virulent antipathy whichmany of them entertain against the Scotch: who certainly would neverhave formed those _combinations_[1137] which he takes notice of, morethan their ancestors, had they not been necessary for their mutualsafety, at least for their success, in a country where they are treatedas foreigners. They would find us not deficient, at least in point ofhospitality, and they would be ashamed ever after to abuse us inthe mass. 

'So much for the Tour. I have now, for the first time in my life, passeda winter in the country; and never did three months roll on with moreswiftness and satisfaction. I used not only to wonder at, but pity, those whose lot condemned them to winter any where but in either of thecapitals. But every place has its charms to a cheerful mind. I am busyplanting and taking measures for opening the summer campaign in farming;and I find I have an excellent resource, when revolutions in politicksperhaps, and revolutions of the sun for certain, will make it decent forme to retreat behind the ranks of the more forward in life. 

'I am glad to hear the last was a very busy week with you. I see you ascounsel in some causes which must have opened a charming field for yourhumourous vein. As it is more uncommon, so I verily believe it is moreuseful than the more serious exercise of reason; and, to a man who is toappear in publick, more eclat is to be gained, sometimes more money too, by a _bon-mot_, than a learned speech. It is the fund of natural humourwhich Lord North possesses, that makes him so much the favourite of thehouse, and so able, because so amiable, a leader of a party[1138]. 

'I have now finished _my_ Tour of _Seven Pages_. In what remains, I begleave to offer my compliments, and those of _ma tres chere femme_, toyou and Mrs. Boswell. Pray unbend the busy brow, and frolick a little ina letter to, 'My dear Boswell, 'Your affectionate friend, 'GEORGE DEMPSTER[1139]. '

I shall also present the publick with a correspondence with the Lairdof Rasay, concerning a passage in the _Journey to the_ Western Islands, which shews Dr. Johnson in a very amiable light. 

'To JAMES BOSWELL, ESQ. 

'Rasay, April 10th, 1775. 

'DEAR SIR, 'I take this occasion of returning you my most hearty thanks for thecivilities shewn to my daughter by you and Mrs. Boswell. Yet, though shehas informed me that I am under this obligation, I should very probablyhave deferred troubling you with making my acknowledgments at present, if I had not seen Dr. Johnson's _Journey to the Western Isles_, in whichhe has been pleased to make a very friendly mention of my family, forwhich I am surely obliged to him, as being more than an equivalent forthe reception you and he met with. Yet there is one paragraph I shouldhave been glad he had omitted, which I am sure was owing tomisinformation; that is, that I had acknowledged McLeod to be my chief, though my ancestors disputed the pre-eminence for a long tract of time. 

'I never had occasion to enter seriously on this argument with thepresent laird or his grandfather, nor could I have any temptation tosuch a renunciation from either of them. I acknowledge, the benefit ofbeing chief of a clan is in our days of very little significancy, and totrace out the progress of this honour to the founder of a family, of anystanding, would perhaps be a matter of some difficulty. 

'The true state of the present case is this: the McLeod family consistsof two different branches; the M'Leods of Lewis, of which I amdescended, and the M'Leods of Harris. And though the former have lost avery extensive estate by forfeiture in king James the Sixth's time, there are still several respectable families of it existing, who wouldjustly blame me for such an unmeaning cession, when they all acknowledgeme head of that family; which though in fact it be but an ideal point ofhonour, is not hitherto so far disregarded in our country, but it woulddetermine some of my friends to look on me as a much smaller man thaneither they or myself judge me at present to be. I will, therefore, askit as a favour of you to acquaint the Doctor with the difficulty he hasbrought me to. In travelling among rival clans, such a silly tale asthis might easily be whispered into the ear of a passing stranger; butas it has no foundation in fact, I hope the Doctor will be so good as totake his own way in undeceiving the publick, I principally mean myfriends and connections, who will be first angry at me, and next sorryto find such an instance of my littleness recorded in a book which has avery fair chance of being much read. I expect you will let me know whathe will write you in return, and we here beg to make offer to you andMrs. Boswell of our most respectful compliments. 

'I am, 'Dear Sir, 'Your most obedient humble servant, 'JOHN M'LEOD. '

 * * * * *

'TO THE LAIRD OF RASAY. 

'London, May 8, 1775. 

'DEAR SIR, 'The day before yesterday I had the honour to receive your letter, and Iimmediately communicated it to Dr. Johnson. He said he loved yourspirit, and was exceedingly sorry that he had been the cause of thesmallest uneasiness to you. There is not a more candid man in the worldthan he is, when properly addressed, as you will see from his letter toyou, which I now enclose. He has allowed me to take a copy of it, and hesays you may read it to your clan, or publish it if you please. Beassured, Sir, that I shall take care of what he has entrusted to me, which is to have an acknowledgement of his errour inserted in theEdinburgh newspapers. You will, I dare say, be fully satisfied with Dr. Johnson's behaviour. He is desirous to know that you are; and thereforewhen you have read his acknowledgement in the papers, I beg you maywrite to me; and if you choose it, I am persuaded a letter from you tothe Doctor also will be taken kind. I shall be at Edinburgh the weekafter next. 

'Any civilities which my wife and I had in our power to shew to yourdaughter, Miss M'Leod, were due to her own merit, and were well repaidby her agreeable company. But I am sure I should be a very unworthy manif I did not wish to shew a grateful sense of the hospitable and genteelmanner in which you were pleased to treat me. Be assured, my dear Sir, that I shall never forget your goodness, and the happy hours which Ispent in Rasay. 

'You and Dr. M'Leod were both so obliging as to promise me an account inwriting, of all the particulars which each of you remember, concerningthe transactions of 1745-6. Pray do not forget this, and be as minuteand full as you can; put down every thing; I have a great curiosity toknow as much as I can, authentically. 

'I beg that you may present my best respects to Lady Rasay, mycompliments to your young family, and to Dr. M'Leod; and my hearty goodwishes to Malcolm, with whom I hope again to shake hands cordially. Ihave the honour to be, 'Dear Sir, 'Your obliged and faithful humble servant, 'JAMES BOSWELL. ' ADVERTISEMENT, written by Dr. Johnson, and insertedby his desire in the Edinburgh newspapers:--Referred to in the foregoingletter[1140]. 

_'THE authour of the_ Journey to the Western Islands, _having relatedthat the M'Leods of Rasay acknowledge the chieftainship or superiorityof the M'Leods of Sky, finds that he has been misinformed or mistaken. He means in a future edition to correct his errour[1141], and wishes tobe told of more, if more have been discovered. '_

Dr. Johnson's letter was as follows:--

'To THE LAIRD OF RASAY. 

'DEAR SIR, 'Mr. Boswell has this day shewn me a letter, in which you complain of apassage in _The Journey to the Hebrides. _ My meaning is mistaken. I didnot intend to say that you had personally made any cession of the rightsof your house, or any acknowledgement of the superiority of M'Leod ofDunvegan. I only designed to express what I thought generallyadmitted, --that the house of Rasay allowed the superiority of the houseof Dunvegan. Even this I now find to be erroneous, and will thereforeomit or retract it in the next edition. 

'Though what I had said had been true, if it had been disagreeable toyou, I should have wished it unsaid; for it is not my business to adjustprecedence. As it is mistaken, I find myself disposed to correct, bothby my respect for you, and my reverence for truth. 'As I know not whenthe book will be reprinted, I have desired Mr. Boswell to anticipate thecorrection in the Edinburgh papers. This is all that can be done. 

'I hope I may now venture to desire that my compliments may be made, andmy gratitude expressed, to Lady Rasay, Mr. Malcolm M'Leod, Mr. DonaldM'Queen, and all the gentlemen and all the ladies whom I saw in theisland of Rasay; a place which I remember with too much pleasure and toomuch kindness, not to be sorry that my ignorance, or hasty persuasion, should, for a single moment, have violated its tranquillity. 

'I beg you all to forgive an undesigned and involuntary injury, and toconsider me as, 'Sir, your most obliged, 'And most humble servant, 'SAM. JOHNSON[1142]. '

'London, May 6, 1775. '

It would be improper for me to boast of my own labours; but I cannotrefrain from publishing such praise as I received from such a man as SirWilliam Forbes, of Pitsligo, after the perusal of the originalmanuscript of my _Journal_[1143]. 

'To JAMES BOSWELL, ESQ. 

'Edinburgh, March 7, 1777. 

'My DEAR SIR, 'I ought to have thanked you sooner, for your very obliging letter, andfor the singular confidence you are pleased to place in me, when youtrust me with such a curious and valuable deposit as the papers youhave sent me[1144]. Be assured I have a due sense of this favour, andshall faithfully and carefully return them to you. You may rely that Ishall neither copy any part, nor permit the papers to be seen. 

'They contain a curious picture of society, and form a journal on themost instructive plan that can possibly be thought of; for I am not surethat an ordinary observer would become so well acquainted either withDr. Johnson, or with the manners of the Hebrides, by a personalintercourse, as by a perusal of your _Journal_. 

'I am, very truly, 'Dear Sir, 'Your most obedient, 'And affectionate humble servant, 'WILLIAM FORBES. '

When I consider how many of the persons mentioned in this Tourare now gone to 'that undiscovered country, from whose bourne notraveller returns[1145], ' I feel an impression at once awful andtender. --_Requiescant in pace!_

It may be objected by some persons, as it has been by one of my friends, that he who has the power of thus exhibiting an exact transcript ofconversations is not a desirable member of society. I repeat the answerwhich I made to that friend:--'Few, very few, need be afraid that theirsayings will be recorded. Can it be imagined that I would take thetrouble to gather what grows on every hedge, because I have collectedsuch fruits as the _Nonpareil_ and the BON CHRETIEN[1146]?'

On the other hand, how useful is such a faculty, if well exercised! Toit we owe all those interesting apophthegms and _memorabilia_ of theancients, which Plutarch, Xenophon, and Valerius Maximus, havetransmitted to us. To it we owe all those instructive and entertainingcollections which the French have made under the title of _Ana_, affixedto some celebrated name. To it we owe the _Table-Talk_ of Selden[1147], the _Conversation_ between Ben Jonson and Drummond of Hawthornden, Spence's _Anecdotes_ of Pope[1148], and other valuable remains in ourown language. How delighted should we have been, if thus introduced intothe company of Shakspeare and of Dryden[1149], of whom we know scarcelyany thing but their admirable writings! What pleasure would it havegiven us, to have known their petty habits, their characteristickmanners, their modes of composition, and their genuine opinion ofpreceding writers and of their contemporaries! All these are nowirrecoverably lost. Considering how many of the strongest and mostbrilliant effusions of exalted intellect must have perished, how much isit to be regretted that all men of distinguished wisdom and wit have notbeen attended by friends, of taste enough to relish, and abilitiesenough to register their conversation;

 'Vixere fortes ante Agamemnona Multi, sed omnes illacrymabiles Urgentur, ignotique longa Nocte, carent quia vate sacro[1150]. '

They whose inferiour exertions are recorded, as serving to explain orillustrate the sayings of such men, may be proud of being thusassociated, and of their names being transmitted to posterity, by beingappended to an illustrious character. 

Before I conclude, I think it proper to say, that I havesuppressed[1151] every thing which I thought could _really_ hurt anyone now living. Vanity and self-conceit indeed may sometimes suffer. With respect to what _is_ related, I considered it my duty to 'extenuatenothing, nor set down aught in malice[1152];' and with those lighterstrokes of Dr. Johnson's satire, proceeding from a warmth and quicknessof imagination, not from any malevolence of heart, and which, on accountof their excellence, could not be omitted, I trust that they who are thesubject of them have good sense and good temper enough not to bedispleased. 

I have only to add, that I shall ever reflect with great pleasure on aTour, which has been the means of preserving so much of the enlightenedand instructive conversation of one whose virtues will, I hope, ever bean object of imitation, and whose powers of mind were so extraordinary, that ages may revolve before such a man shall again appear. 

APPENDIX. 

No. I. 

_In justice to the ingenious_ DR. BLACKLOCK, _I publish the followingletter from him, relative to a passage in p. 47. _

'TO JAMES BOSWELL, ESQ. 

'DEAR SIR, 'Having lately had the pleasure of reading your account of the journeywhich you took with Dr. Samuel Johnson to the Western Isles, I take theliberty of transmitting my ideas of the conversation which happenedbetween the doctor and myself concerning Lexicography and Poetry, which, as it is a little different from the delineation exhibited in the formeredition of your _Journal_, cannot, I hope, be unacceptable; particularlysince I have been informed that a second edition of that work is now incontemplation, if not in execution: and I am still more strongly temptedto encourage that hope, from considering that, if every one concerned inthe conversations related, were to send you what they can recollect ofthese colloquial entertainments, many curious and interestingparticulars might be recovered, which the most assiduous attention couldnot observe, nor the most tenacious memory retain. A little reflection, Sir, will convince you, that there is not an axiom in Euclid moreintuitive nor more evident than the doctor's assertion that poetry wasof much easier execution than lexicography. Any mind therefore endowedwith common sense, must have been extremely absent from itself, if itdiscovered the least astonishment from hearing that a poem might bewritten with much more facility than the same quantity of a dictionary. 

'The real cause of my surprise was what appeared to me much moreparadoxical, that he could write a sheet of dictionary _with as muchpleasure_ as a sheet of poetry. He acknowledged, indeed, that the latterwas much easier than the former. For in the one case, books and a deskwere requisite; in the other, you might compose when lying in bed, orwalking in the fields, &c. He did not, however, descend to explain, norto this moment can I comprehend, how the labours of a mere Philologist, in the most refined sense of that term, could give equal pleasure withthe exercise of a mind replete with elevated conceptions and patheticideas, while taste, fancy, and intellect were deeply enamoured ofnature, and in full exertion. You may likewise, perhaps, remember, thatwhen I complained of the ground which Scepticism in religion and moralswas continually gaining, it did not appear to be on my own account, asmy private opinions upon these important subjects had long beeninflexibly determined. What I then deplored, and still deplore, was theunhappy influence which that gloomy hesitation had, not only uponparticular characters, but even upon life in general; as being equallythe bane of action in our present state, and of such consolations as wemight derive from the hopes of a future. 

'I have the pleasure of remaining with sincere esteem and respect, 'Dear Sir, 'Your most obedient humble servant, 'THOMAS BLACKLOCK. '

'Edinburgh, Nov. 12, 1785. '

I am very happy to find that Dr. Blacklock's apparent uneasiness on thesubject of Scepticism was not on his own account, (as I supposed) butfrom a benevolent concern for the happiness of mankind. With respect, however, to the question concerning poetry, and composing a dictionary, I am confident that my state of Dr. Johnson's position is accurate. Onemay misconceive the motive by which a person is induced to discuss aparticular topick (as in the case of Dr. Blacklock's speaking ofScepticism); but an assertion, like that made by Dr. Johnson, cannot beeasily mistaken. And indeed it seems not very probable, that he who sopathetically laments the _drudgery_[1153] to which the unhappylexicographer is doomed, and is known to have written his splendidimitation of _Juvenal_ with astonishing rapidity[1154], should have had'as much pleasure in writing a sheet of a dictionary as a sheet ofpoetry[1155]. ' Nor can I concur with the ingenious writer of theforegoing letter, in thinking it an axiom as evident as any in Euclid, that 'poetry is of easier execution than lexicography. ' I have no doubtthat Bailey[1156], and the 'mighty blunderbuss of law[1157], ' Jacob, wrote ten pages of their respective _Dictionaries_ with more ease thanthey could have written five pages of poetry. 

If this book should again be reprinted, I shall with the utmostreadiness correct any errours I may have committed, in statingconversations, provided it can be clearly shewn to me that I have beeninaccurate. But I am slow to believe, (as I have elsewhereobserved[1158]) that any man's memory, at the distance of several years, can preserve facts or sayings with such fidelity as may be done bywriting them down when they are recent: and I beg it may be remembered, that it is not upon _memory_, but upon what was _written at the time_, that the authenticity of my _Journal_ rests. 

 * * * * *

No. II. 

Verses written by Sir Alexander (now Lord) Macdonald; addressed andpresented to Dr. Johnson, at Armidale in the Isle of Sky[1159]. 

 Viator, o qui nostra per aequora Visurus agros Skiaticos venis, En te salutantes tributim Undique conglomerantur oris. 

 Donaldiani, --quotquot in insulis Compescit arctis limitibus mare; Alitque jamdudum, ac alendos Piscibus indigenas fovebit. 

 Ciere fluctus siste, Procelliger, Nec tu laborans perge, precor, ratis, Ne conjugem plangat marita, Ne doleat soboles parentem. 

 Nec te vicissim poeniteat virum Luxisse;--vestro scimus ut aestuant In corde luctantes dolores, Cum feriant inopina corpus. 

 Quidni! peremptum clade tuentibus Plus semper illo qui moritur pati Datur, doloris dum profundos Pervia mens aperit recessus. 

 Valete luctus;--hinc lacrymabiles Arcete visus:--ibimus, ibimus Superbienti qua theatro Fingaliae memorantur aulae. 

 Illustris hospes! mox spatiabere Qua mens ruinae ducta meatibus Gaudebit explorare coetus, Buccina qua cecinit triumphos;

 Audin? resurgens spirat anhelitu Dux usitato, suscitat efficax Poeta manes, ingruitque Vi solitâ redivivus horror. 

 Ahaena quassans tela gravi manu Sic ibat atrox Ossiani pater: Quiescat urnâ, stet fidelis Phersonius vigil ad favillam. 

_Preparing for the Press, in one Volume Quarto_, THE LIFE OF SAMUEL JOHNSON, LL. D. 

BY _JAMES BOSWELL_, ESQ. 

Mr. Boswell has been collecting materials for this work for more thantwenty years, during which he was honoured with the intimate friendshipof Dr. Johnson; to whose memory he is ambitious to erect a literarymonument, worthy of so great an authour, and so excellent a man. Dr. Johnson was well informed of his design, and obligingly communicated tohim several curious particulars. With these will be interwoven the mostauthentick accounts that can be obtained from those who knew him best;many sketches of his conversation on a multiplicity of subjects, withvarious persons, some of them the most eminent of the age; a greatnumber of letters from him at different periods, and several originalpieces dictated by him to Mr. Boswell, distinguished by that peculiarenergy, which marked every emanation of his mind. 

Mr. Boswell takes this opportunity of gratefully acknowledging the manyvaluable communications which he has received to enable him to renderhis _Life of Dr. Johnson_ more complete. His thanks are particularly dueto the Rev. Dr. Adams, the Rev. Dr. Taylor, Sir Joshua Reynolds, Mr. Langton, Dr. Brocklesby, the Rev. Thomas Warton, Mr. Hector ofBirmingham, Mrs. Porter, and Miss Seward. 

He has already obtained a large collection of Dr. Johnson's letters tohis friends, and shall be much obliged for such others as yet remain inprivate hands; which he is the more desirous of collecting, as all theletters of that great man, which he has yet seen, are written withpeculiar precision and elegance; and he is confident that thepublication of the whole of Dr. Johnson's epistolary correspondencewill do him the highest honour. 

APPENDIX A. 

(_Page_ 80. )

As no one reads Warburton now--I bought the five volumes of his_Divine Legation_ in excellent condition, bound in calf, for ten pence--oneor two extracts from his writing may be of interest. His Dedicationof that work to the Free-Thinkers is as vigorous as it is abusive. It hassuch passages as the following:--'Low and mean as your buffoonery is, it is yet to the level of the people:' p. Xi. 'I have now done withyour buffoonery, which, like chewed bullets, is against the law of arms;and come next to your scurrilities, those stink-pots of your offensivewar. ' _Ib. P. Xxii_. On page xl. He returns again to their '_cold_buffoonery. ' In the Appendix to vol. V, p. 414, he thus wittily repliesto Lowth, who had maintained that 'idolatry was punished under theDOMINION of Melchisedec'(p. 409):--'Melchisedec's story is a shortone; he is just brought into the scene to _bless_ Abraham in his returnfrom conquest. This promises but ill. Had this _King and Priest ofSalem_ been brought in _cursing_, it had had a better appearance: for, Ithink, punishment for opinions which generally ends in a _fagot_ alwaysbegins with a _curse_. But we may be misled perhaps by a wrong translation. The Hebrew word to _bless_ signifies likewise to _curse_, and underthe management of an intolerant priest good things easily run into theircontraries. What follows is his taking _tythes_ from Abraham. Nor willthis serve our purpose, unless we interpret these _tythes_ into _fines fornon-conformity_; and then by the _blessing_ we can easily understand_absolution_. We have seen much stranger things done with the _Hebrewverity_. If this be not allowed, I do not see how we can elicit fire andfagot from this adventure; for I think there is no inseparable connexionbetween _tythes_ and _persecution_ but in the ideas of a Quaker. --Andso much for King Melchisedec. But the learned _Professor_, whohas been hardily brought up in the keen atmosphere of WHOLESOMESEVERITIES and early taught to distinguish between _de facto_ and _dejure_, thought it 'needless to enquire into _facts_, when he was secureof the _right_'. 

This 'keen atmosphere of wholesome severities' reappears by theway in Mason's continuation of Gray's Ode to Vicissitude:--

 'That breathes the keen yet wholesome air Of rugged penury. '

And later in the first book of Wordsworth's _Excursion_(ed. 1857, vi. 29):--

 'The keen, the wholesome air of poverty. '

Johnson said of Warburton: 'His abilities gave him an haughty confidence, which he disdained to conceal or mollify; and his impatienceof opposition disposed him to treat his adversaries with such contemptuoussuperiority as made his readers commonly his enemies, andexcited against the advocate the wishes of some who favoured the cause. He seems to have adopted the Roman Emperour's determination, _oderint dum metuant_; he used no allurements of gentle language, butwished to compel rather than persuade. ' Johnson's _Works_, viii. 288. See _ante_, ii. 36, and iv. 46. 

 * * * * *

APPENDIX B. 

(_Page_ 158. )

Johnson's Ode written in Sky was thus translated by LordHoughton:--

 'Where constant mist enshrouds the rocks, Shattered in earth's primeval shocks, And niggard Nature ever mocks The labourer's toil, I roam through clans of savage men, Untamed by arts, untaught by pen; Or cower within some squalid den O'er reeking soil. 

 Through paths that halt from stone to stone, Amid the din of tongues unknown, One image haunts my soul alone, Thine, gentle Thrale! Soothes she, I ask, her spouse's care? Does mother-love its charge prepare? Stores she her mind with knowledge rare, Or lively tale?

Forget me not! thy faith I claim, Holding a faith that cannot die, That fills with thy benignant name These shores of Sky. '

Hayward's _Piozzi_, i. 29. 

 * * * * *

APPENDIX C. 

(_Page_ 307. )

Johnson's use of the word _big_, where he says 'I wish thy books weretwice as big, ' enables me to explain a passage in _The Life of Johnson(ante_, iii. 348) which had long puzzled me. Boswell there representshim as saying:--'A man who loses at play, or who runs out his fortune atcourt, makes his estate less, in hopes of making it _bigger_. ' Boswelladds in a parenthesis:--'I am sure of this word, which was often used byhim. ' He had been criticised by a writer in the _Gent. Mag_. 1785, p. 968, who quoting from the text the words 'a _big_ book, ' says:--'Mr. Boswell has made his friend (as in a few other passages) guilty of a_Scotticism_. An Englishman reads and writes a _large_ book, and wears a_great_ (not a _big_ or _bag_) coat. ' When Boswell came to publish _TheLife of Johnson_, he took the opportunity to justify himself, though hedid not care to refer directly to his anonymous critic. Thisexplanation I discovered too late to insert in the text. 

A JOURNEY

INTO

NORTH WALES, IN

THE YEAR 1774. [1160]

TUESDAY, JULY 5. 

We left Streatham 11 a. M. Price of four horses 2s. A mile. 

JULY 6. 

Barnet 1. 40 p. M. On the road I read Tully's _Epistles_. At night at Dunstable. To Lichfield, 83 miles. To the Swan[1161]. 

JULY 7. 

To Mrs. Porter's[1162]. To the Cathedral. To Mrs. Aston's. To Mr. Green's. Mr. Green's Museum was much admired, andMr. Newton's china. 

JULY 8. 

To Mr. Newton's. To Mrs. Cobb's. Dr. Darwin's[1163]. I went again to Mrs. Aston's. She was sorry to part. 

JULY 9. 

Breakfasted at Mr. Garrick's. Visited Miss Vyse[1164]. Miss Seward. Went to Dr. Taylor's. I read a little on the road in Tully's _Epistles_ and _Martial_. Mart. 8th, 44, 'lino pro limo[1165]. '

JULY 10. Morning, at church. Company at dinner. 

JULY 11. 

At Ham[1166]. At Oakover. I was less pleased with Ham than when I saw itfirst, but my friends were much delighted. 

JULY 12. 

At Chatsworth. The Water willow. The cascade shot out from many spouts. The fountains[1167]. The water tree[1168]. The smooth floors in thehighest rooms. Atlas, fifteen hands inch and half[1169]. 

River running through the park. The porticoes on the sides support twogalleries for the first floor. 

My friends were not struck with the house. It fell below my ideas of thefurniture. The staircase is in the corner of the house. The hall in thecorner the grandest room, though only a room of passage. 

On the ground-floor, only the chapel and breakfast-room, and a smalllibrary; the rest, servants' rooms and offices[1170]. 

A bad inn. 

JULY 13. 

At Matlock. 

JULY 14. 

At dinner at Oakover; too deaf to hear, or much converse. Mrs. Gell. 

The chapel at Oakover. The wood of the pews grossly painted. I could notread the epitaph. Would learn the old hands. 

JULY 15. 

At Ashbourn. Mrs. Diot and her daughters came in the morning. Mr. Diotdined with us. We visited Mr. Flint. 

 [Greek: To proton Moros, to de deuteron ei en Erasmos, To triton ek Mouson stemma Mikullos echei. ][1171]

JULY 16. 

At Dovedale, with Mr. Langley[1172] and Mr. Flint. It is a place thatdeserves a visit; but did not answer my expectation. The river is small, the rocks are grand. Reynard's Hall is a cave very high in the rock; itgoes backward several yards, perhaps eight. To the left is a smallopening, through which I crept, and found another cavern, perhaps fouryards square; at the back was a breach yet smaller, which I could noteasily have entered, and, wanting light, did not inspect. 

I was in a cave yet higher, called Reynard's Kitchen. There is a rockcalled the Church, in which I saw no resemblance that could justifythe name. 

Dovedale is about two miles long. We walked towards the head of theDove, which is said to rise about five miles above two caves called theDog-holes, at the end of Dovedale. 

In one place, where the rocks approached, I proposed to build an archfrom rock to rock over the stream, with a summer-house upon it. 

The water murmured pleasantly among the stones. 

I thought that the heat and exercise mended my hearing. I bore thefatigue of the walk, which was very laborious, without inconvenience. 

There were with us Gilpin[1173] and Parker[1174]. Having heard of thisplace before, I had formed some imperfect idea, to which it did notanswer. Brown[1175] says he was disappointed. I certainly expected alarger river where I found only a clear quick brook. I believe I hadimaged a valley enclosed by rocks, and terminated by a broad expanseof water. 

He that has seen Dovedale has no need to visit the Highlands. 

In the afternoon we visited old Mrs. Dale. 

JULY 17. 

Sunday morning, at church. 

Afternoon, at Mr. Diot's. 

JULY 18. 

Dined at Mr. Gell's[1176]. 

JULY 19. 

We went to Kedleston[1177] to see Lord Scarsdale's new house, which isvery costly, but ill contrived. The hall is very stately, lighted bythree skylights; it has two rows of marble pillars, dug, as I hear fromLangley, in a quarry of Northamptonshire; the pillars are very large andmassy, and take up too much room; they were better away. Behind the hallis a circular saloon, useless, and therefore ill contrived. 

The corridors that join the wings to the body are mere passages throughsegments of circles. The state bed-chamber was very richly furnished. The dining parlour was more splendid with gilt plate than any that Ihave seen. There were many pictures. The grandeur was all below. Thebedchambers were small, low, dark, and fitter for a prison than a houseof splendour. The kitchen has an opening into the gallery, by which itsheat and its fumes are dispersed over the house. There seemed in thewhole more cost than judgment. 

We went then to the silk mill at Derby[1178], where I remarked aparticular manner of propagating motion from a horizontal to avertical wheel. 

We were desired to leave the men only two shillings. Mr. Thrale's billat the inn for dinner was eighteen shillings and tenpence. 

At night I went to Mr. Langley's, Mrs. Wood's, Captain Astle, &c. 

JULY 20. 

We left Ashbourn and went to Buxton, thence to Pool's Hole, which isnarrow at first, but then rises into a high arch; but is so obstructedwith crags, that it is difficult to walk in it. There are two ways tothe end, which is, they say, six hundred and fifty yards from the mouth. They take passengers up the higher way, and bring them back the lower. The higher way was so difficult and dangerous, that, having tried it, Idesisted. I found no level part. 

At night we came to Macclesfield, a very large town in Cheshire, littleknown. It has a silk mill: it has a handsome church, which, however, isbut a chapel, for the town belongs to some parish of another name[1179], as Stourbridge lately did to Old Swinford. 

Macclesfield has a town-hall, and is, I suppose, a corporate town. 

JULY 21. 

We came to Congleton, where there is likewise a silk mill. Then toMiddlewich, a mean old town, without any manufacture, but, I think, aCorporation. Thence we proceeded to Namptwich, an old town: from theinn, I saw scarcely any but black timber houses. I tasted the brinewater, which contains much more salt than the sea water. By slowevaporation, they make large crystals of salt; by quick boiling, smallgranulations. It seemed to have no other preparation. 

At evening we came to Combermere[1180], so called from a wide lake. 

JULY 22. 

We went upon the Mere. I pulled a bulrush of about ten feet. I saw noconvenient boats upon the Mere. 

JULY 23. 

We visited Lord Kilmorey's house[1181]. It is large and convenient, withmany rooms, none of which are magnificently spacious. The furniture wasnot splendid. The bed-curtains were guarded[1182]. Lord Kilmorey shewedthe place with too much exultation. He has no park, and littlewater[1183]. 

JULY 24. 

We went to a chapel, built by Sir Lynch Cotton for his tenants. It isconsecrated, and therefore, I suppose, endowed. It is neat and plain. The Communion plate is handsome. It has iron pales and gates of greatelegance, brought from Lleweney, 'for Robert has laid all open[1184]. '

We saw Hawkestone, the seat of Sir Rowland Hill, and were conducted byMiss Hill over a large tract of rocks and woods; a region abounding withstriking scenes and terrifick grandeur. We were always on the brink of aprecipice, or at the foot of a lofty rock; but the steeps were seldomnaked: in many places, oaks of uncommon magnitude shot up from thecrannies of stone; and where there were not tall trees, there wereunderwoods and bushes. 

Round the rocks is a narrow patch cut upon the stone, which is veryfrequently hewn into steps; but art has proceeded no further than tomake the succession of wonders safely accessible. The whole circuit issomewhat laborious; it is terminated by a grotto cut in a rock to agreat extent, with many windings, and supported by pillars, not hewninto regularity, but such as imitate the sports of nature, by asperitiesand protuberances. 

The place is without any dampness, and would afford an habitation notuncomfortable. There were from space to space seats in the rock. Thoughit wants water, it excels Dovedale by the extent of its prospects, theawfulness of its shades, the horrors of its precipices, the verdure ofits hollows, and the loftiness of its rocks: the ideas which it forcesupon the mind are, the sublime, the dreadful, and the vast. Above isinaccessible altitude, below is horrible profundity. But it excels thegarden of Ilam only in extent. 

Ilam has grandeur, tempered with softness; the walker congratulates hisown arrival at the place, and is grieved to think that he must everleave it. As he looks up to the rocks, his thoughts are elevated; as heturns his eyes on the vallies, he is composed and soothed. 

He that mounts the precipices at Hawkestone, wonders how he camethither, and doubts how he shall return. His walk is an adventure, andhis departure an escape. He has not the tranquillity, but the horror, ofsolitude; a kind of turbulent pleasure, between fright and admiration. 

Ilam is the fit abode of pastoral virtue, and might properly diffuse itsshades over Nymphs and Swains. Hawkestone can have no fitter inhabitantsthan giants of mighty bone and bold emprise[1185]; men of lawlesscourage and heroic violence. Hawkestone should be described by Milton, and Ilam by Parnel. 

Miss Hill shewed the whole succession of wonders with great civility. The house was magnificent, compared with the rank of the owner. 

JULY 26. 

We left Combermere, where we have been treated with great civility. SirL. Is gross, the lady weak and ignorant. The house is spacious, but notmagnificent; built at different times, with different materials; part isof timber, part of stone or brick, plastered and painted to look liketimber. It is the best house that I ever saw of that kind. 

The Mere, or Lake, is large, with a small island, on which there is asummer-house, shaded with great trees; some were hollow, and have seatsin their trunks. 

In the afternoon we came to West-Chester; (my father went to the fair, when I had the small-pox). We walked round the walls, which arecompleat, and contain one mile three quarters, and one hundred and oneyards; within them are many gardens: they are very high, and two maywalk very commodiously side by side. On the inside is a rail. There aretowers from space to space, not very frequent, and, I think, not allcompleat[1186]. 

JULY 27. 

We staid at Chester and saw the Cathedral, which is not of the firstrank. The Castle. In one of the rooms the Assizes are held, and therefectory of the Old Abbey, of which part is a grammar school. Themaster seemed glad to see me. The cloister is very solemn; over it arechambers in which the singing men live. 

In one part of the street was a subterranean arch, very strongly built;in another, what they called, I believe rightly, a Roman hypocaust. 

Chester has many curiosities. 

JULY 28. 

We entered Wales, dined at Mold, and came to Lleweney[1187]. 

JULY 29. 

We were at Lleweney. 

In the lawn at Lleweney is a spring of fine water, which rises above thesurface into a stone basin, from which it runs to waste, in a continualstream, through a pipe. 

There are very large trees. 

The Hall at Lleweney is forty feet long, and twenty-eight broad. Thegallery one hundred and twenty feet long, (all paved. ) The Libraryforty-two feet long, and twenty-eight broad. The Dining-parloursthirty-six feet long, and twenty-six broad. 

It is partly sashed, and partly has casements. 

JULY 30. 

We went to Bâch y Graig, where we found an old house, built 1567, in anuncommon and incommodious form. My Mistress[1188] chattered abouttiring, but I prevailed on her to go to the top. The floors have beenstolen: the windows are stopped. 

The house was less than I seemed to expect; the river Clwyd is a brookwith a bridge of one arch, about one third of a mile. 

The woods[1189] have many trees, generally young; but some which seem todecay. They have been lopped. The house never had a garden. The additionof another story would make an useful house, but it cannot be great. Some buildings which Clough, the founder, intended for warehouses, wouldmake store-chambers and servants' rooms[1190]. The ground seems to begood. I wish it well. 

JULY 31. We went to church at St. Asaph. The Cathedral, though notlarge, has something of dignity and grandeur. The cross aisle is veryshort. It has scarcely any monuments. The Quire has, I think, thirty-twostalls of antique workmanship. On the backs were CANONICUS, PREBEND, CANCELLARIUS, THESAURARIUS, PRAECENTOR. The constitution I do not know, but it has all the usual titles and dignities. The service was sung onlyin the Psalms and Hymns. 

The Bishop was very civil[1191]. We went to his palace, which is butmean. They have a library, and design a room. There lived Lloyd[1192]and Dodwell[1193]. 

AUGUST 1. 

We visited Denbigh, and the remains of its Castle. 

The town consists of one main street, and some that cross it, which Ihave not seen. The chief street ascends with a quick rise for a greatlength: the houses are built, some with rough stone, some with brick, and a few are of timber. 

The Castle, with its whole enclosure, has been a prodigious pile; it isnow so ruined, that the form of the inhabited part cannot easilybe traced. 

There are, as in all old buildings, said to be extensive vaults, whichthe ruins of the upper works cover and conceal, but into which boyssometimes find a way. To clear all passages, and trace the whole of whatremains, would require much labour and expense. We saw a Church, whichwas once the Chapel of the Castle, but is used by the town: it isdedicated to St. Hilary, and has an income of about--

At a small distance is the ruin of a Church said to have been begun bythe great Earl of Leicester[1194], and left unfinished at his death. Oneside, and I think the east end, are yet standing. There was a stone inthe wall, over the door-way, which it was said would fall and crush thebest scholar in the diocese. One Price would not pass under it[1195]. They have taken it down. 

We then saw the Chapel of Lleweney, founded by one of the Salusburies:it is very compleat: the monumental stones lie in the ground. A chimneyhas been added to it, but it is otherwise not much injured, and might beeasily repaired. 

We went to the parish Church of Denbigh, which, being near a mile fromthe town, is only used when the parish officers are chosen. 

In the Chapel, on Sundays, the service is read thrice, the second timeonly in English, the first and third in Welsh. The Bishop came to surveythe Castle, and visited likewise St. Hilary's Chapel, which is thatwhich the town uses. The hay-barn, built with brick pillars from spaceto space, and covered with a roof. A more[1196] elegant and lofty Hovel. 

The rivers here, are mere torrents which are suddenly swelled by therain to great breadth and great violence, but have very little constantstream; such are the Clwyd and the Elwy. There are yet no mountains. Theground is beautifully embellished with woods, and diversified byinequalities. 

In the parish church of Denbigh is a bas relief of Lloyd the antiquary, who was before Camden. He is kneeling at his prayers[1197]. 

AUGUST 2. 

We rode to a summer-house of Mr. Cotton, which has a very extensiveprospect; it is meanly built, and unskilfully disposed. 

We went to Dymerchion Church, where the old clerk acknowledged hisMistress. It is the parish church of Bâch y Graig. A mean fabrick: Mr. Salusbury[1198] was buried in it. Bâch y Graig has fourteen seatsin it. 

As we rode by, I looked at the house again. We saw Llannerch, a housenot mean, with a small park very well watered. There was an avenue ofoaks, which, in a foolish compliance with the present mode, has been cutdown[1199]. A few are yet standing. The owner's name is Davies. 

The way lay through pleasant lanes, and overlooked a region beautifullydiversified with trees and grass[1200]. 

At Dymerchion Church there is English service only once a month. This isabout twenty miles from the English border. 

The old clerk had great appearance of joy at the sight of his Mistress, and foolishly said, that he was now willing to die. He had only a crowngiven him by my Mistress[1201]. 

At Dymerchion Church the texts on the walls are in Welsh. 

AUGUST 3. 

 We went in the coach to Holywell. Talk with Mistress about flattery[1202]. 

Holywell is a market town, neither very small nor mean. The springcalled Winifred's Well is very clear, and so copious, that it yields onehundred tuns of water in a minute. It is all at once a very greatstream, which, within perhaps thirty yards of its eruption, turns amill, and in a course of two miles, eighteen mills more. In descent, itis very quick. It then falls into the sea. The well is covered by alofty circular arch, supported by pillars; and over this arch is an oldchapel, now a school. The chancel is separated by a wall. The bath iscompletely and indecently open. A woman bathed while we all looked on. 

In the Church, which makes a good appearance, and is surrounded bygalleries to receive a numerous congregation, we were present while achild was christened in Welsh. 

We went down by the stream to see a prospect, in which I had no part. Wethen saw a brass work, where the lapis calaminaris[1203] is gathered, broken, washed from the earth and the lead, though how the lead wasseparated I did not see; then calcined, afterwards ground fine, and thenmixed by fire with the copper. 

We saw several strong fires with melting pots, but the construction ofthe fire-places I did not learn. 

At a copper-work which receives its pigs of copper, I think, fromWarrington, we saw a plate of copper put hot between steel rollers, andspread thin; I know not whether the upper roller was set to a certaindistance, as I suppose, or acted only by its weight. 

At an iron-work I saw round bars formed by a knotched hammer and anvil. There I saw a bar of about half an inch, or more, square cut with shearsworked by water, and then beaten hot into a thinner bar. The hammers allworked, as they were, by water, acting upon small bodies, moved veryquick, as quick as by the hand. 

I then saw wire drawn, and gave a shilling. I have enlarged mynotions[1204], though not being able to see the movements, and havingnot time to peep closely, I know less than I might. I was less weary, and had better breath, as I walked farther. 

AUGUST 4. 

Ruthin Castle is still a very noble ruin; all the walls still remain, sothat a compleat platform, and elevations, not very imperfect, may betaken. It encloses a square of about thirty yards. The middle space wasalways open. 

The wall is, I believe, about thirty feet high, very thick, flanked withsix round towers, each about eighteen feet, or less, in diameter. Onlyone tower had a chimney, so that there was[1205] commodity of living. Itwas only a place of strength. The garrison had, perhaps, tents inthe area. 

Stapylton's house is pretty[1206]: there are pleasing shades about it, with a constant spring that supplies a cold bath. We then went to seea Cascade. 

I trudged unwillingly, and was not sorry to find it dry. The water was, however, turned on, and produced a very striking cataract. They are paidan hundred pounds a year for permission to divert the stream to themines. The river, for such it may be termed[1207], rises from a singlespring, which, like that of Winifred's, is covered with a building. 

We called then at another house belonging to Mr. Lloyd, which made ahandsome appearance. This country seems full of very splendid houses. 

Mrs. Thrale lost her purse. She expressed so much uneasiness, that Iconcluded the sum to be very great; but when I heard of only sevenguineas, I was glad to find that she had so much sensibility of money. 

I could not drink this day either coffee or tea after dinner. I know notwhen I missed before. 

AUGUST 5. 

Last night my sleep was remarkably quiet. I know not whether by fatiguein walking, or by forbearance of tea[1208]. 

I gave the ipecacuanha[1209]. Vin. Emet. Had failed; so had tartar emet. 

I dined at Mr. Myddleton's, of Gwaynynog. The house was a gentleman'shouse, below the second rate, perhaps below the third, built of stoneroughly cut. The rooms were low, and the passage above stairs gloomy, but the furniture was good. The table was well supplied, except that thefruit was bad. It was truly the dinner of a country gentleman. Twotables were filled with company, not inelegant. 

After dinner, the talk was of preserving the Welsh language. I offeredthem a scheme. Poor Evan Evans was mentioned, as incorrigibly addictedto strong drink. Worthington[1210] was commended. Myddleton is the onlyman, who, in Wales, has talked to me of literature. I wish he were trulyzealous. I recommended the republication of David ap Rhees'sWelsh Grammar. 

Two sheets of _Hebrides_ came to me for correction to-day, F. G. [1211]

AUGUST 6. 

I corrected the two sheets. My sleep last night was disturbed. 

Washing at Chester and here, 5_s_. 1_d_. 

I did not read. 

I saw to-day more of the out-houses at Lleweney. It is, in the whole, avery spacious house. 

AUGUST 7. 

I was at Church at Bodfari. There was a service used for a sick woman, not canonically, but such as I have heard, I think, formerly atLichfield, taken out of the visitation. 

The Church is mean, but has a square tower for the bells, rather toostately for the Church. 

OBSERVATIONS. 

Dixit injustus, Ps. 36, has no relation to the English[1212]. 

Preserve us, Lord, has the name of Robert Wisedome, 1618. --Barker's_Bible_[1213]. 

Battologiam ab iteratione, recte distinguit Erasmus. --_Mod. OrandiDeum_, p. 56-144[1214]. 

Southwell's Thoughts of his own death[1215]. 

Baudius on Erasmus[1216]. 

AUGUST 8. 

The Bishop and much company dined at Lleweney. Talk of Greek--and of thearmy[1217]. The Duke of Marlborough's officers useless. Read_Phocylidis_[1218], distinguished the paragraphs. I looked in Leland: anunpleasant book of mere hints. 

Lichfield School, ten pounds; and five pounds from the Hospital[1219]. 

AUGUST 10. 

At Lloyd's, of Maesmynnan; a good house, and a very large walled garden. I read Windus's Account of his _Journey to Mequinez_, and of Stewart'sEmbassy[1220]. I had read in the morning Wasse's _Greek Trochaics toBentley_. They appeared inelegant, and made with difficulty. The LatinElegy contains only common-place, hastily expressed, so far as I haveread, for it is long. They seem to be the verses of a scholar, who hasno practice of writing. The Greek I did not always fully understand. Iam in doubt about the sixth and last paragraphs, perhaps they are notprinted right, for [Greek: eutokon] perhaps [Greek: eustochon. ] q?

The following days I read here and there. The _Bibliotheca Literaria_was so little supplied with papers that could interest curiosity, thatit could not hope for long continuance[1221]. Wasse, the chiefcontributor, was an unpolished scholar, who, with much literature, hadno art or elegance of diction, at least in English. 

AUGUST 14. 

At Bodfari I heard the second lesson read, and the sermon preached inWelsh. The text was pronounced both in Welsh and English. The sound ofthe Welsh, in a continued discourse, is not unpleasant. 

[Greek: Brosis oligae][1222]. 

The letter of Chrysostom, against transubstantiation. Erasmus to theNuns, full of mystick notions and allegories. 

AUGUST 15. 

Imbecillitas genuum non sine aliquantulo doloris inter ambulandum quem aprandio magis sensi[1223]. 

AUGUST 18. 

We left Lleweney, and went forwards on our journey. 

We came to Abergeley, a mean town, in which little but Welsh is spoken, and divine service is seldom performed in English. 

Our way then lay to the sea-side, at the foot of a mountain, calledPenmaen Rhôs. Here the way was so steep, that we walked on the loweredge of the hill, to meet the coach, that went upon a road higher on thehill. Our walk was not long, nor unpleasant: the longer I walk, the lessI feel its inconvenience. As I grow warm, my breath mends, and I thinkmy limbs grow pliable. 

We then came to Conway Ferry, and passed in small boats, with somepassengers from the stage coach, among whom were an Irish gentlewoman, with two maids, and three little children, of which, the youngest wasonly a few months old. The tide did not serve the large ferry-boat, andtherefore our coach could not very soon follow us. We were, therefore, to stay at the Inn. It is now the day of the Race at Conway, and thetown was so full of company, that no money could purchase lodgings. Wewere not very readily supplied with cold dinner. We would have staid atConway if we could have found entertainment, for we were afraid ofpassing Penmaen Mawr, over which lay our way to Bangor, but by brightdaylight, and the delay of our coach made our departure necessarilylate. There was, however, no stay on any other terms, than of sitting upall night. 

The poor Irish lady was still more distressed. Her children wanted rest. She would have been content with one bed, but, for a time, none could behad. Mrs. Thrale gave her what help she could. At last two gentlemenwere persuaded to yield up their room, with two beds, for which she gavehalf a guinea. Our coach was at last brought, and we set out with someanxiety, but we came to Penmaen Mawr by daylight; and found a way, lately made, very easy, and very safe. [1224] It was cut smooth, andenclosed between parallel walls; the outer of which secures thepassenger from the precipice, which is deep and dreadful. This wall ishere and there broken, by mischievous wantonness. [1225] The inner wallpreserves the road from the loose stones, which the shattered steepabove it would pour down. That side of the mountain seems to have asurface of loose stones, which every accident may crumble. The old roadwas higher, and must have been very formidable. The sea beats at thebottom of the way. 

At evening the moon shone eminently bright; and our thoughts of dangerbeing now past, the rest of our journey was very pleasant. At an hoursomewhat late, we came to Bangor, where we found a very mean inn, andhad some difficulty to obtain lodging. I lay in a room, where the otherbed had two men. 

AUGUST 19. 

We obtained boats to convey us to Anglesey, and saw Lord Bulkeley'sHouse, and Beaumaris Castle. 

I was accosted by Mr. Lloyd, the Schoolmaster of Beaumaris, who had seenme at University College; and he, with Mr. Roberts, the Register ofBangor, whose boat we borrowed, accompanied us. Lord Bulkeley's houseis very mean, but his garden garden is spacious, and shady with largetrees and smaller interspersed. The walks are straight, and cross eachother, with no variety of plan; but they have a pleasing coolness, andsolemn gloom, and extend to a great length. 

The castle is a mighty pile; the outward wall has fifteen round towers, besides square towers at the angles. There is then a void space betweenthe wall and the Castle, which has an area enclosed with a wall, whichagain has towers, larger than those of the outer wall. The towers of theinner Castle are, I think, eight. There is likewise a Chapel entire, built upon an arch as I suppose, and beautifully arched with a stoneroof, which is yet unbroken. The entrance into the Chapel is about eightor nine feet high, and was, I suppose, higher, when there was no rubbishin the area. 

This Castle corresponds with all the representations of romancingnarratives. Here is not wanting the private passage, the dark cavity, the deep dungeon, or the lofty tower. We did not discover the Well. Thisis the most compleat view that I have yet had of an old Castle. [1226] Ithad a moat. 

The Towers. 

We went to Bangor. 

AUGUST 20. 

We went by water from Bangor to Caernarvon, where we met Paoli and SirThomas Wynne. Meeting by chance with one Troughton, [1227] an intelligentand loquacious wanderer, Mr. Thrale invited him to dinner. He attendedus to the Castle, an edifice of stupendous magnitude and strength; ithas in it all that we observed at Beaumaris, and much greaterdimensions: many of the smaller rooms floored with stone are entire; ofthe larger rooms, the beams and planks are all left: this is the stateof all buildings left to time. We mounted the Eagle Tower by one hundredand sixty-nine steps, each of ten inches. We did not find the Well; nordid I trace the Moat; but moats there were, I believe, to all castles onthe plain, which not only hindered access, but prevented mines. We sawbut a very small part of this mighty ruin, and in all these oldbuildings, the subterraneous works are concealed by the rubbish. 

To survey this place would take much time: I did not think there hadbeen such buildings; it surpassed my ideas. 

AUGUST 21. 

We were at Church; the service in the town is always English; at theparish Church at a small distance, always Welsh. The town has bydegrees, I suppose, been brought nearer to the sea side. 

We received an invitation to Dr. Worthington. We then went to dinner atSir Thomas Wynne's, --the dinner mean, Sir Thomas civil, his Ladynothing. [1228] Paoli civil. 

We supped with Colonel Wynne's Lady, who lives in one of the towers ofthe Castle. 

I have not been very well. 

AUGUST 22. 

We went to visit Bodville, the place where Mrs. Thrale was born; and theChurches called Tydweilliog and Llangwinodyl, which she holds byimpropriation. 

We had an invitation to the house of Mr. Griffiths of Bryn o dol, wherewe found a small neat new built house, with square rooms: the walls areof unhewn stone, and therefore thick; for the stones not fitting withexactness, are not strong without great thickness. He had planted agreat deal of young wood in walks. Fruit trees do not thrive; but havinggrown a few years, reach some barren stratum and wither. 

We found Mr. Griffiths not at home; but the provisions were good. Mr. Griffiths came home the next day. He married a lady who has a house andestate at [Llanver], over against Anglesea, and near Caernarvon, whereshe is more disposed, as it seems, to reside than at Bryn o dol. 

I read Lloyd's account of Mona, which he proves to be Anglesea. 

In our way to Bryn o dol, we saw at Llanerk a Church built crosswise, very spacious and magnificent for this country. We could not see theParson, and could get no intelligence about it. 

AUGUST 24. 

We went to see Bodville. Mrs. Thrale remembered the rooms, and wanderedover them with recollection of her childhood. This species of pleasureis always melancholy. The walk was cut down, and the pond was dry. Nothing was better. [1229]

We surveyed the Churches, which are mean, and neglected to a degreescarcely imaginable. They have no pavement, and the earth is full ofholes. The seats are rude benches; the Altars have no rails. One of themhas a breach in the roof. On the desk, I think, of each lay a folioWelsh Bible of the black letter, which the curate cannot easilyread. [1230]

Mr. Thrale purposes to beautify the Churches, and if he prospers, willprobably restore the tithes. The two parishes are, Llangwinodyl andTydweilliog. [1231] The Methodists are here very prevalent. A betterchurch will impress the people with more reverence of publick worship. 

Mrs. Thrale visited a house where she had been used to drink milk, whichwas left, with an estate of two hundred pounds a year, by one Lloyd, toa married woman who lived with him. 

We went to Pwllheli, a mean old town, at the extremity of the country. Here we bought something, to remember the place. 

AUGUST 25. 

We returned to Caernarvon, where we ate with Mrs. Wynne. 

AUGUST 26. 

We visited, with Mrs. Wynne, Llyn Badarn and Llyn Beris, two lakes, joined by a narrow strait. They are formed by the waters which fall fromSnowdon and the opposite mountains. On the side of Snowdon are theremains of a large fort, to which we climbed with great labour. I wasbreathless and harassed. The Lakes have no great breadth, so that theboat is always near one bank or the other. 

_Note_. Queeny's goats, one hundred and forty-nine, I think. [1232]

AUGUST 27. 

We returned to Bangor, where Mr. Thrale was lodged at Mr. Roberts's, theRegister. 

AUGUST 28. 

We went to worship at the Cathedral. The quire is mean, the service wasnot well read. 

AUGUST 29. 

We came to Mr. Myddelton's, of Gwaynynog, to the first place, as myMistress observed, where we have been welcome. 

_Note_. On the day when we visited Bodville, we turned to the house ofMr. Griffiths, of Kefnamwycllh, a gentleman of large fortune, remarkablefor having made great and sudden improvements in his seat and estate. Hehas enclosed a large garden with a brick wall. He is considered as a manof great accomplishments. He was educated in literature at theUniversity, and served some time in the army, then quitted hiscommission, and retired to his lands. He is accounted a good man, andendeavours to bring the people to church. 

In our way from Bangor to Conway, we passed again the new road upon theedge of Penmaen Mawr, which would be very tremendous, but that the wallshuts out the idea of danger. In the wall are several breaches, made, asMr. Thrale very reasonably conjectures, by fragments of rocks which rolldown the mountain, broken perhaps by frost, or worn through by rain. 

We then viewed Conway. 

To spare the horses at Penmaen Rhôs, between Conway and St. Asaph, wesent the coach over the road across the mountain with Mrs. Thrale, whohad been tired with a walk sometime before; and I, with Mr. Thrale andMiss, walked along the edge, where the path is very narrow, and muchencumbered by little loose stones, which had fallen down, as we thought, upon the way since we passed it before. 

At Conway we took a short survey of the Castle, which afforded usnothing new. It is larger than that of Beaumaris, and less than that ofCaernarvon. It is built upon a rock so high and steep, that it is evennow very difficult of access. We found a round pit, which was called theWell; it is now almost filled, and therefore dry. We found the Well inno other castle. There are some remains of leaden pipes at Caernarvon, which, I suppose, only conveyed water from one part of the building toanother. Had the garrison had no other supply, the Welsh, who must knowwhere the pipes were laid, could easily have cut them. 

AUGUST 29. 

We came to the house of Mr. Myddelton, (on Monday, ) where we staid toSeptember 6, and were very kindly entertained. How we spent our time, Iam not very able to tell[1233]. 

We saw the wood, which is diversified and romantick. 

SEPTEMBER 4, SUNDAY. 

We dined with Mr. Myddelton, the clergyman, at Denbigh, where I saw theharvest-men very decently dressed, after the afternoon service, standingto be hired. On other days, they stand at about four in the morning. They are hired from day to day. 

SEPTEMBER 6. 

We lay at Wrexham; a busy, extensive, and well built town. It has a verylarge and magnificent Church. It has a famous fair. 

SEPTEMBER 7. 

We came to Chirk Castle. 

SEPTEMBER 8, THURSDAY. 

We came to the house of Dr. Worthington[1234], at Llanrhaiadr. Ourentertainment was poor, though his house was not bad. The situation isvery pleasant, by the side of a small river, of which the bank riseshigh on the other side, shaded by gradual rows of trees. The gloom, thestream, and the silence, generate thoughtfulness. The town is old, andvery mean, but has, I think, a market. In this house, the Welshtranslation of the Old Testament was made. The Welsh singing Psalms werewritten by Archdeacon Price. They are not considered as elegant, but asvery literal, and accurate. 

We came to Llanrhaiadr, through Oswestry; a town not very little, norvery mean. The church, which I saw only at a distance, seems to be anedifice much too good for the present state of the place. 

SEPTEMBER 9. 

We visited the waterfall, which is very high, and in rainy weather verycopious. There is a reservoir made to supply it. In its fall, it hasperforated a rock. There is a room built for entertainment. There wassome difficulty in climbing to a near view. Lord Lyttelton[1235] camenear it, and turned back. 

When we came back, we took some cold meat, and notwithstanding theDoctor's importunities, went that day to Shrewsbury. 

SEPTEMBER 10. 

I sent for Gwynn[1236], and he shewed us the town. The walls arebroken, and narrower than those of Chester. The town is large, and hasmany gentlemen's houses, but the streets are narrow. I saw Taylor'slibrary. We walked in the Quarry; a very pleasant walk by theriver. [1237] Our inn was not bad. 

SEPTEMBER 11. 

Sunday. We were at St. Chads, a very large and luminous Church. We wereon the Castle Hill. 

SEPTEMBER 12. 

We called on Dr. Adams, [1238] and travelled towards Worcester, throughWenlock; a very mean place, though a borough. At noon, we came toBridgenorth, and walked about the town, of which one part stands on ahigh rock; and part very low, by the river. There is an old tower, which, being crooked, leans so much, that it is frightful to pass by it. 

In the afternoon we came through Kinver, a town in Staffordshire; neatand closely built. I believe it has only one street. 

The road was so steep and miry, that we were forced to stop atHartlebury, where we had a very neat inn, though it made a very poorappearance. 

SEPTEMBER 13. 

We came to Lord Sandys's, at Ombersley, where we were treated with greatcivility. [1239]

The house is large. The hall is a very noble room. 

SEPTEMBER 15. 

We went to Worcester, a very splendid city. The Cathedral is very noble, with many remarkable monuments. The library is in the Chapter House. Onthe table lay the _Nuremberg Chronicle_, I think, of the first edition. We went to the china warehouse. The Cathedral has a cloister. The longaisle is, in my opinion, neither so wide nor so high as that ofLichfield. 

SEPTEMBER 16. 

We went to Hagley, where we were disappointed of the respect andkindness that we expected[1240]. 

SEPTEMBER 17. 

We saw the house and park, which equalled my expectation. The house isone square mass. The offices are below. The rooms of elegance on thefirst floor, with two stories of bedchambers, very well disposed aboveit. The bedchambers have low windows, which abates the dignity of thehouse. The park has one artificial ruin[1241], and wants water; thereis, however, one temporary cascade. From the farthest hill there is avery wide prospect. 

I went to church. The church is, externally, very mean, and is thereforediligently hidden by a plantation. There are in it several modernmonuments of the Lytteltons. 

There dined with us, Lord Dudley, and Sir Edward Lyttelton, ofStaffordshire, and his Lady. They were all persons of agreeableconversation. 

I found time to reflect on my birthday, and offered a prayer, which Ihope was heard. 

SEPTEMBER 19. 

We made haste away from a place, where all were offended[1242]. In theway we visited the Leasowes[1243]. It was rain, yet we visited all thewaterfalls. There are, in one place, fourteen falls in a short line. Itis the next place to Ham Gardens[1244]. Poor Shenstone never tasted hispension. It is not very well proved that any pension was obtained forhim. I am afraid that he died of misery[1245]. 

We came to Birmingham, and I sent for Wheeler, whom I found well. 

SEPTEMBER 20. 

We breakfasted with Wheeler, [1246] and visited the manufacture of PapierMaché. The paper which they use is smooth whited brown; the varnish ispolished with rotten stone. Wheeler gave me a tea-board. We then went toBoulton's, [1247] who, with great civility, led us through his shops. Icould not distinctly see his enginery. 

Twelve dozen of buttons for three shillings. [1248] Spoons struck atonce. 

SEPTEMBER 21. 

Wheeler came to us again. 

We came easily to Woodstock. 

SEPTEMBER 22. 

We saw Blenheim and Woodstock Park. [1249] The Park contains two thousandfive hundred acres; about four square miles. It has red deer. Mr. Bryant[1250] shewed me the Library with great civility. _DurandiRationale_, 1459[1251]. Lascaris' _Grammar_ of the first edition, wellprinted, but much less than later editions[1252]. The first_Batrachomyomachia_[1253]. 

The Duke sent Mr. Thrale partridges and fruit. 

At night we came to Oxford. 

SEPTEMBER 23. 

We visited Mr. Coulson[1254]. The Ladies wandered about the University. 

SEPTEMBER 24. 

We dine with Mr. Coulson. Vansittart[1255] told me his distemper. 

Afterwards we were at Burke's, where we heard of the dissolution of theParliament. We went home[1256]. 

FOOTNOTES:

[1] See _ante_, ii. 434, note 1, and iii. 209. 

[2] His _Account of Corsica_, published in 1768. 

[3] Horace Walpole wrote on Nov. 6, 1769 (_Letters_, v. 200):--'I foundPaoli last week at Court. The King and Queen both took great notice ofhim. He has just made a tour to Bath, Oxford, &c. , and was everywherereceived with much distinction. ' See _ante_, ii. 71. 

[4] Boswell, when in London, was 'his constant guest. ' Ante, iii 35. 

[5] Boswell's son James says that 'in 1785 Mr. Malone was shewn at Mr. Baldwin's printing-house a sheet of the _Tour to the Hebrides_which contained Johnson's character. He was so much struck with thespirit and fidelity of the portrait that he requested to be introducedto its writer. From this period a friendship took place between them, which ripened into the strictest and most cordial intimacy. After Mr. Boswell's death in 1795 Mr. Malone continued to shew every mark ofaffectionate attention towards his family. ' _Gent. Mag. _ 1813, p. 518. 

[6] Malone began his edition of _Shakespeare_ in 1782; he brought it outin 1790. Prior's _Malone_, pp. 98, 166. 

[7] Boswell in the 'Advertisement' to the second edition, dated Dec. 20, 1785, says that 'the whole of the first impression has been sold in afew weeks. ' Three editions were published within a year, but the fourthwas not issued till 1807. A German translation was published in Lübeckin 1787. I believe that in no language has a translation been publishedof the _Life of Johnson_. Johnson was indeed, as Boswell often callshim, 'a trueborn Englishman'--so English that foreigners could neitherunderstand him nor relish his _Life_. 

[8] The man thus described is James I. 

[9] See _ante_, i. 450 and ii. 291. 

[10] _A Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland_. Johnson's _Works_ix. 1. 

[11] See _ante_, i. 450. On a copy of Martin in the Advocates' Library[Edinburgh] I found the following note in the handwriting of Mr. Boswell:--'This very book accompanied Mr. Samuel Johnson and me in ourTour to the Hebrides. ' UPCOTT. Croker's _Boswell_, p. 267. 

[12] Macbeth, act i. Sc. 3. 

[13] See _ante_, iii. 24, and _post_, Nov. 10. 

[14] Our friend Edmund Burke, who by this time had received some prettysevere strokes from Dr. Johnson, on account of the unhappy difference intheir politicks, upon my repeating this passage to him, exclaimed 'Oilof vitriol !' BOSWELL. 

[15] _Psalms_, cxli. 5. 

[16] 'We all love Beattie, ' he had said. _Ante_, ii. 148. 

[17] This, I find, is a Scotticism. I should have said, 'It will not belong before we shall be at Marischal College. ' BOSWELL. In spite of thiswarning Sir Walter Scott fell into the same error. 'The light foot ofMordaunt was not long of bearing him to Jarlok [Jarlshof]. ' _Pirate_, ch. Viii. CROKER. Beattie was Professor of Moral Philosophy and Logic inMarischal College. 

[18] 'Nil mihi rescribas; attamen ipse veni. ' Ovid, _Heroides_, i. 2. Boswell liked to display such classical learning as he had. When hevisited Eton in 1789 he writes, 'I was asked by the Head-master to dineat the Fellows' table, and made a creditable figure. I certainly havethe art of making the most of what I have. How should one who has hadonly a Scotch education be quite at home at Eton? I had my classicalquotations very ready. ' _Letters of Boswell_, p. 308. 

[19] Gray, Johnson writes (_Works_, viii. 479), visited Scotland in1765. 'He naturally contracted a friendship with Dr. Beattie, whom hefound a poet, ' &c. 

[20] _Post_, Sept. 12. 

[21] See _ante_, i. 274. 

[22] Afterwards Lord Stowell. He, his brother Lord Eldon, and Chamberswere all Newcastle men. See _ante_, i. 462, for an anecdote of thejourney and for a note on 'the Commons. '

[23] See _ante_, ii. 453. 

[24] See _ante_, iv. III. 

[25] Baretti, in a MS. Note on _Piozzi Letters_, i. 309, says:--'Themost unaccountable part of Johnson's character was his total ignoranceof the character of his most familiar acquaintance. '

[26] Lord Pembroke said once to me at Wilton, with a happy pleasantry, and some truth, that 'Dr. Johnson's sayings would not appear soextraordinary, were it not for his _bow-wow way_:' but I admit the truthof this only on some occasions. The _Messiah_, played upon the_Canterbury organ_, is more sublime than when played upon an inferiorinstrument, but very slight musick will seem grand, when conveyed to theear through that majestick medium. _While therefore Dr. Johnson'ssayings are read, let his manner be taken along with them_. Let it, however, be observed, that the sayings themselves are generally great;that, though he might be an ordinary composer at times, he was for themost part a Handel. BOSWELL. See _ante_, ii. 326, 371, and underAug. 29, 1783. 

[27] See _ante_, i. 42. 

[28] See _ante_, i. 41. 

[29] Such they appeared to me; but since the first edition, Sir JoshuaReynolds has observed to me, 'that Dr. Johnson's extraordinary gestureswere only habits, in which he indulged himself at certain times. When incompany, where he was not free, or when engaged earnestly inconversation, he never gave way to such habits, which proves that theywere not involuntary. ' I still however think, that these gestures wereinvoluntary; for surely had not that been the case, he would haverestrained them in the publick streets. BOSWELL. See _ante_, i. 144. 

[30] By an Act of the 7th of George I. For encouraging the consumptionof raw silk and mohair, buttons and button-holes made of cloth, serge, and other stuffs were prohibited. In 1738 a petition was presented toParliament stating that 'in evasion of this Act buttons and button-holeswere made of horse-hair to the impoverishing of many thousands andprejudice of the woollen manufactures. ' An Act was brought in toprohibit the use of horse-hair, and was only thrown out on the thirdreading. _Parl. Hist. _ x. 787. 

[31] Boswell wrote to Erskine on Dec. 8, 1761: 'I, James Boswell Esq. , who "am happily possessed of a facility of manners"--to use the verywords of Mr. Professor [Adam] Smith, which upon honour were addressed tome. ' _Boswell and Erskine Corres_. Ed. 1879, p. 26. 

[32] _Post_, Oct. 16. 

[33] _Hamlet_, act iii, sc. 4. 

[34] See _ante_, iv. , March 21, 1783. Johnson is often reproached withhis dislike of the Scotch, though much of it was assumed; but no oneblames Hume's dislike of the English, though it was deep and real. OnFeb. 21, 1770, he wrote:--'Our Government is too perfect in point ofliberty for so rude a beast as an Englishman; who is a man, a bad animaltoo, corrupted by above a century of licentiousness. ' J. H. Burton's_Hume_, ii. 434. Dr. Burton writes of the English as 'a people Hume soheartily disliked. ' _Ib_. P. 433. 

[35] See _ante_, iv. 15. 

[36] The term _John Bull_ came into the English language in 1712, whenDr. Arbuthnot wrote _The History of John Bull_. 

[37] Boswell in three other places so describes Johnson. See _ante_, i. 129, note 3. 

[38] See _ante_, i. 467. 

[39] 'All nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues. ' _Rev_. Vii. 9. 

[40] See _ante_, ii. 376

[41] In Cockburn's _Life of Jeffrey_, i. 157, there is a description ofEdinburgh, towards the close of the century, 'the last purely Scotch agethat Scotland was destined to see. Almost the whole official state, assettled at the Union, survived; and all graced the capital, unconsciousof the economical scythe which has since mowed it down. All our nobilityhad not then fled. The lawyers, instead of disturbing good company byprofessional matter, were remarkably free of this vulgarity; and beingtrained to take difference of opinion easily, and to conduct discussionswith forbearance, were, without undue obtrusion, the most cheerfulpeople that were to be met with. Philosophy had become indigenous in theplace, and all classes, even in their gayest hours, were proud of thepresence of its cultivators. And all this was still a Scotch scene. Thewhole country had not begun to be absorbed in the ocean of London. According to the modern rate of travelling [written in 1852] thecapitals of Scotland and of England were then about 2400 miles asunder. Edinburgh was still more distant in its style and habits. It had thenits own independent tastes, and ideas, and pursuits. ' Scotland at thistime was distinguished by the liberality of mind of its leadingclergymen, which was due, according to Dr. A. Carlyle (_Auto_. P 57), tothe fact that the Professor of Theology under whom they had studied was'dull and Dutch and prolix. ' 'There was one advantage, ' he says, 'attending the lectures of a dull professor--viz. , that he could form noschool, and the students were left entirely to themselves, and naturallyformed opinions far more liberal than those they got from theProfessor. '

[42] Chambers (_Traditions of Edinburgh_, ed. 1825, ii. 297) says that'the very spot which Johnson's armchair occupied is pointed out by themodern possessors. ' The inn was called 'The White Horse. ' 'It derivesits name from having been the resort of the Hanoverian faction, theWhite Horse being the crest of Hanover. ' Murray's _Guide to Scotland_, ed. 1867, p. 111. 

[43] Boswell writing of Scotland says:--'In the last age it was thecommon practice in the best families for all the company to eat milk, orpudding, or any other dish that is eat with a spoon, not by distributingthe contents of the dish into small plates round the table, but by everyperson dipping his spoon into the large platter; and when the fashion ofhaving a small plate for each guest was brought from the continent by ayoung gentleman returned from his travels, a good old inflexibleneighbour in the country said, "he did not see anything he had learntbut to take his broth twice. " Nay, in our own remembrance, the use of acarving knife was considered as a novelty; and a gentleman of ancientfamily and good literature used to rate his son, a friend of mine, forintroducing such a foppish superfluity. '--_London Mag_. 1778, p. 199. 

[44] See _ante_, ii. 403. Johnson, in describing Sir A. Macdonald'shouse in Sky, said:--'The Lady had not the common decencies of hertea-table; we picked up our sugar with our fingers. ' _PiozziLetters_, i. 138. 

[45] Chambers says that 'James's Court, till the building of the NewTown, was inhabited by a select set of gentlemen. They kept a clerk torecord their names and their proceedings, had a scavenger of their own, and had balls and assemblies among themselves. ' Paoli was Boswell'sguest there in 1771. _Traditions of Edinburgh_, i. 219. It was burntdown in 1857. Murray's _Guide to Scotland_, ed. 1883, p. 49. Johnsonwrote:--'Boswell has very handsome and spacious rooms, level with theground on one side of the house, and on the other four stories high. '_Piozzi Letters_, i. 109. Dr. J. H. Burton says that Hume occupied themjust before Boswell. He continues:--'Of the first impression made on astranger at that period when entering such a house, a vivid descriptionis given by Sir Walter Scott in _Guy Mannering_; and in CounsellorPleydell's library, with its collection of books, and the prospect fromthe window, we have probably an accurate picture of the room in whichHume spent his studious hours. ' _Life of Hume_, ii. 137, 431. AtJohnson's visit Hume was living in his new house in the street which washumorously named after him, St. David Street. _Ib_. P. 436. 

[46] The English servant-girl in _Humphry Clinker_ (Letter of July 18), after describing how the filth is thus thrown out, says:--'The maidcalls _gardy loo_ to the passengers, which signifies _Lord have mercyupon you!_'

[47] Wesley, when at Edinburgh in May, 1761, writes:--'How can it besuffered that all manner of filth should still be thrown even into thisstreet [High Street] continually? How long shall the capital city ofScotland, yea, and the chief street of it, stink worse than a commonsewer?' Wesley's _Journal_, iii. 52. Baretti (_Journey from London toGenoa_, ii. 255) says that this was the universal practice in Madrid in1760. He was driven out of that town earlier than he had intended toleave it by the dreadful stench. A few years after his visit the Kingmade a reform, so that it became 'one of the cleanest towns in Europe. '_Ib_. P 258. Smollett in _Humphry Clinker_ makes Matthew Bramble say(Letter of July 18):--'The inhabitants of Edinburgh are apt to imaginethe disgust that we avow is little better than affectation. '

[48] 'Most of their buildings are very mean; and the whole town bearssome resemblance to the old part of Birmingham. ' _PiozziLetters_, i. 109. 

[49] See _ante_, i. 313. 

[50] Miss Burney, describing her first sight of Johnson, says:--'Uponasking my father why he had not prepared us for such uncouth, untowardstrangeness, he laughed heartily, and said he had entirely forgottenthat the same impression had been at first made upon himself; but hadbeen lost even on the second interview. ' _Memoirs of Dr. Burney_, ii. 91. 

[51] See _post_, Aug. 22. 

[52] see _ante_, iii. 216. 

[53] Boswell writes, in his _Hypochondriacks_:--'Naturally somewhatsingular, independent of any additions which affectation and vanity mayperhaps have made, I resolved to have a more pleasing species ofmarriage than common, and bargained with my bride that I should not bebound to live with her longer than I really inclined; and that wheneverI tired of her domestic society I should be at liberty to give it up. Eleven years have elapsed, and I have never yet wished to take advantageof my stipulated privilege. ' _London Mag_. 1781, p. 136. See _ante_, ii. 140, note 1. 

[54] Sir Walter Scott was two years old this day. He was born in a houseat the head of the College Wynd. When Johnson and Boswell returned toEdinburgh Jeffrey was a baby there seventeen days old. Some seventeen oreighteen years later 'he had the honour of assisting to carry thebiographer of Johnson, in a state of great intoxication, to bed. Forthis he was rewarded next morning by Mr. Boswell clapping his head, andtelling him that he was a very promising lad, and that if "you go on asyou've begun, you may live to be a Bozzy yourself yet. "' Cockburn's_Jeffrey_, i. 33. 

[55] He was one of Boswell's executors, and as such was in partresponsible for the destruction of his manuscripts. _Ante_, iii. 301, note i. It is to his _Life of Dr. Beattie_ that Scott alludes in theIntroduction to the fourth Canto of _Marmion_:--

 'Scarce had lamented Forbes paid The tribute to his Minstrel's shade; The tale of friendship scarce was told, Ere the narrator's heart was cold-- Far may we search before we find A heart so manly and so kind. '

It is only of late years that _Forbes_ has generally ceased to be adissyllable. 

[56] The saint's name of _Veronica_ was introduced into our familythrough my great grandmother Veronica, Countess of Kincardine, a Dutchlady of the noble house of Sommelsdyck, of which there is a full accountin Bayle's _Dictionary_. The family had once a princely right inSurinam. The governour of that settlement was appointed by the StatesGeneral, the town of Amsterdam, and Sommelsdyck. The States General haveacquired Sommelsdyck's right; but the family has still great dignity andopulence, and by intermarriages is connected with many other noblefamilies. When I was at the Hague, I was received with all the affectionof kindred. The present Sommelsdyck has an important charge in theRepublick, and is as worthy a man as lives. He has honoured me with hiscorrespondence for these twenty years. My great grandfather, the husbandof Countess Veronica, was Alexander, Earl of Kincardine, that eminent_Royalist_ whose character is given by Burnet in his _History of his ownTimes_. From him the blood of _Bruce_ flows in my veins. Of suchancestry who would not be proud? And, as _Nihil est, nisi hoc sciatalter_, is peculiarly true of genealogy, who would not be glad to seizea fair opportunity to let it be known. BOSWELL. Boswell visited Hollandin 1763. _Ante_, i. 473. Burnet says that 'the Earl was both the wisestand the worthiest man that belonged to his country, and fit forgoverning any affairs but his own; which he by a wrong turn, and by hislove for the public, neglected to his ruin. His thoughts went slow andhis words came much slower; but a deep judgment appeared in everythinghe said or did. I may be, perhaps, inclined to carry his character toofar; for he was the first man that entered into friendship with me. 'Burnet's _History_, ed. 1818, i. III. 'The ninth Earl succeeded as fifthEarl of Elgin and thus united the two dignities. ' Burke's _Peerage_. Boswell's quotation is from Persius, _Satires_, i. 27: 'Scire tuum nihilest, nisi te scire hoc sciat alter. ' It is the motto to _TheSpectator_, No. 379. 

[57] She died four months after her father. I cannot find that shereceived this additional fortune. 

[58] See _ante_, ii. 47. 

[59] See _ante_, iv. 5, note 2. 

[60] See _ante_, iii. 231. Johnson (_Works_, ix. 33) speaks of 'thegeneral dissatisfaction which is now driving the Highlanders into theother hemisphere. ' This dissatisfaction chiefly arose from the fact thatthe chiefs were 'gradually degenerating from patriarchal rulers torapacious landlords. ' _Ib. _ p. 86. 'That the people may not fly from theincrease of rent I know not whether the general good does not requirethat the landlords be, for a time, restrained in their demands, and keptquiet by pensions proportionate to their loss. .. . It affords alegislator little self-applause to consider, that where there wasformerly an insurrection there is now a wilderness. ' _Ib. _ p. 94. 'Asthe world has been let in upon the people, they have heard of happierclimates and less arbitrary government. ' _Ib. _ p. 128. 

[61] 'To a man that ranges the streets of London, where he is tempted tocontrive wants for the pleasure of supplying them, a shop affords noimage worthy of attention; but in an island it turns the balance ofexistence between good and evil. To live in perpetual want of littlethings is a state, not indeed of torture, but of constant vexation. Ihave in Sky had some difficulty to find ink for a letter; and if a womanbreaks her needle, the work is at a stop. ' _Ib. _ p. 127. 

[62] 'It was demolished in 1822. ' Chambers's _Traditions of Edinburgh_, i. 215. 

[63] 'The Lord reigneth; let the earth rejoice; let the multitude ofisles be glad thereof. ' _Psalms_, xcvii. 1. 

[64] A brief memoir of Mr. Carre is given in Forbes's _Life of Beattie_, Appendix Z. 

[65] It was his daughter who gave the name to the new street in whichHume had taken a house by chalking on his wall ST. DAVID STREET. 'Hume's"lass, " judging that it was not meant in honour or reverence, ran intothe house much excited, to tell her master how he was made game of. "Never mind, lassie, " he said; "many a better man has been made a saintof before. "' J. H. Burton's _Hume_, ii. 436. 

[66] The House of Lords reversed the decision of the Court of Session inthis cause. See _ante_, ii. 50, 230. 

[67] Ogden was Woodwardian Professor at Cambridge. The sermons werepublished in 1770. Boswell mentions them so often that in Rowlandson'scaricatures of the tour he is commonly represented as having them in hishand or pocket. See _ante_, iii. 248. 

[68] 'Talking of the eminent writers in Queen Anne's reign, Johnsonobserved, "I think Dr. Arbuthnot the first man among them. '" _Ante_, i. 425. 

[69] 'We found that by the interposition of some invisible friendlodgings had been provided for us at the house of one of the professors, whose easy civility quickly made us forget that we were strangers. '_Works_, ix. 3. 

[70] He is referring to Beattie's _Essay on Truth_. See _post_, Oct. 1, and _ante_, ii. 201. 

[71] See _ante_, ii. 443, where Johnson, again speaking of Hume, andperhaps of Gibbon, says:--'When a man voluntarily engages in animportant controversy, he is to do all he can to lessen his antagonist, because authority from personal respect has much weight with mostpeople, and often more than reasoning. '

[72] Johnson, in his Dictionary, calls _bubble_ 'a cant [slang] word. '

[73] Boswell wrote to Temple in 1768:--'David [Hume] is really amiable:I always regret to him his unlucky principles, and he smiles at myfaith; but I have a hope which he has not, or pretends not to have. Sowho has the best of it, my reverend friend?' _Letters of Boswell_, p. 151. Dr. A. Carlyle (_Auto_. Pp. 274-5) says:--'Mr. Hume gave bothelegant dinners and suppers, and the best claret, and, which was best ofall, he furnished the entertainment with the most instructive andpleasing conversation, for he assembled whosoever were most knowing andagreeable among either the laity or clergy. For innocent mirth andagreeable raillery I never knew his match. .. . He took much to the companyof the younger clergy, not from a wish to bring them over to hisopinions, for he never attempted to overturn any man's principles, butthey best understood his notions, and could furnish him with literaryconversation. '

[74] No doubt they were destroyed with Boswell's other papers. _Ante_, iii. 301, note 1. 

[75] This letter, though shattered by the sharp shot of Dr. _Horne_ of_Oxford's_ wit, in the character of _One of the People calledChristians_, is still prefixed to Mr. Hume's excellent _History ofEngland_, like a poor invalid on the piquet guard, or like a list ofquack medicines sold by the same bookseller, by whom a work of whatevernature is published; for it has no connection with his _History_, let ithave what it may with what are called his _Philosophical_ Works. Aworthy friend of mine in London was lately consulted by a lady ofquality, of most distinguished merit, what was the best History ofEngland for her son to read. My friend recommended Hume's. But, uponrecollecting that its usher was a superlative panegyrick on one, whoendeavoured to sap the credit of our holy religion, he revoked hisrecommendation. I am really sorry for this ostentatious _alliance_;because I admire _The Theory of Moral Sentiments_, and value thegreatest part of _An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth ofNations_. Why should such a writer be so forgetful of human comfort, asto give any countenance to that dreary infidelity which would make uspoor indeed?' ['makes me poor indeed. ' _Othello_, act iii. Sc. 3]. BOSWELL. Dr. Horne's book is entitled, _A Letter to Adam Smith, LL. D. , On the Life, Death, and Philosophy of his Friend David Hume, Esq. By oneof the People called Christians_. Its chief wit is in the Preface. Thebookseller mentioned in this note was perhaps Francis Newbery, whosucceeded his father, Goldsmith's publisher, as a dealer in quackmedicines and books. They dealt in 'over thirty different nostrums, ' andpublished books of every nature. Of the father Johnson said:--'Newberyis an extraordinary man, for I know not whether he has read or writtenmost books. ' He is the original of 'Jack Whirler' in _The Idler_, No. 19. _A Bookseller of the Last Century_, pp. 22, 73. 

[76] Hume says that his first work, his _Treatise of Human Nature_, 'fell _dead-born from the press. ' Auto. _ p. 3. His _Enquiry concerningHuman Understanding_ 'was entirely overlooked and neglected. ' _Ib_. P. 4. His _Enquiry concerning the Principles of Morals_ 'came unnoticed andunobserved into the world. ' _Ib_. P. 5. The first volume of his _Historyof England_ certainly met with numerous assailants; but 'after the firstebullitions of their fury were over, what was still more mortifying, thebook seemed to sink into oblivion. Mr. Millar told me, ' he continues, 'that in a twelvemonth he sold only forty-five copies of it. .. I was Iconfess, discouraged, and had not the war at that time been breaking outbetween France and England, I had certainly retired to some provincialtown of the former kingdom, have changed my name, and never more havereturned to my native country. ' _Ib_. P. 6. Only one of his works, his_Political Discourses_, was 'successful on the first publication. ' _Ib_. P. 5. By the time he was turned fifty, however, his books were sellingvery well, and he had become 'not only independent but opulent. ' Ib. P. 8. A few weeks before he died he wrote: 'I see many symptoms of myliterary reputation's breaking out at last with additional lustre. '_Ib_. P. 10. 

[77] _Psalms_, cxix. 99. 

[78] We learn, _post_, Oct. 29, that Robertson was cautious in his talk, though we see here that he had much more courage than the professors ofAberdeen or Glasgow. 

[79] This was one of the points upon which Dr. Johnson was strangelyheterodox. For, surely, Mr. Burke, with his other remarkable qualities, is also distinguished for his wit, and for wit of all kinds too: notmerely that power of language which Pope chooses to denominate wit:--

 (True wit is Nature to advantage drest; What oft was thought, but ne'er so well exprest. )

[Pope's Essay on Criticism, ii. 297. ] but surprising allusions, brilliant sallies of vivacity, and pleasant conceits. His speeches inparliament are strewed with them. Take, for instance, the variety whichhe has given in his wide range, yet exact detail, when exhibiting hisReform Bill. And his conversation abounds in wit. Let me put down aspecimen. I told him, I had seen, at a _Blue stocking_ assembly, anumber of ladies sitting round a worthy and tall friend of ours, listening to his literature. 'Ay, (said he) like maids round aMay-pole. ' I told him, I had found out a perfect definition of humannature, as distinguished from the animal. An ancient philosopher said, Man was 'a two-legged animal without feathers, ' upon which his rivalSage had a Cock plucked bare, and set him down in the school before allthe disciples, as a 'Philosophick Man. ' Dr. Franklin said, Man was 'atool-making animal, ' which is very well; for no animal but man makes athing, by means of which he can make another thing. But this applies tovery few of the species. My definition of _Man_ is, 'a Cooking animal. 'The beasts have memory, judgment, and all the faculties and passions ofour mind in a certain degree; but no beast is a cook. The trick of themonkey using the cat's paw to roast a chestnut, is only a piece ofshrewd malice in that _turpissima bestia_, which humbles us so sadly byits similarity to us. Man alone can dress a good dish; and every manwhatever is more or less a cook, in seasoning what he himself eats. Yourdefinition is good, said Mr. Burke, and I now see the full force of thecommon proverb, 'There is _reason_ in roasting of eggs. ' When Mr. Wilkes, in his days of tumultuous opposition, was borne upon theshoulders of the mob, Mr. Burke (as Mr. Wilkes told me himself, withclassical admiration, ) applied to him what _Horace_ says of _Pindar_, . .. _numeris_que fertur LEGE _solutis_. [_Odes_, iv. 2. 11. ]

Sir Joshua Reynolds, who agrees with me entirely as to Mr. Burke's. Fertility of wit, said, that this was 'dignifying a pun. ' He alsoobserved, that he has often heard Burke say, in the course of anevening, ten good things, each of which would have served a noted wit(whom he named) to live upon for a twelvemonth. I find, since the formeredition, that some persons have objected to the instances which I havegiven of Mr. Burke's wit, as not doing justice to my very ingeniousfriend; the specimens produced having, it is alleged, more of conceitthan real wit, and being merely sportive sallies of the moment, notjustifying the encomium which, they think with me, he undoubtedlymerits. I was well aware, how hazardous it was to exhibit particularinstances of wit, which is of so airy and spiritual a nature as often toelude the hand that attempts to grasp it. The excellence and efficacy ofa _bon mot_ depend frequently so much on the occasion on which it isspoken, on the particular manner of the speaker, on the person to whomit is applied, the previous introduction, and a thousand minuteparticulars which cannot be easily enumerated, that it is alwaysdangerous to detach a witty saying from the group to which it belongs, and to set it before the eye of the spectator, divested of thoseconcomitant circumstances, which gave it animation, mellowness, andrelief. I ventured, however, at all hazards, to put down the firstinstances that occurred to me, as proofs of Mr. Burke's lively andbrilliant fancy; but am very sensible that his numerous friends couldhave suggested many of a superior quality. Indeed, the being in companywith him, for a single day, is sufficient to shew that what I haveasserted is well founded; and it was only necessary to have appealed toall who know him intimately, for a complete refutation of the heterodoxopinion entertained by Dr. Johnson on this subject. _He_ allowed Mr. Burke, as the reader will find hereafter [_post_. Sept. 15 and 30], to bea man of consummate and unrivalled abilities in every light except thatnow under consideration; and the variety of his allusions, and splendourof his imagery, have made such an impression on _all the rest_ of theworld, that superficial observers are apt to overlook his other merits, and to suppose that _wit_ is his chief and most prominent excellence;when in fact it is only one of the many talents that he possesses, whichare so various and extraordinary, that it is very difficult to ascertainprecisely the rank and value of each. BOSWELL. For Malone's share inthis note, see _ante_, iii. 323, note 2. For Burke's Economical ReformBill, which was brought in on Feb. 11, 1780, see Prior's _Burke_, p. 184. For _Blue Stocking_, see _ante_, iv. 108. The 'tall friend of ours' wasMr. Langton (_ante_, i. 336). For Franklin's definition, see _ante_, iii. 245, and for Burke's classical pun, _ib_. P. 323. For Burke's'talent of wit, ' see _ante_, i. 453, iii. 323, iv. May 15, 1784, and_post_, Sept. 15. 

[80] See _ante_, iv. 27, where Burke said:--'It is enough for me to haverung the bell to him [Johnson]. '

[81] See _ante_, vol. Iv, May 15, 1784. 

[82] Prior (_Life of Burke_, pp. 31, 36) says that 'from the first hisdestination was the Bar. ' His name was entered at the Middle Temple in1747, but he was never called. Why he gave up the profession hisbiographer cannot tell. 

[83] See _ante_, ii. 437, note 2. 

[84] See _ante_, i. 78, note 2. 

[85] That cannot be said now, after the flagrant part which Mr. _JohnWesley_ took against our American brethren, when, in his own name, hethrew amongst his enthusiastick flock, the very individual combustiblesof Dr. _Johnson's Taxation no Tyranny_; and after the intolerant spiritwhich he manifested against our fellow-christians of the Roman CatholickCommunion, for which that able champion, Father _O'Leary_, has given himso hearty a drubbing. But I should think myself very unworthy, if I didnot at the same time acknowledge Mr. John Wesley's merit, as a veteran'Soldier of Jesus Christ' [2 _Timothy_, ii. 3], who has, I do believe, 'turned many from darkness into light, and from the power of _Satan_ tothe living GOD' [_Acts_, xxvi. 18]. BOSWELL. Wesley wrote on Nov. 11, 1775 (_Journal_, iv. 56), 'I made some additions to the _Calm Address toour American Colonies_. Need any one ask from what motive this waswrote? Let him look round; England is in a flame! a flame of malice andrage against the King, and almost all that are in authority under him. Ilabour to put out this flame. ' He wrote a few days later:--'As toreviewers, news-writers, _London Magazines_, and all that kind ofgentlemen, they behave just as I expected they would. And let them lickup Mr. Toplady's spittle still; a champion worthy of their cause. '_Journal_, p. 58. In a letter published in Jan. 1780, he said:--'Iinsist upon it, that no government, not Roman Catholic, ought totolerate men of the Roman Catholic persuasion. They ought not to betolerated by any government, Protestant, Mahometan, or Pagan. ' To thisthe Rev. Arthur O'Leary replied with great wit and force, in a pamphletentitled, _Remarks on the Rev. Mr. Wesley's Letters_. Dublin, 1780. Wesley (_Journal_, iv. 365) mentions meeting O'Leary, and says:--'Heseems not to be wanting either in sense or learning. ' Johnson wrote toWesley on Feb. 6, 1776 (Croker's _Boswell_, p. 475), 'I have thanks toreturn you for the addition of your important suffrage to my argument onthe American question. To have gained such a mind as yours may justlyconfirm me in my own opinion. What effect my paper has upon the public, I know not; but I have no reason to be discouraged. The lecturer wassurely in the right, who, though he saw his audience slinking away, refused to quit the chair while Plato staid. '

[86] 'Powerful preacher as he was, ' writes Southey, 'he had neitherstrength nor acuteness of intellect, and his written compositions arenearly worthless. ' Southey's _Wesley, _ i. 323. See _ante_, ii. 79. 

[87] Mr. Burke. See _ante_, ii. 222, 285, note 3, and iii. 45. 

[88] If due attention were paid to this observation, there would be morevirtue, even in politicks. What Dr. Johnson justly condemned, has, I amsorry to say, greatly increased in the present reign. At the distance offour years from this conversation, 21st February, 1777, My LordArchbishop of York, in his 'sermon before the Society for thePropagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts, ' thus indignantly describesthe then state of parties:--'Parties once had a _principle_ belongingto them, absurd perhaps, and indefensible, but still carrying a notionof _duty_, by which honest minds might easily be caught. 'But there arenow _combinations_ of _individuals_, who, instead of being the sons andservants of the community, make a league for advancing their _privateinterests_. It is their business to hold high the notion of _politicalhonour_. I believe and trust, it is not injurious to say, that such abond is no better than that by which the lowest and wickedestcombinations are held together; and that it denotes the last stage ofpolitical depravity. ' To find a thought, which just shewed itself to usfrom the mind of _Johnson_, thus appearing again at such a distance oftime, and without any communication between them, enlarged to fullgrowth in the mind of _Markham_, is a curious object of philosophicalcontemplation. --That two such great and luminous minds should have beenso dark in one corner, --that _they_ should have held it to be 'Wickedrebellion in the British subjects established in America, to resist theabject condition of holding all their property at the mercy of Britishsubjects remaining at home, while their allegiance to our common Lordthe King was to be preserved inviolate, --is a striking proof to me, either that 'He who sitteth in Heaven' [_Psalms_, ii. 4] scorns theloftiness of human pride, --or that the evil spirit, whose personalexistence I strongly believe, and even in this age am confirmed in thatbelief by a _Fell_, nay, by a _Hurd_, has more power than some choose toallow. BOSWELL. Horace Walpole writing on June 10, 1778, after censuringRobertson for sneering at Las Casas, continues:--'Could ArchbishopMarkham in a Sermon before the Society for the Propagation of the Gospelby fire and sword paint charity in more contemptuous terms? It is aChristian age. ' _Letters_, vii. 81. It was Archbishop Markham to whomJohnson made the famous bow; _ante_, vol. Iv, just before April 10, 1783. John Fell published in 1779 _Demoniacs; an Enquiry into theHeathen and Scripture Doctrine of Daemons_. For Hurd see _ante_, underJune 9, 1784. 

[89] See Forster's _Essays_, ii 304-9. Mr. Forster often quotes Cooke inhis _Life of Goldsmith_. He describes him (i. 58) as 'a _young_ Irishlaw student who had chambers near Goldsmith in the temple. ' Goldsmithdid not reside in the temple till 1763 (_ib_. P. 336), and Cooke was oldenough to have published his _Hesiod_ in 1728, and to have found a placein _The Dunciad_ (ii. 138). See Elwin and Courthope's _Pope_, x. 212, for his correspondence with Pope. 

[90] It may be observed, that I sometimes call my great friend, _Mr_. Johnson, sometimes _Dr_. Johnson: though he had at this time a doctor'sdegree from Trinity College, Dublin. The University of Oxford afterwardsconferred it upon him by a diploma, in very honourable terms. It wassome time before I could bring myself to call him Doctor; but, as he hasbeen long known by that title, I shall give it to him in the rest ofthis Journal. BOSWELL. See _ante_, i. 488, note 3, and ii. 332, note I. 

[91] In _The Idler_, No. Viii, Johnson has the following fling attragedians. He had mentioned the terror struck into our soldiers by theIndian war-cry, and he continues:--'I am of opinion that by a propermixture of asses, bulls, turkeys, geese, and tragedians a noise might beprocured equally horrid with the war-cry. ' See _ante_, ii. 92. 

[92] _Tom Jones_, Bk. Xvi. Chap. 5. Mme. Necker in a letter to Garricksaid:--'Nos acteurs se métamorphosent assez bien, mais Monsieur Garrickfait autre chose; il nous métamorphose tous dans le caractère qu'il arevêtu; _nous sommes remplis de terreur avec Hamlet_, ' &c. _GarrickCorres_. Ii. 627. 

[93] See _ante_, i. 432, and ii. 278. 

[94] See _ante_, ii. 11. 

[95] Euphan M'Cullan (not Eupham Macallan) is mentioned in Dalrymple's[Lord Hailes] _Remarks on the History of Scotland_, p. 254. Shemaintained that 'she seldom ever prayed but she got a positive answer. 'The minister of her parish was ill. 'She prayed, and got an answer thatfor a year's time he should be spared; and after the year's end he fellsick again. ' 'I went, ' said she, 'to pray yet again for his life; butthe Lord left me not an mouse's likeness (a proverbial expression, meaning _to reprove with such severity that the person reproved shrinksand becomes abashed_), and said, 'Beast that thou art! shall I keep myservant in pain for thy sake?' And when I said, 'Lord, what then shall Ido?' He answered me, 'He was but a reed that I spoke through, and I willprovide another reed to speak through. ' Dalrymple points out that it wasa belief in these 'answers from the Lord' that led John Balfour and hiscomrades to murder Archbishop Sharp. 

[96] R. Chambers, in his _Traditions_, speaking of the time of Johnson'svisit, says (i. 21) on the authority of 'an ancient native of Edinburghthat people all knew each other by sight. The appearance of a new faceupon the streets was at once remarked, and numbers busied themselves infinding out who and what the stranger was. '

[97] It was on this visit to the parliament-house, that Mr. HenryErskine (brother of Lord Erskine), after being presented to Dr. Johnsonby Mr. Boswell, and having made his bow, slipped a shilling intoBoswell's hand, whispering that it was for the sight of his _bear_. WALTER SCOTT. 

[98] This is one of the Libraries entitled to a copy of every new workpublished in the United Kingdom. Hume held the office of librarian at asalary of £40 a year from 1752 to 1757. J. H. Burton's _Hume_, i. 367, 373. 

[99] The Edinburgh oyster-cellars were called _laigh shops_. Chambers's_Traditions_, ii. 268. 

[100] This word is commonly used to signify _sullenly, gloomily_; and inthat sense alone it appears in Dr. Johnson's _Dictionary_. I suppose hemeant by it, 'with an _obstinate resolution_, similar to that of asullen man. ' BOSWELL. Southey wrote to Scott:--'Give me more lays, andcorrect them at leisure for after editions--not laboriously, but whenthe amendment comes naturally and unsought for. It never does to sitdown doggedly to _correct_. ' Southey's _Life_, iii. 126. See _ante_, i. 332, for the influence of seasons on composition. 

[101] Boswell, _post_, Nov. 1, writes of '_old Scottish_ enthusiasm, 'again italicising these two words. 

[102] See _ante_, iii. 410. 

[103] See _ante_, i. 354. 

[104] Cockburn (_Life of Jeffrey_, i. 182) writing of the beginning ofthis century, describes how the General Assembly 'met in those days, asit had done for about 200 years, in one of the aisles of the then greyand venerable cathedral of St. Giles. That plain, square, galleriedapartment was admirably suited for the purpose; and it was moreinteresting from the men who had acted in it, and the scenes it hadwitnessed, than any other existing room in Scotland. It had beheld thebest exertions of the best men in the kingdom ever since the year 1640. Yet was it obliterated in the year 1830 with as much indifference as ifit had been of yesterday; and for no reason except a childish desire fornew walls and change. '

[105] I have hitherto called him Dr. William Robertson, to distinguishhim from Dr. James Robertson, who is soon to make his appearance. But_Principal_, from his being the head of our college, is his usualdesignation, and is shorter: so I shall use it hereafter. BOSWELL. 

[106] The dirtiness of the Scotch churches is taken off in _The Tale ofa Tub_, sect. Xi:--'Neither was it possible for the united rhetoric ofmankind to prevail with Jack to make himself clean again. ' In _HumphryClinker_ (Letter of Aug. 8) we are told that 'the good people ofEdinburgh no longer think dirt and cobwebs essential to the house ofGod. ' Bishop Horne (_Essays and Thoughts_, p. 45) mentioning 'the maximlaid down in a neighbouring kingdom that _cleanliness is not essentialto devotion_, ' continues, 'A Church of England lady once offered toattend the Kirk there, if she might be permitted to have the pew sweptand lined. "The pew swept and lined!" said Mess John's wife, "my husbandwould think it downright popery. "' In 1787 he wrote that there arecountry churches in England 'where, perhaps, three or four noblefamilies attend divine service, which are suffered year after year to bein a condition in which not one of those families would suffer the worstroom in their house to continue for a week. ' _Essays and Thoughts_, p. 271. 

[107] 'Hume recommended Fergusson's friends to prevail on him tosuppress the work as likely to be injurious to his reputation. ' When ithad great success he said that his opinion remained the same. He hadheard Helvetius and Saurin say that they had told Montesquieu that heought to suppress his _Esprit des Lois_. They were still convinced thattheir advice was right. J. H. Burton's _Hume_, ii. 385-7. It was atFergusson's house thirteen years later that Walter Scott, a lad offifteen, saw Burns shed tears over a print by Bunbury of a soldier lyingdead on the snow. Lockhart's _Scott_, i. 185. See _ib_. Vii. 61, for ananecdote of Fergusson. 

[108] They were pulled down in 1789. Murray's _Handbook for Scotland_, ed. 1883, p. 60. 

[109] See _ante_, ii. 128. 

[110] See _ante_, iii. 357, and _post_, Johnson's _Tour into Wales_, Aug. 1, 1774. 

[111]

 'There where no statesman buys, no bishop sells; A virtuous palace where no monarch dwells. '

_An Epitaph_. Hamilton's Poems, ed. 1760, p. 260. See _ante_, iii. 150. 

[112] The stanza from which he took this line is, 'But then rose up all Edinburgh, They rose up by thousands three; A cowardly Scot came John behind, And ran him through the fair body!'

[113] Johnson described her as 'an old lady, who talks broad Scotch witha paralytick voice, and is scarce understood by her own countrymen. '_Piozzi Letters_, i. 109. Lord Shelburne says that 'her husband, the lastDuke, could neither read nor write without great difficulty. 'Fitzmaurice's _Shelburne_, i. 11. Dr. A. Carlyle (_Auto_. P. 107) saysthat in 1745 he heard her say:--'I have sworn to be Duchess of Douglasor never to mount a marriage bed. ' She married the Duke in 1758. R. Chambers wrote in 1825:--'It is a curious fact that sixty years agothere was scarcely a close in the High Street but what had as many nobleinhabitants as are at this day to be found in the whole town. '_Traditions of Edinburgh_, ed. 1825, i. 72. 

[114] See ante, ii. 154, note 1. 

[115] Lord Chesterfield wrote from London on Dec. 16, 1760 (_Misc. Works_, iv. 291):--'I question whether you will ever see my friendGeorge Faulkner in Ireland again, he is become so great and considerablea man here in the republic of letters; he has a constant table open toall men of wit and learning, and to those sometimes who have neither. Ihave been able to get him to dine with me but twice. '

[116] Dr. Johnson one evening roundly asserted in his rough way that"Swift was a shallow fellow; a very shallow fellow. " Mr. Sheridanreplied warmly but modestly, "Pardon me, Sir, for differing from you, but I always thought the Dean a very clear writer. " Johnson vociferated"All shallows are clear. "' _Town and Country Mag_. Sept. 1769. _Notesand Queries_, Jan. 1855, p. 62. See _ante_, iv. 61. 

[117] '_The Memoirs of Scriblerus_, ' says Johnson (_Works_, viii. 298), 'seem to be the production of Arbuthnot, with a few touches, perhaps, byPope. ' Swift also was concerned in it. Johnson goes on to shew why 'thisjoint production of three great writers has never obtained any noticefrom mankind. ' Arbuthnot was the author of _John Bull_. Swift wrote toStella on May 10, 1712:--'I hope you read _John Bull_. It was a Scotchgentleman, a friend of mine, that wrote it; but they put it upon me. 'See _ante_, i. 425. 

[118] See _ante_, i. 452, and ii. 318. 

[119] Horace, _Satires_. I. Iii. 19. 

[120] See _ante_, i. 396, and ii. 298. 

[121] See _ante_, ii. 74. 

[122] 'At supper there was such conflux of company that I could scarcelysupport the tumult. I have never been well in the whole journey, and amvery easily disordered. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 109. 

[123] See _ante_, iv. 17, and under June 9, 1784. 

[124] Johnson was thinking of Sir Matthew Hale for one. 

[125] 'It is supposed that there were no executions for witchcraft inEngland subsequently to the year 1682; but the Statute of I James I, c. 12, so minute in its enactments against witches, was not repealed tillthe 9 Geo. II, c. 5. In Scotland, so late as the year 1722, when thelocal jurisdictions were still hereditary [see _post_, Sept. 11], thesheriff of Sutherlandshire condemned a witch to death. ' _Penny Cyclo_. Xxvii. 490. In the Bishopric of Wurtzburg, so late as 1750, a nun wasburnt for witchcraft: 'Cette malheureuse fille soutint opiniâtrémentqu'elle était sorcière. .. . Elle était folle, ses juges furent imbécilleset barbares. ' Voltaire's _Works_, ed. 1819, xxvi. 285. 

[126] A Dane wrote to Garrick from Copenhagen on Dec. 23, 1769:--'Thereis some of our retinue who, not understanding a word of your language, mimic your gesture and your action: so great an impression did it makeupon their minds, the scene of daggers has been repeated in dumb show ahundred times, and those most ignorant of the English idiom can cry outwith rapture, "A horse, a horse; my kingdom for a horse!"' _GarrickCorres. _ i. 375. See _ante_, vol. Iv. Under Sept. 30, 1783

[127] See _ante_, i. 466. 

[128] Johnson, in the preface to his _Dictionary_ (_Works_, v. 43), after stating what he had at first planned, continues:--'But these werethe dreams of a poet doomed at last to wake a lexicographer. ' See_ante_, i. 189, note 2, and May I, 1783. 

[129] See his letter on this subject in the APPENDIX. BOSWELL. He hadbeen tutor to Hume's nephew and was one of Hume's friends. J. H Burton's_Hume_, ii. 399. 

[130] By the Baron d'Holbach. Voltaire (_Works_, xii. 212) describesthis book as 'Une _Philippique_ contre Dieu. ' He wrote to M. Saurin:--'Ce maudit livre du Système de la Nature est un péché contrenature. Je vous sais bien bon gré de réprouver l'athéisme et d'aimer cevers: "Si Dieu n'existait pas, il faudrait l'inventer. " Je suis rarementcontent de mes vers, mais j'avoue que j'ai une tendresse de père pourcelui-là. ' _Ib_. V. 418. 

[131] One of Garrick's correspondents speaks of 'the sneer of one ofJohnson's ghastly smiles. ' _Garrick Corres_. I. 334. 'Ghastly smile' isborrowed from _Paradise Lost_, ii. 846. 

[132] See _ante_, iii. 212. In Chambers's _Traditions of Edinburgh_, ii. 158, is given a comic poem entitled _The Court of Session Garland_, written by Boswell, with the help, it was said, of Maclaurin. 

[133] Dr. John Gregory, Professor of Medicine in the University ofEdinburgh, died on Feb. 10 of this year. It was his eldest son James whomet Johnson. 'This learned family has given sixteen professors toBritish Universities. ' Chalmers's _Biog. Dict. _ xvi. 289. 

[134] See _ante_, i. 257, note 3. 

[135] See _ante_, i. 228. 

[136] See _ante_, ii. 196. 

[137] In the original, _cursed the form that_, &c. Johnson's _Works_, i. 21. 

[138] Mistress of Edward IV. BOSWELL. 

[139] Mistress of Louis XIV. BOSWELL. Voltaire, speaking of the King andMlle. De La Vallière (not Valiere, as Lord Hailes wrote her name), says:--'Il goûta avec elle le bonheur rare d'être aimé uniquement pourlui-même. ' _Siècle de Louis XIV_, ch. 25. He describes her penitence ina fine passage. _Ib. _ ch. 26. 

[140] Malone, in a note on the _Life of Boswell_ under 1749, says that'this lady was not the celebrated Lady Vane, whose memoirs were given tothe public by Dr. Smollett [in _Peregrine Pickle_], but Anne Vane, whowas mistress to Frederick Prince of Wales, and died in 1736, not longbefore Johnson settled in London. ' She is mentioned in a note to HoraceWalpole's _Letters_, 1. Cxxxvi. 

[141] Catharine Sedley, the mistress of James II, is described byMacaulay, _Hist of Eng. _ ed. 1874, ii. 323. 

[142] Dr. A Carlyle (_Auto. _ p. 114) tells how in 1745 he found'Professor Maclaurin busy on the walls on the south side of Edinburgh, endeavoring to make them more defensible [against the Pretender]. He hadeven erected some small cannon. ' See _ante_, iii, 15, for a ridiculousstory told of him by Goldsmith. 

[143]

 'Crudelis ubiqueLuctus, ubique pavor, et plurima mortis imago:' 'grim grief on every side, And fear on every side there is, and many-faced is death. '

Morris, Virgil _Aeneids_, ii. 368. 

[144] Mr. Maclaurin's epitaph, as engraved on a marble tomb-stone, in theGrey-Friars church-yard, Edinburgh:--

 Infra situs est COLIN MACLAURIN, Mathes. Olim in Acad. Edin. Prof. Electus ipso Newtono suadente. H. L. P. F. Non ut nomini paterno consulat, Nam tali auxilio nil eget; Sed ut in hoc infelici campo, Ubi luctus regnant et pavor, Mortalibus prorsus non absit solatium; Hujus enim scripta evolve, Mentemque tantarum rerum capacem Corpori caduco superstitem crede. 

BOSWELL. 

[145] See _ante_, i. 437, and _post_, p. 72. 

[146]

 'What is't to us, if taxes rise or fall, Thanks to our fortune we pay none at all. 

 No statesman e'er will find it worth his pains To tax our labours and excise our brains. Burthens like these vile earthly buildings bear, No tribute's laid on _Castles_ in the _Air_'

Churchill's _Poems, Night, _ ed. 1766, i. 89. 

[147] Pitt, in 1784, laid a tax of ten shillings a year on every horse'kept for the saddle, or to be put in carriages used solely forpleasure. '_Parl. Hist. _ xxiv. 1028. 

[148] In 1763 he published the following description of himself in his_Correspondence with Erskine_, ed. 1879, p. 36. 'The author of the _Odeto Tragedy_ is a most excellent man; he is of an ancient family in thewest of Scotland, upon which he values himself not a little. At hisnativity there appeared omens of his future greatness. His parts arebright; and his education has been good. He has travelled inpost-chaises miles without number. He is fond of seeing much of theworld. He eats of every good dish, especially apple-pie. He drinks oldhock. He has a very fine temper. He is somewhat of an humorist, and alittle tinctured with pride. He has a good manly countenance, and heowns himself to be amorous. He has infinite vivacity, yet is observed attimes to have a melancholy cast. He is rather fat than lean, rathershort than tall, rather young than old. ' He is oddly enough described inArighi's _Histoire de Pascal Paoli_, i. 231, 'En traversant laMediterranée sur de frêles navires pour venir s'asseoir au foyer de lanationalité Corse, des hommes _graves_ tels que Boswel et Volneyobéissaient sans doute à un sentiment bien plus élevé qu'au besoinvulgaire d'une puérile curiosité'

[149] See _ante_, i. 400. 

[150] For _respectable_, see _ante_, iii. 241, note 2. 

[151] Boswell, in the last of his _Hypochondriacks_, says:--'I perceivethat my essays are not so lively as I expected they would be, but theyare more learned. And I beg I may not be charged with excessivearrogance when I venture to say that they contain a considerable portionof original thinking. '_London Mag_. 1783, p. 124. 

[152] Burns, in _The Author's Earnest Cry and Prayer_, says:--

 'But could I like Montgomeries fight, Or gab like Boswell. '

Boswell and Burns were born within a few miles of each other, Boswellbeing the elder by eighteen years. 

[153] 'For pointed satire I would Buckhurst choose, The best good man, with the worst-natured muse. '

Rochester's _Imitations of Horace, Sat_. I. 10. 

[154] Johnson's _Works_, ix. I. See _ante_, ii. 278, where he wrote toBoswell:--'I have endeavoured to do you some justice in the firstparagraph [of the _Journey_]. ' The day before he started for Scotland hewrote to Dr. Taylor:--'Mr. Boswell, an active lively fellow, is toconduct me round the country. ' _Notes and Queries_, 6th S. V. 422. 'Hisinquisitiveness, ' he said, 'is seconded by great activity. ' _Works_, ix. 8. On Oct. 7 he wrote from Skye:--'Boswell will praise my resolution andperseverance; and I shall in return celebrate his good humour andperpetual cheerfulness. .. . It is very convenient to travel with him, forthere is no house where he is not received with kindness and respect. '_Piozzi Letters_, i. 198. He told Mrs. Knowles that 'Boswell was thebest travelling companion in the world. ' _Ante_, iii. 294. Mr. Crokersays (_Croker's Boswell_, p. 280):--'I asked Lord Stowell in whatestimation he found Boswell amongst his countrymen. "Generally liked asa good-natured jolly fellow, " replied his lordship. "But was herespected?" "Well, I think he had about the proportion of respect thatyou might guess would be shown to a jolly fellow. " His lordship thoughtthere was more regard than respect. ' _Hebrides, _ p. 40. 

[155] See _ante_, ii. 103, 411. 

[156] There were two quarto volumes of this Diary; perhaps one of themJohnson took with him. Boswell had 'accidently seen them and had read agreat deal in them, ' as he owned to Johnson (_ante_, under Dec. 9, 1784), and moreover had, it should seem, copied from them (_ante_, i. 251). The 'few fragments' he had received from Francis Barber(_ante_, i. 27). 

[157] In the original 'how much we lost _at separation_' Johnson's_Works_, ix. I. Mr. William Nairne was afterwards a Judge of the Courtof Sessions by the title of Lord Dunsinnan. Sir Walter Scott wrote ofhim:--'He was a man of scrupulous integrity. When sheriff depute ofPerthshire, he found upon reflection, that he had decided a poor man'scase erroneously; and as the only remedy, supplied the litigantprivately with money to carry the suit to the supreme court, where hisjudgment was reversed. ' Croker's _Boswell_, p. 280. 

[158]

 'Non illic urbes, non tu mirabere silvas: Una est injusti caerula forma maris. 

_Ovid. Amor. _ L. II. El. Xi. 

 Nor groves nor towns the ruthless ocean shows; Unvaried still its azure surface flows. 

BOSWELL. 

[159] See _ante_. Ii. 229. 

[160] My friend, General Campbell, Governour of Madras, tells me, thatthey made _speldings_ in the East-Indies, particularly at Bombay, wherethey call them _Bambaloes_. BOSWELL. Johnson had told Boswell that hewas 'the most _unscottified_ of his countrymen. '_Ante_, ii. 242. 

[161] 'A small island, which neither of my companions had ever visited, though, lying within their view, it had all their lives solicited theirnotice. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 1. 

[162] 'The remains of the fort have been removed to assist inconstructing a very useful lighthouse upon the island. WALTER SCOTT. 

[163]

 'Unhappy queen! Unwilling I forsook your friendly state. '

Dryden. [_Aeneid_, vi. 460. ] BOSWELL. 

[164] Dr. A. Carlyle (_Auto_. P. 331) says of his journey to London in1758:--'It is to be noted that we could get no four-wheeled chaisetill we came to Durham, those conveyances being then only in theirinfancy. Turnpike roads were only in their commencement in the north. ''It affords a southern stranger, ' wrote Johnson (_Works_ ix. 2), 'a newkind of pleasure to travel so commodiously without the interruption oftoll-gates. '

[165] See _ante_, iii. 265, for Lord Shelburne's statement on thissubject. 

[166] See _ante_, ii. 339, and iii. 205, note 4. 

[167] See _ante_, iii. 46. 

[168] The passage quoted by Dr. Johnson is in the _Character of theAssembly-man_; Butler's _Remains_, p. 232, edit. 1754:--'He preaches, indeed, both in season and out of season; for he rails at Popery, whenthe land is almost lost in Presbytery; and would cry Fire! Fire! inNoah's flood. '

There is reason to believe that this piece was not written by Butler, but by Sir John Birkenhead; for Wood, in his _Athenae Oxonienses_, vol. Ii. P. 640, enumerates it among that gentleman's works, and gives thefollowing account of it:

_'The Assembly-man_ (or the character of an assembly-man) written 1647, _Lond. _ 1662-3, in three sheets in qu. The copy of it was taken from theauthor by those who said they could not rob, because all was theirs; soexcised what they liked not; and so mangled and reformed it, that it wasno character of an Assembly, but of themselves. At length, after it hadslept several years, the author published it to avoid false copies. Itis also reprinted in a book entit. _Wit and Loyalty revived_, in acollection of some smart satyrs in verse and prose on the late times. _Lond. _ 1682, qu. Said to be written by Abr. Cowley, Sir JohnBirkenhead, and Hudibras, alias Sam. Butler. '--For this information I amindebted to Mr. Reed, of Staple Inn. BOSWELL. This tract is in the_Harleian Misc_. , ed. 1810, vi. 57. Mr. Reed's quotation differssomewhat from it. 

[169] 'When a Scotchman was talking against Warburton, Johnson said hehad more literature than had been imported from Scotland since the daysof Buchanan. Upon the other's mentioning other eminent writers of theScotch; "These will not do, " said Johnson, "Let us have some more ofyour northern lights; these are mere farthing candles. "' Johnson's_Works_ (1787), xi. 208. Dr. T. Campbell records (_Diary_, p. 61) thatat the dinner at Mr. Dilly's, described _ante_, ii. 338, 'Dr. Johnsoncompared England and Scotland to two lions, the one saturated with hisbelly full, and the other prowling for prey. He defied any one toproduce a classical book written in Scotland since Buchanan. Robertson, he said, used pretty words, but he liked Hume better; and neither ofthem would he allow to be more to Clarendon than a rat to a cat. "AScotch surgeon may have more learning than an English one, and allScotland could not muster learning enough for Lowth's _Prelections_. "'See _ante_, ii. 363, and March 30, 1783. 

[170] The poem is entitled _Gualterus Danistonus ad Amicos_. Itbegins:--

 'Dum studeo fungi fallentis munere vitae'

Which Prior imitates:--

 'Studious the busy moments to deceive. '

Sir Walter Scott thought that the poem praised by Johnson was 'morelikely the fine epitaph on John, Viscount of Dundee, translated byDryden, and beginning _Ultime Scotoruml_' Archibald Pitcairne, M. D. , wasborn in 1652, and died in 1713. 

[171] My Journal, from this day inclusive, was read by Dr. Johnson. BOSWELL. It was read by Johnson up to the second paragraph of Oct. 26. Boswell, it should seem, once at least shewed Johnson a part of theJournal from which he formed his _Life_. See _ante_, iii. 260, where hesays:--'It delighted him on a review to find that his conversationteemed with point and imagery. '

[172] See _ante_, ii. 20, note 4. 

[173] Goldsmith, in his _Present State of Polite Learning_, published in1759, says, (ch. X):--'When the great Somers was at the helm, patronagewas fashionable among our nobility . .. Since the days of a certain primeminister of inglorious memory [Sir Robert Walpole] the learned have beenkept pretty much at a distance. . .. The author, when unpatronised by theGreat, has naturally recourse to the bookseller. There cannot be perhapsimagined a combination more prejudicial to taste than this. It is theinterest of the one to allow as little for writing, and of the other towrite as much as possible; accordingly tedious compilations andperiodical magazines are the result of their joint endeavours. '

[174] In the first number of _The Rambler_, Johnson shews how attractiveto an author is the form of publication which he was himself thenadopting:--'It heightens his alacrity to think in how many places heshall have what he is now writing read with ecstacies to-morrow. '

[175] Yet he said 'the inhabitants of Lichfield were the most sober, decent people in England. ' _Ante_, ii. 463. 

[176] At the beginning of the eighteenth century, says Goldsmith, 'smoking in the rooms [at Bath] was permitted. ' When Nash became King ofBath he put it down. Goldsmith's _Works_, ed. 1854, iv. 51. 'Johnson, 'says Boswell (_ante_, i. 317), 'had a high opinion of the sedativeinfluence of smoking. '

[177] Dr. Johnson used to practise this himself very much. BOSWELL. 

[178] In _The Tatler_, for May 24, 1709, we are told that 'ruralesquires wear shirts half a week, and are drunk twice a day. ' In theyear 1720, Fenton urged Gay 'to sell as much South Sea stock as wouldpurchase a hundred a year for life, "which will make you sure of a cleanshirt and a shoulder of mutton every day. "' Johnson's _Works_, viii. 65. In _Tristram Shandy_, ii. Ch. 4, published in 1759, we read:--'It was inthis year [about 1700] that my uncle began to break in upon the dailyregularity of a clean shirt. ' In _the Spiritual Quixote_, published in1773 (i. 51), Tugwell says to his master:--'Your Worship belike has beenused to shift you twice a week. ' Mrs. Piozzi (_Journey_, i. 105, date of1789) says that she heard in Milan 'a travelled gentleman telling hisauditors how all the men in London, _that were noble_, put on a cleanshirt every day. ' Johnson himself owned that he had 'no passion forclean linen. ' _Ante_, i. 397. 

[179] Scott, in _Old Mortality_, ed. 1860, ix. 352, says:--'It was auniversal custom in Scotland, that, when the family was at dinner, theouter-gate of the court-yard, if there was one, and if not, the door ofthe house itself, was always shut and locked. ' In a note on this hesays:--'The custom of keeping the door of a house or chateau lockedduring the time of dinner probably arose from the family being ancientlyassembled in the hall at that meal, and liable to surprise. '

[180] Johnson, writing of 'the chapel of the alienated college, 'says:--'I was always by some civil excuse hindered from entering it. '_Works_, ix. 4. 

[181] George Marline's _Reliquiae divi Andreae_ was published in 1797. 

[182] See _ante_, ii. 171, and iv. 75. 

[183] Mr. Chambers says that Knox was buried in a place which soon afterbecame, and ever since has been, a high-way; namely, the old church-yardof St. Giles in Edinburgh. Croker's _Boswell_, p. 283. 

[184] In _The Rambler_, No. 82, Johnson makes a virtuoso write:--'Ioften lamented that I was not one of that happy generation whodemolished the convents and monasteries, and broke windows by law. ' Hehad in 1754 'viewed with indignation the ruins of the Abbeys of Oseneyand Rewley near Oxford. ' Ante, i. 273. Smollett, in _Humphry Clinker_(Letrer of Aug. 8), describes St. Andrews as 'the skeleton of avenerable city. '

[185] 'Some talked of the right of society to the labour of individuals, and considered retirement as a desertion of duty. Others readily allowedthat there was a time when the claims of the publick were satisfied, andwhen a man might properly sequester himself to review his life andpurify his heart. ' _Rasselas_, ch. 22. 

[186] See _ante_, ii. 423. 

[187] See _ante_, iv. 5, note 2, and v. 27. 

[188] 'He that lives well in the world is better than he that lives wellin a monastery. But, perhaps, every one is not able to stem thetemptations of publick life, and, if he cannot conquer, he may properlyretreat. ' _Rasselas_, ch. 47. See _ante_, ii. 435. 

[189] 'A youthful passion for abstracted devotion should not beencouraged. ' _Ante_, ii. 10. The hermit in _Rasselas_ (ch. 21)says:--'The life of a solitary man will be certainly miserable, but notcertainly devout. ' In Johnson's _Works_ (1787), xi. 203, we read that'Johnson thought worse of the vices of retirement than of those ofsociety. ' Southey (_Life of Wesley_, i. 39) writes:--'Some time beforeJohn Wesley's return to the University, he had travelled many miles tosee what is called "a serious man. " This person said to him, "Sir, youwish to serve God and go to heaven. Remember, you cannot serve Himalone; you must therefore find companions or make them; the Bible knowsnothing of solitary religion. " Wesley never forgot these words. '

[190] [Erga neon, boulai de meson euchai de gerunton. _HesiodiFragmenta_, Lipsiae 1840, p. 371]

 Let youth in deeds, in counsel man engage; Prayer is the proper duty of old age. 

BOSWELL. 

[191] One 'sorrowful scene' Johnson was perhaps too late in the year tosee. Wesley, who visited St. Andrews on May 27, 1776, during thevacation, writes (_Journal_, iv. 75):--'What is left of St. Leonard'sCollege is only a heap of ruins. Two colleges remain. One of them has atolerable square; but all the windows are broke, like those of abrothel. We were informed the students do this before they leavethe college. '

[192] 'He was murdered by the ruffians of reformation, in the manner ofwhich Knox has given what he himself calls a merry narrative. ' Johnson's_Works_, ix. 3. In May 1546 the Cardinal had Wishart the Reformerkilled, and at the end of the same month he got killed himself. 

[193] Johnson says (_Works_, ix. 5):--'The doctor, by whom it wasshown, hoped to irritate or subdue my English vanity by telling me thatwe had no such repository of books in England. ' He wrote to Mrs. Thrale(_Piozzi Letters_, i. 113):--'For luminousness and elegance it may vieat least with the new edifice at Streatham. ' 'The new edifice' was, nodoubt, the library of which he took the touching farewell. _Ante_, iv. 158. 

[194] 'Sorrow is properly that state of the mind in which our desiresare fixed upon the past, without looking forward to the future, anincessant wish that something were otherwise than it has been, atormenting and harassing want of some enjoyment or possession which wehave lost, and which no endeavours can possibly regain. ' _The Rambler_, No. 47. He wrote to Mrs. Thrale on the death of her son:--'Do notindulge your sorrow; try to drive it away by either pleasure or pain;for, opposed to what you are feeling, many pains will become pleasures. '_Piozzi Letters_, i. 310. 

[195] See ante, ii. 151. 

[196] The Pembroke College grace was written by Camden. It was asfollows:--'Gratias tibi agimus, Deus misericors, pro acceptis a tuabonitate alimentis; enixe comprecantes ut serenissimum nostrum RegemGeorgium, totam regiam familiam, populumque tuum universum tuta in pacesemper custodies. '

[197] Sharp was murdered on May 3, 1679, in a moor near St. Andrews. Burnet's _History of his Own time_, ed. 1818, ii. 82, and Scott's _OldMortality_, ed, 1860, ix. 297, and x. 203. 

[198] 'One of its streets is now lost; and in those that remain there isthe silence and solitude of inactive indigence and gloomydepopulation. .. . St. Andrews seems to be a place eminently adapted tostudy and education. .. . The students, however, are represented as, atthis time, not exceeding a hundred. I saw no reason for imputing theirpaucity to the present professors. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 4. A student, he adds, of lower rank could get his board, lodging, and instruction forless than ten pounds for the seven months of residence. Stockdale says(_Memoirs_, i. 238) that 'in St. Andrews, in 1756, for a good bedroom, coals, and the attendance of a servant I paid one shilling a week. '

[199] _The Compleat Fencing-Master_, by Sir William Hope. London, 1691. 

[200] 'In the whole time of our stay we were gratified by every mode ofkindness, and entertained with all the elegance of lettered hospitality'Johnson's _Works_, ix. 3. 

[201] Dugald Stewart (_Life of Adam Smith_, p. 107) writes:--'Mr. Smithobserved to me not long before his death, that after all his practice inwriting he composed as slowly, and with as great difficulty as at first. He added at the same time that Mr. Hume had acquired so great a facilityin this respect, that the last volumes of his _History_ were printedfrom his original copy, with a few marginal corrections. ' See _ante_, iii. 437 and iv. 12. 

[202] Of these only twenty-five have been published: Johnson's _Works_, ix. 289-525. See _ante_, iii. 19, note 3, and 181. Johnson wrote onApril 20, 1778:--'I have made sermons, perhaps as readily as formerly. '_Pr. And Med. _ p. 170. 'I should think, ' said Lord Eldon, 'that noclergyman ever wrote as many sermons as Lord Stowell. I advised him toburn all his manuscripts of that kind. It is not fair to the clergymento have it known he wrote them. ' Twiss's _Eldon_, iii. 286. Johnson, wemay be sure, had no copy of any of his sermons. That none of them shouldbe known but those he wrote for Taylor is strange. 

[203] He made the same statement on June 3, 1781 (_ante_, iv. 127), adding, 'I should be glad to see it [the translation] now. ' This showsthat he was not speaking of his translation of _Lobo_, as Mr. Crokermaintains in a note on this passage. I believe he was speaking of histranslation of Courayer's _Life of Paul Sarpi. Ante_, i. 135. 

[204] 'As far as I am acquainted with modern architecture, I am aware ofno streets which, in simplicity and manliness of style, or generalbreadth and brightness of effect, equal those of the New Town ofEdinburgh. But, etc. ' Ruskin's _Lectures on Architecture andPainting_, p. 2. 

[205] Horace, _Odes_, ii. 14. 1. 

[206] John Abernethy, a Presbyterian divine. His works in 7 vols. 8vo. Were published in 1740-51. 

[207] Leechman was principal of Glasgow University (_post_, Oct. 29). Onhis appointment to the Chair of Theology he had been prosecuted forheresy for having, in his _Sermon on Prayer_, omitted to state theobligation to pray in the name of Christ. Dr. A. Carlyle's _Auto_. P. 69. One of his sermons was placed in Hume's hands, apparently that theauthor might have his suggestions in preparing a second edition. Humesays:--'First the addressing of our virtuous withes and desires to theDeity, since the address has no influence on him, is only a kind ofrhetorical figure, in order to render these wishes more ardent andpassionate. This is Mr. Leechman's doctrine. Now the use of any figureof speech can never be a duty. Secondly, this figure, like most figuresof rhetoric, has an evident impropriety in it, for we can make use of noexpression, or even thought, in prayers and entreaties, which does notimply that these prayers have an influence. Thirdly, this figure is verydangerous, and leads directly, and even unavoidably, to impiety andblasphemy, ' etc. J. H. Burton's _Hume_, i. 161. 

[208] Nichols (_Lit. Anec. _ ii. 555) records:--'During the whole of myintimacy with Dr. Johnson he rarely permitted me to depart without somesententious advice. .. . His words at parting were, "Take care of youreternal salvation. Remember to observe the Sabbath. Let it never be aday of business, nor wholly a day of dissipation. " He concluded hissolemn farewell with, "Let my words have their due weight. They are thewords of a dying man. " I never saw him more. '

[209] See _ante_, ii. 72. 

[210] 'From the bank of the Tweed to St. Andrews I had never seen asingle tree which I did not believe to have grown up far within thepresent century. .. . The variety of sun and shade is here utterlyunknown. .. . A tree might be a show in Scotland as a horse in Venice. At St. Andrews Mr. Boswell found only one, and recommended it to mynotice: I told him that it was rough and low, or looked as if I thoughtso. "This, " said he, "is nothing to another a few miles off. " I was stillless delighted to hear that another tree was not to be seen nearer. "Nay, " said a gentleman that stood by, "I know but of this and that treein the county. "' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 7 'In all this journey [so faras Slains Castle] I have not travelled an hundred yards between hedges, or seen five trees fit for the carpenter. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 120. See_ante_, ii. 301. 

[211] One of the Boswells of this branch was, in 1798, raised to thebench under the title of Lord Balmuto. It was his sister who wasBoswell's step-mother. Rogers's _Boswelliana, _ pp. 4, 82. 

[212] 'The colony of Leuchars is a vain imagination concerning a certainfleet of Danes wrecked on Sheughy Dikes. ' WALTER SCOTT. 'The fishingpeople on that coast have, however, all the appearance of being adifferent race from the inland population, and their dialect has manypeculiarities. ' LOCKHART. Croker's _Boswell_, p. 286. 

[213] 'I should scarcely have regretted my journey, had it affordednothing more than the sight of Aberbrothick. ' _Works_, ix. 9. 

[214] Johnson referred, I believe, to the last of Tillotson's _Sermonspreached upon Several Occasions_, ed. 1673, p. 316, where the preachersays:--'Supposing the _Scripture_ to be a Divine Revelation, and thatthese words (_This is My Body_), if they be in Scripture, mustnecessarily be taken in the strict and literal sense, I ask now, Whatgreater evidence any man has that these words (_This is My Body_) are inthe Bible than every man has that the bread is not changed in thesacrament? Nay, no man has so much, for we have only the evidence of_one_ sense that these words are in the Bible, but that the bread is notchanged we have the concurring testimony of _several_ of our senses. '

[215] This also is Tillotson's argument. 'There is no more certainfoundation for it [transubstantiation] in Scripture than for ourSaviour's being substantially changed into all those things which aresaid of him, as that he is a _rock_, a _vine_, a _door_, and a hundredother things. ' _Ib_. P. 313. 

[216] Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, exceptye eat the flesh of the son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no lifein you. See _St. John's Gospel_, chap. Vi. 53, and followingverses. BOSWELL. 

[217] See _ante_, p. 26. 

[218] See _ante_, i. 140, note 5, and v. 50. 

[219] Johnson, after saying that the inn was not so good as theyexpected, continues:--'But Mr. Boswell desired me to observe that theinnkeeper was an Englishman, and I then defended him as well as Icould. ' _Works_, ix. 9. 

[220] Johnson wrote to Mrs. Thrale on July 29, 1775 (_Piozzi Letters_, i. 292):--' I hope I shall quickly come to Streatham. .. And catch a littlegaiety among you. ' On this Baretti noted in his copy:--'_That_ he nevercaught. He thought and mused at Streatham as he did habituallyeverywhere, and seldom or never minded what was doing about him. ' On themargin of i. 315 Baretti has written:--'Johnson mused as much on the roadto Paris as he did in his garret in London as much at a French opera asin his room at Streatham. '

[221] _A Biographical Sketch of Dr. Samuel Johnson, _ by Thomas Tyers, Esq. See _ante_, iii. 308. 

[222] This description of Dr. Johnson appears to have been borrowed fromTom Jones, bk. Xi. Ch. Ii. 'The other who, like a ghost, only wanted tobe spoke to, readily answered, '&c. BOSWELL. 

[223] Perhaps he gave the 'shilling extraordinary' because he 'found achurch, ' as he says, 'clean to a degree unknown in any other part ofScotland. ' _Works_, ix. 9. 

[224] See _ante, _ iii. 22. 

[225] See _ante, _ May 9, 1784. Yet Johnson says (_Works_, ix. 10):--'Themagnetism of Lord Monboddo's conversation easily drew us out ofour way. '

[226] There were several points of similarity between them; learning, clearness of head, precision of speech, and a love of research on manysubjects which people in general do not investigate. Foote paid LordMonboddo the compliment of saying, that he was an Elzevir editionof Johnson. 

It has been shrewdly observed that Foote must have meant a diminutive, or _pocket_ edition. BOSWELL. The latter part of this note is not in thefirst edition. 

[227] Lord Elibank (_post_, Sept. 12) said that he would go five hundredmiles to see Dr. Johnson; but Johnson never said more than he meant. 

[228] _Works_, ix. 10. Of the road to Montrose he remarks:--'When I hadproceeded thus far I had opportunities of observing, what I had neverheard, that there were many beggars in Scotland. In Edinburgh the theproportion is, I think, not less than in London, and in the smallerplaces it is far greater than in English towns of the same extent. Itmust, however, be allowed that they are not importunate, nor clamorous. They solicit silently, or very modestly. ' _Ib. _ p. 9. See _post_, p. 116, note 2. 

[229] James Mill was born on April 6, 1773, at Northwater Bridge, parishof Logie Pert, Forfar. The bridge was 'on the great central line ofcommunication from the north of Scotland. The hamlet is right and leftof the high road. ' Bain's _Life of James Mill_, p. 1. Boswell andJohnson, on their road to Laurence Kirk, must have passed close to thecottage in which he was lying, a baby not five months old. 

[230] See _ante_, i. 211. 

[231] There is some account of him in Chambers's _Traditions ofEdinburgh_, ed. 1825, ii. 173, and in Dr. A. Carlyle's _Auto. _ p. 136. 

[232] G. Chalmers (_Life of Ruddiman_, p. 270) says:--'In May, 1790, LordGardenston declared that he still intended to erect a proper monument inhis village to the memory of the late learned and worthy Mr. Ruddiman. 'In 1792 Gardenston, in his _Miscellanies_, p. 257, attacked Ruddiman. 'It has of late become fashionable, ' he wrote, 'to speak of Ruddiman interms of the highest respect. ' The monument was never raised. 

[233] _A Letter to the Inhabitants of Laurence Kirk_, by F. Garden. 

[234] 'Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some haveentertained angels unawares. ' _Hebrews_ xiii, 2. 

[235] This, I find, is considered as obscure. I suppose Dr. Johnsonmeant, that I assiduously and earnestly recommended myself to some ofthe members, as in a canvass for an election into parliament. BOSWELL. See _ante_, ii, 235. 

[236] Goldsmith in _Retaliation_, a few months later, wrote of WilliamBurke:--'Would you ask for his merits? alas! he had none; What was goodwas spontaneous, his faults were his own. ' See _ante_, iii 362, note 2. 

[237] See _ante_, iii. 260, 390, 425. 

[238] Hannah More (_Memoirs_, i. 252) wrote of Monboddo in 1782:--'He issuch an extravagant adorer of the ancients, that he scarcely allows theEnglish language to be capable of any excellence, still less the French. He said we moderns are entirely degenerated. I asked in what? "Ineverything, " was his answer. He loves slavery upon principle. I askedhim how he could vindicate such an enormity. He owned it was becausePlutarch justified it. He is so wedded to system that, as LordBarrington said to me the other day, rather than sacrifice his favouriteopinion that men were born with tails, he would be contented to wearone himself. '

[239] Scott, in a note on _Guy Mannering_, ed. 1860, iv. 267, writes ofMonboddo:--'The conversation of the excellent old man, his high, gentleman-like, chivalrous spirit, the learning and wit with which hedefended his fanciful paradoxes, the kind and liberal spirit of hishospitality, must render these _noctes coenaeque_ dear to all who, likethe author (though then young), had the honour of sitting at his board. '

[240] Lord Cockburn, writing of the title that Jeffrey took when he wasraised to the Bench in 1834, said:--'The Scotch Judges are styled_Lords_; a title to which long usage has associated feelings ofreverence in the minds of the people, who could not now be soon made torespect or understand _Mr. Justice_. During its strongly feudalisedcondition, the landholders of Scotland, who were almost the sole judges, were really known only by the names of their estates. It was an insult, and in some parts of the country it is so still, to call a laird by hispersonal, instead of his territorial, title. But this assumption of twonames, one official and one personal, and being addressed by the one andsubscribing by the other, is wearing out, and will soon disappearentirely. ' Cockburn's _Jeffrey_, i. 365. See _post_, p. 111, note 1. 

[241] _Georgics_, i. 1. 

[242] Walter Scott used to tell an instance of Lord Monboddo'sagricultural enthusiasm, that returning home one night after an absence(I think) on circuit, he went out with a candle to look at a field ofturnips, then a novelty in Scotland. CROKER. 

[243] Johnson says the same in his _Life of John Philips_, and adds:--'This I was told by Miller, the great gardener and botanist, whoseexperience was, that "there were many books written on the same subjectin prose, which do not contain so much truth as that poem. "' _Works_, vii. 234. Miller is mentioned in Walpole's _Letters_, ii. 352:--'There isextreme taste in the park [Hagley]: the seats are not the best, butthere is not one absurdity. There is a ruined castle built by Miller, that would get him his freedom, even of Strawberry: it has the true rustof the Barons' Wars. '

[244] See _ante_, p. 27. 

[245] My note of this is much too short. _Brevis esse laboro, obscurusfio_. ['I strive to be concise, I prove obscure. ' FRANCIS. Horace, _ArsPoet_. L. 25. ] Yet as I have resolved that _the very Journal which Dr. Johnson read_, shall be presented to the publick, I will not expand thetext in any considerable degree, though I may occasionally supply a wordto complete the sense, as I fill up the blanks of abbreviation, in thewriting; neither of which can be said to change the genuine _Journal_. One of the best criticks of our age conjectures that the imperfectpassage above was probably as follows: 'In his book we have an accuratedisplay of a nation in war, and a nation in peace; the peasant isdelineated as truly as the general; nay, even harvest-sport, and themodes of ancient theft are described. ' BOSWELL. 'One of the bestcriticks is, I believe, Malone, who had 'perused the originalmanuscript. ' See _ante_, p. 1; and _post_, Oct. 26, and under Nov. 11. 

[246] It was in the Parliament-house that 'the ordinary Lords ofSession, ' the Scotch Judges, that is to say, held their courts. _Ante_, p. 39. 

[247] Dr. Johnson modestly said, he had not read Homer so much as hewished he had done. But this conversation shews how well he wasacquainted with the Maeonian bard; and he has shewn it still more in hiscriticism upon Pope's _Homer_, in his _Life_ of that Poet. My excellentfriend, Mr. Langton, told me, he was once present at a dispute betweenDr. Johnson and Mr. Burke, on the comparative merits of Homer andVirgil, which was carried on with extraordinary abilities on both sides. Dr. Johnson maintained the superiority of Homer. BOSWELL. Johnson toldWindham that he had never read through the Odyssey in the original. Windham's _Diary_, p. 17. See _ante_, iii. 193, and May 1, 1783. 

[248] Johnson ten years earlier told Boswell that he loved most 'thebiographical part of literature. ' _Ante_, i. 425. Goldsmith said ofbiography:--'It furnishes us with an opportunity of giving advice freelyand without offence. .. . Counsels as well as compliments are bestconveyed in an indirect and oblique manner, and this renders biographyas well as fable a most convenient vehicle for instruction. An ingeniousgentleman was asked what was the best lesson for youth; he answered, "The life of a good man. " Being again asked what was the next best, hereplied, "The life of a bad one. "' Prior's _Goldsmith_, i. 395. 

[249] See _ante_, p. 57. 

[250] Ten years later he said:--'There is now a great deal morelearning in the world than there was formerly; for it is universallydiffused. ' _Ante_, April 29, 1783. Windham (_Diary_, p. 17) records'Johnson's opinion that I could not name above five of my collegeacquaintances who read Latin with sufficient ease to make itpleasurable. '

[251] See _ante_, ii. 352. 

[252] 'Warburton, whatever was his motive, undertook withoutsolicitation to rescue Pope from the talons of Crousaz, by freeing himfrom the imputation of favouring fatality, or rejecting revelation; andfrom month to month continued a vindication of the _Essay on Man_ in theliterary journal of that time, called the _Republick of Letters'_Johnson's _Works_, viii. 289. Pope wrote to Warburton of the _Essay onMan_:--'You understand my work better than I do myself. ' Pope's _Works_, ed. 1886, ix. 211. 

[253] See _ante_, ii. 37, note I, and Pope's _Works_, ed. 1886, ix. 220. Allen was Ralph Allen of Prior Park near Bath, to whom Fieldingdedicated _Amelia_, and who is said to have been the original ofAllworthy in _Tom Jones_. It was he of whom Pope wrote:--

 'Let low-born Allen, with an awkward shame, Do good by stealth and blush to find it fame. '

_Epilogue to the Satires_, i. 135. 

_Low-born_ in later editions was changed to _humble_. Warburton not onlymarried his niece, but, on his death, became in her right owner ofPrior Park. 

[254] Mr. Mark Pattison (_Satires of Pope_, p. 158) points outWarburton's 'want of penetration in that subject [metaphysics] which heconsidered more peculiarly his own. ' He said of 'the late Mr. Baxter'(Andrew Baxter, not Richard Baxter), that 'a few pages of his reasoninghave not only more sense and substance than all the elegant discoursesof Dr. Berkeley, but infinitely better entitle him to the character of agreat genius. '

[255] It is of Warburton that Churchill wrote in _The Duellist (Poems, _ed. 1766, ii. 82):--

 'To prove his faith which all admit Is at least equal to his wit, And make himself a man of note, He in defence of Scripture wrote; So long he wrote, and long about it, That e'en believers 'gan to doubt it. '

[256] I find some doubt has been entertained concerning Dr. Johnson'smeaning here. It is to be supposed that he meant, 'when a king shallagain be entertained in Scotland. ' BOSWELL. 

[257] Perhaps among these ladies was the Miss Burnet of Monboddo, onwhom Burns wrote an elegy. 

[258] In the _Rambler_, No. 98, entitled _The Necessity of CultivatingPoliteness_, Johnson says:--'The universal axiom in which allcomplaisance is included, and from which flow all the formalities whichcustom has established in civilized nations, is, _That no man shall giveany preference to himself. '_ In the same paper, he says that'unnecessarily to obtrude unpleasing ideas is a species of oppression. '

[259] Act ii. Sc. 5. 

[260] Perhaps he was referring to Polyphemus's club, which was

 'Of height and bulk so vast The largest ship might claim it for a mast. '

Pope's _Odyssey_, ix. 382. 

Or to Agamemnon's sceptre:--

 'Which never more shall leaves or blossoms bear. '

_Iliad_, i. 310. 

[261] 'We agreed pretty well, only we disputed in adjusting the claimsof merit between a shopkeeper of London and a savage of the Americanwildernesses. Our opinions were, I think, maintained on both sideswithout full conviction; Monboddo declared boldly for the savage, and I, perhaps for that reason, sided with the citizen. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 115. 

[262]

 'Heroes are much the same, the point's agreed, From Macedonia's madman to the Swede; The whole strange purpose of their lives to find, Or make, an enemy of all mankind! Not one looks backward, onward still he goes, Yet ne'er looks forward further than his nose. '

_Essay on Man, _ iv. 219. 

[263] _Maccaroni_ is not in Johnson's _Dictionary_. Horace Walpole(_Letters_, iv. 178) on Feb. 6, 1764, mentions 'the Maccaroni Club, which is composed of all the travelled young men who wear long curls andspying-glasses. ' On the following Dec. 16 he says:--'The Maccaroni Clubhas quite absorbed Arthur's; for, you know, old fools will hobble afteryoung ones. ' _Ib. _ p. 302. See _post_, Sept. 12, for _buck_. 

[264] 'We came late to Aberdeen, where I found my dear mistress'sletter, and learned that all our little people were happily recovered ofthe measles. Every part of your letter was pleasing. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 115. For Johnson's use of the word _mistress_ in speaking of Mrs. Thrale see _ante_, i. 494. 

[265] See _ante_, ii. 455. 'They taught us, ' said one of the Professors, 'to raise cabbage and make shoes, How they lived without shoes may yetbe seen; but in the passage through villages it seems to him thatsurveys their gardens, that when they had not cabbage they had nothing. '_Piozzi Letters_, i. 116. Johnson in the same letter says that 'NewAberdeen is built of that granite which is used for the _new_ pavementin London. '

[266] 'In Aberdeen I first saw the women in plaids. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 116. 

[267] Seven years later Mackintosh, on entering King's College, foundthere the son of Johnson's old friend, 'the learned Dr. Charles Burney, finishing his term at Aberdeen. ' Among his fellow-students were alsosome English Dissenters, among them Robert Hall. Mackintosh's _Life, _ i. 10, 13. In Forbes's _Life of Beattie_ (ed. 1824, p. 169) is a letter byBeattie, dated Oct. 15, 1773, in which the English and ScotchUniversities are compared. Colman, in his _Random Records, _ ii. 85, gives an account of his life at Aberdeen as a student. 

[268] Lord Bolingbroke (Works, iii. 347) in 1735 speaks of 'the littlecare that is taken in the training up our youth, ' and adds, 'surely itis impossible to take less. ' See _ante_, ii. 407, and iii. 12. 

[269] _London, 2d May_, 1778. Dr. Johnson acknowledged that he washimself the authour of the translation above alluded to, and dictated itto me as follows:--

 Quos laudet vates Graius Romanus et Anglus Tres tria temporibus secla dedere suis. Sublime ingenium Graius; Romanus habebat Carmen grande sonans; Anglus utrumque tulit. Nil majus Natura capit: clarare priores Quae potuere duos tertius unus habet. BOSWELL. 

It was on May 2, 1778, that Johnson attacked Boswell with such rudenessthat he kept away from him for a week. _Ante_, iii. 337. 

[270] 'We were on both sides glad of the interview, having not seen norperhaps thought on one another for many years; but we had no emulation, nor had either of us risen to the other's envy, and our old kindness waseasily renewed. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 117. 

[271] Johnson wrote on Sept. 30:--'Barley-broth is a constant dish, andis made well in every house. A stranger, if he is prudent, will securehis share, for it is not certain that he will be able to eat anythingelse. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. P. 160. 

[272] See _ante_. P. 24. 

[273] _Genesis_, ix. 6. 

[274] My worthy, intelligent, and candid friend, Dr. Kippis, informs me, that several divines have thus explained the mediation of our Saviour. What Dr. Johnson now delivered, was but a temporary opinion; for heafterwards was fully convinced of the _propitiatory sacrifice_, as Ishall shew at large in my future work, _The Life of Samuel Johnson, LL. D. _ BOSWELL. For Dr. Kippis see _ante_, iii. 174, and for Johnson onthe propitiatory sacrifice, iv. 124. 

[275] _Malachi_, iv. 2. 

[276] _St. Luke_, ii 32. 

[277] 'Healing _in_ his wings, '_Malachi_, iv. 2. 

[278] 'He that believeth and is baptised shall be saved; but he thatbelieveth not shall be damned. ' _St. Mark_, xvi. 16. 

[279] Mr. Langton. See _ante_, ii. 254, 265. 

[280] Spedding's _Bacon_, vii. 271. The poem is also given in _TheGolden Treasury_, p. 37; where, however, 'limns _the_ water' is changedinto 'limns _on_ water. '

[281] 'Addison now returned to his vocation, and began to plan literaryoccupations for his future life. He purposed a tragedy on the death ofSocrates. .. He engaged in a nobler work, a defence of the Christianreligion, of which part was published after his death. ' Johnson's_Works_, vii. 441, and Addison's _Works_, ed. 1856, v. 103. 

[282] Dr. Beattie was so kindly entertained in England, that he had notyet returned home. BOSWELL. Beattie was staying in London till hispension got settled. Early in July he had been told that he was to havea pension of £200 a year (_ante_, ii. 264, note 2). It was not till Aug. 20 that it was conferred. On July 9, he, in company with Sir JoshuaReynolds, received the degree of D. C. L. At Oxford. On Aug. 24, he had along interview with the King; 'who asked, ' Beattie records, 'whether wehad any good preachers at Aberdeen. I said "Yes, " and named Campbell andGerard, with whose names, however, I did not find that he wasacquainted. ' It was this same summer that Reynolds painted him in 'theallegorical picture representing the triumph of truth over scepticismand infidelity' (_post_, Oct. 1, note). Forbes's _Beattie_, ed. 1824, pp. 151-6, 167. 

[283] Dr. Johnson's burgess-ticket was in these words:--'Aberdoniae, vigesimo tertio die mensis Augusti, anno Domini millesimoseptingentesimo septuagesimo tertio, in presentia honorabilium virorum, Jacobi Jopp, armigeri, praepositi, Adami Duff, Gulielmi Young, GeorgiiMarr, et Gulielmi Forbes, Balivorum, Gulielmi Rainie Decani guildae, etJoannis Nicoll Thesaurarii dicti burgi. 'Quo die vir generosus etdoctrina clarus, Samuel Johnson, LL. D. Receptus et admissus fuit inmunicipes et fratres guildae: praefati burgi de Aberdeen. In deditissimiamoris et affectus ac eximiae observantiae tesseram, quibus dictiMagistratus eum amplectuntur. Extractum per me, ALEX. CARNEGIE. 'BOSWELL. 'I was presented with the freedom of the city, not in a goldbox, but in good Latin. Let me pay Scotland one just praise; there wasno officer gaping for a fee; this could have been said of no city on theEnglish side of the Tweed. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 117. Baretti, in a MS. Note on this passage, says:--'Throughout England nothing is done fornothing. Stop a moment to look at the rusticks mowing a field, and theywill presently quit their work to come to you, and ask something todrink. ' Aberdeen conferred its freedom so liberally about this time thatit is surprising that Boswell was passed over. George Colman theyounger, when a youth of eighteen, was sent to King's College. He saysin his worthless _Random Records_, ii. 99:--'I had scarcely been a weekin Old Aberdeen, when the Lord Provost of the New Town invited me todrink wine with him one evening in the Town Hall; there I found anumerous company assembled. The object of this meeting was soon declaredto me by the Lord Provost, who drank my health, and presented me withthe freedom of the City. ' Two of his English fellow-students, of alittle older standing, had, he said, received the same honour. Hisstatement seemed to me incredible; but by the politeness of theTown-clerk, W. Gordon, Esq. , I have found out that in the main it iscorrect. Colman, with one of the two, was admitted as an HonoraryBurgess on Oct. 8, 1781, being described as _vir generosus_; the otherhad been admitted earlier. The population of Aberdeen and its suburbs in1769 was, according to Pennant, 16, 000. Pennant's _Tour_, p. 117. 

[284] 'King's College in Aberdeen was an exact model of the Universityof Paris. Its founder, Bishop [not Archbishop] Elphinstone, had been aProfessor at Paris and at Orleans. ' Burton's _Scotland_, ed. 1873, iii. 404. On p. 20, Dr. Burton describes him as 'the rich accomplishedscholar and French courtier Elphinstone, munificently endowing aUniversity after the model of the University of Paris. '

[285] Boswell projected the following works:--1. An edition of_Johnson's Poems. Ante_, i. 16. 2. A work in which the merit ofAddison's poetry shall be maintained, _ib_. P. 225. 3. A _History ofSweden_, ii. 156. 4. A_ Life of Thomas Ruddiman, ib. _ p. 216. 5. Anedition of Walton's_ Lives_ iii. 107. 6. A _History of the Civil War in__Great Britain in_ 1745 and 1746, _ib. _, p. 162. 

7. A _Life of Sir Robert Sibbald, ib. _ p. 227. 8 An account of his ownTravels, _ib_. P. 300. 9. A Collection, with notes, of old tenures andcharters of Scotland, _ib_. P. 414, note 3. 10. A _History of James IV. _11. 'A quarto volume to be embellished with fine plates, on the subjectof the controversy (_ante_, ii. 367) occasioned by the _Beggar'sOpera. _' Murray's _Johnsoniana_, ed. 1836, p. 502. 

Thomas Boswell received from James IV. The estate of Auchinleck. _Ante_, ii. 413. See _post_, Nov. 4. 

[286] Mackintosh says, in his _Life_, i. 9:--'In October, 1780, I wasadmitted into the Greek class, then taught by Mr. Leslie, who did notaspire beyond teaching us the first rudiments of the language; morewould, I believe, have been useless to his scholars. '

[287] 'Boswell was very angry that the Aberdeen professors would nottalk. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 118. Dr. Robertson and Dr. Blair, whomBoswell, five years earlier, invited to meet Johnson at supper, 'with anexcess of prudence hardly opened their lips' (_ante_, ii. 63). AtGlasgow the professors did not dare to talk much (_post_, Oct. 29). Onanother occasion when Johnson came in, the company 'were all as quiet asa school upon the entrance of the headmaster. ' _Ante_, iii. 332. 

[288] Dr. Beattie says that this printer was Strahan. He had seen theletter mentioned by Gerard, and many other letters too from the Bishopto Strahan. 'They were, ' he continues, 'very particularly acquainted. 'He adds that 'Strahan was eminently skilled in composition, and hadcorrected (as he told me himself) the phraseology of both Mr. Hume andDr. Robertson. ' Forbes's _Beattie_, ed. 1824, p. 341. 

[289] An instance of this is given in Johnson's _Works_, viii. 288:--'Warburton had in the early part of his life pleased himself withthe notice of inferior wits, and corresponded with the enemies of Pope. A letter was produced, when he had perhaps himself forgotten it, inwhich he tells Concanen, "Dryden, I observe, borrows for want ofleisure, and Pope for want of genius; Milton out of pride, and Addisonout of modesty. "'

[290] 'Goldsmith asserted that Warburton was a weak writer. "Warburton, "said Johnson, "may be absurd, but he will never be weak; he flounderswell. "' Stockdale's _Memoirs_, ii. 64. See Appendix A. 

[291] _The Doctrine of Grace; or the Office and Operations of the HolySpirit vindicated from the Insults of Infidelity and the Abuses ofFanaticism_, 1762. 

[292] _A Letter to the Bishop of Gloucester, occasioned by his Tract onthe Office and Operations of the Holy Spirit_, by John Wesley, 1762. 

[293] Malone records:--'I could not find from Mr. Walpole that hisfather [Sir Robert] read any other book but Sydenham in his retirement. 'To his admiration of Sydenham his death was attributed; for it led himto treat himself wrongly when he was suffering from the stone. Prior's_Malone_, p. 387. Johnson wrote a _Life of Sydenham_. In it he ridiculesthe notion that 'a man eminent for integrity _practised Medicine bychance, and grew wise only by murder_. ' _Works_, vi. 409. 

[294] All this, as Dr. Johnson suspected at the time, was the immediateinvention of his own lively imagination; for there is not one word of itin Mr. Locke's complimentary performance. My readers will, I have nodoubt, like to be satisfied, by comparing them; and, at any rate, it mayentertain them to read verses composed by our great metaphysician, whena Bachelor in Physick. 

AUCTORI, IN TRACTATUM EJUS DE FEBRIBUS. 

 Febriles aestus, victumque ardoribus orbem Flevit, non tantis par Medicina malis. Nam post mille artes, medicae tentamina curae, Ardet adhuc Febris; nec velit arte regi. Praeda sumus flammis; solum hoc speramus ab igne, Ut restet paucus, quem capit urna, cinis. Dum quaerit medicus febris caussamque, modumque, Flammarum & tenebras, & sine luce faces; Quas tractat patitur flammas, & febre calescens, Corruit ipse suis victima rapta focis. Qui tardos potuit morbos, artusque trementes, Sistere, febrili se videt igne rapi. Sic faber exesos fulsit tibicine muros; Dum trahit antiquas lenta ruina domos. Sed si flamma vorax miseras incenderit aedes, Unica flagrantes tunc sepelire salus. Fit fuga, tectonicas nemo tunc invocat artes; Cum perit artificis non minus usta domus. Se tandem _Sydenham_ febrisque Scholaeque furori Opponens, morbi quaerit, & artis opem. Non temere incusat tectae putedinis [putredinis] ignes; Nec fictus, febres qui fovet, humor erit. Non bilem ille movet, nulla hic pituita; Salutis Quae spes, si fallax ardeat intus aqua? Nec doctas magno rixas ostentat hiatu, Quîs ipsis major febribus ardor inest. Innocuas placide corpus jubet urere flammas, Et justo rapidos temperat igne focos. Quid febrim exstinguat, varius quid postulet usus, Solari aegrotos, qua potes arte, docet, Hactenus ipsa suum timuit Natura calorem, Dum saepe incerto, quo calet, igne perit: Dum reparat tacitos male provida sanguinis ignes, Praslusit busto, fit calor iste rogus. Jam secura suas foveant praecordia flammas, Quem Natura negat, dat Medicina modum. Nec solum faciles compescit sanguinis aestus, Dum dubia est inter spemque metumque salus; Sed fatale malum domuit, quodque astra malignum Credimus, iratam vel genuisse _Stygem_. Extorsit _Lachesi_ cultros, Pestique venenum Abstulit, & tantos non sinit esse metus. Quis tandem arte nova domitam mitescere Pestem Credat, & antiquas ponere posse minas? Post tot mille neces, cumulataque funera busto, Victa jacet parvo vulnere dira Lues. Aetheriae quanquam spargunt contagia flammae, Quicquid inest istis ignibus, ignis erit. Delapsae coelo flammae licet acrius urant Has gelida exstingui non nisi morte putas? Tu meliora paras victrix Medicina; tuusque, Pestis quae superat cuncta, triumphus eris [erit]. Vive liber, victis febrilibus ignibus; unus Te simul & mundum qui manet, ignis erit. 

J. LOCK, A. M. Ex. Aede Christi, Oxon. BOSWELL. 

[295] See _ante_, ii. 126, 298. 

[296] 'One of its ornaments [i. E. OfMarischal College] is the picture ofArthur Johnston, who was principalof the college, and who holds amongthe Latin Poets of Scotland the nextplace to the elegant Buchanan. 'Johnson's _Works_, ix. 12. Popeattacking Benson, who endeavouredto raise himself to fame by erectingmonuments to Milton, and printingeditions of Johnson's version ofthe _Psalms_, introduces the ScotchPoet in the _Dunciad_:--On two unequal crutches proppedhe came, Milton's on this, on that one Johnston'sname. '_Dunciad_, bk. Iv. L. III. Johnson wrote to Boswell for a copyof Johnston's _Poems_ (_ante_, iii. 104)and for his likeness (_ante_, March 18, 1784). 

[297] 'Education is here of the same price as at St. Andrews, only thesession is but from the 1st of November to the 1st of April' [fivemonths, instead of seven]. _Piozzi Letters_, i. 116. In his _Works_ (ix. 14) Johnson by mistake gives eight months to the St. Andrews session. Onp. 5 he gives it rightly as seven. 

[298] Beattie, as an Aberdeen professor, was grieved at this saying whenhe read the book. 'Why is it recorded?' he asked. 'For no reason that Ican imagine, unless it be in order to return evil for good. ' Forbes's_Beattie_, ed. 1824. P. 337. 

[299] See _ante_, ii. 336, and iii. 209. 

[300] See _ante_, iii. 65, and _post_, Nov. 2. 

[301] See _ante_, i. 411. Johnson, no doubt, was reminded of this storyby his desire to get this book. Later on (_ante_, iii. 104) he askedBoswell 'to be vigilant and get him Graham's _Telemachus_. '

[302] I am sure I have related this story exactly as Dr. Johnson told itto me; but a friend who has often heard him tell it, informs me that heusually introduced a circumstance which ought not to be omitted. 'Atlast, Sir, Graham, having now got to about the pitch of looking at oneman, and talking to another, said _Doctor_, &c. ' 'What effect (Dr. Johnson used to add) this had on Goldsmith, who was as irascible as ahornet, may be easily conceived. ' BOSWELL. 

[303] Graham was of Eton College. 

[304] It was to Johnson that the invitation was due. 'What I was at theEnglish Church at Aberdeen I happened to be espied by Lady Dr. Middleton, whom I had sometime seen in London; she told what she hadseen to Mr. Boyd, Lord Errol's brother, who wrote us an invitation toLord Errol's house. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 118. Boswell, perhaps, was notunwilling that the reader should think that it was to him that thecompliment was paid. 

[305] 'In 1745 my friend, Tom Cumming the Quaker, said he would notfight, but he would drive an ammunition cart. ' _Ante_, April 28, 1783. Smollett (_History of England_, iv. 293) describes how, in 1758, theconquest of Senegal was due to this 'sensible Quaker, ' 'this honestQuaker, ' as he calls him, who not only conceived the project, but 'wasconcerned as a principal director and promoter of the expedition. If itwas the first military scheme of any Quaker, let it be remembered it wasalso the first successful expedition of this war, and one of the firstthat ever was carried on according to the pacifick system of theQuakers, without the loss of a drop of blood on either side. ' If therewas no bloodshed, it was by good luck, for 'a regular engagement waswarmly maintained on both sides. ' It was a Quaker, then, who led the vanin the long line of conquests which have made Chatham's name so famous. Mrs. Piozzi (_Anec_. P. 185) says:--'Dr. Johnson told me that Cummyns(sic) the famous Quaker, whose friendship he valued very highly, fell asacrifice to the insults of the newspapers; having declared to him onhis death-bed, that the pain of an anonymous letter, written in some ofthe common prints of the day, fastened on his heart, and threw him intothe slow fever of which he died. ' Mr. Seward records (_Anec_. Ii. 395):--'Mr. Cummins, the celebrated American Quaker, said of Mr. Pitt(Lord Chatham):--"The first time I come to Mr. Pitt upon any business Ifind him extremely ignorant; the second time I come to him, I find himcompletely informed upon it. "'

[306] See _ante_, i. 232. 

[307] See _ante_, i. 46. 

[308] 'From the windows the eye wanders over the sea that separatesScotland from Norway, and when the winds beat with violence, must enjoyall the terrifick grandeur of the tempestuous ocean. I would not for anyamusement wish for a storm; but as storms, whether wished or not, willsometimes happen, I may say, without violation of humanity, that Ishould willingly look out upon them from Slanes Castle. ' Johnson's_Works_, ix. 15. 

[309] See _ante_, p. 68. 

[310] Horace. _Odes_, i. 2. 

[311] See _ante_, ii. 428. 

[312] Perhaps the poverty of their host led to this talk. Sir WalterScott wrote in 1814:--'Imprudence, or ill-fortune as fatal as the sandsof Belhelvie [shifting sands that had swallowed up a whole parish], hasswallowed up the estate of Errol, excepting this dreary mansion-houseand a farm or two adjoining. ' Lockhart's _Scott_, ed. 1839, iv. 187. 

[313] See _ante_, ii. 421, note 1. 

[314] Since the accession of George I. Only one parliament had had sofew as five sessions, and it was dissolved before its time by his death. One had six sessions, six seven sessions, (including the one that wasnow sitting, ) and one eight. There was therefore so little dread of asudden dissolution that for five years of each parliament the membersdurst contradict the populace. 

[315] To Miss Burney Johnson once said:--'Sir Joshua Reynolds possessesthe largest share of inoffensiveness of any man that I know. ' _Memoirsof Dr. Burney_, i. 343. 'Once at Mr. Thrale's, when Reynolds left theroom, Johnson observed:--"There goes a man not to be spoiled byprosperity. "' Northcote's _Reynolds_, i. 82. Burke wrote of him:--'Hehad a strong turn for humour, and well saw the weak sides of things. Heenjoyed every circumstance of his good fortune, and had no affectationon that subject. And I do not know a fault or weakness of his that hedid not convert into something that bordered on a virtue, instead ofpushing it to the confines of a vice. ' Taylor's _Reynolds_, ii. 638. 

[316] He visited Devonshire in 1762. _Ante_, i. 377. 

[317] Horace Walpole, describing the coronation of George III, writes:--'One there was . .. The noblest figure I ever saw, the high-constable ofScotland, Lord Errol; as one saw him in a space capable of containinghim, one admired him. At the wedding, dressed in tissue, he looked likeone of the Giants in Guildhall, new gilt. It added to the energy of hisperson, that one considered him acting so considerable a part in thatvery Hall, where so few years ago one saw his father, Lord Kilmarnock, condemned to the block. ' _Letters_, iii. 438. Sir William Forbessays:--'He often put me in mind of an ancient Hero, and I remember Dr. Johnson was positive that he resembled Homer's character of Sarpedon. '_Life of Beattie_, ed. 1824, Appendix D. Mrs. Piozzi says:--'The Earldressed in his robes at the coronation and Mrs. Siddons in the characterof Murphy's Euphrasia were the noblest specimens of the human race Iever saw. ' _Synonymy_, i. 43. He sprang from a race of rebels. 'He unitedin his person, ' says Forbes, 'the four earldoms of Errol, Kilmarnock, Linlithgow, and Callander. ' The last two were attainted in 1715, andKilmarnock in 1745. _Life of Beattie_, Appendix D. 

[318] Lord Chesterfield, in his letters to his son [iii. 130], complainsof one who argued in an indiscriminate manner with men of all ranks, Probably the noble lord had felt with some uneasiness what it was toencounter stronger abilities than his own. If a peer will engage atfoils with his inferior in station, he must expect that his inferior instation will avail himself of every advantage; otherwise it is not afair trial of strength and skill. The same will hold in a contest ofreason, or of wit. --A certain king entered the lists of genius withVoltaire. The consequence was, that, though the king had great andbrilliant talents, Voltaire had such a superiority that his majestycould not bear it; and the poet was dismissed, or escaped, from thatcourt. --In the reign of James I. Of England, Crichton, Lord Sanquhar, apeer of Scotland, from a vain ambition to excel a fencing-master in hisown art, played at rapier and dagger with him. The fencing-master, whosefame and bread were at stake, put out one of his lordship's eyes. Exasperated at this, Lord Sanquhar hired ruffians, and had thefencing-master assassinated; for which his lordship was capitally tried, condemned, and hanged. Not being a peer of England, he was tried by thename of Robert Crichton, Esq. ; but he was admitted to be a baron ofthree hundred years' standing. --See the _State Trials_; and the _Historyof England_ by Hume, who applauds the impartial justice executed upon aman of high rank. BOSWELL. The 'stronger abilities' that Chesterfieldencountered were Johnson's. Boswell thought wrongly that it was ofJohnson that his Lordship complained in his letters to his son. _Ante_, i. 267, note 2. 'A certain King' was Frederick the Great. _Ante_, i. 434. The fencing-master was murdered in his own house in London, fiveyears after Sanquhar (or Sanquire) had lost his eye. Bacon, who wasSolicitor-General, said:--'Certainly the circumstance of time is heavyunto you; it is now five years since this unfortunate man, Turner, be itupon accident or despight, gave the provocation which was the seed ofyour malice. ' _State Trials_, ii. 743, and Hume's _History_, ed. 1802, vi. 61. 

[319] _Hamlet_, act i. Sc. 2. 

[320] Perhaps Lord Errol was the Scotch Lord mentioned _ante_, iii. 170, and the nobleman mentioned _ib_. P. 329. 

[321] 'Pitied by gentle minds Kilmarnock died. ' _Ante_. I. 180. 

[322] Sir Walter Scott describes the talk that he had in 1814 nearSlains Castle with an old fisherman. 'The old man says Slains is nowinhabited by a Mr. Bowles, who comes so far from the southward thatnaebody kens whare he comes frae. "Was he frae the Indies?" "Na; he didnot think he came that road. He was far frae the Southland. Naebody everheard the name of the place; but he had brought more guid out o'Peterhead than a' the Lords he had seen in Slains, and he had seenthree. "' Lockhart's _Scott_, ed. 1839, iv. 188. The first of the threewas Johnson's host. 

[323] See _ante_, ii. 153, and iii. 1, note 2. 

[324] Smollett, in _Humphry Clinker_ (Letter of Sept. 6), writing of theHighlanders and their chiefs, says:--'The original attachment isfounded on something prior to the _feudal system_, about which thewriters of this age have made such a pother, as if it was a newdiscovery, like the _Copernican system_ . .. For my part I expect to seethe use of trunk-hose and buttered ale ascribed to the influence of the_feudal system_. ' See _ante_, ii. 177. 

[325] Mme. Riccoboni wrote to Garrick on May 3, 1769:--'Vous conviendrezque les nobles sont peu ménagés par vos auteurs; le sot, le fat, ou lemalhonnête homme mêlé dans l'intrigue est presque toujours un lord. '_Garrick Corres_, ii. 561. Dr. Moore (_View of Society in France_, i. 29) writing in 1779 says:--'I am convinced there is no country in Europewhere royal favour, high birth, and the military profession could beallowed such privileges as they have in France, and where there would beso few instances of their producing rough and brutal behaviour toinferiors. ' Mrs. Piozzi, writing in 1784, though she did not publish herbook till 1789, said:--'The French are really a contented race ofmortals;--precluded almost from possibility of adventure, the lowParisian leads gentle, humble life, nor envies that greatness he nevercan obtain. ' _Journey through France_, i. 13. 

[326] He is the worthy son of a worthy father, the late Lord Strichen, one of our judges, to whose kind notice I was much obliged. LordStrichen was a man not only honest, but highly generous; for after hissuccession to the family estate, he paid a large sum of debts contractedby his predecessor, which he was not under any obligation to pay. Let mehere, for the credit of Ayrshire, my own county, record a noble instanceof liberal honesty in William Hutchison, drover, in Lanehead, Kyle, whoformerly obtained a full discharge from his creditors upon a compositionof his debts; but upon being restored to good circumstances, invited hiscreditors last winter to a dinner, without telling the reason, and paidthem their full sums, principal and interest. They presented him with apiece of plate, with an inscription to commemorate this extraordinaryinstance of true worth; which should make some people in Scotland blush, while, though mean themselves, they strut about under the protection ofgreat alliance, conscious of the wretchedness of numbers who have lostby them, to whom they never think of making reparation, but indulgethemselves and their families in most unsuitable expence. BOSWELL. 

[327] See _ante_, ii. 194; iii. 353; and iv. June 30, 1784. 

[328] Malone says that 'Lord Auchinleck told his son one day that itwould cost him more trouble to hide his ignorance in the Scotch andEnglish law than to show his knowledge. This Mr. Boswell owned he hadfound to be true. ' _European Magazine_, 1798, p. 376. 

[329] See _ante_, iv. 8, note 3, and iv. 20. 

[330] Colman had translated _Terence. Ante_, iv. 18. 

[331] Dr. Nugent was Burke's father-in-law. _Ante_, i. 477. 

[332] Lord Charlemont left behind him a _History of Italian Poetry_. Hardy's _Charlemont_, i. 306, ii. 437. 

[333] See _ante_, i. 250, and ii. 378, note 1. 

[334] Since the first edition, it has been suggested by one of the club, who knew Mr. Vesey better than Dr. Johnson and I, that we did not assignhim a proper place; for he was quite unskilled in Irish antiquities andCeltick learning, but might with propriety have been made professor ofarchitecture, which he understood well, and has left a very goodspecimen of his knowledge and taste in that art, by an elegant housebuilt on a plan of his own formation, at Lucan, a few miles from Dublin. BOSWELL. See _ante_, iv. 28. 

[335] Sir William Jones, who died at the age of forty-seven, had'studied eight languages critically, eight less perfectly, but allintelligible with a dictionary, and twelve least perfectly, but allattainable. ' Teignmouth's _Life of Sir W. Jones_, ed. 1815, p. 465. See_ante_, iv. 69. 

[336] See _ante_, i. 478. 

[337] See _ante_, p. 16. 

[338] Mackintosh in his _Life_, ii. 171, says:--'From the refinements ofabstruse speculation Johnson was withheld, partly perhaps by thatrepugnance to such subtleties which much experience often inspires, andpartly also by a secret dread that they might disturb those prejudicesin which his mind had found repose from the agitations of doubt. '

[339] See _ante_, iv. 11, note 1. 

[340] Our Club, originally at the Turk's Head, Gerrard-street, then atPrince's, Sackville-street, now at Baxter's, Dover-street, which at Mr. Garrick's funeral acquired a _name_ for the first time, and was calledTHE LITERARY CLUB, was instituted in 1764, and now consists ofthirty-five members. It has, since 1773, been greatly augmented; andthough Dr. Johnson with justice observed, that, by losing Goldsmith, Garrick, Nugent, Chamier, Beauclerk, we had lost what would make aneminent club, yet when I mentioned, as an accession, Mr. Fox, Dr. GeorgeFordyce, Sir Charles Bunbury, Lord Ossory, Mr. Gibbon, Dr. Adam Smith, Mr. R. B. Sheridan, the Bishops of Kilaloe and St. Asaph, Dean Marley, Mr. Steevens, Mr. Dunning, Sir Joseph Banks, Dr. Scott of the Commons, Earl Spencer, Mr. Windham of Norfolk, Lord Elliott, Mr. Malone, Dr. Joseph Warton, the Rev. Thomas Warton, Lord Lucan, Mr. Burke junior, Lord Palmerston, Dr. Burney, Sir William Hamilton, and Dr. Warren, itwill be acknowledged that we might establish a second university of highreputation. BOSWELL. Mr. (afterwards Sir) William Jones wrote in 1780(_Life_, p. 241):--'Of our club I will only say that there is no branchof human knowledge on which some of our members are not capable ofgiving information. '

[341] Here, unluckily, the windows had no pullies; and Dr. Johnson, whowas constantly eager for fresh air, had much struggling to get one ofthem kept open. Thus he had a notion impressed upon him, that thiswretched defect was general in Scotland; in consequence of which he haserroneously enlarged upon it in his _Journey_. I regretted that he didnot allow me to read over his book before it was printed. I should havechanged very little; but I should have suggested an alteration in a fewplaces where he has laid himself open to be attacked. I hope I shouldhave prevailed with him to omit or soften his assertion, that 'aScotsman must be a sturdy moralist, who does not prefer Scotland totruth, ' for I really think it is not founded; and it is harshly said. BOSWELL. Johnson, after a half-apology for 'these diminutiveobservations' on Scotch windows and fresh air, continues:--'The truestate of every nation is the state of common life. ' _Works_, ix. 18. Boswell a second time (_ante_, ii. 311) returns to Johnson's assertionthat 'a Scotchman must be a very sturdy moralist who does not loveScotland better than truth; he will always love it better than inquiry. '_Works_, ix. 116. 

[342] See _ante_, p. 40. 

[343] A protest may be entered on the part of most Scotsmen against theDoctor's taste in this particular. A Finnon haddock dried over the smokeof the sea-weed, and sprinkled with salt water during the process, acquires a relish of a very peculiar and delicate flavour, inimitable onany other coast than that of Aberdeenshire. Some of our Edinburghphilosophers tried to produce their equal in vain. I was one of a partyat a dinner, where the philosophical haddocks were placed in competitionwith the genuine Finnon-fish. These were served round withoutdistinction whence they came; but only one gentleman, out of twelvepresent, espoused the cause of philosophy. WALTER SCOTT. 

[344] It is the custom in Scotland for the judges of the Court ofSession to have the title of _lords_, from their estates; thus Mr. Burnett is Lord _Monboddo_, as Mr. Home was Lord _Kames_. There issomething a little awkward in this; for they are denominated in deeds bytheir _names_, with the addition of 'one of the Senators of the Collegeof Justice;' and subscribe their Christian and surnames, as _JamesBurnett_, _Henry Home_, even in judicial acts. BOSWELL. See _ante_, p. 77, note 4. 

[345] See _ante_, ii. 344, where Johnson says:--'A judge may be afarmer, but he is not to geld his own pigs. '

[346]

 'Not to admire is all the art I know To make men happy and to keep them so. '

Pope, _Imitations of Horace_, Epistles, i. Vi. 1. 

[347] See _ante_, i. 461. 

[348] See _ante_, iv. 152. 

[349] See _ante_, iii. 322. 

[350] In the _Gent. Mag. _ for 1755, p. 42, among the deaths is entered'Sir James Lowther, Bart. , reckoned the richest commoner in GreatBritain, and worth above a million. ' According to Lord Shelburne, LordSunderland, who had been advised 'to nominate Lowther one of hisTreasury on account of his great property, ' appointed him to call onhim. After waiting for some time he rang to ask whether he had come, 'The servants answered that nobody had called; upon his repeating theinquiry they said that there was an old man, somewhat wet, sitting bythe fireside in the hall, who they supposed had some petition to deliverto his lordship. When he went out it proved to be Sir James Lowther. Lord Sunderland desired him to be sent about his business, saying thatno such mean fellow should sit at his Treasury. ' Fitzmaurice's_Shelburne_, i. 34. 

[351] I do not know what was at this time the state of the parliamentaryinterest of the ancient family of Lowther; a family before the Conquest;but all the nation knows it to be very extensive at present. A duemixture of severity and kindness, oeconomy and munificence, characterises its present Representative. BOSWELL. Boswell, mostunhappily not clearly seeing where his own genius lay, too often soughtto obtain fame and position by the favour of some great man. For someyears he courted in a very gross manner 'the present Representative, 'the first Earl of Lonsdale, who treated him with great brutality. _Letters of Boswell_, pp. 271, 294, 324, and _ante_, iv. May 15, 1783. In the _Ann. Reg. _ 1771, p. 56, it is shewn how by this bad man 'thewhole county of Cumberland was thrown into a state of the greatestterror and confusion; four hundred ejectments were served in one day. 'Dr. A. Carlyle (_Auto. _ p. 418) says that 'he was more detested than anyman alive, as a shameless political sharper, a domestic bashaw, and anintolerable tyrant over his tenants and dependants. ' Lord Albemarle(_Memoirs of Rockingham, _ ii. 70) describes the 'bad Lord Lonsdale. Heexacted a serf-like submission from his poor and abject dependants. Heprofessed a thorough contempt for modern refinements. Grass grew in theneglected approaches to his mansion. .. . Awe and silence pervaded theinhabitants [of Penrith] when the gloomy despot traversed their streets. He might have been taken for a Judge Jefferies about to open a royalcommission to try them as state criminals. .. In some years of his lifehe resisted the payment of all bills. ' Among his creditors wasWordsworth's father, 'who died leaving the poet and four other helplesschildren. The executors of the will, foreseeing the result of a legalcontest with _a millionaire, _ withdrew opposition, trusting to LordLonsdale's sense of justice for payment. They leaned on a broken reed, the wealthy debtor "Died and made no sign. "' [2 _Henry VI, _ act iii. Sc. 3. ] See De Quincey's _Works, _ iii. 151. 

[352] 'Let us not, ' he says, 'make too much haste to despise ourneighbours. Our own cathedrals are mouldering by unregardeddilapidation. It seems to be part of the despicable philosophy of thetime to despise monuments of sacred magnificence. ' _Works_, ix. 20. 

[353] Note by Lord _Hailes_. 'The cathedral of Elgin was burnt by theLord of Badenoch, because the Bishop of Moray had pronounced an awardnot to his liking. The indemnification that the see obtained was, thatthe Lord of Badenoch stood for three days bare-footed at the great gateof the cathedral. The story is in the Chartulary of Elgin. ' BOSWELL. Thecathedral was rebuilt in 1407-20, but the lead was stripped from theroof by the Regent Murray, and the building went to ruin. Murray's_Handbook_, ed. 1867, p. 303. 'There is, ' writes Johnson (_Works_, ix. 20), 'still extant in the books of the council an order . .. Directingthat the lead, which covers the two cathedrals of Elgin and Aberdeen, shall be taken away, and converted into money for the support of thearmy. .. . The two churches were stripped, and the lead was shipped to besold in Holland. I hope every reader will rejoice that this cargo ofsacrilege was lost at sea. ' On this Horace Walpole remarks (_Letters_, vii. 484):--'I confess I have not quite so heinous an idea of sacrilegeas Dr. Johnson. Of all kinds of robbery, that appears to me the lightestspecies which injures nobody. Dr. Johnson is so pious that in hisjourney to your country he flatters himself that all his readers willjoin him in enjoying the destruction of two Dutch crews, who wereswallowed up by the ocean after they had robbed a church. '

[354] I am not sure whether the Duke was at home. But, not having thehonour of being much known to his grace, I could not have presumed toenter his castle, though to introduce even so celebrated a stranger. Wewere at any rate in a hurry to get forward to the wildness which we cameto see. Perhaps, if this noble family had still preserved thatsequestered magnificence which they maintained when catholicks, corresponding with the Grand Duke of Tuscany, we might have been inducedto have procured proper letters of introduction, and devoted some timeto the contemplation of venerable superstitious state. BOSWELL. Burnet(_History of his own Times_, ii. 443, and iii. 23) mentions the Duke ofGordon, a papist, as holding Edinburgh Castle for James II. In 1689. 

[355] 'In the way, we saw for the first time some houses withfruit-trees about them. The improvements of the Scotch are for immediateprofit; they do not yet think it quite worth their while to plant whatwill not produce something to be eaten or sold in a very little time. '_Piozzi Letters_, i. 121. 

[356] 'This was the first time, and except one the last, that I foundany reason to complain of a Scottish table. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 19. 

[357] The following year Johnson told Hannah More that 'when he andBoswell stopt a night at the spot (as they imagined) where the WeirdSisters appeared to Macbeth, the idea so worked upon their enthusiasm, that it quite deprived them of rest. However they learnt the nextmorning, to their mortification, that they had been deceived, and werequite in another part of the country' H. More's _Memoirs_, i. 50. 

[358] See _ante_, p. 76. 

[359] Murphy (_Life_, p. 145) says that 'his manner of reciting verseswas wonderfully impressive. ' According to Mrs. Piozzi (_Anec_. P. 302), 'whoever once heard him repeat an ode of Horace would be long beforethey could endure to hear it repeated by another. '

[360] Then pronounced _Affléck_, though now often pronounced as it iswritten. Ante, ii. 413. 

[361] At this stage of his journey Johnson recorded:--'There are morebeggars than I have ever seen in England; they beg, if not silently, yetvery modestly. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 122. See ante, p. 75, note 1. 

[362] Duncan's monument; a huge column on the roadside near Fores, morethan twenty feet high, erected in commemoration of the final retreat ofthe Danes from Scotland, and properly called Swene's Stone. WALTER SCOTT. 

[363] Swift wrote to Pope on May 31, 1737:--'Pray who is that Mr. Glover, who writ the epick poem called _Leonidas_, which is reprintinghere, and has great vogue?' Swift's _Works_ (1803), xx. 121. 'It passedthrough four editions in the first year of its publication (1737-8). 'Lowndes's _Bibl. Man_. P. 902. Horace Walpole, in 1742, mentions_Leonidas_ Glover (_Letters_, i. 117); and in 1785 Hannah More writes(_Memoirs_, i. 405):--'I was much amused with hearing old LeonidasGlover sing his own fine ballad of _Hosier's Ghost_, which was veryaffecting. He is past eighty [he was seventy-three]. Mr. Walpole comingin just afterwards, I told him how highly I had been pleased. He beggedme to entreat for a repetition of it. It was the satire conveyed in thislittle ballad upon the conduct of Sir Robert Walpole's ministry which isthought to have been a remote cause of his resignation. It was a verycurious circumstance to see his son listening to the recital of it withso much complacency. '

[364] See ante, i. 125. 

[365] See _ante_, i. 456, and _post_, Sept. 22. 

[366] See _ante_, ii. 82, and _post_, Oct. 27. 

[367] 'Nairne is the boundary in this direction between the highlandsand lowlands; and until within a few years both English and Gaelic werespoken here. One of James VI. 's witticisms was to boast that in Scotlandhe had a town "sae lang that the folk at the tae end couldna understandthe tongue spoken at the tother. "' Murray's _Handbook for Scotland_, ed. 1867, p. 308. 'Here, ' writes Johnson (_Works_, ix. 21), 'I first sawpeat fires, and first heard the Erse language. ' As he heard the girlsinging Erse, so Wordsworth thirty years later heard TheSolitary Reaper:--

'Yon solitary Highland LassReaping and singing by herself. '

[368]

 'Verse softens toil, however rude the sound; She feels no biting pang the while she sings; Nor, as she turns the giddy wheel around, Revolves the sad vicissitude of things. '

_Contemplation. _ London: Printed for R. Dodsley in Pall-mall, and soldby M. Cooper, at the Globe in Paternoster-Row, 1753. 

The author's name is not on the title-page. In the _Brit. Mus. Cata. _the poem is entered under its title. Mr. Nichols (_Lit. Illus. _ v. 183)says that the author was the Rev. Richard Gifford [not Giffard] ofBalliol College, Oxford. He adds that 'Mr. Gifford mentioned to him withmuch satisfaction the fact that Johnson quoted the poem in his_Dictionary_. ' It was there very likely that Boswell had seen the lines. They are quoted under _wheel_ (with changes made perhaps intentionallyby Johnson), as follows:

 'Verse sweetens care however rude the sound; All at her work the village maiden sings; Nor, as she turns the giddy wheel around, Revolves the sad vicissitudes of things. '

_Contemplation_, which was published two years after Gray's _Elegy_, wassuggested by it. The rising, not the parting day, is described. Thefollowing verse precedes the one quoted by Johnson:--

 'Ev'n from the straw-roofed cot the note of joy Flows full and frequent, as the village-fair, Whose little wants the busy hour employ, Chanting some rural ditty soothes her care. '

Bacon, in his _Essay Of Vicissitude of Things_ (No. 58), says:--'It isnot good to look too long upon these turning _wheels of vicissitude_lest we become _giddy_' This may have suggested Gifford's last twolines. _Reflections on a Grave, &c. _ (_ante_, ii. 26), published in1766, and perhaps written in part by Johnson, has a line borrowed fromthis poem:--

 'These all the hapless state of mortals show The sad vicissitude of things below. '

Cowper, _Table-Talk_, ed. 1786, i. 165, writes of

 'The sweet vicissitudes of day and night. '

The following elegant version of these lines by Mr. A. T. Barton, Fellowand Tutor of Johnson's own College, will please the classical reader:--

 Musa levat duros, quamvis rudis ore, labores; Inter opus cantat rustica Pyrrha suum; Nec meminit, secura rotam dum versat euntem, Non aliter nostris sortibus ire vices. 

[369] He was the brother of the Rev. John M'Aulay (_post_, Oct. 25), thegrandfather of Lord Macaulay. 

[370] See _ante_, ii. 51. 

[371] In Scotland, there is a great deal of preparation beforeadministering the sacrament. The minister of the parish examines thepeople as to their fitness, and to those of whom he approves giveslittle pieces of tin, stamped with the name of the parish as _tokens_, which they must produce before receiving it. This is a species ofpriestly power, and sometimes may be abused. I remember a lawsuitbrought by a person against his parish minister, for refusing himadmission to that sacred ordinance. BOSWELL. 

[372] See _ post_, Sept. 13 and 28. 

[373] Mr. Trevelyan (_Life of Macaulay_, ed. 1877, i. 6) says: 'Johnsonpronounced that Mr. Macaulay was not competent to have written the bookthat went by his name; a decision which, to those who happen to haveread the work, will give a very poor notion my ancestor's abilities. '

[374]

 'The thane of Cawdor lives, A prosperous gentleman. '

_Macbeth_, act i. Sc. 3. 

[375] According to Murray's _Handbook, _ ed. 1867, p. 308, no part of thecastle is older than the fifteenth century. 

[376] See _post_, Nov. 5. 

[377] The historian. _Ante_, p. 41. 

[378] See _ante_, iii. 336, and _post_, Nov. 7. 

[379] See _post_, Oct. 27. 

[380] Baretti was the Italian. Boswell disliked him (_ante_, ii. 98note), and perhaps therefore described him merely as 'a man of _some_literature. ' Baretti complained to Malone that 'the story as told gavean unfair representation of him. ' He had, he said, 'observed to Johnsonthat the petition _lead us not into temptation_ ought rather to beaddressed to the tempter of mankind than a benevolent Creator. "Pray, Sir, " said Johnson, "do you know who was the author of the Lord'sPrayer?" Baretti, who did not wish to get into any serious dispute andwho appears to be an Infidel, by way of putting an end to theconversation, only replied:--"Oh, Sir, you know by _our_ religion (RomanCatholic) we are not permitted to read the Scriptures. You can'ttherefore expect an answer. "' Prior's _Malone_, p. 399. Sir JoshuaReynolds, on hearing this from Malone, said:--'This turn which Barettinow gives to the matter was an after-thought; for he once said to memyself:--"There are various opinions about the writer of that prayer;some give it to St. Augustine, some to St. Chrysostom, &c. What is youropinion? "' _Ib_. P. 394. Mrs. Piozzi says that she heard 'Baretti tella clergyman the story of Dives and Lazarus as the subject of a poem heonce had composed in the Milanese district, expecting great credit forhis powers of invention. ' Hayward's _Piozzi_, ii. 348. 

[381] Goldsmith (_Present Slate of Polite Learning_, chap. 13) thuswrote of servitorships: 'Surely pride itself has dictated to the fellowsof our colleges the absurd passion of being attended at meals, and onother public occasions, by those poor men who, willing to be scholars, come in upon some charitable foundation. It implies a contradiction formen to be at once learning the _liberal_ arts, and at the same timetreated as _slaves_; at once studying freedom and practising servitude. 'Yet a young man like Whitefield was willing enough to be a servitor. Hehad been a waiter in his mother's inn; he was now a waiter in a college, but a student also. See my _Dr. Johnson: His Friends and hisCritics_, p. 27. 

[382] Dr. Johnson did not neglect what he had undertaken. By hisinterest with the Rev. Dr. Adams, master of Pembroke College, Oxford, where he was educated for some time, he obtained a servitorship foryoung M'Aulay. But it seems he had other views; and I believe wentabroad. BOSWELL. See _ante_, ii. 380. 

[383] 'I once drank tea, ' writes Lamb, 'in company with two Methodistdivines of different persuasions. Before the first cup was handed round, one of these reverend gentlemen put it to the other, with all duesolemnity, whether he chose to _say anything_. It seems it is the customwith some sectaries to put up a short prayer before this meal also. Hisreverend brother did not at first quite apprehend him, but upon anexplanation, with little less importance he made answer that it was nota custom known in his church. ' _Essay on Grace before Meat_. 

[384] He could not bear to have it thought that, in any instancewhatever, the Scots are more pious than the English. I think grace asproper at breakfast as at any other meal. It is the pleasantest meal wehave. Dr. Johnson has allowed the peculiar merit of breakfast inScotland. BOSWELL. 'If an epicure could remove by a wish in quest ofsensual gratification, wherever he had supped he would breakfast inScotland. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 52. 

[385] Bruce, the Abyssinian Traveller, found in the annals of thatregion a king named _Brus_, which he chooses to consider the genuineorthography of the name. This circumstance occasioned some mirth at thecourt of Gondar. WALTER SCOTT. 

[386] See _ante_, ii. 169, note 2, and _post_, Sept. 2. Johnson, so faras I have observed, spelt the name _Boswel_. 

[387] Sir Eyre Coote was born in 1726. He took part in the battle ofPlassey in 1757, and commanded at the reduction of Pondicherry in 1761. In 1770-71 he went by land to Europe. In 1780 he took command of theEnglish army against Hyder Ali, whom he repeatedly defeated. He died in1783. Chalmers's _Biog. Dict_. X. 236. There is a fine description ofhim in Macaulay's _Essays_, ed. 1843, iii. 385. 

[388] See _ante_, iii. 361. 

[389] Reynolds wrote of Johnson:--'He sometimes, it must be confessed, covered his ignorance by generals rather than appear ignorant' Taylor's_Reynolds_, ii. 457. 

[390] 'The barracks are very handsome, and form several regular and goodstreets. ' Pennant's _Tour_, p. 144. 

[391] See _ante_, p. 45. 

[392] Here Dr. Johnson gave us part of a conversation held between aGreat Personage and him, in the library at the Queen's Palace, in thecourse of which this contest was considered. I have been at great painsto get that conversation as perfectly preserved as possible. It mayperhaps at some future time be given to the publick. BOSWELL. For 'aGreat Personage' see _ante_, i. 219; and for the conversation, ii. 33. 

[393] See _ante_, ii. 73, 228, 248; iii. 4 and June 15, 1784. 

[394] See _ante_, i. 167, note 1. 

[395] Booth acted _Cato_, and Wilks Juba when Addison's _Cato_ wasbrought out. Pope told Spence that 'Lord Bolingbroke's carrying hisfriends to the house, and presenting Booth with a purse of guineas forso well representing the character of a person "who rather chose to diethan see a general for life, " carried the success of the play muchbeyond what they ever expected. ' Spence's _Anec_. P. 46. Bolingbrokealluded to the Duke of Marlborough. Pope in his _Imitations of Horace_, 2 Epist. I. 123 introduces 'well-mouth'd Booth. '

[396] See _ante_, iii. 35, and under Sept. 30, 1783. 

[397] 'Garrick used to tell, that Johnson said of an actor who playedSir Harry Wildair at Lichfield, "There is a courtly vivacity about thefellow;" when, in fact, according to Garrick's account, "he was the mostvulgar ruffian that ever went upon _boards_. "' _Ante_, ii. 465. 

[398] Mrs. Cibber was the sister of Dr. Arne the musical composer, andthe wife of Theophilus Cibber, Colley Cibber's son. She died in 1766, and was buried in the cloisters of Westminster Abbey. Baker's _Biog. Dram. _ i. 123. 

[399] See _ante_, under Sept. 30, 1783. 

[400] See _ante_, i. 197, and ii. 348. 

[401] Johnson had set him to repeat the ninth commandment, and had withgreat glee put him right in the emphasis. _Ante_, i. 168. 

[402] Act iii. Sc. 2. 

[403] Boswell's suggestion is explained by the following passage inJohnson's _Works_, viii. 463:--'Mallet was by his original one of theMacgregors, a clan that became about sixty years ago, under the conductof Robin Roy, so formidable and so infamous for violence and robbery, that the name was annulled by a legal abolition. '

[404] See _ante_, iii. 410, where he said to an Irish gentleman:--'Donot make an union with us, Sir. We should unite with you, only to robyou. We should have robbed the Scotch, if they had had anything of whichwe could have robbed them. '

[405] It is remarkable that Dr. Johnson read this gentle remonstrance, and took no notice of it to me. BOSWELL. See _post_, Oct. 12, note. 

[406] _St. Matthew_, v. 44. 

[407] It is odd that Boswell did not suspect the parson, who, no doubt, had learnt the evening before from Mr. Keith that the two travellerswould be present at his sermon. Northcote (_Life of Reynolds_, ii. 283)says that one day at Sir Joshua's dinner-table, when his host praisedMalone very highly for his laborious edition of _Shakespeare_, he(Northcote) 'rather hastily replied, "What a very despicable creaturemust that man be who thus devotes himself, and makes another man hisgod;" when Boswell, who sat at my elbow, and was not in my thoughts atthe time, cried out "Oh! Sir Joshua, then that is me!"'

[408] Johnson (_Works_, ix. 23) more cautiously says:--'Here is acastle, called the castle of Macbeth. '

[409] 'This short dialogue between Duncan and Banquo, whilst they areapproaching the gates of Macbeth's castle, has always appeared to me astriking instance of what in painting is termed _repose_. Theirconversation very naturally turns upon the beauty of its situation, andthe pleasantness of the air; and Banquo, observing the martlet's nestsin every recess of the cornice, remarks that where those birds mostbreed and haunt the air is delicate. The subject of this quiet and easyconversation gives that repose so necessary to the mind after thetumultuous bustle of the preceding scenes, and perfectly contrasts thescene of horror that immediately succeeds. It seems as if Shakespeareasked himself, what is a prince likely to say to his attendants on suchan occasion? whereas the modern writers seem, on the contrary, to bealways searching for new thoughts, such as would never occur to men inthe situation which is represented. This also is frequently the practiceof Homer, who from the midst of battles and horrors relieves andrefreshes the mind of the reader by introducing some quiet rural image, or picture of familiar domestick life. ' Johnson's _Shakespeare_. Northcote (_Life of Reynolds_, i. 144-151) quotes other notesby Reynolds. 

[410] In the original _senses_. Act i, sc. 6. 

[411] Act i. Sc. 5. 

[412] Boswell forgets _scoundrelism_, _ante_, p. 106, which, I suppose, Johnson coined. 

[413] See _ante_, ii. 154, note 3. Peter Paragraph is one of thecharacters in Foote's Comedy of _The Orators_. 

[414] When upon the subject of this _peregrinity_, he told me someparticulars concerning the compilation of his _Dictionary_, andconcerning his throwing off Lord Chesterfield's patronage, of which veryerroneous accounts have been circulated. These particulars, with otherswhich he afterwards gave me, --as also his celebrated letter to LordChesterfield, which he dictated to me, --I reserve for his _Life. _BOSWELL. See _ante, _ i. 221, 261. 

[415] See _ante, _ ii. 326, 371, and v. 18. 

[416] It is the third edition, published in 1778, that first bears thistitle. The first edition was published in 1761, and the second in 1762. 

[417] 'One of them was a man of great liveliness and activity, of whomhis companion said that he would tire any horse in Inverness. Both ofthem were civil and ready-handed Civility seems part of the nationalcharacter of Highlanders. ' _Works, _ ix. 25. 

[418] 'The way was very pleasant; the rock out of which the road was cutwas covered with birch trees, fern, and heath. The lake below wasbeating its bank by a gentle wind. .. . In one part of the way we hadtrees on both sides for perhaps half a mile. Such a length of shade, perhaps, Scotland cannot shew in any other place. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 123. The travellers must have passed close by the cottage where JamesMackintosh was living, a child of seven. 

[419] Boswell refers, I think, to a passage in act iv. Sc. I ofFarquhar's Comedy, where Archer says to Mrs. Sullen:--'I can't at thisdistance, Madam, distinguish the figures of the embroidery. ' Thispassage is copied by Goldsmith in _She Stoops to Conquer_, act iii. , where Marlow says to Miss Hardcastle: 'Odso! then you must shew me yourembroidery. '

[420] Johnson (_Works_, ix. 28) gives a long account of this woman. 'Meal she considered as expensive food, and told us that in spring, whenthe goats gave milk, the children could live without it. '

[421] It is very odd, that when these roads were made, there was no caretaken for _Inns_. The _King's House_, and the _General's Hut_, aremiserable places; but the project and plans were purely military. WALTERSCOTT. Johnson found good entertainment here, 'We had eggs and bacon andmutton, with wine, rum, and whisky. I had water. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 124. 

[422] 'Mr. Boswell, who between his father's merit and his own is sureof reception wherever he comes, sent a servant before, ' &c. Johnson's_Works_, ix. 30. 

[423] On April 6, 1777, Johnson noted down: 'I passed the night in suchsweet uninterrupted sleep as I have not known since I slept at FortAugustus. ' _Pr. And Med. _ p. 159. On Nov. 21, 1778, he wrote to Boswell:'The best night that I have had these twenty years was at FortAugustus. ' _Ante_, iii. 369. 

[424] See _ante_, iii. 246. 

[425] A McQueen is a Highland mode of expression. An Englishman wouldsay _one_ McQueen. But where there are _clans_ or _tribes_ of men, distinguished by _patronymick_ surnames, the individuals of each areconsidered as if they were of different species, at least as much asnations are distinguished; so that a _McQueen_, a _McDonald_, a_McLean_, is said, as we say a Frenchman, an Italian, a Spaniard. BOSWELL. 

[426] 'I praised the propriety of his language, and was answered that Ineed not wonder, for he had learnt it by grammar. By subsequentopportunities of observation I found that my host's diction had nothingpeculiar. Those Highlanders that can speak English commonly speak itwell, with few of the words and little of the tone by which a Scotchmanis distinguished . .. By their Lowland neighbours they would notwillingly be taught; for they have long considered them as a mean anddegenerate race. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 31. He wrote to Mrs. Thrale:'This man's conversation we were glad of while we staid. He had beenout, as they call it, in forty-five, and still retained his oldopinions. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 130. 

[427] By the Chevalier Ramsay. 

[428] 'From him we first heard of the general dissatisfaction which isnow driving the Highlanders into the other hemisphere; and when I askedhim whether they would stay at home if they were well treated, heanswered with indignation that no man willingly left his native country. Johnson's _Works_, ix. 33. See _ante_, p. 27. 

[429] 'The chief glory of every people arises from its authors. ' _Ib. _v. 49. 

[430] Four years later, three years after Goldsmith's death, Johnson'observed in Lord Scarsdale's dressing-room Goldsmith's _AnimatedNature_; and said, "Here's our friend. The poor doctor would have beenhappy to hear of this. "' _Ante_, iii. 162. 

[431] See _ante_, i. 348 and ii. 438 and _post_, Sept. 23. Mackintoshsays: 'Johnson's idea that a ship was a prison with the danger ofdrowning is taken from Endymion Porter's _Consolation to Howell_ on hisimprisonment in the _Fleet_, and was originally suggested by the pun. '_Life of Mackintosh_, ii. 83. The passage to which he refers is found inHowell's letter of Jan. 2, 1646 (book ii. Letter 39), in which he writesto Porter:--'You go on to prefer my captivity in this _Fleet_ to that ofa voyager at sea, in regard that he is subject to storms and springingof leaks, to pirates and picaroons, with other casualties. '

[432] See _ante_, iii. 242. 

[433] This book has given rise to much enquiry, which has ended inludicrous surprise. Several ladies, wishing to learn the kind of readingwhich the great and good Dr. Johnson esteemed most fit for a youngwoman, desired to know what book he had selected for this Highlandnymph. 'They never adverted (said he) that I had no _choice_ in thematter. I have said that I presented her with a book which I _happened_to have about me. ' And what was this book? My readers, prepare yourfeatures for merriment. It was _Cocker's Arithmetick_!--Wherever thiswas mentioned, there was a loud laugh, at which Johnson, when present, used sometimes to be a little angry. One day, when we were dining atGeneral Oglethorpe's, where we had many a valuable day, I ventured tointerrogate him. 'But, Sir, is it not somewhat singular that you should_happen_ to have _Cocker's Arithmetick_ about you on your journey? Whatmade you buy such a book at Inverness?' He gave me a very sufficientanswer. 'Why, Sir, if you are to have but one book with you upon ajourney, let it be a book of science. When you have read through a bookof entertainment, you know it, and it can do no more for you; but a bookof science is inexhaustible. ' BOSWELL. 

Johnson thus mentions his gift: 'I presented her with a book which Ihappened to have about me, and should not be pleased to think that sheforgets me. ' _Works_, ix. 32. The first edition of _Cocker's Arithmetic_was published about 1660. _Brit. Mus. Cata. _ Though Johnson says that 'abook of science is inexhaustible, ' yet in _The Rambler_, No. 154, heasserts that 'the principles of arithmetick and geometry may becomprehended by a close attention in a few days. ' Mrs. Piozzi says(_Anec_. P. 77) that 'when Mr. Johnson felt his fancy disordered, hisconstant recurrence was to arithmetic; and one day that he was confinedto his chamber, and I enquired what he had been doing to divert himself, he shewed me a calculation which I could scarce be made to understand, so vast was the plan of it; no other indeed than that the national debt, computing it at £180, 000, 000, would, if converted into silver, serve tomake a meridian of that metal, I forget how broad, for the globe of thewhole earth. ' See _ante_, iii. 207, and iv. 171, note 3. 

[434] Swift's _Works_ (1803), xxiv. 63. 

[435] 'We told the soldiers how kindly we had been treated at thegarrison, and, as we were enjoying the benefit of their labours, beggedleave to shew our gratitude by a small present. .. . They had the truemilitary impatience of coin in their pockets, and had marched at leastsix miles to find the first place where liquor could be bought. Havingnever been before in a place so wild and unfrequented I was glad oftheir arrival, because I knew that we had made them friends; and to gainstill more of their goodwill we went to them, where they were carousingin the barn, and added something to our former gift. ' _Works_, ix. 31-2. 

[436]

 'Why rather sleep, liest thou in smoky cribs, Upon uneasy pallets stretching thee. ' &c. 

 2 _Henry IV. _ act iii. Sc. 1. 

[437] Spain, in 1719, sent a strong force under the Duke of Ormond toScotland in behalf of the Chevalier. Owing to storms only a few hundredmen landed. These were joined by a large body of Highlanders, but beingattacked by General Wightman, the clansmen dispersed and the Spaniardssurrendered. Smollett's _England_, ed. 1800, ii. 382. 

[438] Boswell mentions this _ante_, i. 41, as a proof of Johnson's'perceptive quickness. '

[439] Dr. Johnson, in his _Journey_, thus beautifully describes hissituation here:--'I sat down on a bank, such as a writer of romancemight have delighted to feign. I had, indeed, no trees to whisper overmy head; but a clear rivulet streamed at my feet. The day was calm, theair soft, and all was rudeness, silence, and solitude. Before me, and oneither side, were high hills, which, by hindering the eye from ranging, forced the mind to find entertainment for itself. Whether I spent thehour well, I know not; for here I first conceived the thought of thisnarration. ' The _Critical Reviewers_, with a spirit and expressionworthy of the subject, say, --'We congratulate the publick on the eventwith which this quotation concludes, and are fully persuaded that thehour in which the entertaining traveller conceived this narrative willbe considered, by every reader of taste, as a fortunate event in theannals of literature. Were it suitable to the task in which we are atpresent engaged, to indulge ourselves in a poetical flight, we wouldinvoke the winds of the Caledonian Mountains to blow for ever, withtheir softest breezes, on the bank where our author reclined, andrequest of Flora, that it might be perpetually adorned with the gayestand most fragrant productions of the year. ' BOSWELL. Johnson thusdescribed the scene to Mrs. Thrale:--'I sat down to take notes on agreen bank, with a small stream running at my feet, in the midst ofsavage solitude, with mountains before me and on either hand coveredwith heath. I looked around me, and wondered that I was not moreaffected, but the mind is not at all times equally ready to be put inmotion. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 131. 

[440] 'The villagers gathered about us in considerable numbers, Ibelieve without any evil intention, but with a very savage wildness ofaspect and manner. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 38. 

[441] The M'Craas, or Macraes, were since that time brought into theking's army, by the late Lord Seaforth. When they lay in EdinburghCastle in 1778, and were ordered to embark for Jersey, they with anumber of other men in the regiment, for different reasons, butespecially an apprehension that they were to be sold to the East-IndiaCompany, though enlisted not to be sent out of Great-Britain withouttheir own consent, made a determined mutiny, and encamped upon the loftymountain, _Arthur's seat_, where they remained three days and threenights; bidding defiance to all the force in Scotland. At last they camedown, and embarked peaceably, having obtained formal articles ofcapitulation, signed by Sir Adolphus Oughton, commander in chief, General Skene, deputy commander, the Duke of Buccleugh, and the Earl ofDunmore, which quieted them. Since the secession of the Commons of Rometo the _Mons Sacer_, a more spirited exertion has not been made. I gavegreat attention to it from first to last, and have drawn up a particularaccount of it. Those brave fellows have since served their countryeffectually at Jersey, and also in the East-Indies, to which, afterbeing better informed, they voluntarily agreed to go. BOSWELL. The linewhich Boswell quotes is from _The Chevalier's Muster Roll_:--

 'The laird of M'Intosh is coming, M'Crabie & M'Donald's coming, M'Kenzie & M'Pherson's coming, And the wild M'Craw's coming. Little wat ye wha's coming, Donald Gun and a's coming. ' Hogg's _Jacobite Relics_, i. 152. 

Horace Walpole (_Letters_, vii. 198) writing on May 9, 1779, tells howon May 1 'the French had attempted to land [on Jersey], but LordSeaforth's new-raised regiment of 700 Highlanders, assisted by somemilitia and some artillery, made a brave stand and repelled theintruders. '

[442] 'One of the men advised her, with the cunning that clowns nevercan be without, to ask more; but she said that a shilling was enough. Wegave her half a crown, and she offered part of it again. ' _PiozziLetters_, i. 133. 

[443] Of this part of the journey Johnson wrote:--'We had very littleentertainment as we travelled either for the eye or ear. There are, Ifancy, no singing birds in the Highlands. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 135. Itis odd that he should have looked for singing birds on the first ofSeptember. 

[444] Act iii. Sc. 4. 

[445] It is amusing to observe the different images which this beingpresented to Dr. Johnson and me. The Doctor, in his _Journey_, compareshim to a Cyclops. BOSWELL. 'Out of one of the beds on which we were torepose, started up at our entrance, a man black as a Cyclops from theforge. ' _Works_, ix. 44. Johnson wrote to Mrs. Thrale:--'When we weretaken up stairs, a dirty fellow bounced out of the bed where one of uswas to lie. Boswell blustered, but nothing could be got'. _PiozziLetters_, i, 136. Macaulay (_Essays_, ed. 1843, i. 404) says: 'It isclear that Johnson himself did not think in the dialect in which hewrote. The expressions which came first to his tongue were simple, energetic, and picturesque. When he wrote for publication, he did hissentences out of English into Johnsonese. His letters from the Hebridesto Mrs. Thrale are the original of that work of which the _Journey tothe Hebrides_ is the translation; and it is amusing to compare the twoversions. ' Macaulay thereupon quotes these two passages. See _ante_, under Aug. 29, 1783. 

[446] 'We had a lemon and a piece of bread, which supplied me with mysupper. '_Piozzi Letters_, i, 136. Goldsmith, who in his student days hadbeen in Scotland, thus writes of a Scotch inn:--'Vile entertainment isserved up, complained of, and sent down; up comes worse, and that alsois changed, and every change makes our wretched cheer more unsavoury. '_Present State of Polite Learning_, ch. 12. 

[447] General Wolfe, in his letter from Head-quarters on Sept. 2, 1759, eleven days before his death wrote:--'In this situation there is such achoice of difficulties that I own myself at a loss how to determine. '_Ann. Reg. _ 1759, p. 246. 

[448] See _ante_, p. 89. 

[449] See _ante_, ii. 169, note 2. 

[450] Boswell, in a note that he added to the second edition (see_post_, end of the _Journal_), says that he has omitted 'a fewobservations the publication of which might perhaps be considered aspassing the bounds of a strict decorum, ' In the first edition (p. 165)the next three paragraphs were as follows:--'Instead of finding the headof the Macdonalds surrounded with his clan, and a festive entertainment, we had a small company, and cannot boast of our cheer. The particularsare minuted in my Journal, but I shall not trouble the publick withthem. I shall mention but one characteristick circumstance. My shrewdand hearty friend Sir Thomas (Wentworth) Blacket, Lady Macdonald'suncle, who had preceded us in a visit to this chief, upon being asked byhim if the punch-bowl then upon the table was not a very handsome one, replied, "Yes--if it were full. " 'Sir Alexander Macdonald having been anEton scholar, Dr. Johnson had formed an opinion of him which was muchdiminished when he beheld him in the isle of Sky, where we heard heavycomplaints of rents racked, and the people driven to emigration. Dr. Johnson said, "It grieves me to see the chief of a great clan appear tosuch disadvantage. This gentleman has talents, nay some learning; but heis totally unfit for this situation. Sir, the Highland chiefs should notbe allowed to go farther south than Aberdeen. A strong-minded man, likehis brother Sir James, may be improved by an English education; but ingeneral they will be tamed into insignificance. " 'I meditated an escapefrom this house the very next day; but Dr. Johnson resolved that weshould weather it out till Monday. ' Johnson wrote to Mrs. Thrale:--'Wesaw the isle of Skie before us, darkening the horizon with its rockycoast. A boat was procured, and we launched into one of the straits ofthe Atlantick Ocean. We had a passage of about twelve miles to the pointwhere ---- ---- resided, having come from his seat in the middle of theisland to a small house on the shore, as we believe, that he might withless reproach entertain us meanly. If he aspired to meanness, hisretrograde ambition was completely gratified. .. Boswell was very angry, and reproached him with his improper parsimony. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 137. A little later he wrote:--'I have done thinking of ---- whom we nowcall Sir Sawney; he has disgusted all mankind by injudicious parsimony, and given occasion to so many stories, that ---- has some thoughts ofcollecting them, and making a novel of his life. ' _Ib_. P. 198. The lastof Rowlandson's _Caricatures_ of Boswell's _Journal_ is entitled_Revising for the Second Edition_. Macdonald is represented as seizingBoswell by the throat and pointing with his stick to the _Journal_ thatlies open at pages 168, 169. On the ground lie pages 165, 167, torn out. Boswell, in an agony of fear, is begging for mercy. 

[451]

 'Here, in Badenoch, here in Lochaber anon, in Lochiel, in Knoydart, Moydart, Morrer, Ardgower, and Ardnamurchan, Here I see him and here: I see him; anon I lose him. '

Clough's _Bothie_, p. 125

[452] See his Latin verses addressed to Dr. Johnson, in this APPENDIX. BOSWELL. 

[453] See _ante_, ii. 157. 

[454] See _ante_, i. 449. 

[455] See _ante_, ii. 99. 

[456] See _ante_, iii 198, note 1. 

[457] 'Such is the laxity of Highland conversation, that the inquirer iskept in continual suspense, and by a kind of intellectual retrogradationknows less as he hears more. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 47. 'They are notmuch accustomed to be interrogated by others, and seem never to havethought upon interrogating themselves; so that if they do not know whatthey tell to be true, they likewise do not distinctly perceive it to befalse. Mr. Boswell was very diligent in his inquiries; and the result ofhis investigations was, that the answer to the second question wascommonly such as nullified the answer to the first. ' _Ib. _, p. 114. 

[458] Mr. Carruthers, in his edition of Boswell's _Hebrides_, says (p. Xiv):--'The new management and high rents took the tacksmen, or largertenants, by surprise. They were indignant at the treatment theyreceived, and selling off their stock they emigrated to America. In thetwenty years from 1772 to 1792, sixteen vessels with emigrants sailedfrom the western shores of Inverness-shire and Ross-shire, containingabout 6400 persons, who carried with them in specie at least £38, 400. Adesperate effort was made by the tacksmen on the estate of LordMacdonald. They bound themselves by a solemn oath not to offer for anyfarm that might become vacant. The combination failed of its object, butit appeared so formidable in the eyes of the "English-bred chieftain, "that he retreated precipitately from Skye and never afterwardsreturned. '

[459] Dr. Johnson seems to have forgotten that a Highlander going armedat this period incurred the penalty of serving as a common soldier forthe first, and of transportation beyond sea for a second offence. And asfor 'calling out his clan, ' twelve Highlanders and a bagpipe made arebellion. WALTER SCOTT. 

[460] Mackintosh (_Life_ ii. 62) says that in Mme. Du Deffand's_Correspondence_ there is 'an extraordinary confirmation of the talentsand accomplishments of our Highland Phoenix, Sir James Macdonald. AHighland chieftain, admired by Voltaire, could have been noordinary man. '

[461] This extraordinary young man, whom I had the pleasure of knowingintimately, having been deeply regretted by his country, the most minuteparticulars concerning him must be interesting to many. I shalltherefore insert his two last letters to his mother, Lady MargaretMacdonald, which her ladyship has been pleased to communicate to me. 'Rome, July 9th, 1766. 'My DEAR MOTHER, 'Yesterday's post brought meyour answer to the first letter in which I acquainted you of my illness. Your tenderness and concern upon that account are the same I have alwaysexperienced, and to which I have often owed my life. Indeed it never wasin so great danger as it has been lately; and though it would have beena very great comfort to me to have had you near me, yet perhaps I oughtto rejoice, on your account, that you had not the pain of such aspectacle. I have been now a week in Rome, and wish I could continue togive you the same good accounts of my recovery as I did in my last; butI must own that, for three days past, I have been in a very weak andmiserable state, which however seems to give no uneasiness to myphysician. My stomach has been greatly out of order, without any visiblecause; and the palpitation does not decrease. I am told that my stomachwill soon recover its tone, and that the palpitation must cease in time. So I am willing to believe; and with this hope support the littleremains of spirits which I can be supposed to have, on the forty-seventhday of such an illness. Do not imagine I have relapsed;--I only recoverslower than I expected. If my letter is shorter than usual, the cause ofit is a dose of physick, which has weakened me so much to-day, that I amnot able to write a long letter. I will make up for it next post, andremain always 'Your most sincerely affectionate son, 'J. MACDONALD. ' Hegrew gradually worse; and on the night before his death he wrote asfollows from Frescati:--'MY DEAR MOTHER, 'Though I did not mean todeceive you in my last letter from Rome, yet certainly you would havevery little reason to conclude of the very great and constant danger Ihave gone through ever since that time. My life, which is still almostentirely desperate, did not at that time appear to me so, otherwise Ishould have represented, in its true colours, a fact which acquires verylittle horror by that means, and comes with redoubled force bydeception. There is no circumstance of danger and pain of which I havenot had the experience, for a continued series of above a fortnight;during which time I have settled my affairs, after my death, with asmuch distinctness as the hurry and the nature of the thing could admitof. In case of the worst, the Abbé Grant will be my executor in thispart of the world, and Mr. Mackenzie in Scotland, where my object hasbeen to make you and my younger brother as independent of the eldest aspossible. ' BOSWELL. Horace Walpole (Letters, vii. 291), in 1779, thusmentions this 'younger brother':--'Macdonald abused Lord North in verygross, yet too applicable, terms; and next day pleaded he had beendrunk, recanted, and was all admiration and esteem for his Lordship'stalents and virtues. '

[462] See _ante_, iii. 85, and _post_, Oct. 28. 

[463] Cheyne's English Malady, ed. 1733, p. 229. 

[464] 'Weary, stale, flat and unprofitable. ' _Hamlet_, act i. Sc. 2. See_ante_, iii. 350, where Boswell is reproached by Johnson with 'bringingin gabble, ' when he makes this quotation. 

[465] VARIOUS READINGS. Line 2. In the manuscript, Dr. Johnson, insteadof _rupibus obsita_, had written _imbribus uvida_, and _uvida nubibus_, but struck them both out. Lines 15 and 16. Instead of these two lines, he had written, but afterwards struck out, the following:--

 Parare posse, utcunque jactet Grandiloquus nimis alta Zeno. 

BOSWELL. In Johnson's _Works_, i. 167, these lines are given with somevariations, which perhaps are in part due to Mr. Langton, who, we aretold (_ante_, Dec. 1784), edited some, if not indeed all, of Johnson'sLatin poems. 

[466] Cowper wrote to S. Rose on May 20, 1789:--'Browne was anentertaining companion when he had drunk his bottle, but not before;this proved a snare to him, and he would sometimes drink too much. 'Southey's _Cowper_, vi. 237. His _De Animi Immortalitate_ was publishedin 1754. He died in 1760, aged fifty-four. See _ante_, ii. 339. 

[467] Boswell, in one of his _Hypochondriacks_ (_ante_, iv. 179)says:--'I do fairly acknowledge that I love Drinking; that I have aconstitutional inclination to indulge in fermented liquors, and that ifit were not for the restraints of reason and religion, I am afraid Ishould be as constant a votary of Bacchus as any man. .. . Drinking is inreality an occupation which employs a considerable portion of the timeof many people; and to conduct it in the most rational and agreeablemanner is one of the great arts of living. Were we so framed that itwere possible by perpetual supplies of wine to keep ourselves for evergay and happy, there could be no doubt that drinking would be the_summum bonum_, the chief good, to find out which philosophers have beenso variously busied. But we know from humiliating experience that mencannot be kept long in a state of elevated drunkenness. '

[468] That my readers may have my narrative in the style of the countrythrough which I am travelling, it is proper to inform them, that thechief of a clan is denominated by his _surname_ alone, as M'Leod, M'Kinnon, M'lntosh. To prefix _Mr. _ to it would be a degradation from_the_ M'Leod, &c. My old friend, the Laird of M'Farlane, the greatantiquary, took it highly amiss, when General Wade called him Mr. M'Farlane. Dr. Johnson said, he could not bring himself to use this modeof address; it seemed to him to be too familiar, as it is the way inwhich, in all other places, intimates or inferiors are addressed. Whenthe chiefs have _titles_ they are denominated by them, as _Sir JamesGrant_, _Sir Allan M'Lean_. The other Highland gentlemen, of landedproperty, are denominated by their _estates_, as _Rasay_, _Boisdale_;and the wives of all of them have the title of _ladies_. The _tacksmen_, or principal tenants, are named by their farms, as _Kingsburgh_, _Corrichatachin_; and their wives are called the _mistress_ ofKingsburgh, the _mistress_ of Corrichatachin. --Having given thisexplanation, I am at liberty to use that mode of speech which generallyprevails in the Highlands and the Hebrides. BOSWELL. 

[469] See _ante_, iii. 275. 

[470] Boswell implies that Sir A. Macdonald's table had not beenfurnished plentifully. Johnson wrote:--'At night we came to a tenant'shouse of the first rank of tenants, where we were entertained betterthan at the landlord's. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 141. 

[471] 'Little did I once think, ' he wrote to her the same day, 'ofseeing this region of obscurity, and little did you once expect asalutation from this verge of European life. I have now the pleasure ofgoing where nobody goes, and seeing what nobody sees. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 120. About fourteen years since, I landed in Sky, with a party offriends, and had the curiosity to ask what was the first idea on everyone's mind at landing. All answered separately that it was this Ode. WALTER SCOTT. 

[472] See Appendix B. 

[473] 'I never was in any house of the islands, where I did not findbooks in more languages than one, if I staid long enough to want them, except one from which the family was removed. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 50. He is speaking of 'the higher rank of the Hebridians, ' for on p. 61he says:--'The greater part of the islanders make no use of books. '

[474] There was a Mrs. Brooks, an actress, the daughter of a Scotchmannamed Watson, who had forfeited his property by 'going out in the '45. 'But according to _The Thespian Dictionary_ her first appearance on thestage was in 1786. 

[475] Boswell mentions, _post_, Oct. 5, 'the famous Captain ofClanranald, who fell at Sherrif-muir. '

[476] See _ante_, p. 95. 

[477] By John Macpherson, D. D. See _post_, Sept. 13. 

[478] Sir Walter Scott, when in Sky in 1814, wrote:--'We learn that mostof the Highland superstitions, even that of the second sight, are stillin force. ' Lockhart's _Scott_, ed. 1839, iv. 305. See _. Ante_, ii. 10, 318. 

[479] Of him Johnson wrote:--'One of the ministers honestly told me thathe came to Sky with a resolution not to believe it. ' _Works_, ix. 106. 

[480] 'By the term _second sight_ seems to be meant a mode of seeingsuperadded to that which nature generally bestows. In the Erse it iscalled _Taisch_; which signifies likewise a spectre or a vision. '_Johnson's Works_, ix. 105. 

[481] Gray's _Ode on a distant prospect of Eton College_, 1. 44. 

[482] A tonnage bounty of thirty shillings a ton was at this time givento the owners of busses or decked vessels for the encouragement of thewhite herring fishery. Adam Smith (_Wealth of Nations_, iv. 5) shews howmischievous was its effect. 

[483] The Highland expression for Laird of Rasay. BOSWELL. 

[484] 'In Sky I first observed the use of brogues, a kind of artlessshoes, stitched with thongs so loosely, that, though they defend thefoot from stones, they do not exclude water. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix 46. 

[485] To evade the law against the tartan dress, the Highlanders used todye their variegated plaids and kilts into blue, green, or any singlecolour. WALTER SCOTT. 

[486] See _post_, Oct. 5. 

[487] The Highlanders were all well inclined to the episcopalian form, _proviso_ that the right _king_ was prayed for. I suppose Malcolm meantto say, 'I will come to your church because you are honest folk, ' viz. _Jacobites_. WALTER SCOTT. 

[488] See _ante_, i. 450, and ii. 291. 

[489] Perhaps he was thinking of Johnson's letter of June 20, 1771(_ante_, ii. 140), where he says:--'I hope the time will come when wemay try our powers both with cliffs and water. '

[490] 'The wind blew enough to give the boat a kind of dancingagitation. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 142. 'The water was calm and the rowerswere vigorous; so that our passage was quick and pleasant. ' Johnson's_Works_, ix. 54. 

[491]

 'Caught in the wild Aegean seas, The sailor bends to heaven for ease. '

FRANCIS. Horace, 2, _Odes_, xvi. 1. 

[492] See _ante_, iv. Dec. 9, 1784, note. 

[493] Such spells are still believed in. A lady of property in Mull, afriend of mine, had a few years since much difficulty in rescuing fromthe superstitious fury of the people, an old woman, who used a _charm_to injure her neighbour's cattle. It is now in my possession, andconsists of feathers, parings of nails, hair, and such like trash, wraptin a lump of clay. WALTER SCOTT. 

[494] Sir Walter Scott, writing in Skye in 1814, says:--'Macleod and Mr. Suter have both heard a tacksman of Macleod's recite the celebratedAddress to the Sun; and another person repeat the description ofCuchullin's car. But all agree as to the gross infidelity of Macphersonas a translator and editor. ' Lockhart's _Scott_, iv. 308. 

[495] See _post_, Nov. 10. 

[496] 'The women reaped the corn, and the men bound up the sheaves. Thestrokes of the sickle were timed by the modulation of the harvest-song, in which all their voices were united. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 58. 

[497] 'The money which he raises annually by rent from all hisdominions, which contain at least 50, 000 acres, is not believed toexceed £250; but as he keeps a large farm in his own hands, he sellsevery year great numbers of cattle . .. The wine circulates vigorously, and the tea, chocolate, and coffee, however they are got, are always athand. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 142. 'Of wine and punch they are veryliberal, for they get them cheap; but as there is no custom-house on theisland, they can hardly be considered as smugglers. ' _Ib_. P. 160. 'Their trade is unconstrained; they pay no customs, for there is noofficer to demand them; whatever, therefore, is made dear only by impostis obtained here at an easy rate. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 52. 

[498] 'No man is so abstemious as to refuse the morning dram, which theycall a _skalk_. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. P. 51. 

[499] Alexander Macleod, of Muiravenside, advocate, became extremelyobnoxious to government by his zealous personal efforts to engage hischief Macleod, and Macdonald of Sky, in the Chevalier's attempts of1745. Had he succeeded, it would have added one third at least to theJacobite army. Boswell has oddly described _M'Cruslick_, the being whosename was conferred upon this gentleman, as something between Proteus andDon Quixote. It is the name of a species of satyr, or _esprit follet_, asort of mountain Puck or hobgoblin, seen among the wilds and mountains, as the old Highlanders believed, sometimes mirthful, sometimesmischievous. Alexander Macleod's precarious mode of life and variablespirits occasioned the _soubriquet_. WALTER SCOTT. 

[500] Johnson also complained of the cheese. 'In the islands they dowhat I found it not very easy to endure. They pollute the tea-table byplates piled with large slices of Cheshire cheese, which mingles itsless grateful odours with the fragrance of the tea. ' _Works_, ix. 52. 

[501] 'The estate has not, during four hundred years, gained or lost asingle acre. ' _Ib_. P. 55. 

[502] Lord Stowell told me, that on the road from Newcastle to Berwick, Dr. Johnson and he passed a cottage, at the entrance of which were setup two of those great bones of the whale, which are not unfrequentlyseen in maritime districts. Johnson expressed great horror at the sightof these bones; and called the people, who could use such relics ofmortality as an ornament, mere savages. CROKER. 

[503] In like manner Boswell wrote:--'It is divinely cheering to me tothink that there is a Cathedral so near Auchinleck [as Carlisle]. '_Ante_, iii. 416. 

[504] 'It is not only in Rasay that the chapel is unroofed and useless;through the few islands which we visited we neither saw nor heard of anyhouse of prayer, except in Sky, that was not in ruins. The malignantinfluence of Calvinism has blasted ceremony and decency together. .. Ithas been for many years popular to talk of the lazy devotion of theRomish clergy; over the sleepy laziness of men that erected churches wemay indulge our superiority with a new triumph, by comparing it with thefervid activity of those who suffer them to fall. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 61. He wrote to Mrs. Thrale:--'By the active zeal of Protestantdevotion almost all the chapels have sunk into ruin. ' _PiozziLetters_, i. 152. 

[505] 'Not many years ago, ' writes Johnson, 'the late Laird led out onehundred men upon a military expedition. ' _Works_, ix. 59. What theexpedition was he is careful not to state. 

[506] 'I considered this rugged ascent as the consequence of a form oflife inured to hardships, and therefore not studious of niceaccommodations. But I know not whether for many ages it was notconsidered as a part of military policy to keep the country not easilyaccessible. The rocks are natural fortifications. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. P. 54. 

[507] See _post_ Sept. 17. 

[508] In Sky a price was set 'upon the heads of foxes, which, as thenumber was diminished, has been gradually raised from three shillingsand sixpence to a guinea, a sum so great in this part of the world, that, in a short time, Sky may be as free from foxes as England fromwolves. The fund for these rewards is a tax of sixpence in the pound, imposed by the farmers on themselves, and said to be paid with greatwillingness. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 57. 

[509] Boswell means that the eastern coast of Sky is westward of Rasay. CROKER. 

[510] 'The Prince was hidden in his distress two nights in Rasay, andthe King's troops burnt the whole country, and killed some of thecattle. You may guess at the opinions that prevail in this country; theyare, however, content with fighting for their King; they do not drinkfor him. We had no foolish healths', _Piozzi Letters_, i. 145. 

[511] See _ante_, iv. 217, where he said:--'You have, perhaps, no manwho knows as much Greek and Latin as Bentley. '

[512] See _ante_, ii. 61, and _post_, Oct. 1. 

[513] See _ante_, i. 268, note 1. 

[514] Steele had had the Duke of Marlborough's papers, and 'in some ofhis exigencies put them in pawn. They then remained with the oldDuchess, who, in her will, assigned the task to Glover [the author of_Leonidas_] and Mallet, with a reward of a thousand pounds, and aprohibition to insert any verses. Glover rejected, I suppose withdisdain, the legacy, and devolved the whole work upon Mallet; who hadfrom the late Duke of Marlborough a pension to promote his industry, andwho talked of the discoveries which he had made; but left not, when hedied, any historical labours behind him. ' Johnson's _Works_, viii. 466. The Duchess died in 1744 and Mallet in 1765. For more than twenty yearshe thus imposed more or less successfully on the world. About the year1751 he played on Garrick's vanity. 'Mallet, in a familiar conversationwith Garrick, discoursing of the diligence which he was then exertingupon the _Life of Marlborough_, let him know, that in the series ofgreat men quickly to be exhibited, he should _find a niche_ for the heroof the theatre. Garrick professed to wonder by what artifice he could beintroduced; but Mallet let him know, that by a dexterous anticipation heshould fix him in a conspicuous place. "Mr. Mallet, " says Garrick in hisgratitude of exultation, "have you left off to write for the stage?"Mallet then confessed that he had a drama in his hands. Garrick promisedto act it; and _Alfred_ was produced. ' _Ib_. P. 465. See _ante_, iii. 386. 

[515] According to Dr. Warton (_Essay on Pope_, ii. 140) he received£5000. 'Old Marlborough, ' wrote Horace Walpole in March, 1742 (Letters, i. 139), 'has at last published her _Memoirs_; they are digested by oneHooke, who wrote a Roman history; but from her materials, which are sowomanish that I am sure the man might sooner have made a gown andpetticoat with them. '

[516] See _ante_, i. 153

[517] 'Hooke, ' says Dr. Warton (_Essay on Pope_, ii. 141), 'was a Mysticand a Quietist, and a warm disciple of Fénelon. It was he who brought aCatholic priest to take Pope's confession on his death-bed. '

[518] See Cumberland's _Memoirs_, i. 344. 

[519] Mr. Croker says that 'though he sold a great tract of land inHarris, he left at his death in 1801 the original debt of £50, 000[Boswell says £40, 000] increased to £70, 000. ' When Johnson visitedMacleod at Dunvegan, he wrote to Mrs. Thrale:--'Here, though poorMacleod had been left by his grandfather overwhelmed with debts, we hadanother exhibition of feudal hospitality. There were two stags in thehouse, and venison came to the table every day in its various forms. Macleod, besides his estate in Sky, larger I suppose than some Englishcounties, is proprietor of nine inhabited isles; and of his islesuninhabited I doubt if he very exactly knows the number, I told him thathe was a mighty monarch. Such dominions fill an Englishman with enviouswonder; but when he surveys the naked mountain, and treads the quakingmoor; and wanders over the wild regions of gloomy barrenness, his wondermay continue, but his envy ceases. The unprofitableness of these vastdomains can be conceived only by the means of positive instances. Theheir of Col, an island not far distant, has lately told me how wealthyhe should be if he could let Rum, another of his islands, for twopencehalfpenny an acre; and Macleod has an estate which the surveyor reportsto contain 80, 000 acres, rented at £600 a year. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 154. 

[520] They were abolished by an act passed in 1747, being 'reckonedamong the principal sources of the rebellions. They certainly kept thecommon people in subjection to their chiefs. By this act they werelegally emancipated from slavery; but as the tenants enjoyed no leases, and were at all times liable to be ejected from their farms, they stilldepended on the pleasure of their lords, notwithstanding thisinterposition of the legislature, which granted a valuable considerationin money to every nobleman and petty baron, who was thus deprived of onepart of his inheritance. ' Smollett's _England_, iii. 206. See _ante_, p. 46, note 1, and _post_, Oct. 22. 

[521] 'I doubt not but that since the regular judges have made theircircuits through the whole country, right has been everywhere morewisely and more equally distributed; the complaint is, that litigationis grown troublesome, and that the magistrates are too few and thereforeoften too remote for general convenience. .. In all greater questionsthere is now happily an end to all fear or hope from malice or fromfavour. The roads are secure in those places through which forty yearsago no traveller could pass without a convoy. .. No scheme of policy hasin any country yet brought the rich and poor on equal terms to courts ofjudicature. Perhaps experience improving on experience may in timeeffect it. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 90. 

[522] He described Rasay as 'the seat of plenty, civility, andcheerfulness. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 152. 

[523] 'We heard the women singing as they _waulked_ the cloth, byrubbing it with their hands and feet, and screaming all the while in asort of chorus. At a distance the sound was wild and sweet enough, butrather discordant when you approached too near the performers. 'Lockhart's _Scott_, iv. 307. 

[524] She had been some time at Edinburgh, to which she again went, andwas married to my worthy neighbour, Colonel Mure Campbell, now Earl ofLoudoun, but she died soon afterwards, leaving one daughter. BOSWELL. 'She is a celebrated beauty; has been admired at Edinburgh; dresses herhead very high; and has manners so lady-like that I wish her head-dresswas lower. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 144. See _ante_, iii. 118. 

[525]

 'Yet hope not life from _grief_ or danger free, _Nor_ think the doom of man reversed for thee. '

_The Vanity of Human Wishes_. 

[526] 'Rasay accompanied us in his six-oared boat, which he said was hiscoach and six. It is indeed the vehicle in which the ladies take the airand pay their visits, but they have taken very little care foraccommodations. There is no way in or out of the boat for a woman but bybeing carried; and in the boat thus dignified with a pompous name thereis no seat but an occasional bundle of straw. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 152. In describing the distance of one family from another, Johnsonwrites:--'Visits last several days, and are commonly paid by water; yetI never saw a boat furnished with benches. ' _Works_, ix. 100. 

[527] See _ante_, ii. 106, and iii. 154. 

[528] 'They which forewent us did leave a Roome for us, and should weegrieve to doe the same to these which should come after us? Who beeingadmitted to see the exquisite rarities of some antiquaries cabinet isgrieved, all viewed, to have the courtaine drawen, and give place to newpilgrimes?' _A Cypresse Grove_, by William Drummond of Hawthorne-denne, ed. 1630, p. 68. 

[529] See _ante_, iii. 153, 295. 

[530]

 'While hoary Nestor, by experience wise, To reconcile the angry monarch tries. '

FRANCIS. Horace, i _Epis_. Ii. II. 

[531] _See ante_, p. 16. 

[532] Lord Elibank died Aug. 3, 1778, aged 75. _Gent. Mag. _ 1778, p. 391. 

[533] A term in Scotland for a special messenger, such as was formerlysent with dispatches by the lords of the council. 

[534] Yet he said of him:--'There is nothing _conclusive_ in his talk. '_Ante_ iii. 57. 

[535] 'I believe every man has found in physicians great liberality anddignity of sentiment, very prompt effusion of beneficence, andwillingness to exert a lucrative art where there is no hope of lucre. 'Johnson's _Works_, vii. 402. See _ante_, iv. 263. 

[536] Johnson says (_ib_. Ix. 156) that when the military road was madethrough Glencroe, 'stones were placed to mark the distances, which theinhabitants have taken away, resolved, they said, "to have nonew miles. "'

[537]

 'The lawland lads think they are fine, But O they're vain and idly gawdy; How much unlike that graceful mien And manly look of my highland laddie. '

From '_The Highland Laddie_, written long since by Allan Ramsay, and nowsung at Ranelagh and all the other gardens; often fondly encored, andsometimes ridiculously hissed. ' _Gent. Mag_. 1750, p. 325. 

[538] 'She is of a pleasing person and elegant behaviour. She told methat she thought herself honoured by my visit; and I am sure thatwhatever regard she bestowed on me was liberally repaid. ' _PiozziLetters_, i. 153. In his _Journey_ (_Works_, ix. 63) Johnson speaks ofFlora Macdonald, as 'a name that will be mentioned in history, and ifcourage and fidelity be virtues, mentioned with honour. '

[539] This word, which meant much the same as, _fop_ or _dandy_, isfound in Bk. X. Ch. 2 of Fielding's _Amelia_ (published in 1751):--'Alarge assembly of young fellows, whom they call bucks. ' Less than fortyyears ago, in the neighbourhood of London, it was, I remember, stillcommonly applied by the village lads to the boys of a boarding-school. 

[540] This word was at this time often used in a loose sense, thoughJohnson could not have so used it. Thus Horace Walpole, writing on May16, 1759 (_Letters_, iii. 227), tells a story of the little PrinceFrederick. 'T'other day as he was with the Prince of Wales, Kitty Fisherpassed by, and the child named her; the Prince, to try him, asked whothat was? "Why, a Miss. " "A Miss, " said the Prince of Wales, "why arenot all girls Misses?" "Oh! but a particular sort of Miss--a Miss thatsells oranges. "' Mr. Cunningham in a note on this says:--'Orange-girlsat theatres were invariably courtesans. '

[541] _Governor_ was the term commonly given to a tutor, especially atravelling tutor. Thus Peregrine Pickle was sent first to Winchester andafterwards abroad 'under the immediate care and inspection of agovernor. ' _Peregrine Pickle_, ch. Xv. 

[542] He and his wife returned before the end of the War ofIndependence. On the way back she showed great spirit when their shipwas attacked by a French man of war. Chambers's _Rebellion inScotland_, ii. 329. 

[543] I do not call him _the Prince of Wales_, or _the Prince_, becauseI am quite satisfied that the right which the _House of Stuart_ had tothe throne is extinguished. I do not call him, the _Pretender_, becauseit appears to me as an insult to one who is still alive, and, I suppose, thinks very differently. It may be a parliamentary expression; but it isnot a gentlemanly expression. I _know_, and I exult in having it in mypower to tell, that THE ONLY PERSON in the world who is intitled to beoffended at this delicacy, thinks and feels as I do; and has liberalityof mind and generosity of sentiment enough to approve of my tendernessfor what even _has been_ Blood Royal. That he is a _prince_ by_courtesy_, cannot be denied; because his mother was the daughter ofSobiesky, king of Poland. I shall, therefore, _on that account alone_, distinguish him by the name of _Prince Charles Edward_. BOSWELL. To havecalled him the _Pretender_ in the presence of Flora Macdonald would havebeen hazardous. In her old age, 'such is said to have been the virulenceof the Jacobite spirit in her composition, that she would have struckany one with her fist who presumed, in her hearing, to call Charles _thePretender_. ' Chambers's _Rebellion in Scotland_, ii. 330. 

[544] This, perhaps, was said in allusion to some lines ascribed to_Pope_, on his lying, at John Duke of Argyle's, at Adderbury, in thesame bed in which Wilmot, Earl of Rochester, had slept:

 'With no poetick ardour fir'd, I press [press'd] the bed where Wilmot lay; That here he liv'd [lov'd], or here expir'd, Begets no numbers, grave or gay. '

BOSWELL. 

[545] See _ante_, iv. 60, 187. 

[546] See _ante_, iv. 113 and 315. 

[547] 'This was written while Mr. Wilkes was Sheriff of London, and whenit was to be feared he would rattle his chain a year longer as LordMayor. ' Note to Campbell's _British Poets_, p. 662. By 'here' the poetmeans at _Tyburn_. 

[548] With virtue weigh'd, what worthless trash is gold! BOSWELL. 

[549] Since the first edition of this book, an ingenious friend hasobserved to me, that Dr. Johnson had probably been thinking on thereward which was offered by government for the apprehension of thegrandson of King James II, and that he meant by these words to expresshis admiration of the Highlanders, whose fidelity and attachment hadresisted the golden temptation that had been held out to them. BOSWELL. 

[550] On the subject of Lady Margaret Macdonald, it is impossible toomit an anecdote which does much honour to Frederick, Prince of Wales. By some chance Lady Margaret had been presented to the princess, who, when she learnt what share she had taken in the Chevalier's escape, hastened to excuse herself to the prince, and exlain to him that she wasnot aware that Lady Margaret was the person who had harboured thefugitive. The prince's answer was noble: 'And would _you_ not have donethe same, madam, had he come to you, as to her, in distress and danger?I hope--I am sure you would!' WALTER SCOTT. 

[551] This old Scottish _member of parliament_, I am informed, is stillliving (1785). BOSWELL. 

[552] I cannot find that this account was ever published. Mr. Lumisdenis mentioned _ante_, ii. 401, note 2. 

[553] This word is not in Johnson's _Dictionary_. 

[554] Dr. A. Carlyle (_Auto_. P. 153) describes him in 1745 as 'agood-looking man of about five feet ten inches; his hair was dark red, and his eyes black. His features were regular, his visage long, muchsunburnt and freckled, and his countenance thoughtful and melancholy. 'When the Pretender was in London in 1750, 'he came one evening, ' writesDr. W. King (_Anec_. P. 199) 'to my lodgings, and drank tea with me; myservant, after he was gone, said to me, that he thought my new visitorvery like Prince Charles. "Why, " said I, "have you ever seen PrinceCharles?" "No, Sir, " said the fellow, "but this gentleman, whoever hemay be, exactly resembles the busts which are sold in Red Lionstreet, and are said to be the busts of Prince Charles. " The truth is, thesebusts were taken in plaster of Paris from his face. He has an handsomeface and good eyes. '

[555] Sir Walter Scott, writing of his childhood, mentions 'the storiestold in my hearing of the cruelties after the battle of Culloden. One ortwo of our own distant relations had fallen, and I remember of (sic)detesting the name of Cumberland with more than infant hatred. 'Lockhart's _Scott_, i. 24. 'I was, ' writes Dr. A. Carlyle (_Auto_, p. 190), 'in the coffee-house with Smollett when the news of the battle ofCulloden arrived, and when London all over was in a perfect uproar ofjoy. ' On coming out into the street, 'Smollett, ' he continues, 'cautioned me against speaking a word, lest the mob should discover mycountry, and become insolent, "for John Bull, " says he; "is as haughtyand valiant to-night as he was abject and cowardly on the BlackWednesday when the Highlanders were at Derby. " I saw not Smollett againfor some time after, when he shewed me his manuscript of his _Tears ofScotland_. Smollett, though a Tory, was not a Jacobite, but he had thefeelings of a Scotch gentleman on the reported cruelties that were saidto be exercised after the battle of Culloden. ' See _ante_, ii. 374, forthe madman 'beating his straw, supposing it was the Duke of Cumberland, whom he was punishing for his cruelties in Scotland in 1746. '

[556] 'He was obliged to trust his life to the fidelity of above fiftyindividuals, and many of these were in the lowest paths of fortune. Theyknew that a price of £30, 000 was set upon his head, and that bybetraying him they should enjoy wealth and affluence. ' Smollett's _Hist. Of England_, iii. 184. 

[557] 'Que les hommes privés, qui se plaignent de leurs petitesinfortunes, jettent les yeux sur ce prince et sur ses ancêtres. ' _Sièclede Louis XV_, ch. 25. 

[558] 'I never heard him express any noble or benevolent sentiments, ordiscover any sorrow or compassion for the misfortunes of so many worthymen who had suffered in his cause. But the most odious part of hischaracter is his love of money, a vice which I do not remember to havebeen imputed by our historians to any of his ancestors, and is thecertain index of a base and little mind. I have known this gentleman, with 2000 Louis d'ors in his strong box, pretend he was in greatdistress, and borrow money from a lady in Paris, who was not in affluentcircumstances. ' Dr. W. King's _Anec. _ p. 201. 'Lord Marischal, ' writesHume, 'had a very bad opinion of this unfortunate prince; and thoughtthere was no vice so mean or atrocious of which he was not capable; ofwhich he gave me several instances. ' J. H. Burton's _Hume_, ii. 464. 

[559] _Siècle de Louis XIV_, ch. 15. The accentuation of this passage, which was very incorrect as quoted by Boswell, I have corrected. 

[560] By banishment he meant, I conjecture, transportation as aconvict-slave to the American plantations. 

[561] Wesley in his _Journal_--the reference I have mislaid--seemed fromthis consideration almost to regret a reprieve that came to apenitent convict. 

[562] Hume describes how in 1753 (? 1750) the Pretender, on his secretvisit to London, 'came to the house of a lady (who I imagined to be LadyPrimrose) without giving her any preparatory information; and enteredthe room where she had a pretty large company with her, and was herselfplaying at cards. He was announced by the servant under another name. She thought the cards would have dropped from her hands on seeing him. But she had presence enough of mind to call him by the name he assumed. 'J. H. Burton's _Hume_, ii. 462. Mr. Croker (Croker's _Boswell_, p. 331)prints an autograph letter from Flora Macdonald which shows that LadyPrimrose in 1751 had lodged £627 in a friend's hands for her behoof, andthat she had in view to add more. 

[563] It seems that the Pretender was only once in London, and that itwas in 1750. _Ante_, i. 279, note 5. I suspect that 1759 is Boswell'smistake or his printer's. From what Johnson goes on to say it is clearthat George II. Was in Germany at the time of the Prince's secret visit. He was there the greater part of 1750, but not in 1753 or 1759. In 1750, moreover, 'the great army of the King of Prussia overawed Hanover. 'Smollett's _England_, iii. 297. This explains what Johnson says aboutthe King of Prussia stopping the army in Germany. 

[564] See _ante_, iv. 165, 170. 

[565] COMMENTARIES on the laws of England, book 1. Chap. 3. BOSWELL. 

[566] B. VI. Chap. 3. Since I have quoted Mr. Archdeacon Paley upon onesubject, I cannot but transcribe, from his excellent work, adistinguished passage in support of the Christian Revelation. --Aftershewing, in decent but strong terms, the unfairness of the _indirect_attempts of modern infidels to unsettle and perplex religiousprinciples, and particularly the irony, banter, and sneer, of one whomhe politely calls 'an eloquent historian, ' the archdeacon thus expresseshimself:--

'Seriousness is not constraint of thought; nor levity, freedom. Everymind which wishes the advancement of truth and knowledge, in the mostimportant of all human researches, must abhor this licentiousness, asviolating no less the laws of reasoning than the rights of decency. There is but one description of men to whose principles it ought to betolerable. I mean that class of reasoners who can see _little_ inchristianity even supposing it to be true. To such adversaries weaddress this reflection. --Had _Jesus Christ_ delivered no otherdeclaration than the following, "The hour is coming in the which allthat are in the graves shall hear his voice, and shall come forth, --theythat have done well [good] unto the resurrection of life, and they thathave done evil unto the resurrection of damnation, " [_St. John_ v. 25]he had pronounced a message of inestimable importance, and well worthyof that splendid apparatus of prophecy and miracles with which hismission was introduced and attested:--a message in which the wisest ofmankind would rejoice to find an answer to their doubts, and rest totheir inquiries. It is idle to say that a future state had beendiscovered already. --It had been discovered as the Copernican Systemwas;--it was one guess amongst many. He alone discovers who _proves_, and no man can prove this point but the teacher who testifies bymiracles that his doctrine comes from GOD. '--Book V. Chap. 9. 

If infidelity be disingenuously dispersed in every shape that is likelyto allure, surprise, or beguile the imagination, --in a fable, a tale, anovel, a poem, --in books of travels, of philosophy, of naturalhistory, --as Mr. Paley has well observed, --I hope it is fair in me thusto meet such poison with an unexpected antidote, which I cannot doubtwill be found powerful. BOSWELL. The 'eloquent historian' was Gibbon. See Paley's _Principles_, ed. 1786, p. 395. 

[567] In _The Life of Johnson (ante_, iii. 113), Boswell quotes thesewords, without shewing that they are his own; but italicises notfervour, but loyalty. 

[568] 'Whose service is perfect freedom. ' _Book of Common Prayer. _

[569] See _ante_, i. 353, note 1. 

[570] Ovid, _Ars Amatoria_, iii. 121. 

[571]

 'This facile temper of the beauteous sex Great Agamemnon, brave Pelides proved. '

These two lines follow the four which Boswell quotes. _Agis_, act iv. 

[572] _Agis_, a tragedy, by John Home. BOSWELL. 

[573] See _ante_, p. 27. 

[574] A misprint, I suppose, for _designing_. 

[575] 'Next in dignity to the laird is the tacksman; a large taker orleaseholder of land, of which he keeps part as a domain in his own hand, and lets part to under-tenants. The tacksman is necessarily a mancapable of securing to the laird the whole rent, and is commonly acollateral relation. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 82. 

[576] A _lettre de cachet_. 

[577] _Ante_, p. 159. 

[578] 'It is related that at Dunvegan Lady Macleod, having poured outfor Dr. Johnson sixteen cups of tea, asked him if a small basin wouldnot save him trouble, and be more agreeable. "I wonder, Madam, " answeredhe roughly, "why all the ladies ask me such questions. It is to saveyourselves trouble, Madam, and not me. " The lady was silent and resumedher task. ' Northcote's _Reynolds_, i. 81. 

[579] 'In the garden-or rather the orchard which was formerly thegarden-is a pretty cascade, divided into two branches, and called RorieMore's Nurse, because he loved to be lulled to sleep by the sound ofit. ' Lockhart's _Scott_, iv. 304. 

[580] It has been said that she expressed considerable dissatisfactionat Dr. Johnson's rude behaviour at Dunvegan. Her grandson, the presentMacleod, assures me that it was not so: 'they were all, ' he saysemphatically, '_delighted_ with him. ' CROKER. Mr. Croker refers, Ithink, to a communication from Sir Walter Scott, published in the_Croker Corres_. Ii. 33. Scott writes:--'When wind-bound at Dunvegan, Johnson's temper became most execrable, and beyond all endurance, savethat of his guide. The Highlanders, who are very courteous in their way, held him in great contempt for his want of breeding, but had an idea atthe same time there was something respectable about him, they could nottell what, and long spoke of him as the Sassenach _mohr_, orlarge Saxon. '

[581] 'I long to be again in civilized life. ' _Ante_, p. 183. 

[582] See _ante_, iii. 406. 

[583] Johnson refers, I think, to a passage in _L'Esprit des Lois_, Bookxvi. Chap. 4, where Montesquieu says:--'J'avoue que si ce que lesrelations nous disent était vrai, qu'à Bantam il y a dix femmes pour unhomme, ce serait un cas bien particulier de la polygamie. Dans tout cecije ne justifie pas les usages, mais j'en rends les raisons. '

[584] What my friend treated as so wild a supposition, has actuallyhappened in the Western islands of Scotland, if we may believe Martin, who tells it of the islands of Col and Tyr-yi, and says that it isproved by the parish registers. BOSWELL. 'The Isle of Coll produces moreboys than girls, and the Isle of Tire-iy more girls than boys; as ifnature intended both these isles for mutual alliances, without being atthe trouble of going to the adjacent isles or continent to be matched. The parish-book in which the number of the baptised is to be seen, confirms this observation. ' Martin's _Western Islands, _ p. 271. 

[585] _A Dissertation on the Gout_, by W. Cadogan, M. D. , 1771. It wentthrough nine editions in its first year. 

[586] This was a general reflection against Dr. Cadogan, when his verypopular book was first published. It was said, that whatever precepts hemight give to others, he himself indulged freely in the bottle. But Ihave since had the pleasure of becoming acquainted with him, and, if hisown testimony may be believed, (and I have never heard it impeached, )his course of life has been conformable to his doctrine. BOSWELL. 

[587] 'April 7, 1765. I purpose to rise at eight, because, though Ishall not yet rise early, it will be much earlier than I now rise, for Ioften lie till two. ' _Pr. And Med. _ p. 62. 'Sept. 18, 1771. My nocturnalcomplaints grow less troublesome towards morning; and I am tempted torepair the deficiencies of the night. I think, however, to try to riseevery day by eight, and to combat indolence as I shall obtain strength. '_Ib. _ p. 105. 'April 14, 1775. As my life has from my earliest yearsbeen wasted in a morning bed, my purpose is from Easter day to riseearly, not later than eight. ' _Ib. _ p. 139. 

[588] See _post_, Oct. 25. 

[589] See _ante_, iv. Under Dec. 2, 1784. 

[590] Miss Mulso (Mrs. Chapone) wrote in 1753:--'I had the assurance todispute with Mr. Johnson on the subject of human malignity, and wonderedto hear a man, who by his actions shews so much benevolence, maintainthat the human heart is naturally malevolent, and that all thebenevolence we see in the few who are good is acquired by reason andreligion. ' _ Life of Mrs. Chapone_, p. 73. See _post_, p. 214. 

[591] This act was passed in 1746. 

[592] _Isaiah_, ii. 4. 

[593] Sir Walter Scott, after mentioning Lord Orford's (Horace Walpole)_History of His Own Time_, continues:--'The Memoirs of our Scots SirGeorge Mackenzie are of the same class--both immersed in littlepolitical detail, and the struggling skirmish of party, seem to havelost sight of the great progressive movements of human affairs. 'Lockhart's _Scott_ vii. 12. 

[594] 'Illum jura potius ponere quam de jure respondere dixisses; eiqueappropinquabant clientes tanquam judici potius quam advocato. 'Mackenzie's _Works_, ed. 1716, vol. I. Part 2, p. 7. 

[595] 'Opposuit ei providentia Nisbetum: qui summâ doctrinâconsummatâque eloquentiâ causas agebat, ut justitiae scalae inaequilibrio essent; nimiâ tamen arte semper utens artem suam suspectamreddebat. Quoties ergo conflixerunt, penes Gilmorum gloria, penesNisbetum palma fuit; quoniam in hoc plus artis et cultus, in illonaturae et virium. ' _Ib. _

[596] He often indulged himself in every species of pleasantry and wit. BOSWELL. 

[597] But like the hawk, having soared with a lofty flight to a heightwhich the eye could not reach, he was wont to swoop upon his quarry withwonderful rapidity. BOSWELL. These two quotations are part of the sameparagraph, and are not even separated by a word. _Ib. _ p. 6. 

[598] See _ante_, i. 453; iii. 323; iv. 276; and v. 32. 

[599] Some years later he said that 'when Burke lets himself down tojocularity he is in the kennel. ' _Ante_, iv. 276. 

[600] Cicero and Demosthenes, no doubt, were brought in by the passageabout Nicholson. Mackenzie continues:--'Hic primus nos a Syllogismorumservitute manumisit et Aristotelem Demostheni potius quam Ciceroni forumconcedere coegit. ' P. 6. 

[601] See _ante_ ii. 435 and iv. 149, note 3. 

[602] See _ante_, i. 103. 

[603] See _ante_ ii 436

[604] See _ante_, i. 65. 

[605] On Sept. 13, 1777, Johnson wrote:--'Boswell shrinks from theBaltick expedition, which, I think, is the best scheme in our power. '_Ante_, iii. 134, note 1. 

[606] See _ante_, ii. 59, note 1. 

[607] See _ante_, iii. 368. 

[608] 'Every man wishes to be wise, and they who cannot be wise arealmost always cunning . .. Nor is caution ever so necessary as withassociates or opponents of feeble minds. ' _The Idler_, No. 92. In aletter to Dr. Taylor Johnson says:--'To help the ignorant commonlyrequires much patience, for the ignorant are always trying to becunning. ' _Notes and Queries_, 6th S. V. 462. Churchill, in _TheJourney_ (_Poems_, ed. 1766, ii. 327), says:--

 ''Gainst fools be guarded; 'tis a certain rule, Wits are safe things, there's danger in a fool. '

[609] See _ante_, p. 173. 

[610]

 'For thee we dim the eyes, and stuff the head With all such reading as was never read; For thee explain a thing till all men doubt it, And write about it, goddess, and about it. '

_The Dunciad_, iv. 249. 

[611] Genius is chiefly exerted in historical pictures; and the art ofthe painter of portraits is often lost in the obscurity of his subject. But it is in painting as in life; what is greatest is not always best. Ishould grieve to see Reynolds transfer to heroes and to goddesses, toempty splendour and to airy fiction, that art which is now employed indiffusing friendship, in reviving tenderness, in quickening theaffections of the absent, and continuing the presence of the dead. ' _TheIdler_, No. 45. 'Southey wrote thirty years later:--'I find daily moreand more reason to wonder at the miserable ignorance of Englishhistorians, and to grieve with a sort of despondency at seeing how muchthat has been laid up among the stores of knowledge has been neglectedand utterly forgotten. ' Southey's _Life_, ii. 264. On another occasionhe said of Robertson:--'To write his introduction to _Charles V_, without reading these _Laws_ [the _Laws_ of Alonso the Wise], is one ofthe thousand and one omissions for which he ought to be called rogue, aslong as his volumes last. _Ib_. P. 318

[612]

 'That eagle's fate and mine are one, Which on the shaft that made him die, Espy'd a feather of his own, Wherewith he wont to soar so high. ' _Epistle to a Lady. _

Anderson's _Poets_, v. 480. 

[613] See _ante_, iii. 271. 

[614] 'In England there may be reason for raising the rents (in acertain degree) where the value of lands is increased by accession ofcommerce, . .. But here (contrary to all policy) the great men begin atthe wrong end, with squeezing the bag, before they have helped the poortenant to fill it; by the introduction of manufactures. ' Pennant's_Scotland_, ed. 1772, p. 191. 

[615] Boswell refers, not to a passage in _Pennant_, but to Johnson'sadmission that in his dispute with Monboddo, 'he might have taken theside of the savage, had anybody else taken the side of the shopkeeper. '_Ante_, p. 83. 

[616] 'Boswell, with some of his troublesome kindness, has informed thisfamily and reminded me that the 18th of September is my birthday. Thereturn of my birthday, if I remember it, fills me with thoughts which itseems to be the general care of humanity to escape. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 134. See _ante_, iii. 157. 

[617] 'At Dunvegan I had tasted lotus, and was in danger of forgettingthat I was ever to depart, till Mr. Boswell sagely reproached me with mysluggishness and softness. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 67. 

[618] Johnson wrote of the ministers:--'I saw not one in the islandswhom I had reason to think either deficient in learning, or irregular inlife; but found several with whom I could not converse without wishing, as my respect increased, that they had not been Presbyterians. ' _Ib_. P. 102. 

[619] See _ante_, p. 142. 

[620] See _ante_, ii. 28. 

[621]

 'So horses they affirm to be Mere engines made by geometry, And were invented first from engines, As Indian Britons were from penguins. '

_Hudibras_, part i. Canto 2, line 57. Z. Gray, in a note on these lines, quotes Selden's note on Drayton's _Polyolbion_:--'About the year 1570, Madoc, brother to David Ap Owen, Prince of Wales, made a sea-voyage toFlorida; and by probability those names of Capo de Breton in Norimberg, and Penguin in part of the Northern America, for a white rock and awhite-headed bird, according to the British, were relicts of thisdiscovery. '

[622] Published in Edinburgh in 1763. 

[623] See ante, ii. 76. 'Johnson used to say that in all family disputesthe odds were in favour of the husband from his superior knowledge oflife and manners. ' Johnson's Works (1787), xi. 210. 

[624] He wrote to Dr. Taylor:--' Nature has given women so much powerthat the law has very wisely given them little. ' _Notes and Queries_, 6th S. V. 342. 

[625] As I have faithfully recorded so many minute particulars, I hope Ishall be pardoned for inserting so flattering an encomium on what is nowoffered to the publick. BOSWELL. 

[626] See _ante_, iv. 109, note 1. 

[627] 'The islanders of all degrees, whether of rank or understanding, universally admit it, except the ministers, who universally deny it, andare suspected to deny it in consequence of a system, againstconviction. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 106. 

[628] The true story of this lady, which happened in this century, is asfrightfully romantick as if it had been the fiction of a gloomy fancy. She was the wife of one of the Lords of Session in Scotland, a man ofthe very first blood of his country. For some mysterious reasons, whichhave never been discovered, she was seized and carried off in the dark, she knew not by whom, and by nightly journeys was conveyed to theHighland shores, from whence she was transported by sea to the remoterock of St. Kilda, where she remained, amongst its few wild inhabitants, a forlorn prisoner, but had a constant supply of provisions, and a womanto wait on her. No inquiry was made after her, till she at last foundmeans to convey a letter to a confidential friend, by the daughter of aCatechist, who concealed it in a clue of yarn. Information being thusobtained at Edinburgh, a ship was sent to bring her off; butintelligence of this being received, she was conveyed to M'Leod's islandof Herries, where she died. 

In CARSTARE'S STATE PAPERS we find an authentick narrative of Connor[Conn], a catholick priest, who turned protestant, being seized by someof Lord Seaforth's people, and detained prisoner in the island ofHerries several years; he was fed with bread and water, and lodged in ahouse where he was exposed to the rains and cold. Sir James Ogilvywrites (June 18, 1667 [1697]), that the Lord Chancellor, the LordAdvocate, and himself, were to meet next day, to take effectual methodsto have this redressed. Connor was then still detained; p. 310. --Thisshews what private oppression might in the last century be practised inthe Hebrides. 

In the same collection [in a letter dated Sept. 15, 1700], the Earl ofArgyle gives a picturesque account of an embassy from the _great_ M'Neil_of Barra_, as that insular Chief used to be denominated:--'I received aletter yesterday from M'Neil of Barra, who lives very far off, sent by agentleman in all formality, offering his service, which had made youlaugh to see his entry. His style of his letter runs as if he were ofanother kingdom. '--Page 643 [648]. BOSWELL. 

Sir Walter Scott says:--'I have seen Lady Grange's Journal. She hadbecome privy to some of the Jacobite intrigues, in which her husband, Lord Grange (an Erskine, brother of the Earl of Mar, and a Lord ofSession), and his family were engaged. Being on indifferent terms withher husband, she is said to have thrown out hints that she knew as muchas would cost him his life. The judge probably thought with Mrs. Peachum, that it is rather an awkward state of domestic affairs, whenthe wife has it in her power to hang the husband. Lady Grange was themore to be dreaded, as she came of a vindictive race, being thegrandchild [according to Mr. Chambers, the child] of that Chiesley ofDalry, who assassinated Sir George Lockhart, the Lord President. Manypersons of importance in the Highlands were concerned in removing hertestimony. The notorious Lovat, with a party of his men, were the directagents in carrying her off; and St. Kilda, belonging then to Macleod, was selected as the place of confinement. The name by which she wasspoken or written of was _Corpach_, an ominous distinction, corresponding to what is called _subject_ in the lecture-room of ananatomist, or _shot_ in the slang of the Westport murderers' [Burke andHare]. Sir Walter adds that 'it was said of M'Neil of Barra, that whenhe dined, his bagpipes blew a particular strain, intimating that all theworld might go to dinner. ' Croker's _Boswell_, p. 341. 

[629] I doubt the justice of my fellow-traveller's remark concerning theFrench literati, many of whom, I am told, have considerable merit inconversation, as well as in their writings. That of Monsieur de Buffon, in particular, I am well assured, is highly instructive andentertaining. BOSWELL. See _ante_, iii. 253. 

[630] Horace Walpole, writing of 1758, says:--'Prize-fighting, in whichwe had horribly resembled the most barbarous and most polite nations, was suppressed by the legislature. ' _Memoirs of the Reign of George II_, iii. 99. According to Mrs. Piozzi (_Anec. _ p. 5), Johnson said that his'father's brother, Andrew, kept the ring in Smithfield (where theywrestled and boxed) for a whole year, and never was thrown or conquered. Mr. Johnson was, ' she continues, 'very conversant in the art of boxing. 'She had heard him descant upon it 'much to the admiration of those whohad no expectation of his skill in such matters. '

[631] See _ante_, ii. 179, 226, and iv. 211. 

[632] See _ante_, p. 98. 

[633] See _ante_, i, 110. 

[634] See _ante_, i. 398, and ii. 15, 35, 441. 

[635] Gibbon, thirteen years later, writing to Lord Sheffield about thecommercial treaty with France, said (_Misc. Works_, ii. 399):--'I hopeboth nations are gainers; since otherwise it cannot be lasting; and suchdouble mutual gain is surely possible in fair trade, though it could noteasily happen in the mischievous amusements of war and gaming. '

[636] Johnson (_Works_, viii. 139), writing of gratitude and resentment, says:--'Though there are few who will practise a laborious virtue, there will never be wanting multitudes that will indulge an easy vice. '

[637] _Aul. Gellius_, lib. V. C. Xiv. BOSWELL. 

[638] 'The difficulties in princes' business are many and great; but thegreatest difficulty is often in their own mind. For it is common withprinces, saith Tacitus, to will contradictories. _Sunt plerumque regumvoluntates vehementes, et inter se contrariae_. For it is the solecismof power to think to command the end, and yet not to endure the mean. 'Bacon's _Essays_, No. Xix. 

[639] Yet Johnson wrote to Mrs. Thrale on Sept. 30:--'I am now no longerpleased with the delay; you can hear from me but seldom, and I cannot atall hear from you. It comes into my mind that some evil may happen. '_Piozzi Letters_, i. 148. On Oct. 15 he wrote to Mr. Thrale:--'Havingfor many weeks had no letter, my longings are very great to be informedhow all things are at home, as you and mistress allow me to call it. .. . I beg to have my thoughts set at rest by a letter from you or mymistress. ' _Ib_. P. 166. See _ante_, iii. 4. 

[640] Sir Walter Scott thus describes Dunvegan in 1814:--'The wholecastle occupies a precipitous mass of rock overhanging the lake, dividedby two or three islands in that place, which form a snug little harbourunder the walls. There is a court-yard looking out upon the sea, protected by a battery, at least a succession of embrasures, for onlytwo guns are pointed, and these unfit for service. The ancient entrancerose up a flight of steps cut in the rock, and passed into thiscourt-yard through a portal, but this is now demolished. You land underthe castle, and walking round find yourself in front of it. This wasoriginally inaccessible, for a brook coming down on the one side, achasm of the rocks on the other, and a ditch in front, made itimpervious. But the late Macleod built a bridge over the stream, and thepresent laird is executing an entrance suitable to the character of thisremarkable fortalice, by making a portal between two advanced towers, and an outer court, from which he proposes to throw a draw-bridge overto the high rock in front of the castle. ' Lockhart's _Scott_, ed. 1839, iv. 303. 

[641]

 'Bella gerant alii; tu, felix Austria, nube; Quae dat Mars aliis, dat tibi regna Venus. '

[642] Johnson says of this castle:--'It is so nearly entire, that itmight have easily been made habitable, were there not an ominoustradition in the family, that the owner shall not long outlive thereparation. The grandfather of the present laird, in defiance ofprediction, began the work, but desisted in a little time, and appliedhis money to worse uses. ' _Works_, ix. 64. 

[643] Macaulay (_Essays_, ed. 1843, i. 365) ends a lively piece ofcriticism on Mr. Croker by saying:--'It requires no Bentley or Casaubonto perceive that Philarchus is merely a false spelling for Phylarchus, the chief of a tribe. '

[644] See _ante_, i. 180. 

[645] Sir Walter Scott wrote in 1814:--'The monument is now nearlyruinous, and the inscription has fallen down. ' Lockhart's _Scott_, iv. 308. 

[646] 'Wheel carriages they have none, but make a frame of timber, whichis drawn by one horse, with the two points behind pressing on theground. On this they sometimes drag home their sheaves, but often conveythem home in a kind of open pannier, or frame of sticks, upon thehorse's back. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 76. 'The young Laird of Col hasattempted what no islander perhaps ever thought on. He has begun a roadcapable of a wheel-carriage. He has carried it about a mile. ' _Ib_. P. 128. 

[647] Captain Phipps had sailed in May of this year, and in theneighbourhood of Spitzbergen had reached the latitude of more than 80°. He returned to England in the end of September. _Gent. Mag_. 1774, p. 420. 

[648] _Aeneid_, vi. II. 

[649] 'In the afternoon, an interval of calm sunshine courted us out tosee a cave on the shore, famous for its echo. When we went into theboat, one of our companions was asked in Erse by the boatmen, who theywere that came with him. He gave us characters, I suppose to ouradvantage, and was asked, in the spirit of the Highlands, whether Icould recite a long series of ancestors. The boatmen said, as Iperceived afterwards, that they heard the cry of an English ghost. This, Boswell says, disturbed him. .. . There was no echo; such is the fidelityof report. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 156. 

[650] '_Law_ or _low_ signifies a hill: _ex. Gr. _ Wardlaw, guard hill, Houndslow, the dog's hill. ' Blackie's _Etymological Geography_, p. 103. 

[651] Pepys often mentions them. At first he praises them highly, but ofone of the later ones--_Tryphon_--he writes:--'The play, thoughadmirable, yet no pleasure almost in it, because just the very samedesign, and words, and sense, and plot, as every one of his plays have, any one of which would be held admirable, whereas so many of the samedesign and fancy do but dull one another. ' Pepys's _Diary_, ed. 1851, v. 63. 

[652] The second and third earls are passed over by Johnson. It was thefourth earl who, as Charles Boyle, had been Bentley's antagonist. Ofthis controversy a full account is given in Lord Macaulay's _Life ofAtterbury_. 

[653] The fifth earl, John. See _ante_, i. 185, and iii. 249. 

[654] See _ante_, i. 9, and iii. 154. 

[655] See _ante_, ii. 129, and iii. 183. 

[656] The young lord was married on the 8th of May, 1728, and thefather's will is dated the 6th of Nov. Following. 'Having, ' says thetestator, 'never observed that my son hath showed much taste orinclination, either for the entertainment or knowledge which study andlearning afford, I give and bequeath all my books and mathematicalinstruments [with certain exceptions] to Christchurch College, inOxford. ' CROKER. 

[657] His _Life of Swift_ is written in the form of _Letters to his Son, the Hon. Hamilton Boyle. _ The fifteenth Letter, in which he finishes hiscriticism of _Gulliver's Travels_, affords a good instance of this'studied variety of phrase. ' 'I may finish my letter, ' he writes, 'especially as the conclusion of it naturally turns my thoughts fromYahoos to one of the dearest pledges I have upon earth, yourself, towhom I am a most

 Affectionate Father, 'ORRERY. '

See _ante_, i. 275-284, for Johnson's letters to Thomas Warton, many ofwhich end 'in studied varieties of phrase. '

[658] _The Conquest of Granada_ was dedicated to the Duke of York. Theconclusion is as follows:--'If at any time Almanzor fulfils the parts ofpersonal valour and of conduct, of a soldier and of a general; or, if Icould yet give him a character more advantageous that what he has, ofthe most unshaken friend, the greatest of subjects, and the best ofmasters; I should then draw all the world a true resemblance of yourworth and virtues; at least as far as they are capable of being copiedby the mean abilities of, 'Sir, 'Your Royal Highness's

'Most humble, and most

'Obedient servant, 'J. DRYDEN. '

[659] On the day of his coronation he was asked to pardon four young menwho had broken the law against carrying arms. 'So long as I live, ' hereplied, 'every criminal must die. ' 'He was inexorable in individualcases; he adhered to his laws with a rigour that amounted to cruelty, while in the framing of general rules we find him mild, yielding, andplacable. ' Ranke's _Popes_, ed. 1866, i. 307, 311. 

[660] See _ante_, iii. 239, where he discusses the question of shootinga highwayman. 

[661] In _The Rambler_, No. 78, he says:--'I believe men may begenerally observed to grow less tender as they advance in age. '

[662] He passed over his own _Life of Savage_. 

[663] 'When I was a young fellow, I wanted to write the _Life of Dryden'Ante_, iii. 71. 

[664] See _ante_, p. 117. 

[665] 'I asked a very learned minister in Sky, who had used all arts tomake me believe the genuineness of the book, whether at last he believedit himself; but he would not answer. He wished me to be deceived for thehonour of his country; but would not directly and formally deceive me. Yet has this man's testimony been publickly produced, as of one thatheld _Fingal_ to be the work of Ossian. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 115. 

[666] A young lady had sung to him an Erse song. He asked her, 'What isthat about? I question if she conceived that I did not understand it. For the entertainment of the company, said she. But, Madam, what is themeaning of it? It is a love song. This was all the intelligence that Icould obtain; nor have I been able to procure the translation of asingle line of Erse. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 146. See _post_, Oct. 16

[667] This droll quotation, I have since found, was from a song inhonour of the Earl of Essex, called _Queen Elisabeth's Champion_, whichis preserved in a collection of Old Ballads, in three volumes, publishedin London in different years, between 1720 and 1730. The full verse isas follows:--

 'Oh! then bespoke the prentices all, Living in London, both proper and tall, In a kind letter sent straight to the Queen, For Essex's sake they would fight all. Raderer too, tandaro te, Raderer, tandorer, tan do re. '

BOSWELL. 

[668] La Condamine describes a tribe called the Tameos, on the northside of the river Tiger in South America, who have a word for _three_. He continues:--'Happily for those who have transactions with them, their arithmetic goes no farther. The Brazilian tongue, a languagespoken by people less savage, is equally barren; the people who speakit, where more than three is to be expressed, are obliged to use thePortuguese. ' Pinkerton's _Voyages_, xiv. 225. 

[669] 'It was Addison's practice, when he found any man invinciblywrong, to flatter his opinions by acquiescence, and sink him yet deeperin absurdity. This artifice of mischief was admired by Stella; and Swiftseems to approve her admiration. ' Johnson's _Works_, vii. 450. Swift, inhis _Character of Mrs. Johnson _ (Stella), says:--'Whether thisproceeded from her easiness in general, or from her indifference topersons, or from her despair of mending them, or from the same practicewhich she much liked in Mr. Addison, I cannot determine; but when shesaw any of the company very warm in a wrong opinion, she was moreinclined to confirm them in it than oppose them. The excuse she commonlygave, when her friends asked the reason, was, "That it prevented noiseand saved time. " Swift's _Works_, xiv. 254. 

[670] In the Appendix to Blair's _Critical Dissertation on the Poems ofOssian_ Macqueen is mentioned as one of his authorities for hisstatements. 

[671] See _ante_, iv. 262, note. 

[672] I think it but justice to say, that I believe Dr. Johnson meant toascribe Mr. M'Queen's conduct to inaccuracy and enthusiasm, and did notmean any severe imputation against him. BOSWELL. 

[673] In Baretti's trial (_ante_, ii. 97, note I) he seems to have givenhis evidence clearly. What he had to say, however, was not much. 

[674] Boswell had spoken before to Johnson about this omission. _Ante_, ii. 92. 

[675] It has been triumphantly asked, 'Had not the plays of Shakspearelain dormant for many years before the appearance of Mr. Garrick? Did henot exhibit the most excellent of them frequently for thirty yearstogether, and render them extremely popular by his own inimitableperformance?' He undoubtedly did. But Dr. Johnson's assertion has beenmisunderstood. Knowing as well as the objectors what has been juststated, he must necessarily have meant, that 'Mr. Garrick did not as _acritick_ make Shakspeare better known; he did not _illustrate_ any one_passage_ in any of his plays by acuteness of disquisition, or sagacityof conjecture: and what had been done with any degree of excellence in_that_ way was the proper and immediate subject of his preface. I mayadd in support of this explanation the following anecdote, related to meby one of the ablest commentators on Shakspeare, who knew much of Dr. Johnson: 'Now I have quitted the theatre, cries Garrick, I will sit downand read Shakspeare. ' ''Tis time you should, exclaimed Johnson, for Imuch doubt if you ever examined one of his plays from the first scene tothe last. ' BOSWELL. According to Davies (_Life of Garrick_, i. 120)during the twenty years' management of Drury Lane by Booth, Wilks andCibber (about 1712-1732) not more than eight or nine of Shakspeare'splays were acted, whereas Garrick annually gave the public seventeen oreighteen. _Romeo and Juliet_ had lain neglected near 80 years, when in1748-9 Garrick brought it out, or rather a hash of it. 'Otway had madesome alteration in the catastrophe, which Mr. Garrick greatly improvedby the addition of a scene, which was written with a spirit not unworthyof Shakespeare himself. ' _Ib_. P. 125. Murphy (_Life of Garrick_, p. 100), writing of this alteration, says:--'The catastrophe, as it nowstands, is the most affecting in the whole compass of the drama. ' Daviessays (p. 20) that shortly before Garrick's time 'a taste for Shakespearehad been revived. The ladies had formed themselves into a society underthe title of The Shakespeare Club. They bespoke every week somefavourite play of his. ' This revival was shown in the increasing numberof readers of Shakespeare. It was in 1741 that Garrick began to act. Inthe previous sixteen years there had been published four editions ofPope's _Shakespeare_ and two of Theobald's. In the next ten years werepublished five editions of Hanmer's _Shakespeare_, and two ofWarburton's, besides Johnson's _Observations on Macbeth. _Lowndes's_Bibl. Man. _ ed. 1871, p. 2270. 

[676] In her foolish _Essay on Shakespeare_, p. 15. See _ante_, ii. 88. 

[677] No man has less inclination to controversy than I have, particularly with a lady. But as I have claimed, and am conscious ofbeing entitled to credit for the strictest fidelity, my respect for thepublick obliges me to take notice of an insinuation which tends toimpeach it. 

Mrs. Piozzi (late Mrs. Thrale), to her _Anecdotes of Dr. Johnson_, addedthe following postscript:--

'_Naples, Feb. _ 10, 1786. 

'Since the foregoing went to the press, having seen a passage from Mr. Boswell's _Tour to the Hebrides, _ in which it is said, that _I could notget through Mrs. Montague's "Essay on Shakspeare, "_ I do not delay amoment to declare, that, on the contrary, I have always commended itmyself, and heard it commended by every one else; and few things wouldgive me more concern than to be thought incapable of tasting, orunwilling to testify my opinion of its excellence. '

It is remarkable that this postscript is so expressed, as not to pointout the person who said that Mrs. Thrale could not get through Mrs. Montague's book; and therefore I think it necessary to remind Mrs. Piozzi, that the assertion concerning her was Dr. Johnson's, and notmine. The second observation that I shall make on this postscript is, that it does not deny the fact asserted, though I must acknowledge fromthe praise it bestows on Mrs. Montague's book, it may have been designedto convey that meaning. 

What Mrs. Thrale's opinion is or was, or what she may or may not havesaid to Dr. Johnson concerning Mrs. Montague's book, it is not necessaryfor me to enquire. It is only incumbent on me to ascertain what Dr. Johnson said to me. I shall therefore confine myself to a very shortstate of the fact. The unfavourable opinion of Mrs. Montague's book, which Dr. Johnson, is here reported to have given, is, known to havebeen that which he uniformly expressed, as many of his friends wellremember. So much, for the authenticity of the paragraph, as far as itrelates to his own sentiments. The words containing the assertion, towhich Mrs. Piozzi objects, are printed from my manuscript Journal, andwere taken down at the time. The Journal was read by Dr. Johnson, whopointed out some inaccuracies, which I corrected, but did not mentionany inaccuracy in the paragraph in question: and what is still morematerial, and very flattering to me, a considerable part of my Journal, containing this paragraph, _was read several years ago by, Mrs. Thraleherself _[see _ante_, ii. 383], who had it for some time in herpossession, and returned it to me, without intimating that Dr. Johnsonhad mistaken her sentiments. 

When the first edition of my Journal was passing through the press, itoccurred to me that a peculiar delicacy was necessary to be observed inreporting the opinion of one literary lady concerning the performance ofanother; and I had such scruples on that head, that in the proof sheet Istruck out the name of Mrs. Thrale from the above paragraph, and two orthree hundred copies of my book were actually printed and publishedwithout it; of these Sir Joshua Reynolds's copy happened to be one. Butwhile the sheet was working off, a friend, for whose opinion I havegreat respect, suggested that I had no right to deprive Mrs. Thrale ofthe high honour which Dr. Johnson had done her, by stating her opinionalong with that of Mr. Beauclerk, as coinciding with, and, as it were, sanctioning his own. The observation appeared to me so weighty andconclusive, that I hastened to the printing-house, and, as a piece ofjustice, restored Mrs. Thrale to that place from which a too scrupulousdelicacy had excluded her. On this simple state of facts I shall make noobservation whatever. BOSWELL. This note was first published in the formof a letter to the Editor of _The Gazetteer_ on April 17, 1786. 

[678] See _ante_, p. 215, for his knowledge of coining and brewing, and_post_, p. 263, for his knowledge of threshing and thatching. Now andthen, no doubt, 'he talked ostentatiously, ' as he had at Fort Georgeabout Gunpowder (_ante_, p. 124). In the _Gent. Mag. _ for 1749, p. 55, there is a paper on the _Construction of Fireworks_, which I have littledoubt is his. The following passage is certainly Johnsonian:--'Theexcellency of a rocket consists in the largeness of the train of fire itemits, the solemnity of its motion (which should be rather slow atfirst, but augmenting as it rises), the straightness of its flight, andthe height to which it ascends. '

[679] Perhaps Johnson refers to Stephen Hales's _Statical Essays_(London, 1733), in which is an account of experiments made on the bloodand blood-vessels of animals. 

[680] Evidence was given at the Tichborne Trial to shew that it takessome years to learn the trade. 

[681] Not the very tavern, which was burned down in the great fire. P. CUNNINGHAM. 

[682] I do not see why I might not have been of this club withoutlessening my character. But Dr. Johnson's caution against supposingone's self concealed in London, may be very useful to prevent somepeople from doing many things, not only foolish, but criminal. BOSWELL. 

[683] See _ante_, iii. 318. 

[684] Johnson defines _airy_ as _gay, sprightly, full of mirth_, &c. 

[685] 'A man would be drowned by claret before it made him drunk. '_Ante_, iii. 381. 

[686] _Ante_, p. 137. 

[687] See _ante_ ii. 261. 

[688] Lord Chesterfield wrote in 1747 (_Misc. Works_, iv. 231):--Drinking is a most beastly vice in every country, but it is really aruinous one to Ireland; nine gentlemen in ten in Ireland areimpoverished by the great quantity of claret, which from mistakennotions of hospitality and dignity, they think it necessary should bedrunk in their houses. This expense leaves them no room to improve theirestates by proper indulgence upon proper conditions to their tenants, who must pay them to the full, and upon the very day, that they may paytheir wine-merchants. ' In 1754 he wrote (_ib. _p. 359):--If it would butplease God by his lightning to blast all the vines in the world, and byhis thunder to turn all the wines now in Ireland sour, as I mostsincerely wish he would, Ireland would enjoy a degree of quiet andplenty that it has never yet known. '

[689] See _ante_, p. 95. 

[690] 'The sea being broken by the multitude of islands does not roarwith so much noise, nor beat the storm with such foamy violence as Ihave remarked on the coast of Sussex. Though, while I was in theHebrides, the wind was extremely turbulent, I never saw very highbillows. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 65. 

[691] Johnson this day thus wrote of Mr. M'Queen to Mrs. Thrale:--'Youfind that all the islanders even in these recesses of life are notbarbarous. One of the ministers who has adhered to us almost all thetime is an excellent scholar. ' _Piozzi Letters, _ i. 157. 

[692] See _post_, Nov. 6. 

[693] This was a dexterous mode of description, for the purpose of hisargument; for what he alluded to was, a Sermon published by the learnedDr. William Wishart, formerly principal of the college at Edinburgh, towarn men _against_ confiding in a death-bed _repentance_ of theinefficacy of which he entertained notions very different from those ofDr. Johnson. BOSWELL. 

[694] The Rev. Dr. A. Carlyle (_Auto_. P. 441) thus writes of theEnglish clergy whom he met at Harrogate in 1763:--'I had never seen somany of them together before, and between this and the following year Iwas able to form a true judgment of them. They are, in general--I meanthe lower order--divided into bucks and prigs; of which the first, though inconceivably ignorant, and sometimes indecent in their morals, yet I held them to be most tolerable, because they were unassuming, andhad no other affectation but that of behaving themselves like gentlemen. The other division of them, the prigs, are truly not to be endured, forthey are but half learned, are ignorant of the world, narrow-minded, pedantic, and overbearing. And now and then you meet with a _rara avis_who is accomplished and agreeable, a man of the world withoutlicentiousness, of learning without pedantry, and pious withoutsanctimony; but this _is_ a _rara avis_'. 

[695] See _ante_, i. 446, note 1. 

[696] Johnson defines _manage_ in this sense _to train a horse tograceful action_, and quotes Young:--

 'They vault from hunters to the managed steed. '

[697] Of Sir William Forbes of a later generation, Lockhart (_Life ofScott_, ix. 179) writes as follows:--'Sir William Forbes, whosebanking-house was one of Messrs. Ballantyne's chief creditors, crownedhis generous efforts for Scott's relief by privately paying the whole ofAbud's demand (nearly £2000) out of his own pocket. '

[698] This scarcity of cash still exists on the islands, in several ofwhich five shilling notes are necessarily issued to have somecirculating medium. If you insist on having change, you must purchasesomething at a shop. WALTER SCOTT. 

[699] 'The payment of rent in kind has been so long disused in Englandthat it is totally forgotten. It was practised very lately in theHebrides, and probably still continues, not only in St. Kilda, wheremoney is not yet known, but in others of the smaller and remoterislands. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 110. 

[700] 'A place where the imagination is more amused cannot easily befound. The mountains about it are of great height, with waterfallssucceeding one another so fast, that as one ceases to be heard anotherbegins. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 157. 

[701] See _ante_, i. 159. 

[702] Johnson seems to be speaking of Hailes's _Memorials and Lettersrelating to the History of Britain in the reign of James I and ofCharles I_. 

[703] See _ante_, ii. 341. 

[704] See _ante_, iii. 91. 

[705] 'In all ages of the world priests have been enemies to liberty, and it is certain that this steady conduct of theirs must have beenfounded on fixed reasons of interest and ambition. Liberty of thinkingand of expressing our thoughts is always fatal to priestly power, and tothose pious frauds on which it is commonly founded. .. . Hence it musthappen in such a government as that of Britain, that the establishedclergy, while things are in their natural situation, will always be ofthe _Court_-party; as, on the contrary, dissenters of all kinds will beof the _Country_-party. ' Hume's _Essays_, Part 1, No. Viii. 

[706] In the original _Every island's but a prison. _ The song is by aMr. Coffey, and is given in Ritson's _English Songs_ (1813), ii. 122. It begins:--

 'Welcome, welcome, brother debtor, To this poor but merry place, Where no bailiff, dun, nor setter, Dares to show his frightful face. '

See _ante_, iii. 269. 

[707] He wrote to Mrs. Thrale the day before (perhaps it was this day, and the copyist blundered):--' I am still in Sky. Do you rememberthe song--

We have at one time no boat, and at another may have too much wind; butof our reception here we have no reason to complain. ' _PiozziLetters_, i. 143. 

[708] My ingenuously relating this occasional instance of intemperancehas I find been made the subject both of serious criticism and ludicrousbanter. With the banterers I shall not trouble myself, but I wonder thatthose who pretend to the appellation of serious criticks should not havehad sagacity enough to perceive that here, as in every other part of thepresent work, my principal object was to delineate Dr. Johnson's mannersand character. In justice to him I would not omit an anecdote, which, though in some degree to my own disadvantage, exhibits in so strong alight the indulgence and good humour with which he could treat thoseexcesses in his friends, of which he highly disapproved. 

In some other instances, the criticks have been equally wrong as to thetrue motive of my recording particulars, the objections to which I sawas clearly as they. But it would be an endless task for an authour topoint out upon every occasion the precise object he has in view, Contenting himself with the approbation of readers of discernment andtaste, he ought not to complain that some are found who cannot or willnot understand him. BOSWELL. 

[709] In the original, 'wherein is excess. '

[710] See Chappell's _Popular Music of the Olden Time_, i. 231. 

[711] See _ante_, iii. 383. 

[712] see _ante_, p. 184. 

[713] See _ante_, ii. 120, where he took upon his knee a young woman whocame to consult him on the subject of Methodism. 

[714] See _ante_, pp. 215, 246. 

[715] See _ante_, iv. 176. 

[716]

 'If ev'ry wheel of that unwearied mill That turned ten thousand verses now stands still. '

_Imitations of Horace, 2 Epis. _ ii. 78. 

[717] _Ante_, p. 206. 

[718]

 'Nescio qua natale solum dulcedine captos Ducit. '--Ovid, _Ex Pont_. I. 3. 35. 

[719] Lift up your hearts. 

[720] Mr. Croker prints the following letter written to Macleod the daybefore:--

 'Ostig, 28th Sept. 1773. 

'DEAR SIR, --We are now on the margin of the sea, waiting for a boat anda wind. Boswell grows impatient; but the kind treatment which I findwherever I go, makes me leave, with some heaviness of heart, an islandwhich I am not very likely to see again. Having now gone as far ashorses can carry us, we thankfully return them. My steed will, I hope, be received with kindness;--he has borne me, heavy as I am, over groundboth rough and steep, with great fidelity; and for the use of him, asfor your other favours, I hope you will believe me thankful, andwilling, at whatever distance we may be placed, to shew my sense of yourkindness, by any offices of friendship that may fall within my power. 

'Lady Macleod and the young ladies have, by their hospitality andpoliteness, made an impression on my mind, which will not easily beeffaced. Be pleased to tell them, that I remember them with greattenderness, and great respect. --I am, Sir, your most obliged and mosthumble servant, 'SAM. JOHNSON. '

'P. S. --We passed two days at Talisker very happily, both by thepleasantness of the place and elegance of our reception. '

[721] Johnson (_Works_, viii. 409), after describing how Shenstone laidout the Leasowes, continues:--'Whether to plant a walk in undulatingcurves, and to place a bench at every turn where there is an object tocatch the view; to make water run where it will be heard, and tostagnate where it will be seen; to leave intervals where the eye will bepleased, and to thicken the plantation where there is something to behidden, demands any great powers of mind, I will not inquire: perhaps asurly and sullen speculator may think such performances rather the sportthan the business of human reason. '

[722] Johnson quotes this and the two preceding stanzas as 'a passage, to which if any mind denies its sympathy, it has no acquaintance withlove or nature. ' _Ib_. P. 413. 

[723] 'His mind was not very comprehensive, nor his curiosity active; hehad no value for those parts of knowledge which he had not himselfcultivated. ' _Ib. _ p. 411. 

[724] In the preface to vol. Iii. Of Shenstone's _Works_, ed. 1773, aquotation is given (p. Vi) from one of the poet's letters in which hecomplains of this burning. He writes:--'I look upon my Letters as some ofmy _chef-d'auvres_. ' On p. 301, after mentioning _Rasselas_, hecontinues:--'Did I tell you I had a letter from Johnson, inclosingVernon's _Parish-clerk_?'

[725] 'The truth is these elegies have neither passion, nature, normanners. Where there is fiction, there is no passion: he that describeshimself as a shepherd, and his Neaera or Delia as a shepherdess, andtalks of goats and lambs, feels no passion. He that courts his mistresswith Roman imagery deserves to lose her; for she may with good reasonsuspect his sincerity. ' Johnson's _Works_, viii. 91. See _ante_, iv. 17. 

[726] His lines on Pulteney, Earl of Bath, still deserve some fame:--

 'Leave a blank here and there in each page To enrol the fair deeds of his youth! When you mention the acts of his age, Leave a blank for his honour and truth. '

From _The Statesman_, H. C. Williams's _Odes_, p. 47. 

[727] Hamlet, act ii. Sc. 2. 

[728] He did not mention the name of any particular person; but thosewho are conversant with the political world will probably recollect morepersons than one to whom this observation may be applied. BOSWELL. Mr. Croker thinks that Lord North was meant. For his ministry Johnsoncertainly came to have a great contempt (_ante_, iv. 139). If Johnsonwas thinking of him, he differed widely in opinion from Gibbon, whodescribes North as 'a consummate master of debate, who could wield withequal dexterity the arms of reason and of ridicule. ' Gibbon's _Misc. Works_, i. 221. On May 2, 1775, he wrote:--' If they turned out LordNorth to-morrow, they would still leave him one of the best companionsin the kingdom. ' _Ib. _ ii. 135. 

[729] Horace Walpole is speaking of this work, when he wrote on May 16, 1759 (_Letters_, iii. 227):--'Dr. Young has published a new book, onpurpose, he says himself, to have an opportunity of telling a story thathe has known these forty years. Mr. Addison sent for the young LordWarwick, as he was dying, to shew him in what peace a Christian coulddie--unluckily he died of brandy--nothing makes a Christian die inpeace like being maudlin! but don't say this in Gath, where you are. '

[730] 'His [Young's] plan seems to have started in his mind at thepresent moment; and his thoughts appear the effect of chance, sometimesadverse, and sometimes lucky, with very little operation of judgment. .. . His verses are formed by no certain model; he is no more like himself inhis different productions than he is like others. He seems never to havestudied prosody, nor to have had any direction but from his own ear. Butwith all his defects, he was a man of genius and a poet. ' Johnson's_Works_, viii. 458, 462. Mrs. Piozzi (_Synonymy_, ii. 371) tells why'Dr. Johnson despised Young's quantity of common knowledge ascomparatively small. 'Twas only because, speaking once upon the subjectof metrical composition, he seemed totally ignorant of what are calledrhopalick verses, from the Greek word, a club--verses in which each wordmust be a syllable longer than that which goes before, such as:

 Spes deus aeternae stationis conciliator. '

[731] He had said this before. _Ante_, ii. 96. 

[732]

 'Brunetta's wise in actions great and rare, But scorns on trifles to bestow her care. Thus ev'ry hour Brunetta is to blame, Because th' occasion is beneath her aim. Think nought a trifle, though it small appear; Small sands the mountains, moments make the year, And trifles life. Your care to trifles give, Or you may die before you truly live. '

_Love of Fame_, Satire vi. Johnson often taught that life is made up oftrifles. See _ante_, i. 433. 

[733]

 "But hold, " she cries, "lampooner, have a care; Must I want common sense, because I'm fair?" O no: see Stella; her eyes shine as bright, As if her tongue was never in the right; And yet what real learning, judgment, fire! She seems inspir'd, and can herself inspire: How then (if malice rul'd not all the fair) Could Daphne publish, and could she forbear? We grant that beauty is no bar to sense, Nor is't a sanction for impertinence. 

_Love of Fame_, Satire v. 

[734] Johnson called on Young's son at Welwyn in June, 1781. _Ante_, iv. 119. Croft, in his _Life of Young_ (Johnson's _Works_, viii. 453), saysthat 'Young and his housekeeper were ridiculed with more ill-nature thanwit in a kind of novel published by Kidgell in 1755, called _The Card_, under the name of Dr. Elwes and Mrs. Fusby. '

[735] _Memoirs of Philip Doddridge_, ed. 1766, p. 171. 

[736] So late as 1783 he said 'this Hanoverian family is isolée here. '_Ante_, iv. 165. 

[737] See _ante_, ii. 81, where he hoped that 'this gloom of infidelitywas only a transient cloud. '

[738] Boswell has recorded this saying, _ante_, iv. 194. 

[739] In 1755 an English version of this work had been published. _Gent. Mag_. 1755, p. 574. In the Chronological Catalogue on p. 343 in vol. 66of Voltaire's _Works_, ed. 1819, it is entered as _'Histoire de laGuerre de_ 1741, fondue en partie dans le _Précis du siècle deLouis XV_. '

[740] Boswell is here merely repeating Johnson's words, who on April 11of this year, advising him to keep a journal, had said, 'The great thingto be recorded is the state of your own mind. ' _Ante_, ii. 217. 

[741] This word is not in his _Dictionary_. 

[742] See _ante_, i. 498. 

[743] See _ante_, ii. 61, 335; iii. 375, and _post_, under Nov. 11. 

[744] Beattie had attacked Hume in his _Essay on Truth_ (_ante_, ii. 201and v. 29). Reynolds this autumn had painted Beattie in his gown of anOxford Doctor of Civil Law, with his _Essay_ under his arm. 'The angelof Truth is going before him, and beating down the Vices, Envy, Falsehood, &c. , which are represented by a group of figures falling athis approach, and the principal head in this group is made an exactlikeness of Voltaire. When Dr. Goldsmith saw this picture, he was veryindignant at it, and said:--"It very ill becomes a man of your eminenceand character, Sir Joshua, to condescend to be a mean flatterer, or towish to degrade so high a genius as Voltaire before so mean a writer asDr. Beattie; for Dr. Beattie and his book together will, in the space often years, not be known ever to have been in existence, but yourallegorical picture and the fame of Voltaire will live for ever to yourdisgrace as a flatterer. "' Northcote's _Reynolds_, i. 300. Another ofthe figures was commonly said to be a portrait of Hume; but Forbes(_Life of Beattie_, ed. 1824, p. 158) says he had reason to believe thatSir Joshua had no thought either of Hume or Voltaire. Beattie's _Essay_is so much a thing of the past that Dr. J. H. Burton does not, Ibelieve, take the trouble ever to mention it in his _Life of Hume_. Burns did not hold with Goldsmith, for he took Beattie's side:--

 'Hence sweet harmonious Beattie sung His _Minstrel_ lays; Or tore, with noble ardour stung, The _Sceptic's_ bays. '

(_The Vision_, part ii. )

[745] See _ante_, ii. 441. 

[746] William Tytler published in 1759 an _Examination of the Historiesof Dr. Robertson and Mr. Hume with respect to Mary Queen of Scots_. Itwas reviewed by Johnson. _Ante_, i. 354. 

[747] Johnson's _Rasselas_ was published in either March or April, andGoldsmith's _Polite Learning_ in April of 1759. I do not find that theypublished any other works at the same time. If these are the worksmeant, we have a proof that the two writers knew each other earlier thanwas otherwise known. 

[748] 'A learned prelate accidentally met Bentley in the days of_Phalaris_; and after having complimented him on that noble piece ofcriticism (the _Answer_ to the Oxford Writers) he bad him not bediscouraged at this run upon him, for tho' they had got the laughers ontheir side, yet mere wit and raillery could not long hold out against awork of so much merit. To which the other replied, "Indeed Dr. S. [Sprat], I am in no pain about the matter. For I hold it as certain, that no man was ever written out of reputation but by himself. "'_Warburton on Pope_, iv. 159, quoted in Person's _Tracts_, p. 345. 'Against personal abuse, ' says Hawkins (_Life_, p. 348), 'Johnson wasever armed by a reflection that I have heard him utter:--"Alas!reputation would be of little worth, were it in the power of everyconcealed enemy to deprive us of it. "' He wrote to Baretti:--'A man ofgenius has been seldom ruined but by himself. ' _Ante_, i. 381. Voltairein his _Essay Sur les inconvéniens attachés à la Littérature_ (_Works_, ed. 1819, xliii. 173), after describing all that an author does to winthe favour of the critics, continues:--'Tous vos soins n'empêchent pasque quelque journaliste ne vous déchire. Vous lui répondez; il réplique;vous avez un procès par écrit devant le public, qui condamne les deuxparties au ridicule. ' See _ante_, ii. 61, note 4. 

[749] However advantageous attacks may be, the feelings with which theyare regarded by authors are better described by Fielding when hesays:--'Nor shall we conclude the injury done this way to be veryslight, when we consider a book as the author's offspring, and indeed asthe child of his brain. The reader who hath suffered his muse tocontinue hitherto in a virgin state can have but a very inadequate ideaof this kind of paternal fondness. To such we may parody the tenderexclamation of Macduff, "Alas! thou hast written no book. "' _Tom Jones_, bk. Xi. Ch. 1. 

[750] It is strange that Johnson should not have known that the_Adventures of a Guinea_ was written by a namesake of his own, CharlesJohnson. Being disqualified for the bar, which was his profession, by asupervening deafness, he went to India, and made some fortune, and diedthere about 1800. WALTER SCOTT. 

[751] Salusbury, not Salisbury. 

[752] Horace Walpole (_Letters_, . Ii 57) mentions in 1746 his cousin SirJohn Philipps, of Picton Castle; 'a noted Jacobite. '. .. He thus mentionsLady Philipps in 1788 when she was 'very aged. ' 'They have a favouriteblack, who has lived with them a great many years, and is remarkablysensible. To amuse Lady Philipps under a long illness, they had read toher the account of the Pelew Islands. Somebody happened to say we weresending a ship thither; the black, who was in the room, exclaimed, "Thenthere is an end of their happiness. " What a satire on Europe!' _Ib_. Ix. 157. 

Lady Philips was known to Johnson through Miss Williams, to whom, as anote in Croker's _Boswell_ (p. 74) shews, she made a small yearlyallowance. 

[753] 'To teach the minuter decencies and inferiour duties, to regulatethe practice of daily conversation, to correct those depravities whichare rather ridiculous than criminal, and remove those grievances which, if they produce no lasting calamities, impress hourly vexation, wasfirst attempted by Casa in his book of _Manners_, and Castiglione in his_Courtier_; two books yet celebrated in Italy for purity and elegance. 'Johnson's _Works_, vii. 428. _The Courtier_ was translated into Englishso early as 1561. Lowndes's _Bibl. Man_. Ed. 1871, p. 386. 

[754] Burnet (_History of His Own Time_, ii. 296) mentions Whitby amongthe persons who both managed and directed the controversial war' againstPopery towards the end of Charles II's reign. 'Popery, ' he says, 'wasnever so well understood by the nation as it came to be upon thisoccasion. ' Whitby's Commentary _on the New Testament_ was publishedin 1703-9. 

[755] By Henry Mackenzie, the author of _The Man of Feeling. Ante_, i. 360. It had been published anonymously this spring. The play of the samename is by Macklin. It was brought out in 1781. 

[756] No doubt Sir A. Macdonald. _Ante_, p. 148. This 'penuriousgentleman' is mentioned again, p. 315. 

[757] Molière's play of _L'Avare_. 

[758]

 '. .. Facit indignatio versum. '

Juvenal, _Sat_. I. 79. 

[759] See _ante_, iii. 252. 

[760] He was sixty-four. 

[761] Still, perhaps, in the _Western Isles_, 'It may be we shall touchthe Happy Isles. ' Tennyson's _Ulysses. _

[762] See _ante_, ii, 51. 

[763] See _ante_, ii. 150. 

[764] Sir Alexander Macdonald. 

[765] 'To be or not to be: that is the question. ' _Hamlet_, act iii. Sc. 1. 

[766] Virgil, _Eclogues_, iii. III. 

[767] 'The stormy Hebrides. ' Milton's _Lycidas_, 1. 156. 

[768] Boswell was thinking of the passage (p. Xxi. ) in which Hawkesworthtells how one of Captain Cook's ships was saved by the wind falling. 'If, ' he writes, 'it was a natural event, providence is out of thequestion; at least we can with no more propriety say that providentiallythe wind ceased, than that providentially the sun rose in the morning. If it was not, ' &c. According to Malone the attacks made on Hawkesworthin the newspapers for this passage 'affected him so much that from lowspirits he was seized with a nervous fever, which on account of the highliving he had indulged in had the more power on him; and he is supposedto have put an end to his life by intentionally taking an immoderatedose of opium. ' Prior's _Malone_, p. 441. Mme. D'Arblay says that theseattacks shortened his life. _Memoirs of Dr. Burney_, i. 278. He died onNov. 17 of this year. See _ante_, i. 252, and ii. 247. 

[769] 'After having been detained by storms many days at Sky we left it, as we thought, with a fair wind; but a violent gust, which Bos had agreat mind to call a tempest, forced us into Col. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 167. 'The wind blew against us in a short time with such violence, thatwe, being no seasoned sailors, were willing to call it a tempest. .. Themaster knew not well whither to go; and our difficulties might, perhaps, have filled a very pathetick page, had not Mr. Maclean of Col. .. Pilotedus safe into his own harbour. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 117. Sir WalterScott says, 'Their risque, in a sea full of islands, was veryconsiderable. Indeed, the whole expedition was highly perilous, considering the season of the year, the precarious chance of gettingsea-worthy boats, and the ignorance of the Hebrideans, who, notwithstanding the opportunities, I may say the _necessities_, of theirsituation, are very careless and unskilful sailors. ' Croker's_Boswell_, p. 362. 

[770] For as the tempest drives, I shape my way. FRANCIS. [Horace, _Epistles_, i. 1. 15. ] BOSWELL. 

[771]

 'Imberbus juvenis, tandem custode remoto, Gaudet equis canibusque, et aprici gramine campi. ' 'The youth, whose will no froward tutor bounds, Joys in the sunny field, his horse and hounds. '

FRANCIS. Horace, _Ars Poet_. 1. 161. 

[772] _Henry VI_, act i. Sc. 2. 

[773] See _ante_, i. 468, and iii. 306. 

[774] Johnson describes him as 'a gentleman who has lived some time inthe East Indies, but, having dethroned no nabob, is not too rich tosettle in his own country. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 117. 

[775] This curious exhibition may perhaps remind some of my readers ofthe ludicrous lines, made, during Sir Robert Walpole's administration, on Mr. George (afterwards Lord) Lyttelton, though the figures of the twopersonages must be allowed to be very different:--

 'But who is this astride the pony; So long, so lean, so lank, so bony? Dat be de great orator, Littletony. '

BOSWELL. 

These lines were beneath a caricature called _The Motion_, described byHorace Walpole in his letter of March 25, 1741, and said by Mr. Cunningham to be 'the earliest good political caricature that wepossess. ' Walpole's _Letters_, i. 66. Mr. Croker says that 'the exactwords are:--

 bony? O he be de great orator Little-Tony. '

[776] See _ante_, ii. 213. 

[777] In 1673 Burnet, who was then Professor of Theology in Glasgow, dedicated to Lauderdale _A Vindication of the Authority, &c. , of theChurch and State of Scotland_. In it he writes of the Duke's 'noblecharacter, and more lasting and inward characters of his princely mind. '

[778] See _ante_, i. 450. 

[779] See _ante_, p. 250. 

[780] 'Others have considered infinite space as the receptacle, orrather the habitation of the Almighty; but the noblest and most exaltedway of considering this infinite space, is that of Sir Isaac Newton, whocalls it the _sensorium_ of the Godhead. Brutes and men have their_sensoriola_, or little _sensoriums_, by which they apprehend thepresence, and perceive the actions, of a few objects that lie contiguousto them. Their knowledge and observation turn within a very narrowcircle. But as God Almighty cannot but perceive and know everything inwhich he resides, infinite space gives room to infinite knowledge, andis, as it were, an organ to Omniscience. ' Addison, _The Spectator_, No. 565. 

[781] 'Le célèbre philosophe Leibnitz . .. Attaqua ces expressions duphilosophe anglais, dans une lettre qu'il écrivit en 1715 à la feuereine d'Angleterre, épouse de George II. Cette princesse, digne d'êtreen commerce avec Leibnitz et Newton, engagea une dispute reglée parlettres entre les deux parties. Mais Newton, ennemi de toute dispute etavare de son temps, laissa le docteur Clarke, son disciple en physique, et pour le moins son égal en métaphysique, entrer pour lui dans la lice. La dispute roula sur presque toutes les idées métaphysiques de Newton, et c'est peut-être le plus beau monument que nous ayons des combatslittéraires. ' Voltaire's _Works_, ed. 1819, xxviii. 44. 

[782] See _ante_, iii. 248. 

[783] See _ante_, iv. 295, where Boswell asked Johnson 'if he would nothave done more good if he had been more gentle. ' JOHNSON. 'No, Sir; Ihave done more good as I am. Obscenity and impiety have always beenrepressed in my company. '

[784] 'Mr. Maclean has the reputation of great learning: he isseventy-seven years old, but not infirm, with a look of venerabledignity, excelling what I remember in any other man. His conversationwas not unsuitable to his appearance. I lost some of his good will bytreating a heretical writer with more regard than in his opinion aheretick could deserve. I honoured his orthodoxy, and did not muchcensure his asperity. A man who has settled his opinions does not loveto have the tranquillity of his conviction disturbed; and atseventy-seven it is time to be in earnest. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 118. 

[785] 'Mr. Maclean has no publick edifice for the exercise of hisministry, and can officiate to no greater number than a room cancontain; and the room of a hut is not very large. .. The want of churchesis not the only impediment to piety; there is likewise a want ofministers. A parish often contains more islands than one. .. All theprovision made by the present ecclesiastical constitution for theinhabitants of about a hundred square miles is a prayer and sermon in alittle room once in three weeks. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 118. 

[786]

 'Our Polly is a sad slut, nor heeds what we have taught her. I wonder any man alive will ever rear a daughter. For she must have both hoods and gowns, and hoops to swell her pride, With scarfs and stays, and gloves and lace; and she will have men beside; And when she's drest with care and cost, all-tempting, fine and gay, As men should serve a cucumber, she flings herself away. '

Air vii. 

[787] See _ante_, p. 162. 

[788] In 1715. 

[789]

 'When Ajax strives some rock's vast weight to throw, The line too labours, and the words move slow. '

Pope, _Essay on Criticism_, l. 370. 

[790] Johnson's remark on these stones is curious as shewing that he hadnot even a glimpse of the discoveries to be made by geology. Aftersaying that 'no account can be given' of the position of one of thestones, he continues:--'There are so many important things of whichhuman knowledge can give no account, that it may be forgiven us if wespeculate no longer on two stones in Col. ' _Works_, ix. 122. See _ante_, ii. 468, for his censure of Brydone's 'anti-mosaical remark. '

[791]

 'Malo me Galatea petit, lasciva puella. ' 'My Phillis me with pelted apples plies. '

DRYDEN. Virgil, _Eclogues_, iii. 64. 

[792]

 'The helpless traveller, with wild surprise, Sees the dry desert all around him rise, And smother'd in the dusty whirlwind dies. '

_Cato_ act ii. Sc. 6. 

[793] Johnson seems unwilling to believe this. 'I am not of opinion thatby any surveys or land-marks its [the sand's] limits have been everfixed, or its progression ascertained. If one man has confidence enoughto say that it advances, nobody can bring any proof to support him indenying it. ' _Works_, ix. 122. He had seen land in like manner laidwaste north of Aberdeen; where 'the owner, when he was required to paythe usual tax, desired rather to resign the ground. ' _Ib_. P. 15. 

[794] _Box_, in this sense, is not in Johnson's _Dictionary_. 

[795] See _ante_, ii. 100, and iv. 274. 

[796] In the original, _Rich windows. A Long Story_, l. 7. 

[797] 'And this according to the philosophers is happiness. ' Boswellsays of Crabbe's poem _The Village_, that 'its sentiments as to thefalse notions of rustick happiness and rustick virtue were quitecongenial with Johnson's own. ' _Ante_, iv. 175. 

[798] 'This innovation was considered by Mr. Macsweyn as the idleproject of a young head, heated with English fancies; but he has nowfound that turnips will really grow, and that hungry sheep and cows willreally eat them. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 121. 'The young laird is heir, perhaps, to 300 square miles of land, which, at ten shillings an acre, would bring him £96, 000 a year. He is desirous of improving theagriculture of his country; and, in imitation of the Czar, travelled forimprovement, and worked with his own hands upon a farm inHertfordshire. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 168. 

[799] 'In more fruitful countries the removal of one only makes room forthe succession of another; but in the Hebrides the loss of an inhabitantleaves a lasting vacuity; for nobody born in any other parts of theworld will choose this country for his residence. ' Johnson's_Works_, ix. 93. 

[800] 'In 1628 Daillé wrote his celebrated book, _De l'usage des Pères_, or _Of the Use of the Fathers_. Dr. Fleetwood, Bishop of Ely, said of itthat he thought the author had pretty sufficiently proved they were of_no use_ at all. ' Chalmers's _Biog. Dict_. Xi. 209. 

[801] _Enquiry after Happiness_, by Richard Lucas, D. D. , 1685. 

[802] _Divine Dialogues_, by Henry More, D. D. See _ante_, ii. 162, noteI. 

[803] By David Gregory, the second of the sixteen professors which thefamily of Gregory gave to the Universities. _Ante_, p. 48. 

[804] 'Johnson's landlord and next neighbour in Bolt-court. ' _Ante_, iii. 141. 

[805] 'Cuper's Gardens, near the south bank of the Thames, opposite toSomerset House. The gardens were illuminated, and the companyentertained by a band of music and fireworks; but this, with otherplaces of the same kind, has been lately discontinued by an act that hasreduced the number of these seats of luxury and dissipation. ' Dodsley's_London and its Environs_, ed. 1761, ii. 209. The Act was the 25thGeorge II, for 'preventing robberies and regulating places of publicentertainment. ' _Parl. Hist_. Xiv. 1234. 

[806] 'Mr. Johnson, ' according to Mr. Langton, 'used to laugh at apassage in Carte's _Life of the Duke of Ormond, _ where he gravelyobserves "that he was always in full dress when he went to court; toomany being in the practice of going thither with double lapells. "'_Boswelliana_, p. 274. The following is the passage:--'No severity ofweather or condition of health served him for a reason of not observingthat decorum of dress which he thought a point of respect to persons andplaces. In winter time people were allowed to come to court withdouble-breasted coats, a sort of undress. The duke would never takeadvantage of that indulgence; but let it be never so cold, he alwayscame in his proper habit, and indeed the king himself always did thesame, though too many neglected his example to make use of the libertyhe was pleased to allow. ' Carte's _Life of Ormond_, iv. 693. See _ante_, i. 42. It was originally published in _three_ volumes folio in 1735-6. 

[807] Seneca's two epigrams on Corsica are quoted in Boswell's_Corsica_, first edition, p. 13. Boswell, in one of his _Hypochondriacks(London Mag. _ 1778, p. 173), says:--'For Seneca I have a doublereverence, both for his own worth, and because he was the heathen sagewhom my grandfather constantly studied. '

[808] 'Very near the house of Maclean stands the castle of Col, whichwas the mansion of the Laird till the house was built. .. . On the wallwas, not long ago, a stone with an inscription, importing, that if anyman of the clan of Maclonich shall appear before this castle, though hecome at midnight, with a man's head in his hand, he shall there findsafety and protection against all but the king. This is an old Highlandtreaty made upon a very memorable occasion. Maclean, the son of JohnGerves, who recovered Col, and conquered Barra, had obtained, it issaid, from James the Second, a grant of the lands of Lochiel, forfeited, I suppose, by some offence against the state. Forfeited estates were notin those days quietly resigned; Maclean, therefore, went with an armedforce to seize his new possessions, and, I know not for what reason, took his wife with him. The Camerons rose in defence of their chief, anda battle was fought at Loch Ness, near the place where Fort Augustus nowstands, in which Lochiel obtained the victory, and Maclean, with hisfollowers, was defeated and destroyed. The lady fell into the hands ofthe conquerors, and, being found pregnant, was placed in the custody ofMaclonich, one of a tribe or family branched from Cameron, with orders, if she brought a boy, to destroy him, if a girl, to spare her. Maclonich's wife, who was with child likewise, had a girl about the sametime at which Lady Maclean brought a boy; and Maclonich, with moregenerosity to his captive than fidelity to his trust, contrived that thechildren should be changed. Maclean, being thus preserved from death, intime recovered his original patrimony; and, in gratitude to his friend, made his castle a place of refuge to any of the clan that should thinkhimself in danger; and, as a proof of reciprocal confidence, Macleantook upon himself and his posterity the care of educating the heir ofMaclonich. ' Johnson's _Works, _ ix. 130. 

[809] 'Mr. Croker tells us that the great Marquis of Montrose wasbeheaded at Edinburgh in 1650. There is not a forward boy at any schoolin England who does not know that the Marquis was hanged. ' Macaulay's_Essays_, ed. 1843, i. 357

[810] It is observable that men of the first rank spelt very ill in thelast century. In the first of these letters I have preserved theoriginal spelling. BOSWELL. 

[811] See _ante, _ i. , 127. 

[812] Muir-fowl is grouse. _Ante_ p. 44. 

[813] See ante, p. 162, note 1. 

[814] 'In Col only two houses pay the window tax; for only two have sixwindows, which, I suppose, are the laird's and Mr. Macsweyn's. 'Johnson's _Works_, ix. 125. 'The window tax, as it stands at present(January 1775). .. Lays a duty upon every window, which in Englandaugments gradually from twopence, the lowest rate upon houses with notmore than seven windows, to two shillings, the highest rate upon houseswith twenty-five windows and upwards. ' _Wealth of Nations, _ v. 2. 2 . 1. The tax was first imposed in 1695, as a substitute for hearth money. Macaulay's _England, _ ed. 1874, vii. 271. It was abolished in 1851. 

[815] Thomas Carlyle was not fourteen when, one 'dark frosty Novembermorning, ' he set off on foot for the University at Edinburgh--a distanceof nearly one hundred miles. Froude's _Carlyle_, i. 22. 

[816] _Ante_, p. 290. 

[817] _Of the Nature and Use of Lots: a Treatise historicall andtheologicall. _ By Thomas Gataker. London, 1619. _The Spirituall Watch, or Christ's Generall Watch-word. _ By Thomas Gataker. London, 1619. 

[818] See _ante_, p. 264. 

[819] He visited it with the Thrales on Sept. 22, 1774, when returningfrom his tour to Wales, and with Boswell in 1776 (_ante_, ii. 451). 

[820] Mr. Croker says that 'this, no doubt, alludes to Jacob Bryant, thesecretary or librarian at Blenheim, with whom Johnson had had perhapssome coolness now forgotten. ' The supposition of the coolness seemsneedless. With so little to go upon, guessing is very hazardous. 

[821] Topham Beauclerk, who had married the Duke's sister, after she hadbeen divorced for adultery with him from her first husband ViscountBolingbroke. _Ante_, ii. 246, note 1. 

[822] See _post_, Dempster's Letter of Feb. 16, 1775. 

[823] See _ante_, ii. 340, where Johnson said that 'if he were agentleman of landed property, he would turn out all his tenants who didnot vote for the candidate whom he supported. '

[824] See _ante_, iii. 378. 

[825] 'They have opinions which cannot be ranked with superstition, because they regard only natural effects. They expect better crops ofgrain by sowing their seed in the moon's increase. The moon has greatinfluence in vulgar philosophy. In my memory it was a precept annuallygiven in one of the English almanacks, "to kill hogs when the moon wasincreasing, and the bacon would prove the better in boiling. "' Johnson's_Works, _ ix. 104. Bacon, in his _Natural History_(No. 892) says:--'Forthe increase of moisture, the opinion received is, that seeds will growsoonest if they be set in the increase of the moon. '

[826] The question which Johnson asked with such unusual warmth mighthave been answered, 'by sowing the bent, or couch grass. ' WALTER SCOTT. 

[827] See _ante, _ i. 484. 

[828] See _ante_, i. 483. 

[829] It is remarkable, that Dr. Johnson should have read this accountof some of his own peculiar habits, without saying any thing on thesubject, which I hoped he would have done. BOSWELL. See _ante_, p. 128, note 2, and iv. 183, where Boswell 'observed he must have been a boldlaugher who would have ventured to tell Dr. Johnson of any of hispeculiarities. '

[830] In this he was very unlike Swift, who, in his youth, whentravelling in England, 'generally chose to dine with waggoners, hostlers, and persons of that rank; and he used to lie at night inhouses where he found written of the door _Lodgings for a penny_. Hedelighted in scenes of low life. ' Lord Orrery's _Swift_, ed. 1752, p. 33. 

[831] This is from the _Jests of Hierocles. _ CROKER. 

[832] 'The grave a gay companion shun. ' FRANCIS. Horace, 1 _Epis. _xviii. 89. 

[833] Boswell in 1776 found that 'oats were much used as food in Dr. Johnson's own town. ' _Ante_, ii. 463. 

[834] _Ante_, i. 294. 

[835] See _ante_, ii. 258. 

[836] 'The richness of the round steep green knolls, clothed with copse, and glancing with cascades, and a pleasant peep at a small fresh-waterloch embosomed among them--the view of the bay, surrounded and guardedby the island of Colvay--the gliding of two or three vessels in the moredistant Sound--and the row of the gigantic Ardnamurchan mountainsclosing the scene to the north, almost justify the eulogium ofSacheverell, [_post, _ p. 336] who, in 1688, declared the bay ofTobermory might equal any prospect in Italy. ' Lockhart's _Scott, _iv. 338. 

[837] 'The saying of the old philosopher who observes, that he who wantsleast is most like the gods who want nothing, was a favourite sentencewith Dr. Johnson, who, on his own part, required less attendance, sickor well, than ever I saw any human creature. Conversation was all herequired to make him happy. ' Piozzi's _Anec. _ p. 275. 

[838] _Remarks on Several Parts of Italy_ (_ante_, ii. 346). Johnson(_Works_, vii. 424) says of these _Travels_:--'Of many parts it is not avery severe censure to say that they might have been written at home. 'He adds that 'the book, though awhile neglected, became in time so muchthe favourite of the publick, that before it was reprinted it rose tofive times its price. '

[839] See _ante_, iii. 254, and iv. 237. 

[840] Johnson (_Works_, viii. 320) says of Pope that 'he had before himnot only what his own meditation suggested, but what he had found inother writers that might be _accomodated_ to his present purpose. 'Boswell's use of the word is perhaps derived, as Mr. Croker suggests, from _accommoder_, in the sense of _dressing up or cooking meats_. Thisword occurs in an amusing story that Boswell tells in one of hisHypochondriacks (_London Mag_. 1779, p. 55):--'A friend of mine told methat he engaged a French cook for Sir B. Keen, when ambassador in Spain, and when he asked the fellow if he had ever dressed any magnificentdinners the answer was:--"Monsieur, j'ai accommodé un dîner qui faisaittrembler toute la France. "' Scott, in _Guy Mannering_ (ed. 1860, iii. 138), describes 'Miss Bertram's solicitude to soothe and _accommodate_her parent. ' See _ante_, iv. 39, note 1, for '_accommodated_ theladies. ' To sum up, we may say with Justice Shallow:--'Accommodated! itcomes of _accommodo_; very good; a good phrase. ' 2 _Henry IV_, actiii. Sc. 2. 

[841] 'Louis Moréri, né en Provence, en 1643. On ne s'attendait pas quel'auteur du _Pays d'amour_, et le traducteur de _Rodriguez_, entreprîtdans sa jeunesse le premier dictionnaire de faits qu'on eût encore vu. Ce grand travail lui coûta la vie. .. Mort en 1680. ' Voltaire's _Works_, ed. 1819, xvii. 133. 

[842] Johnson looked upon _Ana_ as an English word, for he gives it inhis _Dictionary_. 

[843] I take leave to enter my strongest protest against this judgement. _Bossuet_ I hold to be one of the first luminaries of religion andliterature. If there are who do not read him, it is full time theyshould begin. BOSWELL. 

[844]

 Just in the gate, and in the jaws of hell, Revengeful cares, and sullen sorrows dwell; And pale diseases, and repining age; Want, fear, and famine's unresisted rage; Here toils and death, and death's half-brother, sleep, Forms terrible to view their sentry keep. 

Dryden, _Aeneid_, vi. 273. BOSWELL. Voltaire, in his Essay _Sur lesinconvéniens attachés à la Littérature_ (_Works_, xliii. 173), says:--'Enfin, après un an de refus et de négociations, votre ouvrages'imprime; c'est alors qu'il faut ou assoupir les _Cerbères_ de lalittérature ou les faire aboyer en votre faveur. ' He therefore carrieson the resemblance one step further, --

'Cerberus haec ingens latratu regna trifauci Personat. ' _Aeneid_, vi. 417. 

[845] It was in 1763 that Boswell made Johnson's acquaintance. _Ante_, i. 391. 

[846] It is no small satisfaction to me to reflect, that Dr. Johnsonread this, and, after being apprized of my intention, communicated tome, at subsequent periods, many particulars of his life, which probablycould not otherwise have been preserved. BOSWELL. See _ante_, i. 26. 

[847] Though Mull is, as Johnson says, the third island of the Hebridesin extent, there was no post there. _Piozzi Letters_, i. 170. 

[848] This observation is very just. The time for the Hebrides was toolate by a month or six weeks. I have heard those who remembered theirtour express surprise they were not drowned. WALTER SCOTT. 

[849] _ The Charmer, a Collection of Songs Scotch and English. _Edinburgh, 1749. 

[850] By Thomas Willis, M. D. It was published in 1672. 'In this work hemaintains that the soul of brutes is like the vital principle in man, that it is corporeal in its nature and perishes with the body. Althoughthe book was dedicated to the Archbishop of Canterbury, his orthodoxy, amatter that Willis regarded much, was called in question. ' Knight's_Eng. Cyclo_. Vi. 741. Burnet speaks of him as 'Willis, the greatphysician. ' _History of his Own Time_, ed. 1818, i. 254. See _Wood'sAthenae_, iii. 1048. 

[851] See _ante_, ii. 409 and iii. 242, where he said:--'Had I learnt tofiddle, I should have done nothing else. '

[852] _Ante_, p. 277. 

[853] _Ante_, p. 181. 

[854] Mr. Langton thinks this must have been the hasty expression of asplenetick moment, as he has heard Dr. Johnson speak of Mr. Spence'sjudgment in criticism with so high a degree of respect, as to shew thatthis was not his settled opinion of him. Let me add that, in the prefaceto the _Preceptor_, he recommends Spence's _Essay on Papers Odyssey_, and that his admirable _Lives of the English Poets_ are much enriched bySpence's Anecdotes of Pope. BOSWELL. For the _Preceptor_ see _ante_, i. 192, and Johnson's _Works_, v. 240. Johnson, in his _Life of Pope (ib_. Viii. 274), speaks of Spence as 'a man whose learning was not verygreat, and whose mind was not very powerful. His criticism, however, wascommonly just; what he thought he thought rightly; and his remarks wererecommended by his coolness and candour. ' See _ante_, iv. 9, 63. 

[855] 'She was the only interpreter of Erse poetry that I could everfind. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 134. See _ante_, p. 241. 

[856] 'After a journey difficult and tedious, over rocks naked andvalleys untracked, through a country of barrenness and solitude, wecame, almost in the dark, to the sea-side, weary and dejected, havingmet with nothing but waters falling from the mountains that could raiseany image of delight. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 170. 'It is natural, intraversing this gloom of desolation, to inquire, whether something maynot be done to give nature a more cheerful face. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 136. 

[857] _Ante_, p. 19. 

[858] See _ante_, i. 521. 

[859] See _ante_, p. 212. 

[860] Sir William Blackstone says, in his _Commentaries_, that 'hecannot find that ever this custom prevailed in England;' and thereforehe is of opinion that it could not have given rise to _Borough-English_. BOSWELL. 'I cannot learn that ever this custom prevailed in England, though it certainly did in Scotland (under the name of _mercketa_ or_marcheta_), till abolished by Malcolm III. ' _Commentaries_, ed. 1778, ii. 83. Sir H. Maine, in his _Early History of Institutions_, p. 222, writes:--'Other authors, as Blackstone tells us, explained it ["BoroughEnglish"] by a supposed right of the Seigneur or lord, now verygenerally regarded as apocryphal, which raised a presumption of theeldest son's illegitimacy. '

[861] 'Macquarry was used to demand a sheep, for which he now takes acrown, by that inattention to the uncertain proportion between the valueand the denomination of money, which has brought much disorder intoEurope. A sheep has always the same power of supplying human wants, buta crown will bring, at one time more, at another less'. Johnson's_Works_, ix. 139. 

[862] 'The house and the furniture are not always nicely suited. We weredriven once, by missing a passage, to the hut of a gentleman, where, after a very liberal supper, when I was conducted to my chamber, I foundan elegant bed of Indian cotton, spread with fine sheets. Theaccommodation was flattering; I undressed myself, and felt my feet inthe mire. The bed stood upon the bare earth, which a long course of rainhad softened to a puddle. ' _Works_, ix. 98. 

[863] Inchkenneth is a most beautiful little islet, of the most verdantgreen, while all the neighbouring shore of Greban, as well as the largeislands of Colinsay and Ulva, are as black as heath and moss can makethem. But Ulva has a good anchorage, and Inchkenneth is surrounded byshoals. It is now uninhabited. The ruins of the huts, in which Dr. Johnson was received by Sir Allan M'Lean, were still to be seen, andsome tatters of the paper hangings were to be seen on the walls. Sir G. O. Paul was at Inchkenneth with the same party of which I was a member. [See Lockhart's _Scott_, ed. 1839, iii. 285. ] He seemed to suspect manyof the Highland tales which he heard, but he showed most incredulity onthe subject of Johnson's having been entertained in the wretched huts ofwhich we saw the ruins. He took me aside, and conjured me to tell himthe truth of the matter. 'This Sir Allan, ' said he, 'was he a _regularbaronet_, or was his title such a traditional one as you find inIreland?' I assured my excellent acquaintance that, 'for my own part, Iwould have paid more respect to a knight of Kerry, or knight of Glynn;yet Sir Allan M'Lean was a _regular baronet_ by patent;' and, havinggiving him this information, I took the liberty of asking him, inreturn, whether he would not in conscience prefer the worst cell in thejail at Gloucester (which he had been very active in overlooking whilethe building was going on) to those exposed hovels where Johnson hadbeen entertained by rank and beauty. He looked round the little islet, and allowed Sir Allan had some advantage in exercising ground; but inother respects he thought the compulsory tenants of Gloucester hadgreatly the advantage. Such was his opinion of a place, concerning whichJohnson has recorded that 'it wanted little which palaces could afford. 'WALTER SCOTT. 

[864] 'Sir Allan's affairs are in disorder by the fault of hisancestors, and while he forms some scheme for retrieving them he hasretreated hither. ' _Piozzi Letters_ i. 172. 

[865] By Francis Gastrell, Bishop of Chester, published in 1707. 

[866] _Travels through different cities of Germany, &c. , _, by AlexanderDrummond. Horace Walpole, on April 24, 1754 (_Letters_, ii. 381), mentions 'a very foolish vulgar book of travels, lately published by oneDrummond, consul at Aleppo. '

[867] _ Physico-Theology; or a Demonstration of the Being and Attributesof God from his Works of Creation. _ By William Derham, D. D. , 1713. Voltaire, in _Micromégas, _ ch. I, speaking of 'l'illustre vicaireDerham' says:--'Malheureusement, lui et ses imitateurs se trompentsouvent dans l'exposition de ces merveilles; ils s'extasient sur lasagesse qui se montre dans l'ordre d'un phénomène et on découvre que cephénomène est tout différent de ce qu'ils ont supposé; alors c'est cenouvel ordre qui leur paraît un chef d'oeuvre de sagesse. '

[868] This work was published in 1774. Johnson said on March 20, 1776(_ante_, ii. 447), 'that he believed Campbell's disappointment onaccount of the bad success of that work had killed him. '

[869] Johnson said of Campbell:--'I am afraid he has not been in theinside of a church for many years; but he never passes a church withoutpulling off his hat. This shows that he has good principles. ' _Ante_, i. 418. 

[870] _New horse-shoeing Husbandry_, by Jethro Tull, 1733. 

[871] 'He owned he sometimes talked for victory. ' _Ante_, iv. 111, andv. 17. 

[872] 'They said that a great family had a _bard_ and a _senachi_, whowere the poet and historian of the house; and an old gentleman told methat he remembered one of each. Here was a dawn of intelligence. .. . Another conversation informed me that the same man was both bard andsenachi. This variation discouraged me. .. . Soon after I was told by agentleman, who is generally acknowledged the greatest master ofHebridian antiquities, that there had, indeed, once been both bards andsenachies; and that _senachi_ signified _the man of talk_, or ofconversation; but that neither bard nor senachi had existed for somecenturies. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 109. 

[873] See _ante_, iii. 41, 327

[874] 'Towards evening Sir Allan told us that Sunday never passed overhim like another day. One of the ladies read, and read very well, theevening service;--"and Paradise was opened in the wild. "' _PiozziLetters_, i. 173. The quotation is from Pope's _Eloisa to Abelard_, l. 134:--

 'You raised these hallowed walls; the desert smil'd, And Paradise was open'd in the wild. '

[875] He sent these verses to Boswell in 1775. _Ante_ ii. 293. 

[876] Boswell wrote to Johnson on Feb. 2, 1775, (_ante_, ii. 295):--'LordHailes bids me tell you he doubts whether--

 "Legitimas faciunt pectora pura preces, "

be according to the rubrick, but that is your concern; for you know, heis a Presbyterian. '

[877] In Johnson's _Works_, i. 167, these lines are given withamendments and additions, mostly made by Johnson, but some, Mr. Crokerbelieves, by Mr. Langton. In the following copy the variations aremarked in italics. 

 INSULA KENNETHI, INTER HEBRIDAS. Parva quidem regio sed religione priorum _Clara_ Caledonias panditur inter aquas. Voce ubi Cennethus populos domuisse feroces Dicitur, et vanos dedocuisse deos. Huc ego delatus placido per caerula cursu, Scire _locus_ volui quid daret _iste_ novi. Illic Leniades humili regnabat in aula, Leniades, magnis nobilitatus avis. Una duas _cepit_ casa cum genitore puellas, Quas Amor undarum _crederet_ esse deas. _Nec_ tamen inculti gelidis latuere sub antris, Accola Danubii qualia saevus habet. Mollia non _desunt_ vacuae solatia vitae Sive libros poscant otia, sive lyram. _Fulserat_ illa dies, legis _qua_ docta supernae Spes hominum _et_ curas _gens_ procul esse jubet. _Ut precibus justas avertat numinis iras, Et summi accendat pectus amore boni. _ Ponti inter strepitus _non sacri_ munera cultus Cessarunt, pietas hic quoque cura fuit. _Nil opus est oeris sacra de turre sonantis Admonitu, ipsa suas nunciat hora vices. _ Quid, quod sacrifici versavit foemina libros? _Sint pro legitimis pura labella sacris. _ Quo vagor ulterius? quod ubique requiritur hic est, Hic secura quies, hic et honestus amor. 

Mr. Croker says of the third line from the end, that in a copy of theseverses in Johnson's own hand which he had seen, 'Johnson hadfirst written

 _Sunt pro legitimis pectora pura sacris. _

He then wrote

 _Legitimas faciunt pura labella preces. _

That line was erased, and the line as it stands in the _Works_ issubstituted in Mr. Langton's hand, as is also an alteration in the 16thline, _velit_ into _jubet_. ' _Jubet_ however is in the copy as printedby Boswell. Mr. Langton edited some, if not all, of Johnson's Latinpoems. (_Ante_, iv. 384. )

[878] 'Boswell, who is very pious, went into the chapel at night toperform his devotions, but came back in haste for fear of spectres. '_Piozzi Letters_, i. 173. 

[879] _Ante_ p. 169. 

[880] John Gerves, or John the Giant, of whom Dr. Johnson relates acurious story; _Works_ ix. 119. 

[881] Lord Chatham in the House of Lords, on Nov. 22, 1770, speaking of'the honest, industrious tradesman, who holds the middle rank, and hasgiven repeated proofs that he prefers law and liberty to gold, ' hadsaid:--'I love that class of men. Much less would I be thought toreflect upon the fair merchant, whose liberal commerce is the primesource of national wealth. I esteem his occupation, and respect hischaracter. ' _Parl. Hist. _ xvi. 1107. 

[882] See _ante_, iii. 382. 

[883] He was born in Nordland in Sweden, in 1736. In 1768 he and Mr. Banks accompanied Captain Cook in his first voyage round the world. Hedied in 1782. Knight's _Eng. Cyclo. _ v. 578. Miss Burney wrote of him in1780:--'My father has very exactly named him, in calling him aphilosophical gossip. ' Mme. D'Arblay's _Diary_, i. 305. Horace Walpolethe same year, just after the Gordon Riots, wrote (_Letters_, vii. 403):--'Who is secure against Jack Straw and a whirlwind? How Iabominate Mr. Banks and Dr. Solander, who routed the poor Otaheitans outof the centre of the ocean, and carried our abominable passions amongstthem! not even that poor little speck could escape Europeanrestlessness. ' See _ante_ ii. 148. 

[884] Boswell tells this story again, _ante_, ii. 299. Mrs. Piozzi'saccount (_Anec_. P. 114) is evidently so inaccurate that it does notdeserve attention; she herself admits that Beauclerk was truthful. In amarginal note on Wraxall's _Memoirs_, she says:--'Topham Beauclerk(wicked and profligate as he wished to be accounted), was yet a man ofvery strict veracity. Oh Lord! how I did hate that horrid Beauclerk!'Hayward's _Piozzi_, i. 348. Johnson testified to 'the correctness ofBeauclerk's memory and the fidelity of his narrative. ' _Ante_, ii. 405. 

[885] 'Mr. Maclean of Col, having a very numerous family, has for sometime past resided at Aberdeen, that he may superintend their education, and leaves the young gentleman, our friend, to govern his dominions withthe full power of a Highland chief. ' _Johnson's Works_, ix. 117. 

[886] This is not spoken of hare-coursing, where the game is taken orlost before the dog gets out of wind; but in chasing deer with the greatHighland greyhound, Col's exploit is feasible enough. WALTER SCOTT. 

[887] See _ante_, pp. 45, III, for Monboddo's notion. 

[888] Mme. Riccoboni in 1767 wrote to Garrick of the French:--'Unmensonge grossier les révolte. Si on voulait leur persuader que lesAnglais vivent de grenouilles, meurent de faim, que leurs femmes sontbarbouillées, et jurent par toutes les lettres de l'alphabet, ilsleveraient les épaules, et s'écriraient, _quel sot ose écrire cesmisères-là?_ mais à Londres, diantre cela prend!' _Garrick Corres_. Ii. 524. 

[889] Just opposite to M'Quarrie's house the boat was swamped by theintoxication of the sailors, who had partaken too largely of M'Quarrie'swonted hospitality. WALTER SCOTT. Johnson wrote from Lichfield on June13, 1775;--'There is great lamentation here for the death of Col. Lucy[Miss Porter] is of opinion that he was wonderfully handsome. ' _PiozziLetters_, i. 235. See ante, ii. 287. 

[890] Iona. 

[891] See _ante_, p. 237. 

[892] See _ante_, 111. 229. 

[893] Sir James Mackintosh says (_Life_, ii. 257):--'Dr. Johnson visitedIona without looking at Staffa, which lay in sight, with thatindifference to natural objects, either of taste or scientificcuriosity, which characterised him. ' This is a fair enough sample ofmuch of the criticism under which Johnson's reputation has suffered. 

[894] Smollett in _Humphry Clinker_ (Letter of Sept. 3) describes aHighland funeral. 'Our entertainer seemed to think it a disparagement tohis family that not above a hundred gallons of whisky had been drunkupon such a solemn occasion. 

[895] 'We then entered the boat again; the night came upon us; the windrose; the sea swelled; and Boswell desired to be set on dry ground: we, however, pursued our navigation, and passed by several little islands inthe silent solemnity of faint moon-shine, seeing little, and hearingonly the wind and water. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 176. 

[896] Cicero _De Finibus_, ii. 32. 

[897] I have lately observed that this thought has been elegantlyexpressed by Cowley:--

 'Things which offend when present, and affright, In memory, well painted, move delight. '

BOSWELL. 

The lines are found in the _Ode upon His Majesty's Restoration andReturn_, stanza 12. They may have been suggested by Virgil's lines--

 'Revocate animos, maestumque timorem Mittite; forsan et haec olim meminisse juvabit. '

Aeneid, i. 202. 

[898] Had our Tour produced nothing else but this sublime passage, theworld must have acknowledged that it was not made in vain. The presentrespectable President of the Royal Society was so much struck on readingit, that he clasped his hands together, and remained for some time in anattitude of silent admiration, BOSWELL. Boswell again quotes thispassage (which is found in Johnson's _Works_, ix. 145), _ante_, iii. 173. The President was Sir Joseph Banks, Johnson says in _Rasselas_, ch. Xi:--'That the supreme being may be more easily propitiated in one placethan in another is the dream of idle superstition; but that some placesmay operate upon our own minds in an uncommon manner is an opinion whichhourly experience will justify. He who supposes that his vices may bemore successfully combated in Palestine will, perhaps, find himselfmistaken, yet he may go thither without folly; he who thinks they willbe more freely pardoned dishonours at once his reason and religion. '

[899] 'Sir Allan went to the headman of the island, whom fame, but famedelights in amplifying, represents as worth no less than fifty pounds. He was, perhaps, proud enough of his guests, but ill prepared for ourentertainment; however he soon produced more provision than men notluxurious require. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 146. 

[900] _An Account of the Isle of Man. With a voyage to I-Columb-Kill_. By W. Sacheverell, Esq. , late Governour of Man. 1702. 

[901] 'He that surveys it [the church-yard] attended by an insularantiquary may be told where the kings of many nations are buried, and ifhe loves to soothe his imagination with the thoughts that naturally risein places where the great and the powerful lie mingled with the dust, let him listen in submissive silence; for if he asks any questions hisdelight is at an end. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 148. 

[902] On quitting the island Johnson wrote: 'We now left thoseillustrious ruins, by which Mr. Boswell was much affected, nor would Iwillingly be thought to have looked upon them without some emotion. '_Ib_. P. 150. 

[903] Psalm xc. 4. 

[904] Boswell wrote on Nov. 9, 1767:--'I am always for fixing someperiod for my perfection as far as possible. Let it be when my accountof Corsica is published; I shall then have a character which I mustsupport. ' _Letters of Boswell_, p. 122. Five weeks later he wrote:--'Ihave been as wild as ever;' and then comes a passage which the Editorhas thought it needful to suppress. _Ib_. P. 128. 

[905] Boswell here speaks as an Englishman. He should have written '_a_M'Ginnis. ' See _ante_, p. 135, note 3. 

[906] 'The fruitfulness of Iona is now its whole prosperity. Theinhabitants are remarkably gross, and remarkably neglected; I know notif they are visited by any minister. The island, which was once themetropolis of learning and piety, has now no school for education, nortemple for worship, only two inhabitants that can speak English, and notone that can write or read. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 149. Scott, whovisited it in 1810, writes:--'There are many monuments of singularcuriosity, forming a strange contrast to the squalid and dejectedpoverty of the present inhabitants. ' Lockhart's _Scott_, ed. 1839, iii. 285. In 1814, on a second visit, he writes:--'Iona, the last time I sawit, seemed to me to contain the most wretched people I had anywhereseen. But either they have got better since I was here, or my eyes, familiarized with the wretchedness of Zetland and the Harris, are lessshocked with that of Iona. ' He found a schoolmaster there. _Ib_. Iv. 324. 

[907] Johnson's Jacobite friend, Dr. King (_ante_, i. 279), says ofPulteney, on his being made Earl of Bath:--'He deserted the cause ofhis country; he betrayed his friends and adherents; he ruined hischaracter, and from a most glorious eminence sunk down to a degree ofcontempt. The first time Sir Robert (who was now Earl of Orford) met himin the House of Lords, he threw out this reproach:--"My Lord Bath, youand I are now two as insignificant men as any in England. " In which hespoke the truth of my Lord Bath, but not of himself. For my Lord Orfordwas consulted by the ministers to the last day of his life. ' King's_Anec_. P. 43. 

[908] See _ante_, i. 431, and iii. 326. 

[909] 'Sir Robert Walpole detested war. This made Dr. Johnson say ofhim, "He was the best minister this country ever had, as, if _we_ wouldhave let him (he speaks of his own violent faction), he would have keptthe country in perpetual peace. "' Seward's _Biographiana_, p. 554. See_ante_, i. 131. 

[910] See _ante_, iii. Appendix C. 

[911] I think it incumbent on me to make some observation on this strongsatirical sally on my classical companion, Mr. Wilkes. Reporting itlately from memory, in his presence, I expressed it thus:--'They knew hewould rob their shops, _if he durst;_ they knew he would debauch theirdaughters, _if he could;_' which, according to the French phrase, may besaid _renchérir_ on Dr. Johnson; but on looking into my Journal, I foundit as above, and would by no means make any addition. Mr. Wilkesreceived both readings with a good humour that I cannot enough admire. Indeed both he and I (as, with respect to myself, the reader has morethan once had occasion to observe in the course of this Journal, ) aretoo fond of a _bon mot_, not to relish it, though we should be ourselvesthe object of it. 

Let me add, in justice to the gentleman here mentioned, that at asubsequent period, he _was_ elected chief magistrate of London [in1774], and discharged the duties of that high office with great honourto himself, and advantage to the city. Some years before Dr. Johnsondied, I was fortunate enough to bring him and Mr. Wilkes together; theconsequence of which was, that they were ever afterwards on easy and notunfriendly terms. The particulars I shall have great pleasure inrelating at large in my _Life of Dr. Johnson_. BOSWELL. In the copy ofBoswell's _Letter to the People of Scotland_ in the British Museum isentered in Boswell's own hand--

 'Comes jucundus in via pro vehiculo est. 

To John Wilkes, Esq. : as pleasant a companion as ever lived. From theAuthor. 

 --will my Wilkes retreat, And see, once seen before, that ancient seat, etc. '

See _ante_, iii. 64, 183; iv. 101, 224, note 2. 

[912] See _ante_, iv. 199. 

[913] Our afternoon journey was through a country of such gloomydesolation that Mr. Boswell thought no part of the Highlands equallyterrifick. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 150. 

[914] Johnson describes Lochbuy as 'a true Highland laird, rough andhaughty, and tenacious of his dignity: who, hearing my name, inquiredwhether I was of the Johnstons of Glencoe (_sic_) or of Ardnamurchan. '_Ib_. 

[915] Boswell totally misapprehended _Lochbuy's_ meaning. There are twosepts of the powerful clan of M'Donaid, who are called Mac-Ian, that is_John's-son_; and as Highlanders often translate their names when theygo to the Lowlands, --as Gregor-son for Mac-Gregor, Farquhar-son forMac-Farquhar, --_Lochbuy_ supposed that Dr. Johnson might be one of theMac-Ians of Ardnamurchan, or of Glencro. Boswell's explanation wasnothing to the purpose. The _Johnstons_ are a clan distinguished inScottish _border_ history, and as brave as any _Highland_ clan that everwore brogues; but they lay entirely out of _Lochbuy's_ knowledge--norwas he thinking of _them_. WALTER SCOTT. 

[916] This maxim, however, has been controverted. See Blackstone's_Commentaries_, vol. Ii. P. 291; and the authorities there quoted. BOSWELL. 'Blackstone says:--From these loose authorities, whichFitzherbert does not hesitate to reject as being contrary to reason, themaxim that a man shall not stultify himself hath been handed down assettled law; though later opinions, feeling the inconvenience of therule, have in many points endeavoured to restrain it. ' _Ib_. P. 292. 

[917] Begging pardon of the Doctor and his conductor, I have often seenand partaken of cold sheep's head at as good breakfast-tables as everthey sat at. This protest is something in the manner of the lateCulrossie, who fought a duel for the honour of Aberdeen butter. I havepassed over all the Doctor's other reproaches upon Scotland, but thesheep's head I will defend _totis viribus_. Dr. Johnson himself musthave forgiven my zeal on this occasion; for if, as he says, _dinner_ bethe thing of which a man thinks _oftenest during the day, breakfast_must be that of which he thinks _first in the morning_. WALTER SCOTT. Ido not know where Johnson says this. Perhaps Scott was thinking of apassage in Mrs. Piozzi's _Anec_. P. 149, where she writes that he said:'A man seldom thinks with more earnestness of any thing than he does ofhis dinner. '

[918] A horrible place it was. Johnson describes it (_Works_, ix. 152)as 'a deep subterraneous cavity, walled on the sides, and arched on thetop, into which the descent is through a narrow door, by a ladder ora rope. '

[919] See _ante_, p. 177. 

[920] Sir Allan M'Lean, like many Highland chiefs, was embarrassed inhis private affairs, and exposed to unpleasant solicitations fromattorneys, called, in Scotland, _writers_ (which indeed was the chiefmotive of his retiring to Inchkenneth). Upon one occasion he made avisit to a friend, then residing at Carron lodge, on the banks of theCarron, where the banks of that river are studded with pretty villas:Sir Allan, admiring the landscape, asked his friend, whom that handsomeseat belonged to. 'M---, the writer to the signet, ' was the reply. 'Umph!' said Sir Allan, but not with an accent of assent, 'I mean thatother house. ' 'Oh ! that belongs to a very honest fellow Jamie---, alsoa writer to the signet. ' 'Umph!' said the Highland chief of M'Lean withmore emphasis than before, 'And yon smaller house?' 'That belongs to aStirling man; I forget his name, but I am sure he is a writer too;for---. ' Sir Allan who had recoiled a quarter of a circle backward atevery response, now wheeled the circle entire and turned his back on thelandscape, saying, 'My good friend, I must own you have a prettysituation here; but d--n your neighbourhood. ' WALTER SCOTT. 

[921] Loch Awe. 

[922] 'Pope's talent lay remarkably in what one may naturally enoughterm the condensation of thoughts. I think no other English poet everbrought so much sense into the same number of lines with equalsmoothness, ease, and poetical beauty. Let him who doubts of this perusehis _Essay on Man_ with attention. ' Shenstone's _Essays on Men andManners. [Works_, 4th edit. Ii. 159. ] 'He [Gray] approved an observationof Shenstone, that "Pope had the art of condensing a thought. "'Nicholls' _Reminiscences of Gray_, p. 37. And Swift [in his _Lines onthe death of Dr. Swift_], himself a great condenser, says--

 'In Pope I cannot read a line But with a sigh I wish it mine; When he can in one couplet fix More sense than I can do in six. '

P. CUNNINGHAM. 

[923] He is described by Walpole in his _Letters_, viii. 5. 

[924] 'The night came on while we had yet a great part of the way to go, though not so dark but that we could discern the cataracts which poureddown the hills on one side, and fell into one general channel, that ranwith great violence on the other. The wind was loud, the rain was heavy, and the whistling of the blast, the fall of the shower, the rush of thecataracts, and the roar of the torrent, made a nobler chorus of therough musick of nature than it had ever been my chance to hear before. 'Johnson's _Works_, ix. 155. He wrote to Mrs. Thrale:--'All the rougherpowers of nature except thunder were in motion, but there was no danger. I should have been sorry to have missed any of the inconveniencies, tohave had more light or less rain, for their co-operation crowded thescene and filled the mind. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 177. 

[925] I never tasted whiskey except once for experiment at the inn inInverary, when I thought it preferable to any English malt brandy. Itwas strong, but not pungent, and was free from the empyreumatick tasteor smell. What was the process I had no opportunity of inquiring, nor doI wish to improve the art of making poison pleasant. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 52. Smollett, medical man though he was, looked upon whisky asanything but poison. 'I am told that it is given with great success toinfants, as a cordial in the confluent small-pox. ' _Humphry Clinker_. Letter of Sept. 3. 

[926] _Regale_ in this sense is not in Johnson's _Dictionary_. It was, however, a favourite word at this time. Thus, Mrs. Piozzi, in her_Journey through France_, ii. 297, says:--'A large dish of hot chocolatethickened with bread and cream is a common afternoon's regale here. 'Miss Burney often uses the word. 

[927] Boswell, in answering Garrick's letter seven months later, improved on this comparison. 'It was, ' he writes, 'a pine-apple of thefinest flavour, which had a high zest indeed among the heath-coveredmountains of Scotia. ' _Garrick Corres_. I. 621. 

[928] See _ante_, p. 115. 

[929] See _ante_, i. 97. 

[930] 'Though Birnam wood be come to Dunsinane. ' _Macbeth_, act v. Sc. 8. 

[931]

 'From his first entrance to the closing scene Let him one equal character maintain. '

FRANCIS. Horace, _Ars Poet. _ l. 126. 

[932] I took the liberty of giving this familiar appellation to mycelebrated friend, to bring in a more lively manner to his remembrancethe period when he was Dr. Johnson's pupil. BOSWELL. 

[933] See _ante_, p. 129. 

[934] Boswell is here quoting the Preface to the third edition of his_Corsica_:--'Whatever clouds may overcast my days, I can now walk hereamong the rocks and woods of my ancestors, with an agreeableconsciousness that I have done something worthy. '

[935] See _ante_, i. 148, and _post_, Nov. 21. 

[936] I have suppressed my friend's name from an apprehension ofwounding his sensibility; but I would not withhold from my readers apassage which shews Mr. Garrick's mode of writing as the Manager of aTheatre, and contains a pleasing trait of his domestick life. Hisjudgment of dramatick pieces, so far as concerns their exhibition on thestage, must be allowed to have considerable weight. But from the effectwhich a perusal of the tragedy here condemned had upon myself, and fromthe opinions of some eminent criticks, I venture to pronounce that ithas much poetical merit; and its authour has distinguished himself byseveral performances which shew that the epithet _poetaster_ was, in thepresent instance, much misapplied. BOSWELL. Johnson mentioned thisquarrel between Garrick and the poet on March 25, 1773 (_PiozziLetters_, i. 80). 'M---- is preparing a whole pamphlet against G----, and G---- is, I suppose, collecting materials to confute M----. ' M----was Mickle, the translator of the _Lusiad_ and author of the _Ballad ofCumnor Hall_ (_ante_, ii. 182). Had it not been for this 'poetaster, '_Kenilworth_ might never have been written. Scott, in the preface, tellshow 'the first stanza of _Cunmor Hall_ had a peculiar species ofenchantment for his youthful ear, the force of which is not even nowentirely spent. ' The play that was refused was the _Siege ofMarseilles_. Ever since the success of Hughes's _Siege of Damascus_ 'asiege had become a popular title' (_ante_, iii. 259, note 1). 

[937] She could only have been away for the day; for in 1776 Garrickwrote:--'As I have not left Mrs. Garrick one day since we were married, near twenty-eight years, I cannot now leave her. ' _Garrick Corres_. Ii. 150. 

[938] Dr. Morell once entered the school-room at Winchester College, 'inwhich some junior boys were writing their exercises, one of whom, struckno less with his air and manner than with the questions he put to them, whispered to his school-fellows, "Is he not a fine old Grecian?" TheDoctor, overhearing this, turned hastily round and exclaimed, "I amindeed an old Grecian, my little man. Did you never see my head beforemy Thesaurus?"' The Praepostors, learning the dignity of their visitor, in a most respectful manner showed him the College. Wooll's _Life of Dr. Warton_, p. 329. Mason writing to Horace Walpole about some odes, says:--'They are so lopped and mangled, that they are worse now than theproductions of Handel's poet, Dr. Morell. ' Walpole's _Letters_, v. 420. Morell compiled the words for Handel's _Oratorios_. 

[939] _Ante_, i. 148. 

[940] I doubt whether any other instance can be found of _love_ beingsent to Johnson. 

[941] The passage begins:--'A _servant_ or two from a revering distancecast many a wishful look, and condole their honoured master in thelanguage of sighs. ' Hervey's _Meditations_, ed. 1748, i. 40. 

[942] _Ib_. Ii. 84. 

[943] The _Meditation_ was perhaps partly suggested by Swift's_Meditation upon a Broomstick_. Swift's _Works_ (1803), iii. 275. 

[944] Thomas Burnet of the Charterhouse, in his _Sacred Theory of theEarth_, ed. 1722, i. 85. 

[945] See _ante_, i. 476, and ii. 73. 

[946] Elizabeth Gunning, celebrated (like her sister, Lady Coventry) forher personal charms, had been previously Duchess of Hamilton, and wasmother of Douglas, Duke of Hamilton, the competitor for the Douglasproperty with the late Lord Douglas: she was, of course, prejudicedagainst Boswell, who had shewn all the bustling importance of hischaracter in the Douglas cause, and it was said, I know not on whatauthority, that he headed the mob which broke the windows of some of thejudges, and of Lord Auchinleck, his father, in particular. WALTER SCOTT. See _ante_, ii. 50. 

[947] See _ante_, i. 408, and ii. 329. 

[948] She married the Earl of Derby, and was the great-grandmother ofthe present Earl. Burke's _Peerage_. 

[949] See _ante_, iv. 248. 

[950] Lord Macaulay's grandfather, Trevelyan's _Macaulay_, i. 6. 

[951] See _ante_, p. 118. 

[952] On reflection, at the distance of several years, I wonder that myvenerable fellow-traveller should have read this passage withoutcensuring my levity. BOSWELL. 

[953] _Ante_, p. 151. 

[954] See _ante_, i. 240. 

[955] As this book is now become very scarce, I shall subjoin the title, which is curious:--The Doctrines of a Middle State between Death andthe Resurrection: Of Prayers for the Dead: And the Necessity ofPurification; plainly proved from the holy Scriptures, and the Writingsof the Fathers of the Primitive Church: and acknowledged by severallearned Fathers and Great Divines of the Church of England and otherssince the Reformation. To which is added, an Appendix concerning theDescent of the Soul of Christ into Hell, while his Body lay in theGrave. Together with the Judgment of the Reverend Dr. Hickes concerningthis Book, so far as relates to a Middle State, particular Judgment, andPrayers for the Dead as it appeared in the first Edition. 'And aManuscript of the Right Reverend Bishop Overall upon the Subject of aMiddle State, and never before printed. Also, a Preservative againstseveral of the Errors of the Roman Church, in six small Treatises. Bythe Honourable Archibald Campbell. Folio, 1721. BOSWELL. 

[956] The release gained for him by Lord Townshend must have been fromhis last imprisonment after the accession of George I; for, as Mr. Croker points out, Townshend was not Secretary of State till 1714. 

[957] See _ante_, iv. 286. 

[958] He was the grandson of the first Marquis, who was beheaded byCharles II in 1661, and nephew of the ninth Earl, who was beheaded byJames II in 1685. Burke's _Peerage_. He died on June 15, 1744, accordingto the _Gent. Mag. _ xiv. 339; where he is described as 'the consecratedArchbishop of St. Andrews. ' See _ante_, ii. 216. 

[959] George Hickes, 1642-1715. A non-juror, consecrated in 1693suffragan bishop of Thetford by three of the deprived non-juror bishops. Chalmers's _Biog. Dict. _ xvii. 450. Burnet (_Hist. Of his own Time_, iv. 303) describes him as 'an ill-tempered man, who was now [1712] at thehead of the Jacobite party, and who had in several books promoted anotion, that there was a proper sacrifice made in the Eucharist. 'Boswell mentions him, _ante_, iv. 287. 

[960] See _ante_, ii. 458. 

[961] This must be a mistake for _He died_. 

[962] 'It is generally supposed that life is longer in places wherethere are few opportunities of luxury; but I found no instance here ofextraordinary longevity. A cottager grows old over his oaten cakes likea citizen at a turtle feast. He is, indeed, seldom incommoded bycorpulence, Poverty preserves him from sinking under the burden ofhimself, but he escapes no other injury of time. ' Johnson's Works, ix. 81. 

[963] Lady Lucy Graham, daughter of the second Duke of Montrose, andwife of Mr. Douglas, the successful claimant: she died in 1780, whenceBoswell calls her '_poor_ Lady Lucy. ' CROKER

[964] Her first husband was the sixth Duke of Hamilton and Brandon. Onhis death she refused the Duke of Bridgewater. She was the mother offour dukes--two of Hamilton and two of Argyle. Her sister married theEarl of Coventry. Walpole's _Letters_, ii. 259, note. Walpole, writingon Oct. 9, 1791, says that their story was amazing. 'The two beautifulsisters were going on the stage, when they were at once exalted almostas high as they could be, were Countessed and double-Duchessed. ' _Ib_. Ix. 358. Their maiden name was Gunning. The Duchess of Argyle was alivewhen Boswell published his _Journal_. 

[965] See _ante_, iv. 397, and v. 210. It was Lord Macaulay'sgrandfather who was thus reprimanded. Mr. Trevelyan remarks (_Life ofMacaulay_, i. 7), 'When we think what well-known ground this [subject]was to Lord Macaulay, it is impossible to suppress a wish that the greattalker had been at hand to avenge his grandfather. ' The result mightwell have been, however, that the great talker would have been reducedto silence--one of those brilliant flashes of silence for which SydneySmith longed, but longed in vain. 

[966] See _ante_, ii. 264, note 2. 

[967] See _ante_, iv. 8, for his use of 'O brave!'

[968] Having mentioned, more than once, that my _Journal_ was perused byDr. Johnson, I think it proper to inform my readers that this is thelast paragraph which he read. BOSWELL. He began to read it on August 18(_ante_, p. 58, note 2). 

[969] See _ante_, ii. 320. 

[970] Act i. Sc. 1. The best known passage in _Douglas_ is the speechbeginning 'My name is Norval. ' Act ii. The play affords a few quotationsmore or less known, as:--

 'I found myself As women wish to be who love their lords. ' Act i. 

 'He seldom errs Who thinks the worse he can of womankind. ' Act iii. 

 'Honour, sole judge and umpire of itself. ' Act iv. 

 'Unknown I die; no tongue shall speak of me. Some noble spirits, judging by themselves, May yet conjecture what I might have proved, And think life only wanting to my fame. ' Act v. 

 'An honest guardian, arbitrator just Be thou; thy station deem a sacred trust. With thy good sword maintain thy country's cause; In every action venerate its laws: The lie suborn'd if falsely urg'd to swear, Though torture wait thee, torture firmly bear; To forfeit honour, think the highest shame, And life too dearly bought by loss of fame; Nor to preserve it, with thy virtue give That for which only man should wish to live. '

[_Satires_, viii. 79. ]

For this and the other translations to which no signature is affixed, Iam indebted to the friend whose observations are mentioned in the notes, pp. 78 and 399. BOSWELL. Sir Walter Scott says, 'probably Dr. HughBlair. ' I have little doubt that it was Malone. 'One of the bestcriticks of our age, ' Boswell calls this friend in the other twopassages. This was a compliment Boswell was likely to pay to Malone, towhom he dedicated this book. Malone was a versifier. See Prior's_Malone_, p. 463. 

[971] I am sorry that I was unlucky in my quotation. But notwithstandingthe acuteness of Dr. Johnson's criticism, and the power of his ridicule, _The Tragedy of Douglas_ sill continues to be generally and deservedlyadmired. BOSWELL. Johnson's scorn was no doubt returned, for Dr. A. Carlyle (_Auto. _ p. 295) says of Home:--'as John all his life had athorough contempt for such as neglected his poetry, he treated all whoapproved of his works with a partiality which more than approached toflattery. ' Carlyle tells (pp. 301-305) how Home started for London withhis tragedy in one pocket of his great coat and his clean shirt andnight-cap in the other, escorted on setting out by six or seven Merseministers. 'Garrick, after reading his play, returned it as totallyunfit for the stage. ' It was brought out first in Edinburgh, and in theyear 1757 in Covent Garden, where it had great success. 'This tragedy, 'wrote Carlyle forty-five years later, 'still maintains its ground, hasbeen more frequently acted, and is more popular than any tragedy in theEnglish language. ' _Ib. _ p. 325. Hannah More recorded in 1786(_Memoirs_, ii. 22), 'I had a quarrel with Lord Monboddo one nightlately. He said _Douglas_ was a better play than Shakespeare could havewritten. He was angry and I was pert. Lord Mulgrave sat spiriting me up, but kept out of the scrape himself, and Lord Stormont seemed to enjoythe debate, but was shabby enough not to help me out. '

[972] See _ante_, ii. 230, note 1. 

[973] See _ante_, p. 318. 

[974] See _ante_, iii. 54

[975] See _ante_, p. 356. 

[976] See _ante_, iii. 241, note 2. 

[977] As a remarkable instance of his negligence, I remember some yearsago to have found lying loose in his study, and without the cover, whichcontained the address, a letter to him from Lord Thurlow, to whom he hadmade an application as Chancellor, in behalf of a poor literary friend. It was expressed in such terms of respect for Dr. Johnson, that, in myzeal for his reputation, I remonstrated warmly with him on his strangeinattention, and obtained his permission to take a copy of it; by whichprobably it has been preserved, as the original I have reason to supposeis lost. BOSWELL. See _ante_, iii. 441. 

[978] 'The islets, which court the gazer at a distance, disgust him athis approach, when he finds, instead of soft lawns and shady thickets, nothing more than uncultivated ruggedness. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 156. 

[979] See _ante_, i. 200, and iv. 179. 

[980] In these arguments he says:--'Reason and truth will prevail atlast. The most learned of the Scottish doctors would now gladly admit aform of prayer, if the people would endure it. The zeal or rage ofcongregations has its different degrees. In some parishes the Lord'sPrayer is suffered: in others it is still rejected as a form; and hethat should make it part of his supplication would be suspected ofheretical pravity. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 102. See _ante_, p. 121. 

[981] 'A very little above the source of the Leven, on the lake, standsthe house of Cameron, belonging to Mr. Smollett, so embosomed in an oakwood that we did not see it till we were within fifty yards of thedoor. ' _Humphry Clinker_, Letter of Aug. 28. 

[982] Boswell himself was at times one of 'those absurd visionaries. '_Ante_, ii. 73. 

[983] See _ante_, p. 117. 

[984] Lord Kames wrote one, which is published in Chambers's _Traditionsof Edinburgh_, ed. 1825, i. 280. In it he bids the traveller to 'indulgethe hope of a Monumental Pillar. '

[985] See _ante_, iii. 85; and v. 154. 

[986] This address does not offend against the rule that Johnson laysdown in his _Essay on Epitaphs_ (_Works_, v. 263), where he says:--'Itis improper to address the epitaph to the passenger. ' The improprietyconsists in such an address in a church. He however did break throughhis rule in his epitaph in Streatham Church on Mr. Thrale, where hesays:--'Abi viator. ' _Ib. _ i. 154. 

[987] In _Humphry Clinker_ (Letter of Aug. 28), which was published afew months before Smollett's death, is his _Ode on Leven-Water_. 

[988] The epitaph which has been inscribed on the pillar erected on thebanks of the Leven, in honour of Dr. Smollett, is as follows. The partwhich was written by Dr. Johnson, it appears, has been altered; whetherfor the better, the reader will judge. The alterations are distinguishedby Italicks. 

 Siste viator! Si lepores ingeniique venam benignam, Si morum callidissimum pictorem, Unquam es miratus, Immorare paululum memoriae TOBIAE SMOLLET, M. D. Viri virtutibus _hisce_ Quas in homine et cive Et laudes et imiteris, Haud mediocriter ornati: Qui in literis variis versatus, Postquam felicitate _sibi propria_ Sese posteris commendaverat, Morte acerba raptus Anno aetatis 51, Eheu: quam procul a patria! Prope Liburni portum in Italia, Jacet sepultres. Tali tantoque viro, patrueli suo, Cui in decursu lampada Se potius tradidisse decuit, Hanc Columnam, Amoris, eheu! inane monumentum In ipsis Leviniae ripis, Quas _versiculis sub exitu vitae illustratas_ Primis infans vagitibus personuit, Ponendam curavit JACOBUS SMOLLET de Bonhill. Abi et reminiscere, Hoc quidem honore, Non modo defuncti memoriae, Verum etiam exemplo, prospectum esse; Aliis enim, si modo digni sint, Idem erit virtutis praemium!

 BOSWELL. 

[989] Baretti told Malone that, having proposed to teach JohnsonItalian, they went over a few stanzas of Ariosto, and Johnson then grewweary. 'Some years afterwards Baretti said he would give him anotherlesson, but added, "I suppose you have forgotten what we read before. ""Who forgets, Sir?" said Johnson, and immediately repeated three or fourstanzas of the poem. ' Baretti took down the book to see if it had beenlately opened, but the leaves were covered with dust. Prior's _Malone_, p. 160. Johnson had learnt to translate Italian before he knew Baretti. _Ante_, i. 107, 156. For other instances of his memory, see _ante_, i. 39, 48; iii. 318, note 1; and iv. 103, note 2. 

[990] For sixty-eight days he received no letter--from August 21(_ante_, p. 84) to October 28. 

[991] Among these professors might possibly have been either Burke orHume had not a Mr. Clow been the successful competitor in 1751 as thesuccessor to Adam Smith in the chair of Logic. 'Mr. Clow has acquired acurious title to fame, from the greatness of the man to whom hesucceeded, and of those over whom he was triumphant. ' J. H. Burton's_Hume_, i. 351. 

[992] Dr. Reid, the author of the _Inquiry into the Human Mind_, had in1763 succeeded Adam Smith as Professor of Moral Philosophy. DugaldStewart was his pupil the winter before Johnson's visit. Stewart's_Reid_, ed. 1802, p. 38. 

[993] See _ante_, iv. 186. 

[994] Mr. Boswell has chosen to omit, for reasons which will bepresently obvious, that Johnson and Adam Smith met at Glasgow; but Ihave been assured by Professor John Miller that they did so, and thatSmith, leaving the party in which he had met Johnson, happened to cometo another company _where Miller was_. Knowing that Smith had been inJohnson's society, they were anxious to know what had passed, and themore so as Dr. Smith's temper seemed much ruffled. At first Smith wouldonly answer, 'He's a brute--he's a brute;' but on closer examination, itappeared that Johnson no sooner saw Smith than he attacked him for somepoint of his famous letter on the death of Hume (_ante_, p. 30). Smithvindicated the truth of his statement. 'What did Johnson say?' was theuniversal inquiry. 'Why, he said, ' replied Smith, with the deepestimpression of resentment, 'he said, _you lie!_' 'And what did youreply?' 'I said, you are a son of a------!' On such terms did these twogreat moralists meet and part, and such was the classical dialoguebetween two great teachers of philosophy. WALTER SCOTT. This story iserroneous in the particulars of the _time, place, _ and _subject_ of thealleged quarrel; for Hume did not die for [nearly] three years afterJohnson's only visit to Glasgow; nor was Smith then there. Johnson, previous to 1763 (see _ante_, i. 427, and iii. 331), had an altercationwith Adam Smith at Mr. Strahan's table. This may have been thefoundation of Professor Miller's misrepresentation. But, even _then_, nothing of this offensive kind could have passed, as, if it had, Smithcould certainly not have afterwards solicited admission to the Club ofwhich Johnson was the leader, to which he was admitted 1st Dec. 1775, and where he and Johnson met frequently on civil terms. I, therefore, disbelieve the whole story. CROKER. 

[995] 'His appearance, ' says Dr. A. Carlyle (_Auto_. P. 68), 'was thatof an ascetic, reduced by fasting and prayer. ' See _ante_, p. 68. 

[996] See _ante_, ii. 27, 279. 

[997] See _ante, _ p. 92. 

[998] Johnson wrote to Mrs. Thrale:--'I was not much pleased with anyof the Professors. ' _Piozzi Letters, _ i. 199. Mme. D'Arblay says:--'Whenever Dr. Johnson did not make the charm of conversation he onlymarred it by his presence, from the general fear he incited, that if hespoke not, he might listen; and that if he listened, he might reprove. '_Memoirs of Dr. Burney, _ ii. 187. See _ante_, ii. 63

[999] Boswell has not let us see this caution. When Robertson first camein, 'there began, ' we are told, 'some animated dialogue' (_ante, _ p. 32). The next day we read that 'he fluently harangued to Dr. Johnson'(_ante, _ p. 43). 

[1000] See _ante, _ iii. 366. 

[1001] He was Ambassador at Paris in the beginning of the reign ofGeorge I. , and Commander-in-Chief in 1744. Lord Mahon's _England_, ed. 1836, i. 201 and iii. 275. 

[1002] The unwilling gratitude of base mankind. POPE. [_Imitations ofHorace_, 2 _Epis_. I. 14. ] BOSWELL. 

[1003] Dr. Franklin (_Memoirs_, i. 246-253) gives a curious account ofLord Loudoun, who was general in America about the year 1756. 'Indecision, ' he says, 'was one of the strongest features of hischaracter. ' He kept back the packet-boats from day to day because hecould not make up his mind to send his despatches. At one time therewere three boats waiting, one of which was kept with cargo andpassengers on board three months beyond its time. Pitt at lengthrecalled him, because 'he never heard from him, and could not know whathe was doing. '

[1004] See Chalmers's _Biog. Dict. _ xi. 161 for an account of acontroversy about the identity of this writer with an historian of thesame name. 

[1005] He had paid but little attention to his own rule. See _ante_, ii. 119. 

[1006] 'I believe that for all the castles which I have seen beyond theTweed, the ruins yet remaining of some one of those which the Englishbuilt in Wales would supply Materials. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 152. 

[1007] See _ante_, p. 40, note 4. 

[1008] Johnson described her as 'a lady who for many years gave the lawsof elegance to Scotland. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 200. Allan Ramsaydedicated to her his _Gentle Shepherd_, and W. Hamilton, of Bangour, wrote to her verses on the presentation of Ramsay's poem. Hamilton's_Poems_, p. 23. 

[1009] See _ante_, ii. 66, and iii. 188. 

[1010] 'She called Boswell the boy: "yes, Madam, " said I, "we will sendhim to school. " "He is already, " said she, "in a good school;" andexpressed her hope of his improvement. At last night came, and I wassorry to leave her. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 200. See _ante_, iii. 366. 

[1011] See _ante_, pp. 318, 362. 

[1012] Burns, who was in his fifteenth year, was at this time living atAyr, about twelve miles away. When later on he moved to Mauchline, heand Boswell became much nearer neighbours. 

[1013] He had, however, married again. _Ante_, ii. 140, note I. It iscurious that Boswell in this narrative does not mention his step-mother. 

[1014] 'Asper Incolumi gravitate jocum tentavit. ' 'Though rude his mirth, yet laboured to maintain The solemn grandeur of the tragic scene. '

FRANCIS. Horace, _Ars Poet_. L. 221. 

[1015] See _ante_, iii. 65, and v. 97. 

[1016] See _ante_, iv. 163, 241. 

[1017] Johnson (_Works_, vii. 425) says of Addison's dedication of theopera of _Rosamond_ to the Duchess of Marlborough, that 'it was aninstance of servile absurdity, to be exceeded only by Joshua Barnes'sdedication of a Greek _Anacreon_ to the Duke. ' For Barnes see _ante_, iii. 284, and iv. 19. 

[1018] William Baxter, the editor of _Anacreon_, was the nephew ofRichard Baxter, the nonconformist divine. 

[1019] He says of Auchinleck (_Works_, ix. 158) that 'like all thewestern side of Scotland, it is _incommoded_ by very frequent rain. ' 'Inall September we had, according to Boswell's register, only one day anda half of fair weather; and in October perhaps not more. ' _PiozziLetters_, i. 182. 

[1020] 'By-the-bye, ' wrote Sir Walter Scott, 'I am far from being of thenumber of those angry Scotsmen who imputed to Johnson's nationalprejudices all or a great part of the report he has given of our countryin his _Voyage to the Hebrides_. I remember the Highlands ten or twelveyears later, and no one can conceive of 'how much that could have beeneasily remedied travellers had to complain. ' _Croker Corres_. Ii. 34

[1021] 'Of these islands it must be confessed, that they have not manyallurements but to the mere lover of naked nature. The inhabitants arethin, provisions are scarce, and desolation and penury give littlepleasure. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 153. In an earlier passage (p. 138), in describing a rough ride in Mull, he says:--'We were now long enoughacquainted with hills and heath to have lost the emotion that they onceraised, whether pleasing or painful, and had our minds employed only onour own fatigue. '

[1022] See _ante_, ii. 225. 

[1023] In like manner Wesley said of Rousseau:--'Sure a more consummatecoxcomb never saw the sun. .. . He is a cynic all over. So indeed is hisbrother-infidel, Voltaire; and well-nigh as great a coxcomb. ' Wesley's_Journal, _, ed. 1830, iii. 386. 

[1024] This gentleman, though devoted to the study of grammar anddialecticks, was not so absorbed in it as to be without a sense ofpleasantry, or to be offended at his favourite topicks being treatedlightly. I one day met him in the street, as I was hastening to theHouse of Lords, and told him, I was sorry I could not stop, being rathertoo late to attend an appeal of the Duke of Hamilton against Douglas. 'Ithought (said he) their contest had been over long ago. ' I answered, 'The contest concerning Douglas's filiation was over long ago; but thecontest now is, who shall have the estate. ' Then, assuming the air of'an ancient sage philosopher, ' I proceeded thus: 'Were I to _predicate_concerning him, I should say, the contest formerly was, What _is_ he?The contest now is, What _has_ he?'--'Right, (replied Mr. Harris, smiling, ) you have done with _quality_, and have got into_quantity_. ' BOSWELL. 

[1025] Most likely Sir A. Macdonald. _Ante_, p. 148. 

[1026] Boswell wrote on March 18, 1775:--'Mr. Johnson, when enumeratingour Club, observed of some of us, that they talked from books, --Langtonin particular. "Garrick, " he said, "would talk from books, if he talkedseriously. " "_I_, " said he, "do not talk from books; _you_ do not talkfrom books. " This was a compliment to my originality; but I am afraid Ihave not read books enough to be able to talk from them. ' _Letters ofBoswell_, p. 181. See _ante_, ii. 360, where Johnson said to Boswell:--'I don't believe you have borrowed from Waller. I wish you would enableyourself to borrow more;' and i. 105, where he described 'a man of agreat deal of knowledge of the world, fresh from life, not strainedthrough books. '

[1027] 'Lord Auchinleck has built a house of hewn stone, very statelyand durable, and has advanced the value of his lands with greattenderness to his tenants. I was, however, less delighted with theelegance of the modern mansion, than with the sullen dignity of the oldcastle. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 159. 'The house is scarcely yetfinished, but very magnificent and very convenient. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 201. See _ante_, i. 462. 

[1028] See _ante_, ii. 413, and v. 91. 

[1029] The relation, it should seem, was remote even for Scotland. Theircommon ancestor was Robert Bruce, some sixteen generations back. Boswell's mother's grandmother was a Bruce of the Earl of Kincardine'sfamily, and so also was his father's mother. Rogers's _Boswelliana_, pp. 4, 5. 

[1030] He refers to Johnson's pension, which was given nearly two yearsafter George Ill's accession. _Ante_, i. 372. 

[1031] _Ante_, p. 51. 

[1032] He repeated this advice in 1777. _Ante_, iii. 207. 

[1033] 'Of their black cattle some are without horns, called by theScots _humble_ cows, as we call a bee, an _humble_ bee, that wants asting. Whether this difference be specifick, or accidental, though weinquired with great diligence, we could not be informed. ' Johnson's_Works_, ix. 78. 

Johnson, in his _Dictionary_, gives the right derivation of humble-bee, from _hum_ and _bee_. The word _Humble-cow_ is found in _Guy Mannering_, ed. 1860, iii. 91:--'"Of a surety, " said Sampson, "I deemed I heard hishorse's feet. " "That, " said John, with a broad grin, "was Grizzelchasing the humble-cow out of the close. "'

[1034] 'Even the cattle have not their usual beauty or noble head. 'Church and Brodribb's _Tacitus_. 

[1035] 'The peace you seek is here--where is it not? If your own mindbe equal to its lot. ' CROKER. Horace, I _Epistles_, xi. 29. 

[1036] Horace, I _Epistles_, xviii. 112. 

[1037] This and the next paragraph are not in the first edition. Theparagraph that follows has been altered so as to hide the fact that theminister spoken of was Mr. Dun. Originally it stood:--'Mr. Dun, though aman of sincere good principles as a presbyterian divine, discovered, '&c. First edition, p. 478. 

[1038] See _ante_, p. 120. 

[1039] Old Lord Auchinleck was an able lawyer, a good scholar, after themanner of Scotland, and highly valued his own advantages as a man ofgood estate and ancient family; and, moreover, he was a strictpresbyterian and Whig of the old Scottish cast. This did not prevent hisbeing a terribly proud aristocrat; and great was the contempt heentertained and expressed for his son James, for the nature of hisfriendships and the character of the personages of whom he was _engoué_one after another. 'There's nae hope for Jamie, mon, ' he said to afriend. 'Jamie is gaen clean gyte. What do you think, mon? He's done wi'Paoli--he's off wi' the land-louping scoundrel of a Corsican; and whosetail do you think he has pinned himself to now, mon?' Here the old judgesummoned up a sneer of most sovereign contempt. 'A _dominie_, mon--anauld dominie: he keeped a schule, and cau'd it an acaadamy. ' Probably ifthis had been reported to Johnson, he would have felt it more galling, for he never much liked to think of that period of his life [_ante_, i. 97, note 2]; it would have aggravated his dislike of Lord Auchinleck'sWhiggery and presbyterianism. These the old lord carried to such aheight, that once, when a countryman came in to state some justicebusiness, and being required to make his oath, declined to do so beforehis lordship, because he was not a _covenanted_ magistrate. 'Is thata'your objection, mon?' said the judge; 'come your ways in here, andwe'll baith of us tak the solemn league and covenant together. ' The oathwas accordingly agreed and sworn to by both, and I dare say it was thelast time it ever received such homage. It may be surmised how far LordAuchinleck, such as he is here described, was likely to suit a high Toryand episcopalian like Johnson. As they approached Auchinleck, Boswellconjured Johnson by all the ties of regard, and in requital of theservices he had rendered him upon his tour, that he would spare twosubjects in tenderness to his father's prejudices; the first related toSir John Pringle, president of the Royal Society, about whom there wasthen some dispute current: the second concerned the general question ofWhig and Tory. Sir John Pringle, as Boswell says, escaped, but thecontroversy between Tory and Covenanter raged with great fury, and endedin Johnson's pressing upon the old judge the question, what goodCromwell, of whom he had said something derogatory, had ever done to hiscountry; when, after being much tortured, Lord Auchinleck at last spokeout, 'God, Doctor! he gart kings ken that they had a _lith_ in theirneck'--he taught kings they had a _joint_ in their necks. Jamie thenset to mediating between his father and the philosopher, and availinghimself of the judge's sense of hospitality, which was punctilious, reduced the debate to more order. WALTER SCOTT. Paoli had visitedAuchinleck. Boswell wrote to Garrick on Sept. 18, 1771:--'I have justbeen enjoying the very great happiness of a visit from my illustriousfriend, Pascal Paoli. He was two nights at Auchinleck, and you mayfigure the joy of my worthy father and me at seeing the Corsican hero inour romantic groves. ' _Garrick Corres_. I. 436. Johnson was not blind toCromwell's greatness, for he says (_Works_, vii. 197), that 'he wantednothing to raise him to heroick excellence but virtue. ' LordAuchinleck's famous saying had been anticipated by Quin, who, accordingto Davies (_Life of Garrick_, ii. 115), had said that 'on a thirtieth ofJanuary every king in Europe would rise with a crick in his neck. '

[1040] See _ante_, p. 252. 

[1041] James Durham, born 1622, died 1658, wrote many theological works. Chalmers's _Biog. Dict_. In the _Brit. Mus. Cata_. I can find no work byhim on the _Galatians_; Lord Auchinleck's triumph therefore was, itseems, more artful than honest. 

[1042] Gray, it should seem, had given the name earlier. His friendBonstetten says that about the year 1769 he was walking with him, whenGray 'exclaimed with some bitterness, "Look, look, Bonstetten! the greatbear! There goes _Ursa Major_!" This was Johnson. Gray could not abidehim. ' Sir Egerton Brydges, quoted in Gosse's _Gray_, iii. 371. For theepithet _bear_ applied to Johnson see _ante_, ii. 66, 269, note i, andiv. 113, note 2. Boswell wrote on June 19, 1775:--'My father harps on mygoing over Scotland with a brute (think, how shockingly erroneous!), andwandering (or some such phrase) to London. ' _Letters of Boswell_, p. 207. 

[1043] It is remarkable that Johnson in his _Life of Blackmore_[_Works_, viii. 42] calls the imaginary Mr. Johnson of the _LayMonastery_ 'a constellation of excellence. ' CROKER. 

[1044] Page 121. BOSWELL. See also _ante_, iii. 336. 

[1045] 'The late Sir Alexander Boswell, ' wrote Sir Walter Scott, 'was aproud man, and, like his grandfather, thought that his father loweredhimself by his deferential suit and service to Johnson. I have observedhe disliked any allusion to the book or to Johnson himself, and I haveheard that Johnson's fine picture by Sir Joshua was sent upstairs out ofthe sitting apartments at Auchinleck. ' _Croker Corres_. Ii. 32. Thisportrait, which was given by Sir Joshua to Boswell (Taylor's _Reynolds_, i. 147), is now in the possession of Mr. Charles Morrison. 

[1046] 'I have always said that first Whig was the devil. ' _Ante_, iii. 326

[1047] See _ante_, ii. 26. 

[1048] Dr. A. Carlyle (_Auto_. P. 266) has paid this tribute. 'LordElibank, ' he writes, 'had a mind that embraced the greatest variety oftopics, and produced the most original remarks. . .. He had been alieutenant-colonel in the army and was at the siege of Carthagena, ofwhich he left an elegant account (which I'm afraid is lost). He was aJacobite, and a member of the famous Cocoa-tree Club, and resigned hiscommission on some disgust. ' Dr. Robertson and John Home were hisneighbours in the country, 'who made him change or soften down many ofhis original opinions, and prepared him for becoming a most agreeablemember of the Literary Society of Edinburgh. ' Smollett in _HumphryClinker_ (Letter of July 18), describes him as 'a nobleman whom I havelong revered for his humanity and universal intelligence, over and abovethe entertainment arising from the originality of his character. 'Boswell, in the _London Mag. _ 1779, p. 179, thus mentions the Cocoa-treeClub:--'But even at Court, though I see much external obeisance, I donot find congenial sentiments to warm my heart; and except when I havethe conversation of a very few select friends, I am never so well aswhen I sit down to a dish of coffee in the Cocoa Tree, sacred of old toloyalty, look round me to men of ancient families, and please myselfwith the consolatory thought that there is perhaps more good in thenation than I know. '

[1049] Johnson's _Works_, vii. 380. See _ante_, i. 81. 

[1050] See _ante_, p. 53. 

[1051] The Mitre tavern. _Ante_, i. 425. 

[1052] Of this Earl of Kelly Boswell records the following pun:--'At adinner at Mr. Crosbie's, when the company were very merry, the Rev. Dr. Webster told them he was sorry to go away so early, but was obliged tocatch the tide, to cross the Firth of Forth. "Better stay a little, "said Thomas Earl of Kelly, "till you be half-seas over. "' Rogers's_Boswelliana_, p. 325. 

[1053] See _ante_, i. 354. 

[1054] In the first edition, _and his son the advocate_. Under this son, A. F. Tytler, afterwards a Lord of Session by the title of LordWoodhouselee, Scott studied history at Edinburgh College. Lockhart's_Scott_, ed. 1839, i. 59, 278. 

[1055] See _ante_, i. 396, and ii. 296. 

[1056] 'If we know little of the ancient Highlanders, let us not fillthe vacuity with Ossian. If we have not searched the Magellanickregions, let us however forbear to people them with Patagons. ' Johnson's_Works_, ix. 116. Horace Walpole wrote on May 22, 1766 (_Letters_, iv. 500):--'Oh! but we have discovered a race of giants! Captain Byron hasfound a nation of Brobdignags on the coast of Patagonia; the inhabitantson foot taller than he and his men on horseback. I don't indeed know howhe and his sailors came to be riding in the South Seas. However, it is aterrible blow to the Irish, for I suppose all our dowagers now will befor marrying Patagonians. '

[1057] I desire not to be understood as agreeing _entirely_ with theopinions of Dr. Johnson, which I relate without any remark. The manyimitations, however, of _Fingal_, that have been published, confirm thisobservation in a considerable degree. BOSWELL. Johnson said to SirJoshua of Ossian:--'Sir, a man might write such stuff for ever, if hewould _abandon_ his mind to it. ' _Ante_, iv. 183. 

[1058] In the first edition (p. 485) this paragraph ran thus:--'YoungMr. Tytler stepped briskly forward, and said, "_Fingal_ is certainlygenuine; for I have heard a great part of it repeated in theoriginal. "--Dr. Johnson indignantly asked him, "Sir, do you understandthe original?"--_Tytler_. "No, Sir. "--_Johnson_. "Why, then, we see towhat this testimony comes:--Thus it is. "--He afterwards said to me, "Didyou observe the wonderful confidence with which young Tytler advanced, with his front already _brased_?"'

[1059] For _in company_ we should perhaps read _in the company_. 

[1060] In the first edition, _this gentleman's talents and integrityare_, &c. 

[1061] 'A Scotchman must be a very sturdy moralist who does not loveScotland better than truth: he will always love it better than inquiry;and if falsehood flatters his vanity, will not be very diligent todetect it. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 116. See _ante_, ii. 311. 

[1062] See _ante_, p. 164. 

[1063] See _ante_, p. 242. 

[1064] See _ante_, iv. 253. 

[1065] Lord Chief Baron Geoffrey Gilbert published in 1760 a book on theLaw of Evidence. 

[1066] See _ante_, ii. 302. 

[1067] Three instances, _ante_, pp. 160, 320. 

[1068] See _ante_, ii. 318. 

[1069] An instance is given in Sacheverell's _Account of the Isle ofMan_, ed. 1702, p. 14. 

[1070] Mr. J. T. Clark, the Keeper of the Advocates' Library, Edinburgh, obligingly informs me that in the margin of the copy of Boswell's_Journal_ in that Library it is stated that this cause was _Wilsonversus Maclean_. 

[1071] See _ante_, iv. 74, note 3. 

[1072] See _ante_, iii 69, 183. 

[1073] He is described in _Guy Mannering_, ed. 1860, iv. 98. 

[1074] See _ante_, p. 50. 

[1075] See _ante_, i. 458. 

[1076] 'We now observe that the Methodists, where they scatter theiropinions, represent themselves as preaching the Gospel to unconvertednations; and enthusiasts of all kinds have been inclined to disguisetheir particular tenets with pompous appellations, and to imaginethemselves the great instruments of salvation. ' Johnson's _Works_, vi. 417. 

[1077]

 Through various hazards and events we move. 

Dryden, [_Aeneid_, I. 204]. BOSWELL. 

[1078]

 Long labours both by sea and land he bore. 

Dryden, [_Aeneid_, I. 3]. BOSWELL. 

[1079] The Jesuits, headed by Francis Xavier, made their appearance inJapan in 1549. The first persecution was in 1587; it was followed byothers in 1590, 1597, 1637, 1638. _Encyclo. Brit_. 8th edit. Xii. 697. 

[1080] 'They congratulate our return as if we had been with Phipps orBanks; I am ashamed of their salutations. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 203. Phipps had gone this year to the Arctic Ocean (_ante_, p. 236), andBanks had accompanied Captain Cook in 1768-1771. Johnson says however(_Works_, ix. 84), that 'to the southern inhabitants of Scotland thestate of the mountains and the islands is equally unknown with that ofBorneo or Sumatra. ' See _ante_, p. 283, note 1, where Scott says that'the whole expedition was highly perilous. ' Smollett, in _HumphryClinker_ (Letter of July 18), says of Scotland in general:--'The peopleat the other end of the island know as little of Scotland as of Japan. '

[1081] In sailing from Sky to Col. _Ante_, p. 280. 

[1082] Johnson, four years later, suggested to Boswell that he shouldwrite this history. _Ante_, iii. 162, 414. 

[1083] Voltaire was born in 1694; his _Louis XIV. _ was published in 1751or 1752. 

[1084] A society for debate in Edinburgh, consisting of the most eminentmen. BOSWELL. It was founded in 1754 by Allan Ramsay the painter, aidedby Robertson, Hume, and Smith. Dugald Stewart (_Life of Robertson_, ed. 1802, p. 5) says that 'it subsisted in vigour for six or seven years'and produced debates, such as have not often been heard in modernassemblies. ' See also Dr. A. Carlyle's _Auto_. P. 297. 

[1085] 'As for Maclaurin's imitation of a _made dish_, it was a wretchedattempt. ' _Ante, _ i. 469. 

[1086] It was of Lord Elibank's French cook 'that he exclaimed withvehemence, "I'd throw such a rascal into the river. "'_Ib. _

[1087] 'He praised _Gordon's palates_ with a warmth of expression whichmight have done honour to more important subjects. ' _Ib. _

[1088] For the alarm he gave to Mrs. Boswell before this supper, see_ib. _

[1089] On Dr. Boswell's death, in 1780, Boswell wrote of him:--'He was avery good scholar, knew a great many things, had an elegant taste, andwas very affectionate; but he had no conduct. His money was all gone. And do you know he was not confined to one woman. He had a strange kindof religion; but I flatter myself he will be ere long, if he is notalready, in Heaven. ' _Letters of Boswell_, p. 258. 

[1090] Johnson had written the _Life_ of 'the great Boerhaave, ' as hecalled him. _Works_, vi. 292. 

[1091] 'At Edinburgh, ' he wrote, 'I passed some days with men oflearning, whose names want no advancement from my commemoration, or withwomen of elegance, which, perhaps, disclaims a pedant's praise. 'Johnson's _Works_, ix. 159. 

[1092] See _ante_, iv. 178. 

[1093] 'My acquaintance, ' wrote Richardson (_Corres_. Iv. 317), 'lieschiefly among the ladies; I care not who knows it. ' Mrs. Piozzi, in amarginal note on her own copy of the _Piozzi Letters_, says:--'Dr. Johnson said, that if Mr. Richardson had lived till _I_ came out, mypraises would have added two or three years to his life. "For, " says Dr. Johnson, "that fellow died merely from want of change among hisflatterers: he perished for want of _more_, like a man obliged tobreathe the same air till it is exhausted. "' Hayward's _Piozzi_, i. 311. In her _Journey_, i. 265, she says:--'Richardson had seen little, andJohnson has often told me that he had read little. ' See _ante_, iv. 28. 

[1094] He may live like a gentleman, but he must not 'call himself_Farmer_, and go about with a little round hat. ' _Ante_, p. 111. 

[1095] Boswell italicises this word, I think, because Johnson objectedto the misuse of it. '"Sir, " said Mr. Edwards, "I remember you would notlet us say _prodigious_ at college. "' _Ante_, iii. 303. 

[1096] As I have been scrupulously exact in relating anecdotesconcerning other persons, I shall not withhold any part of this story, however ludicrous. --I was so successful in this boyish frolick, that theuniversal cry of the galleries was, '_Encore_ the cow! _Encore_ thecow!' In the pride of my heart, I attempted imitations of some otheranimals, but with very inferior effect. My reverend friend, anxious formy _fame_, with an air of the utmost gravity and earnestness, addressedme thus: 'My dear sir, I would _confine_ myself to the _cow_. ' BOSWELL. Blair's advice was expressed more emphatically, and with a peculiar_burr_--'_Stick to the cow_, mon. ' WALTER SCOTT. Boswell's record, whichmoreover is far more humorous, is much more trustworthy than Scott'stradition. 

[1097] Mme. De Sévigné in describing a death wrote:--'Cela nous fit voirqu'on joue long-temps la comédie, et qu'à la mort on dit la vérité. 'Letter of June 24, 1672. Addison says:--'The end of a man's life isoften compared to the winding up of a well-written play, where theprincipal persons still act in character, whatever the fate is whichthey undergo. .. . That innocent mirth which had been so conspicuous inSir Thomas More's life did not forsake him to the last. His death was ofa piece with his life. There was nothing in it new, forced, oraffected. ' _The Spectator_, No. 349. Young also thought, or at least, wrote differently. 

 'A death-bed's a detector of the heart. Here tired dissimulation drops her mask. '

_Night Thoughts, ii. _

'"Mirabeau dramatized his death" was the happy expression of the Bishopof Autun (Talleyrand). ' Dumont's _Mirabeau_, p. 251. See _ante_, iii. 154. 

[1098] See _ante_, i. 408, 447; and ii. 219, 329. 

[1099] Dr. A. Carlyle (_Auto_. P. 291) says of Blair's conversation that'it was so infantine that many people thought it impossible, at firstsight, that he could be a man of sense or genius. He was as eager abouta new paper to his wife's drawing-room, or his own new wig, as about anew tragedy or a new epic poem. ' He adds, that he was 'capable of themost profound conversation, when circumstances led to it. He had not theleast desire to shine, but was delighted beyond measure to shew otherpeople in their best guise to his friends. "Did not I shew you the lionwell to-day?" used he to say after the exhibition of a remarkablestranger. ' He had no wit, and for humour hardly a relish. Robertson'sreputation for wisdom may have been easily won. Dr. A. Carlyle says(_ib_. P. 287):--'Robertson's translations and paraphrases on otherpeople's thoughts were so beautiful and so harmless that I never sawanybody lay claim to their own. ' He may have flattered Johnson bydexterously echoing his sentiments. 

[1100] In the _Marmor Norfolciense (ante_, i. 141) Johnson says:--'Iknow that the knowledge of the alphabet is so disreputable among thesegentlemen [of the army], that those who have by ill-fortune formerlybeen taught it have partly forgot it by disuse, and partly concealed itfrom the world, to avoid the railleries and insults to which theireducation might make them liable. ' Johnson's _Works, _ vi. III. See_ante_, iii. 265. 

[1101] 'One of the young ladies had her slate before her, on which Iwrote a question consisting of three figures to be multiplied by twofigures. She looked upon it, and quivering her fingers in a manner whichI thought very pretty, but of which I knew not whether it was art orplay, multiplied the sum regularly in two lines, observing the decimalplace; but did not add the two lines together, probably disdaining soeasy an operation. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 161. 

[1102]

 'Words gigantic. '

FRANCIS. Horace, _Ars Poet. _. 1. 97. 

[1103] One of the best criticks of our age 'does not wish to prevent theadmirers of the incorrect and nerveless style which generally prevailedfor a century before Dr. Johnson's energetick writings were known, fromenjoying the laugh that this story may produce, in which he is veryready to join them. ' He, however, requests me to observe, that 'myfriend very properly chose a _long_ word on this occasion, not, it isbelieved, from any predilection for polysyllables, (though he certainlyhad a due respect for them, ) but in order to put Mr. Braidwood's skillto the strictest test, and to try the efficacy of his instruction by themost difficult exertion of the organs of his pupils. ' BOSWELL. 'One ofthe best critics of our age' is, I believe, Malone. See _ante_, p. 78, note 5. 

[1104] It was here that Lord Auchinleck called him _Ursa Major. Ante_, p. 384. 

[1105] See _ante_, iii. 266, and v. 20, where 'Mr. Crosbie said that theEnglish are better animals than the Scots. '

[1106] Johnson himself had laughed at them (_ante_, ii. 210) and accusedthem of foppery (_ante_, ii. 237). 

[1107] Johnson said, 'I never think I have hit hard, unless it rebounds(_ante_, ii. 335), and, 'I would rather be attacked than unnoticed'(_ante_, iii. 375). When he was told of a caricature 'of the nine musesflogging him round Parnassus, ' he said, 'Sir, I am very glad to hearthis. I hope the day will never arrive when I shall neither be theobject of calumny or ridicule, for then I shall be neglected andforgotten. ' Croker's _Boswell_, p. 837. See _ante_, ii. 61, and pp. 174, 273. 'There was much laughter when M. De Lesseps mentioned that on hisfirst visit to England the publisher who brought out the report of hismeeting charged, as the first item of his bill, "£50 for attacking thebook in order to make it succeed. " "Since then, " observed M. De Lesseps, "I have been attacked gratuitously, and have got on without paying. "'The Times, Feb. 19, 1884. 

[1108]

 'To wing my flight to fame. '

DRYDEN. Virgil, _Georgics_, iii. 9. 

[1109] On Nov. 12 he wrote to Mrs. Thrale:--'We came hither (toEdinburgh) on the ninth of this month. I long to come under your care, but for some days cannot decently get away. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 202. 

[1110] He would have been astonished had he known that a few miles fromEdinburgh he had passed through two villages of serfs. The coal-hewersand salt-makers of Tranent and Preston-Pans were still sold with thesoil. 'In Scotland domestic slavery is unknown, except so far as regardsthe coal-hewers and salt-makers, whose condition, it must be confessed, bears some resemblance to slavery; because all who have once acted ineither of the capacities are compellable to serve, and fixed to theirrespective places of employment during life. ' Hargrave's _Argument inthe case of James Sommersett_, 1772. Had Johnson known this he mighthave given as his toast when in company with some very grave men at_Edinburgh_:--'Here's to the next insurrection of the slaves in_Scotland_. ' _Ante_, iii. 200. 

[1111] The year following in the House of Commons he railed at theLondon booksellers, 'who, he positively asserted, entirely governed thenewspapers. ' 'For his part, ' he added, 'he had ordered that no Englishnewspaper should come within his doors for three months. ' _Parl. Hist_. Xvii. 1090. 

[1112] See _ante_, iii. 373. 

[1113] 'At the latter end of 1630 Ben Jonson went on foot into Scotland, on purpose to visit Drummond. His adventures in this journey he wroughtinto a poem; but that copy, with many other pieces, was accidentallyburned. ' Whalley's _Ben Jonson_, Preface, p. Xlvi. 

[1114] Perhaps the same woman showed the chapel who was there 29 yearslater, when Scott visited it. One of his friends 'hoped that they might, as habitual visitors, escape hearing the usual endless story of thesilly old woman that showed the ruins'; but Scott answered, 'There is apleasure in the song which none but the songstress knows, and by tellingher we know it all ready we should make the poor devil unhappy. 'Lockharts _Scott_, ed. 1839, ii. 106. 

[1115] _ O rare Ben Jonson_ is on Jonson's tomb in Westminster Abbey. 

[1116] See _ante_, ii. 365. 

[1117] 'Essex was at that time confined to the same chamber of the Towerfrom which his father Lord Capel had been led to death, and in which hiswife's grandfather had inflicted a voluntary death upon himself. When hesaw his friend carried to what he reckoned certain fate, their commonenemies enjoying the spectacle, and reflected that it was he who hadforced Lord Howard upon the confidence of Russel, he retired, and, by a_Roman death_, put an end to his misery. ' Dalrymple's _Memoirs of GreatBritain and Ireland_, vol. I. P. 36. BOSWELL. In the original after 'hiswife's grandfather, ' is added 'Lord Northumberland. ' It was his wife'sgreat-grandfather, the eighth Earl of Northumberland. He killed himselfin 1585. Burke's _Peerage_. 

[1118] Dr. A. Carlyle (_Auto_. P. 293) says of Robertson andBlair:--'Having been bred at a time when the common people thought toplay with cards or dice was a sin, and everybody thought it an indecorumin clergymen, they could neither of them play at golf or bowls, and farless at cards or backgammon, and on that account were very unhappy whenfrom home in friends' houses in the country in rainy weather. As I hadset the first example of playing at cards at home with unlocked door[Carlyle was a minister], and so relieved the clergy from ridicule onthat side, they both learned to play at whist after they were sixty. 'See _ante_, iii. 23. 

[1119] See _ante_, i. 149, and v. 350. 

[1120] See _ante_, iv. 54. 

[1121] He wrote to Boswell on Nov. 16, 1776 (_ante_, iii. 93):--'Theexpedition to the Hebrides was the most pleasant journey that I evermade. ' In his _Diary_ he recorded on Jan. 9, 1774:--'In the autumn Itook a journey to the Hebrides, but my mind was not free fromperturbation. ' _Pr. And Med. _ p. 136. The following letter to Dr. TaylorI have copied from the original in the possession of my friend Mr. M. M. Holloway:--

'DEAR SIR, 'When I was at Edinburgh I had a letter from you, telling me that inanswer to some enquiry you were informed that I was in the Sky. I wasthen I suppose in the western islands of Scotland; I set out on thenorthern expedition August 6, and came back to Fleet-street, November26. I have seen a new region. 

'I have been upon seven of the islands, and probably should have visitedmany more, had we not begun our journey so late in the year, that thestormy weather came upon us, and the storms have I believe for aboutfive months hardly any intermission. 

'Your Letter told me that you were better. When you write do not forgetto confirm that account. I had very little ill health while I was on thejourney, and bore rain and wind tolerably well. I had a cold anddeafness only for a few days, and those days I passed at a good house. Ihave traversed the east coast of Scotland from south to north fromEdinburgh to Inverness, and the west coast from north to south, from theHighlands to Glasgow, and am come back as I went, 'Sir, 'Your affectionate humble servant, 'SAM. JOHNSON. '

'Jan. 15, 1774. 

'To the Reverend Dr. Taylor, 'in Ashbourn, 'Derbyshire. '

[1122] Johnson speaking of this tour on April 10, 1783, said:--'I got anacquisition of more ideas by it than by anything that I remember. '_Ante_, iv. 199. 

[1123] See _ante_, p. 48. 

[1124] See _ante_, i. 408, 443, note 2, and ii. 303. 

[1125] 'It may be doubted whether before the Union any man betweenEdinburgh and England had ever set a tree. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 8. 

[1126] See _ante_, p. 69. 

[1127] Lord Balmerino's estate was forfeited to the Crown on hisconviction for high treason in 1746 (_ante_, i. 180). 

[1128] 'I know not that I ever heard the wind so loud in any otherplace; and Mr. Boswell observed that its noise was all its own, forthere were no trees to increase it. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 122. See_ante_, p. 304. 

[1129] See _ante_, ii. 300. 

[1130] 'Strong reasons for incredulity will readily occur. This facultyof seeing things out of sight is local and commonly useless. It is abreach of the common order of things, without any visible reason orperceptible benefit. ' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 106. 

[1131] 'To the confidence of these objections it may be replied. .. Thatsecond sight is only wonderful because it is rare, for, considered initself, it involves no more difficulty than dreams. ' _Ib. _

[1132] The fossilist of last century is the geologist of this. Neitherterm is in Johnson's _Dictionary_, but Johnson in his _Journey (Works_, ix. 43) speaks of 'Mr. Janes the fossilist. '

[1133] _Ib_. P. 157. 

[1134] _Ib_. P. 6. I do not see anything silly in the story. It ishowever better told in a letter to Mrs. Thrale. _Piozzi Letters_, i. 112. 

[1135] Mr. Orme, one of the ablest historians of this age, is of thesame opinion. He said to me, 'There are in that book thoughts, which, bylong revolution in the great mind of Johnson, have been formed andpolished--like pebbles rolled in the ocean. ' BOSWELL. See _ante_, ii. 300, and iii. 284. 

[1136] See _ante_, iii. 301. 

[1137] Johnson (_Works_, ix. 158) mentions 'a national combination soinvidious that their friends cannot defend it. ' See _ante_, ii. 307, 311. 

[1138] See _ante_, p. 269, note 1. 

[1139] Every reader will, I am sure, join with me in warm admiration ofthe truly patriotic writer of this letter. I know not which most toapplaud--that good sense and liberality of mind, which could see andadmit the defects of his native country, to which no man is a morezealous friend:--or that candour, which induced him to give just praiseto the minister whom he honestly and strenuously opposed. BOSWELL. 

[1140] The original MS. Is now in my possession. BOSWELL. 

[1141] The passage that gave offence was as follows:--'Mr. Macleod isthe proprietor of the islands of Raasay, Rona, and Fladda, and possessesan extensive district in Sky. The estate has not during four hundredyears gained or lost a single acre. He acknowledges Macleod of Dunveganas his chief, though his ancestors have formerly disputed thepre-eminence. ' First edition, p. 132. The second edition was notpublished till the year after Johnson's death. In it the passage remainsunchanged. To it the following note was prefixed: 'Strand, Oct. 26, 1785. Since this work was printed off, the publisher, having beeninformed that the author some years ago had promised the Laird of Raasayto correct in a future edition a passage concerning him, thinks it ajustice due to that gentleman to insert here the advertisement relativeto this matter, which was published by Dr. Johnson's desire in theEdinburgh newspapers in the year 1775, and which has been latelyreprinted in Mr. Boswell's _Tour to the Hebrides_. ' (It is not unlikelythat the publication of Boswell's _Tour_ occasioned a fresh demand forJohnson's _Journey_. ) In later editions all the words after 'a singleacre' are silently struck out. Johnson's _Works_, ix. 55. See_ante_, ii. 382. 

[1142] Rasay was highly gratified, and afterwards visited and dined withDr. Johnson at his house in London. BOSWELL. Johnson wrote on May 12, 1775:--'I have offended; and what is stranger, have justly offended, thenation of Rasay. If they could come hither, they would be as fierce asthe Americans. _Rasay_ has written to Boswell an account of the injurydone him by representing his house as subordinate to that of Dunvegan. Boswell has his letter, and, I believe, copied my answer. I haveappeased him, if a degraded chief can possibly be appeased: but it willbe thirteen days--days of resentment and discontent--before myrecantation can reach him. Many a dirk will imagination, during thatinterval, fix in my heart. I really question if at this time my lifewould not be in danger, if distance did not secure it. Boswell will findhis way to Streatham before he goes, and will detail this great affair. '_Piozzi Letters_, i. 216. 

[1143] In like manner he communicated to Sir William Forbes part of hisjournal from which he made the _Life of Johnson_. _Ante_, iii. 208. 

[1144] In justice both to Sir William Forbes, and myself, it is properto mention, that the papers which were submitted to his perusalcontained only an account of our Tour from the time that Dr. Johnson andI set out from Edinburgh (p. 58), and consequently did not contain theelogium on Sir William Forbes, (p. 24), which he never saw till thisbook appeared in print; nor did he even know, when he wrote the aboveletter, that this _Journal_ was to be published. BOSWELL. This note isnot in the first edition. 

[1145] _Hamlet_, act iii. Sc. 1. 

[1146] Both _Nonpareil_ and _Bon Chretien_ are in Johnson's_Dictionary_; _Nonpareil_, is defined as _a kind of apple_, and _BonChretien_ as _a species of pear_. 

[1147] See _ante_, p. 311. 

[1148] See _ante_, iv. 9. 

[1149] 'Dryden's contemporaries, however they reverenced his genius, left his life unwritten; and nothing therefore can be known beyond whatcasual mention and uncertain tradition have supplied. ' Johnson's_Works_, vii. 245. See _ante_, iii. 71. 

[1150]

 'Before great Agamemnon reign'd Reign'd kings as great as he, and brave Whose huge ambition's now contain'd In the small compass of a grave; In endless night they sleep, unwept, unknown, No bard had they to make all time their own. '

FRANCIS. Horace, _Odes_, iv. 9. 25. 

[1151] Having found, on a revision of the first edition of this work, that, notwithstanding my best care, a few observations had escaped me, which arose from the instant impression, the publication of which mightperhaps be considered as passing the bounds of a strict decorum, Iimmediately ordered that they should be omitted in the subsequenteditions. I was pleased to find that they did not amount in the whole toa page. If any of the same kind are yet left, it is owing toinadvertence alone, no man being more unwilling to give pain to othersthan I am. 

A contemptible scribbler, of whom I have learned no more than that, after having disgraced and deserted the clerical character, he picks upin London a scanty livelihood by scurrilous lampoons under a feignedname, has impudently and falsely asserted that the passages omitted were_defamatory_, and that the omission was not voluntary, but compulsory. The last insinuation I took the trouble publickly to disprove; yet, likeone of Pope's dunces, he persevered in 'the lie o'erthrown. ' [_Prologueto the Satires_, l. 350. ] As to the charge of defamation, there is anobvious and certain mode of refuting it. Any person who thinks it worthwhile to compare one edition with the other, will find that the passagesomitted were not in the least degree of that nature, but exactly such asI have represented them in the former part of this note, the hastyeffusion of momentary feelings, which the delicacy of politeness shouldhave suppressed. BOSWELL. In the second edition this note ended at thefirst paragraph, the latter part being added in the third. For the 'fewobservations omitted' see _ante_, pp. 148, 381, 388. 

The 'contemptible scribbler' was, I believe, John Wolcot, better knownby his assumed name of Peter Pindar. He had been a clergyman. In his_Epistle to Boswell (Works_, i. 219), he says in reference to thepassages about Sir A. Macdonald (afterwards Lord Macdonald):--'A letterof severe remonstrance was sent to Mr. B. , who, in consequence, omittedin the second edition of his _Journal_ what is so generally pleasing tothe public, viz. , the scandalous passages relative to that nobleman. ' Itwas in a letter to the _Gent. Mag. _ 1786, p. 285, that Boswell'publickly disproved the insinuation' made 'in a late scurrilouspublication' that these passages 'were omitted in consequence of aletter from his Lordship. Nor was any application, ' he continues, 'madeto me by the nobleman alluded to at any time to make any alteration inmy _Journal_. '

[1152]

 'Nothing extenuate Nor set down aught in malice. '

_Othello_, act v. Sc. 2. 

[1153] See _ante_, i. 189, note 2, 296, 297; and Johnson's _Works_, v. 23. 

[1154] Of his two imitations Boswell means _The Vanity of Human Wishes_, of which one hundred lines were written in a day. _Ante_, i. 192, and ii. 15. 

[1155] Johnson, it should seem, did not allow that there was anypleasure in writing poetry. 'It has been said there is pleasure inwriting, particularly in writing verses. I allow you may have pleasurefrom writing after it is over, if you have written well; but you don'tgo willingly to it again. ' _Ante_, iv. 219. What Johnson always soughtwas to sufficiently occupy the mind. So long as that was done, thatlabour would, I believe, seem to him the pleasanter which required theless thought. 

[1156] Nathan Bailey published his _English Dictionary_ in 1721. 

[1157]

 'Woolston, the scourge of scripture, mark with awe! And mighty Jacob, blunderbuss of law. '

_The Dunciad_, first ed. , bk. Iii. L. 149. Giles Jacob published a _LawDictionary_ in 1729. 

[1158] _Ante_, p. 393. 

[1159] A writer in the _Gent. Mag. _ 1786, p. 388, with some reasonsays:--'I heartily wish Mr. Boswell would get this Latin poem translated. '

[1160] Boswell, briefly mentioning the tour which Johnson made to Walesin the year 1774 with Mr. And Mrs. Thrale, says:--'I do not find thathe kept any journal or notes of what he saw there' (_ante_, ii. 285). Ajournal had been kept however, which in 1816 was edited and published byMr. Duppa. Mrs. Piozzi, writing in October of that year, says that threeyears earlier she had been shewn the MS. By a Mr. White, and that it wasgenuine. 'The gentleman who possessed it seemed shy of letting me readthe whole, and did not, as it appeared, like being asked how it cameinto his hands. ' Hayward's _Piozzi_, ii. 177. According to Mr. Croker(Croker's _Boswell_, p. 415) 'it was preserved by Johnson's servant, Barber. How it escaped Boswell's research is not known. ' A fragment ofJohnson's _Annals_, also preserved by Barber, had in like manner neverbeen seen by Boswell; _ante_, i. 35, note 1. The editor of these_Annals_ says (Preface, p. V):--'Francis Barber, unwilling that all theMSS. Of his illustrious master should be utterly lost, preserved theserelicks from the flames. By purchase from Barber's widow they came intothe possession of the editor. ' It seems likely that Barber was afraid toown what he had done; though as he was the residuary legatee he was safefrom all consequences, unless the executors of the will who were to holdthe residue of the estate in trust for him had chosen to proceed againsthim. Mr. Duppa in editing this Journal received assistance from Mrs. Piozzi, 'who, ' he says (Preface, p. Xi), 'explained many facts whichcould not otherwise have been understood. ' A passage in one of herletters dated Bath, Oct. 11, 1816, shows how unfriendly were therelations between her and her eldest daughter, Johnson's Queeny, who hadmarried Admiral Lord Keith. 'I am sadly afraid, ' she writes, 'of LadyK. 's being displeased, and fancying I promoted this publication. Could Ihave caught her for a quarter-of-an-hour, I should have proved myinnocence, and might have shown her Duppa's letter; but she left neithernote, card, nor message, and when my servant ran to all the inns inchase of her, he learned that she had left the White Hart at twelveo'clock. Vexatious! but it can't be helped. I hope the pretty littlegirl my people saw with her will pay her more tender attention. ' Threedays later she wrote:--'Johnson's _Diary_ is selling rapidly, though thecontents are _bien maigre_, I must confess. Mr. Duppa has politelysuppressed some sarcastic expressions about my family, the Cottons, whomwe visited at Combermere, and at Lleweney. ' Hayward's _Piozzi_, ii. 176-9. Mr. Croker in 1835 was able to make 'a collation of the originalMS. , which has supplied many corrections and some omissions in Mr. Duppa's text. ' Mr. Croker's text I have generally followed. 

[1161] 'When I went with Johnson to Lichfield, and came down tobreakfast at the inn, my dress did not please him, and he made me alterit entirely before he would stir a step with us about the town, sayingmost satirical things concerning the appearance I made in ariding-habit; and adding, "'Tis very strange that such eyes as yourscannot discern propriety of dress; if I had a sight only half as good, Ithink I should see to the centre. "' Piozzi's _Anec_. P. 288. 

[1162] For Mrs. (Miss) Porter, Mrs. (Miss) Aston, Mr. Green, Mrs. Cobb, Mr. (Peter) Garrick, Miss Seward, and Dr. Taylor, see _ante_, ii. 462-473. 

[1163] Dr. Erasmus Darwin, the physiologist and poet, grandfather ofCharles Darwin. Mrs. Piozzi when at Florence wrote:--'I have no rosesequal to those at Lichfield, where on one tree I recollect countingeighty-four within my own reach; it grew against the house of Dr. Darwin. ' Piozzi's _Journey_, i. 278. 

[1164] See _ante_, iii. 124, for mention of her father and brother. 

[1165] The verse in _Martial_ is:--

 'Defluat, et lento splendescat turbida limo. '

In the common editions it has the number 45, and not 44. DUPPA. 

[1166] See _ante_, iii. 187. 

[1167] Johnson wrote on Nov. 27, 1772, 'I was yesterday at Chatsworth. They complimented me with playing the fountain and opening the cascade. But I am of my friend's opinion, that when one has seen the oceancascades are but little things. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 69. 

[1168] 'A water-work with a concealed spring, which, upon touching, spouted out streams from every bough of a willow-tree. ' _PiozziMS_. CROKER. 

[1169] A race-horse, which attracted so much of Dr. Johnson's attention, that he said, 'of all the Duke's possessions, I like Atlas best. ' DUPPA. 

[1170] For Johnson's last visit to Chatsworth, see _ante_, iv. 357, 367. 

[1171] 'From the Muses, Sir Thomas More bore away the first crown, Erasmus the second, and Micyllus has the third. ' In the MS. Johnson hasintroduced [Greek: aeren] by the side of [Greek: eilen], DUPPA. 'JacquesMoltzer, en Latin Micyllus. Ce surnom lui fut donné le jour où ilremplissait avec le plus grand succès le rôle de Micyllus dans _LeSonge_ de Lucien qui, arrange en drame, fut représenté au collège deFrancfort. Né en 1503, mort en 1558. ' _Nouv. Biog. Gén. _ xxxv. 922. 

[1172] See _ante_, ii. 324, note I, and iii. 138. 

[1173] Mr. Gilpin was an undergraduate at Oxford. DUPPA. 

[1174] John Parker, of Brownsholme, in Lancashire [Browsholme, inYorkshire], Esq. DUPPA. 

[1175] Mrs. Piozzi 'rather thought' that this was _Capability Brown_[_ante_, iii. 400]. CROKER. 

[1176] Mr. Gell, of Hopton Hall, father of Sir William Gell, well knownfor his topography of Troy. DUPPA. 

[1177] See _ante_, iii. 160, for a visit paid by Johnson and Boswell toKedleston in 1777. 

[1178] See _ante_, iii. 164. 

[1179] The parish of Prestbury. DUPPA. 

[1180] At this time the seat of Sir Lynch Salusbury Cotton [Mrs. Thrale's relation], now, of Lord Combermere, his grandson, from whichplace he takes his title. DUPPA. 

[1181] Shavington Hall, in Shropshire. DUPPA. 

[1182] 'To guard. To adorn with lists, laces or ornamental borders. Obsolete. ' Johnson's _Dictionary. _

[1183] Johnson wrote to Mrs. Thrale on Nov. 13, 1783:--'You seem tomention Lord Kilmurrey _(sic)_ as a stranger. We were at his house inCheshire [Shropshire]. .. . Do not you remember how he rejoiced in having_no_ park? He could not disoblige his neighbours by sending them _no_venison. ' _Piozzi Letters, _ ii. 326. 

[1184] This remark has reference to family conversation. Robert was theeldest son of Sir L. S. Cotton, and lived at Lleweney. DUPPA. 

[1185] _Paradise Lost, _ book xi. V. 642. DUPPA. 

[1186] See Mrs. Piozzi's _Synonymy_, i. 323, for an anecdote of thiswalk. 

[1187] Lleweney Hall was the residence of Robert Cotton, Esq. , Mrs. Thrale's cousin german. Here Mr. And Mrs. Thrale and Dr. Johnson staidthree weeks. DUPPA. Mrs. Piozzi wrote in 1817:--'Poor old Lleweney Hall!pulled down after standing 1000 years in possession of the Salusburys. 'Hayward's _Piozzi_, ii. 206. 

[1188] Johnson's name for Mrs. Thrale. _Ante, _ i. 494. 

[1189] Johnson wrote to Mrs. Thrale on Sept. 13, 1777:--'Boswell wantsto see Wales; but except the woods of Bachycraigh, what is there inWales? What that can fill the hunger of ignorance, or quench the thirstof curiosity?' _Piozzi Letters, _ i. 367. _Ante, _ iii. 134, note 1. 

[1190] Pennant gives a description of this house, in a tour he made intoNorth Wales in 1780:--'Not far from Dymerchion, lies half buried inwoods the singular house of Bâch y Graig. It consists of a mansion ofthree sides, enclosing a square court. The first consists of a vast halland parlour: the rest of it rises into six wonderful stories, includingthe cupola; and forms from the second floor the figure of a pyramid: therooms are small and inconvenient. The bricks are admirable, and appearto have been made in Holland; and the model of the house was probablybrought from Flanders, where this kind of building is not unfrequent. Itwas built by Sir Richard Clough, an eminent merchant, in the reign ofQueen Elizabeth. The initials of his name are in iron on the front, withthe date 1567, and on the gateway 1569. ' DUPPA. 

[1191] Bishop Shipley, whom Johnson described as _'knowing andconvertible' Ante, _ iv. 246. Johnson, in his _Dictionary_, says that_'conversable_ is sometimes written _conversible_, but improperly. '

[1192] William Lloyd, Bishop of St. Asaph and afterwards of Worcester. He was one of the seven Bishops who were sent to the Tower in 1688. Hischaracter is drawn by Burnet, _History of His Own Time_, ed. 1818, i. 210. It was he of whom Bishop Wilkins said that 'Lloyd had the mostlearning in ready cash of any he ever knew. ' _Ante_, ii. 256, note 3. 

[1193] A curious account of Dodwell and 'the paradoxes after which heseemed to hunt' is given in Burnet, iv. 303. He was Camden Professor ofAncient History in the University of Oxford. 'It was about him thatWilliam III uttered those memorable words: "He has set his heart onbeing a martyr; and I have set mine on disappointing him. "' Macaulay's_England_, ed. 1874, iv. 226. See Hearne in Leland's _Itin. _, 3rd ed. V. 136. 

[1194] By Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, in 1579. DUPPA. 

[1195] See _ante_, iii. 357, and v. 42. 

[1196] Perhaps Johnson wrote _mere_. 

[1197] Humphry Llwyd was a native of Denbigh, and practised there as aphysician, and also represented the town in Parliament. He died 1568, aged 41. DUPPA. 

[1198] Mrs. Thrale's father. DUPPA. 

[1199] Cowper wrote a few years later in the first book of _The Task_, in his description of the grounds at Weston Underwood:--

 'Not distant far a length of colonnade Invites us. Monument of ancient taste, Now scorned, but worthy of a better fate. Our fathers knew the value of a screen From sultry suns, and in their shaded walks And long-protracted bowers enjoyed at noon The gloom and coolness of declining day. We bear our shades about us: self-deprived Of other screen, the thin umbrella spread, And range an Indian waste without a tree. Thanks to Benevolus [A]--he spares me yet These chestnuts ranged in corresponding lines, And though himself so polished still reprieves The obsolete prolixity of shade. '

[1200] Such a passage as this shews that Johnson was not so insensibleto nature as is often asserted. Mrs. Piozzi (_Anec. _ p. 99) says:--'Mr. Thrale loved prospects, and was mortified that his friend could notenjoy the sight of those different dispositions of wood and water, hilland valley, that travelling through England and France affords a man. But when he wished to point them out to his companion: "Never heed suchnonsense, " would he reply; "a blade of grass is always a blade of grass, whether in one country or another. Let us, if we _do_ talk, talk aboutsomething; men and women are my subjects of enquiry; let us see howthese differ from those we have left behind. "' She adds (p. 265):--'Walking in a wood when it rained was, I think, the only rural image hepleased his fancy with; "for, " says he, "after one has gathered theapples in an orchard, one wishes them well baked, and removed to aLondon eating-house for enjoyment. "' See _ante_, pp. 132, note 1, 141, note 2, 333, note i, and 346, note i, for Johnson's descriptions ofscenery. Passages in his letters shew that he had some enjoyment ofcountry life. Thus he writes:--'I hope to see standing corn in some partof the earth this summer, but I shall hardly smell hay or suck cloverflowers. ' _Piozzi Letters_, ii. 140. 'What I shall do next I know not;all my schemes of rural pleasure have been some way or otherdisappointed. ' _Ib. _ p. 372. 'I hope Mrs. ------ when she came to herfavourite place found her house dry, and her woods growing, and thebreeze whistling, and the birds singing, and her own heart dancing. '_Ib. _ p. 401. In this very trip to Wales, after describing the high bankof a river 'shaded by gradual rows of trees, ' he writes:--'The gloom, the stream, and the silence generate thoughtfulness. ' _Post, _ p. 454. 

[A] Mr. Throckmorton the owner. 

[1201] In the MS. In Dr. Johnson's handwriting, he has first entered inhis diary, 'The old Clerk had great appearance of joy at seeing hisMistress, and foolishly said that he was now willing to die:' heafterwards wrote in a separate column, on the same leaf, under the headof _notes and omissions, _ 'He had a crown;' and then he appears to haveread over his diary at a future time, and interlined the paragraph withthe words 'only'--'given him by my Mistress, ' which is written in ink ofa different colour. DUPPA. 'If Mr. Duppa, ' wrote Mrs. Piozzi, 'does notsend me a copy of Johnson's _Diary, _ he is as shabby as it seems ourDoctor thought me, when I gave but a crown to the old clerk. The poorclerk had probably never seen a crown in his possession before. Thingswere very distant A. D. 1774 from what they are 1816. ' Hayward's_Piozzi, _ ii. 178. Mrs. Piozzi writes as if Johnson's censure had beenpassed in 1816 and not in 1774. 

[1202] Mrs. Piozzi has the following MS. Note on this:--'He said Iflattered the people to whose houses we went. I was saucy, and said Iwas obliged to be civil for two, meaning himself and me. He repliednobody would thank me for compliments they did not understand. AtGwaynynog _he_ was flattered, and was happy of course. ' Hayward's_Piozzi, _ i. 75. Sept. 21, 1778. _Mrs. Thrale. _ 'I remember, Sir, whenwe were travelling in Wales, how you called me to account for mycivility to the people. "Madam, " you said, "let me have no more of thisidle commendation of nothing. Why is it that whatever you see, andwhoever you see, you are to be so indiscriminately lavish of praise?""Why I'll tell you, Sir, " said I, "when I am with you, and Mr. Thrale, and Queeny [Miss Thrale], I am obliged to be civil for four. "' Mme. D'Arblay's _Diary, _ i. 132. On June 11, 1775, he wrote to Mrs. Thralefrom Lichfield:--'Everybody remembers you all: you left a goodimpression behind you. I hope you will do the same at------. Do not makethem speeches. Unusual compliments, to which there is no stated andprescriptive answer, embarrass the feeble, who know not what to say, anddisgust the wise, who knowing them to be false suspect them to behypocritical. ' _Piozzi Letters, _ i. 232. She records that he once saidto her:--'You think I love flattery, and so I do, but a little too muchalways disgusts me. That fellow Richardson [the novelist] on thecontrary could not be contented to sail quietly down the stream ofreputation, without longing to taste the froth from every stroke of theoar. ' Piozzi's _Anec. _ p. 184. See _ante_, iii. 293, for Johnson'srebuke of Hannah More's flattery. 

[1203] Johnson, in his Dictionary, defines _calamine_ or _lapiscalaminaris_ as _a kind of fossile bituminous earth, which being mixedwith copper changes it into brass. _ It is native siliceous oxide ofzinc. _The Imperial Dictionary. _

[1204] See _ante, _ iii. 164. 

[1205] 'No' or 'little' is here probably omitted. CROKER. 

[1206] The name of this house is Bodryddan; formerly the residence ofthe Stapyltons, the parents of five co-heiresses, of whom Mrs. Cotton, afterwards Lady Salusbury Cotton, was one. DUPPA. 

[1207] 'Dr. Johnson, whose ideas of anything not positively large wereever mingled with contempt, asked of one of our sharp currents in NorthWales, "Has this _brook_ e'er a name?" and received for answer, "Why, dear Sir, this is the _River_ Ustrad. " "Let us, " said he, turning to hisfriend, "jump over it directly, and shew them how an Englishman shouldtreat a Welsh river. "' Piozzi's _Synonymy, _ i. 82. 

[1208] See _ante_, i. 313, note 4. 

[1209] On Aug. 16 he wrote to Mr. Levett:--'I have made nothing of theIpecacuanha. ' _Ante_, ii. 282. Mr. Croker suggests that _up_ is omittedafter 'I gave. '

[1210] See _post_, p. 453. 

[1211] F. G. Are the printer's signatures, by which it appears that atthis time four sheets (B, C, D, E), or 64 pages had already beenprinted. The MS. Was 'put to the press' on June 20. _Ante_, ii. 278. 

[1212] The English version Psalm 36 begins, --'My heart sheweth me thewickedness of the ungodly, ' which has no relation to 'Dixit injustus. '

[1213] This alludes to 'A prayer by R. W. , (evidently Robert Wisedom)which Sir Henry Ellis, of the British Museum, has found among the Hymnswhich follow the old version of the singing Psalms, at the end ofBarker's _Bible_ of 1639. It begins, 'Preserve us, Lord, by thy deare word, From Turk and Pope, defend us Lord, Which both would thrust out of his throne Our Lord Jesus Christ, thy deare son. '

CROKER. 

[1214] 'Proinde quum dominus Matth. 6 docet discipulos suos ne in orandomultiloqui sint, nihil aliud docet quam ne credant deum inani verborumstrepitu flecti rem eandem subinde flagitantium. Nam Graecis est [Greek:battologaesate]. [Greek: Battologein] autem illis dicitur qui voceseasdem frequenter iterant sine causa, vel loquacitatis, vel naturae, velconsuetudinis vitio. Alioqui juxta precepta rhetorum nonnunquam laudisest iterare verba, quemadmodum et Christus in cruce clamitat. Deus meus, deus meus: non erat illa [Greek: battologia], sed ardens ac vehemensaffectus orantis. ' Erasmus's _Works_, ed. 1540, v. 927. 

[1215] This alludes to Southwell's stanzas 'Upon the Image of Death, ' inhis _Maeonia_, [Maeoniae] a collection of spiritual poems:--

 'Before my face the picture hangs, That daily should put me in mind Of those cold names and bitter pangs That shortly I am like to find: But, yet, alas! full little I Do thinke hereon that I must die. ' &c. 

Robert Southwell was an English Jesuit, who was imprisoned, tortured, and finally, in Feb. 1598 [1595] executed for teaching the RomanCatholic tenets in England. CROKER. 

[1216] This work, which Johnson was now reading, was, most probably, alittle book, entitled _Baudi Epistolae_. In his _Life of Milton_[_Works_, vii. 115], he has made a quotation from it. DUPPA. 

[1217] Bishop Shipley had been an Army Chaplain. _Ante_, iii. 251. 

[1218] The title of the poem is [Greek: Poiaema nouthetikon]. DUPPA. 

[1219] This entry refers to the following passage in Leland's_Itinerary_, published by Thomas Hearne, ed. 1744, iv. 112. 'B. _Smith_in K. H. 7. Dayes, and last Bishop of _Lincolne_, beganne a new Foundationat this place settinge up a Mr. There with 2. Preistes, and 10. PooreMen in an Hospitall. He sett there alsoe a Schoole-Mr. To teach Grammerthat hath 10. _l_. By the yeare, and an Under-Schoole-Mr. That hath5. _l_. By the yeare. King H. 7. Was a great Benefactour to this newFoundation, and gave to it an ould Hospitall called Denhall in Wirhallin Cheshire. '

[1220] _A Journey to Meqwinez, the Residence of the present Emperor ofFez and Morocco, on the Occasion of Commodore Stewart's Embassy thither, for the Redemption of the British captives, in the Year 1721_. DUPPA. 

[1221] The _Bibliotheca Literaria_ was published in London, 1722-4, in4to numbers, but only extended to ten numbers. DUPPA. 

[1222] By this expression it would seem, that on this day Johnson atesparingly. DUPPA. 

[1223] 'A weakness of the knees, not without some pain in walking, whichI feel increased after I have dined. ' DUPPA. 

[1224] Penmaen Mawr is a huge rock, rising nearly 1550 feetperpendicular above the sea. Along a shelf of this precipice, is formedan excellent road, well guarded, toward the sea, by a strong wall, supported in many parts by arches turned underneath it. Before this wallwas built, travellers sometimes fell down the precipices. DUPPA. 

[1225] See _post_, p. 453. 

[1226] 'Johnson said that one of the castles in Wales would contain allthe castles that he had seen in Scotland. ' _Ante_, ii. 285. 

[1227] This gentleman was a lieutenant in the Navy. DUPPA. 

[1228] Lady Catharine Percival, daughter of the second Earl of Egmont:this was, it appears, the lady of whom Mrs. Piozzi relates, that 'For alady of quality, since dead, who received us at her husband's seat inWales with less attention than he had long been accustomed to, he had arougher denunciation:--"That woman, " cried Johnson, "is like sour smallbeer, the beverage of her table, and produce of the wretched country shelives in: like that, she could never have been a good thing, and eventhat bad thing is spoiled. "' [_Anec_. P. 171. ] And it is probably ofher, too, that another anecdote is told:--'We had been visiting at alady's house, whom, as we returned, some of the company ridiculed forher ignorance:--"She is not ignorant, " said he, "I believe, of anything she has been taught, or of any thing she is desirous to know; andI suppose if one wanted a little _run tea_, she might be a proper personenough to apply to. '" [_Ib_. P. 219. ] Mrs. Piozzi says, in her MS. Letters, 'that Lady Catharine comes off well in the _diary_. He _said_many severe things of her, which he did not commit to paper. ' She diedin 1782. CROKER. 

[1229] Johnson described in 1762 his disappointment on his return toLichfield. _Ante_, i. 370. 

[1230] 'It was impossible not to laugh at the patience Doctor Johnsonshewed, when a Welsh parson of mean abilities, though a good heart, struck with reverence at the sight of Dr. Johnson, whom he had heard ofas the greatest man living, could not find any words to answer hisinquiries concerning a motto round somebody's arms which adorned atomb-stone in Ruabon church-yard. If I remember right, the words were, Heb Dw, Heb Dym, Dw o' diggon. 

And though of no very difficult construction, the gentleman seemedwholly confounded, and unable to explain them; till Mr. Johnson, havingpicked out the meaning by little and little, said to the man, "_Heb_ isa preposition, I believe, Sir, is it not?" My countryman recovering somespirits upon the sudden question, cried out, "So I humbly presume, Sir, "very comically. ' Piozzi's _Anec_. P. 238. The Welsh words, which are theMyddelton motto, mean, 'Without God, without all. God isall-sufficient. ' _Piozzi MS_. Croker's _Boswell_, p. 423. 

[1231] In 1809 the whole income for Llangwinodyl, including surplicefees, amounted to forty-six pounds two shillings and twopence, and forTydweilliog, forty-three pounds nineteen shillings and tenpence; so thatit does not appear that Mr. Thrale carried into effect his goodintention. DUPPA. 

[1232] Mr. Thrale was near-sighted, and could not see the goats browsingon Snowdon, and he promised his daughter, who was a child of ten yearsold, a penny for every goat she would shew him, and Dr. Johnson kept theaccount; so that it appears her father was in debt to her one hundredand forty-nine pence. Queeny was the epithet, which had its origin inthe nursery, by which Miss Thrale was always distinguished by Johnson. DUPPA. Her name was Esther. The allusion was to Queen Esther. Johnsonoften pleasantly mentions her in his letters to her mother. Thus on July27, 1780, he writes:--'As if I might not correspond with my Queeney, andwe might not tell one another our minds about politicks or morals, oranything else. Queeney and I are both steady and may be trusted; we arenone of the giddy gabblers, we think before we speak. ' _Piozzi Letters_, ii. 169. Four days later he wrote:--'Tell my pretty dear Queeney, thatwhen we meet again, we will have, at least for some time, two lessons ina day. I love her and think on her when I am alone; hope we shall bevery happy together and mind our books. ' _Ib_. P. 173. 

[1233] See _ante_, iv. 421, for the inscription on an urn erected by Mr. Myddelton 'on the banks of a rivulet where Johnson delighted to standand repeat verses. ' On Sept. 18, 1777, Johnson wrote to Mrs. Thrale:--'Mr. ----'s erection of an urn looks like an intention to bury mealive; I would as willingly see my friend, however benevolent andhospitable, quietly inurned. Let him think for the present of some moreacceptable memorial. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 371. 

[1234] Johnson wrote on Oct. 24, 1778:--'My two clerical friends Darbyand Worthington have both died this month. I have known Worthingtonlong, and to die is dreadful. I believe he was a very good man. ' _PiozziLetters_, ii. 26. 

[1235] Thomas, the second Lord Lyttelton. DUPPA. 

[1236] Mr. Gwynn the architect was a native of Shrewsbury, and was atthis time completing a bridge across the Severn, called the EnglishBridge: besides this bridge, he built one at Acham, over the Severn, near to Shrewsbury; and the bridges at Worcester, Oxford [MagdalenBridge], and Henley. DUPPA. He was also the architect of the OxfordMarket, which was opened in 1774. _Oxford during the Last Century_, ed. 1859, p. 45. Johnson and Boswell travelled to Oxford with him in March, 1776. _Ante_, ii. 438. In 1778 he got into some difficulties, in whichJohnson tried to help him, as is shewn by the following autograph letterin the possession of my friend Mr. M. M. Holloway:--

'SIR, 'Poor Mr. Gwyn is in great distress under the weight of the latedetermination against him, and has still hopes that some mitigation maybe obtained. If it be true that whatever has by his negligence beenamiss, may be redressed for a sum much less than has been awarded, theremaining part ought in equity to be returned, or, what is moredesirable, abated. When the money is once paid, there is little hope ofgetting it again. 

'The load is, I believe, very hard upon him; he indulges some flatteringopinions that by the influence of his academical friends it may belightened, and will not be persuaded but that some testimony of mykindness may be beneficial. I hope he has been guilty of nothing worsethan credulity, and he then certainly deserves commiseration. I neverheard otherwise than that he was an honest man, and I hope that by yourcountenance and that of other gentlemen who favour or pity him somerelief may be obtained. 

'I am, Sir, 'Your most humble servant, 'SAM. JOHNSON. ' 'Bolt Court, Fleet-street, 'Jan. 30, 1778. '

[1237] An ancestor of mine, a nursery-gardener, Thomas Wright by name, after whom my grandfather, Thomas Wright Hill, was called, planted thiswalk. The tradition preserved in my family is that on his wedding-day hetook six men with him and planted these trees. When blamed for keepingthe wedding-dinner waiting, he answered, that if what he had been doingturned out well, it would be of far more value than a wedding-dinner. 

[1238] The Rector of St. Chad's, in Shrewsbury. He was appointed Masterof Pembroke College, Oxford, in the following year. See _ante_, ii. 441. 

[1239] 'I have heard Dr. Johnson protest that he never had quite as muchas he wished of wall-fruit except once in his life, and that was when wewere all together at Ombersley. ' Piozzi's _Anec_. P. 103. Mrs. Thralewrote to him in 1778:--'Mr. Scrase gives us fine fruit; I wished you mypear yesterday; but then what would one pear have done for you?' _PiozziLetters_, ii. 36. It seems unlikely that Johnson should not at Streathamhave had all the wall-fruit that he wished. 

[1240] This visit was not to Lord Lyttelton, but to his uncle[afterwards by successive creations, Lord Westcote, and Lord Lyttelton], the father of the present Lord Lyttelton, who lived at a house calledLittle Hagley. DUPPA. Johnson wrote to Mrs. Thrale in 1771:--'I wouldhave been glad to go to Hagley in compliance with Mr. Lyttelton's kindinvitation, for beside the pleasure of his conversation I should havehad the opportunity of recollecting past times, and wandering _permontes notos et flumina nota_, of recalling the images of sixteen, andreviewing my conversations with poor Ford. ' _Piozzi Letters_, i. 42. Hehad been at school at Stourbridge, close by Hagley. _Ante_, i. 49. SeeWalpole's _Letters_, ix. 123, for an anecdote of Lord Westcote. 

[1241] Horace Walpole, writing of Hagley in Sept. 1753 (_Letters_, ii. 352), says:--'There is extreme taste in the park: the seats are not thebest, but there is not one absurdity. There is a ruined castle, built byMiller, that would get him his freedom even of Strawberry [Walpole's ownhouse at Twickenham]: it has the true rust of the Barons' Wars. '

[1242] 'Mrs. Lyttelton forced me to play at whist against my liking, andher husband took away Johnson's candle that he wanted to read by at theother end of the room. Those, I trust, were the offences. ' _PiozziMS. _ CROKER. 

[1243] Johnson (_Works_, viii. 409) thus writes of Shenstone and theLeasowes:--'He began to point his prospects, to diversify his surface, to entangle his walks, and to wind his waters; which he did with suchjudgment and such fancy as made his little domain the envy of the greatand the admiration of the skilful; a place to be visited by travellersand copied by designers. . .. . For awhile the inhabitants of Hagleyaffected to tell their acquaintance of the little fellow that was tryingto make himself admired; but when by degrees the Leasowes forcedthemselves into notice, they took care to defeat the curiosity whichthey could not suppress by conducting their visitants perversely toinconvenient points of view, and introducing them at the wrong end of awalk to detect a deception; injuries of which Shenstone would heavilycomplain. Where there is emulation there will be vanity; and where thereis vanity there will be folly. The pleasure of Shenstone was all in hiseye: he valued what he valued merely for its looks; nothing raised hisindignation more than to ask if there were any fishes in his water. ' See_ante_, p. 345. 

[1244] See _ante_, iii. 187, and v. 429. 

[1245] 'He spent his estate in adorning it, and his death was probablyhastened by his anxieties. He was a lamp that spent its oil in blazing. It is said that if he had lived a little longer he would have beenassisted by a pension: such bounty could not have been ever moreproperly bestowed. ' Johnson's _Works_, viii. 410. His friend, Mr. Graves, the author of _The Spiritual Quixote_, in a note on this passagesays that, if he was sometimes distressed for money, yet he was able toleave legacies and two small annuities. 

[1246] Mr. Duppa--without however giving his authority--says that thiswas Dr. Wheeler, mentioned _ante_, iii. 366. The _Birmingham Directory_for the year 1770 shews that there were two tradesmen in the town ofthat name, one having the same Christian name, Benjamin, as Dr. Wheeler. 

[1247] Boswell visited these works in 1776. _Ante_, ii. 459. 

[1248] Burke in the House of Commons on Jan. 25, 1771, in a debate onFalkland's Island, said of the Spanish Declaration:--'It was made, Iadmit, on the true principles of trade and manufacture. It puts me inmind of a Birmingham button which has passed through an hundred hands, and after all is not worth three-halfpence a dozen. ' _Parl. Hist. _xvi. 1345. 

[1249] Johnson and Boswell drove through the Park in 1776. _Ante_, ii. 451. 

[1250] 'My friend the late Lord Grosvenor had a house at Salt Hill, where I usually spent a part of the summer, and thus became acquaintedwith that great and good man, Jacob Bryant. Here the conversation turnedone morning on a Greek criticism by Dr. Johnson in some volume lying onthe table, which I ventured (_for I was then young_) to deem incorrect, and pointed it out to him. I could not help thinking that he wassomewhat of my opinion, but he was cautious and reserved. "But, Sir, "said I, willing to overcome his scruples, "Dr. Johnson himself admittedthat he was not a good Greek scholar. " "Sir, " he replied, with a seriousand impressive air, "it is not easy for us to say what such a man asJohnson would call a good Greek scholar. " I hope that I profited by thatlesson--certainly I never forgot it. ' Gifford's _Works of Ford_, vol. I. P. Lxii. Croker's _Boswell_, p. 794. 'So notorious is Mr. Bryant's greatfondness for studying and proving the truths of the creation accordingto Moses, that he told me himself, and with much quaint humour, apleasantry of one of his friends in giving a character ofhim:--"Bryant, " said he, "is a very good scholar, and knows all thingswhatever up to Noah, but not a single thing in the world beyond theDeluge. "' Mme. D'Arblay's Diary, iii. 229. 

[1251] This is a work written by William Durand, Bishop of Mende, andprinted on vellum, in folio, by Fust and Schoeffer, in Mentz, 1459. Itis the third book that is known to be printed with a date. DUPPA. It isperhaps the first book with a date printed in movable metal type. _Brunei_, ed. 1861, ii. 904. See _ante_, ii. 397. 

[1252] Dr. Johnson, in another column of his _Diary_, has put down, in anote, 'First printed book in Greek, Lascaris's _Grammar_, 4to, Mediolani, 1476. ' The imprint of this book is, _Mediolani Impressum perMagistrum Dionysium Paravisinum_. M. CCCC. LXXVI. Die xxx Januarii. Thefirst book printed in the English language was the _Historyes of Troye_, printed in 1471. DUPPA. A copy of the _Historyes of Troy_ is exhibitedin the Bodleian Library with the following superscription:--'Lefevre's_Recuyell of the historyes of Troye_. The first book printed in theEnglish language. Issued by Caxton at Bruges about 1474. '

[1253] _The Battle of the Frogs and Mice_. The first edition was printedby Laonicus Cretensis, 1486. DUPPA. 

[1254] Mr. Coulson was a Senior Fellow of University College. LordStowell informed me that he was very eccentric. He would on a fine dayhang out of the college windows his various pieces of apparel to air, which used to be universally answered by the young men hanging out fromall the other windows, quilts, carpets, rags, and every kind of trash, and this was called an _illumination_. His notions of the eminence andimportance of his academic situation were so peculiar, that, when heafterwards accepted a college living, he expressed to Lord Stowell hisdoubts whether, after living so long in the _great world_, he might notgrow weary of the comparative retirement of a country parish. CROKER. See _ante_, ii. 382, note. 

[1255] Dr. Robert Vansittart, Fellow of All Souls, and Regius Professorof Law. DUPPA. Johnson wrote to Mrs. Thrale on Nov. 3, 1773:--'PoorV------! There are not so many reasons as he thinks why he should envyme, but there are some; he wants what I have, a kind and carefulmistress; and wants likewise what I shall want at my return. He is agood man, and when his mind is composed a man of parts. ' _PiozziLetters_, i. 197. See _ante_, i. 348. 

[1256] See _ante_, ii. 285, note 3. 

THE END OF THE FIFTH VOLUME.