pleasure, he has value: but if he lets others fpend it for him, which is moft commonly the cafe, he has no advantage from it."

On Friday, March 20, I found him at his own houfe, fitting with Mrs. Williams, and was informed that the room formerly allotted to me was now appropriated to a charitable purpofe; Mrs. Defmoulins, and I think her daughter, and a Mifs Carmichael, being all lodged in it. Such was his humanity, and fuch his generofity, that Mrs. Defmoulins herfelf told me, he allowed her half-a-guinea a week. Let it be remembered, that this was above a twelfth part of his penfion. His liberality, indeed, was at all periods of his life very remarkable. remarkable. Mr. Howard, of Lichfield, at whofe father's houfe Johnson had in his early years been kindly received, told me, that when he was a boy at the Charter-Houfe, his father wrote to him to go and pay a visit to Mr. Samuel Johnson, which he accordingly did, and found him in an upper room, of poor appearance. Johnfon received him with much courteoufness, and talked a great deal to him, as to a fchool-boy, of the courfe of his education, and other particulars. When he afterwards came to know and understand the high character of this great man, he recollected his condefcenfion with wonder. He added, that when he was going away, Mr. Johnson presented him with half-a-guinea; and this, faid Mr. Howard, was at a time when he probably had not another.

4

* Daughter of Dr. Swinfen, Johnfon's godfather, and widow of Mr. Defmoulins, a writing-mafter:

He

We retired from Mrs. Williams to another room. Tom Davies foon after joined us. had now unfortunately failed in his circumstances, and was much indebted to Dr. Johnson's kindness for obtaining for him many alleviations of his diftrefs. After he went away, Johnson blamed his folly in quitting the stage, by which he and his wife got five hundred pounds a year. I said, I believed it was owing to Churchill's attack upon him,

"He mouths a fentence as curs mouth a bone."

JOHNSON. "I believe fo too, Sir. But what a man is he who is to be driven from the stage by a line? Another line would have driven him from his shop."

I told him, that I was engaged as Counsel at the bar of the Houfe of Commons to oppofe a road-bill in the county of Stirling, and asked him what mode he would advife me to follow in addreffing fuch an audience. JOHNSON. "Why, Sir, you must provide yourself with a good deal of extraneous matter, which you are to produce occafionally, fo as to fill up the time; for you must consider, that they do not liften much. If you begin with the ftrength of your caufe, it may be loft before they begin to liften. When you catch a moment of attention, prefs the merits of the question upon them." He faid, as to one point of the merits, that he thought" it would be a wrong thing to deprive the fmall landholders of the privilege of affeffing themselves for making and repairing the high roads; it was deftroying fo

B 2

much

1778.

Etat. 69.

1778.

much liberty, without a good reafon, which was alEtat. 69. ways a bad thing." When I mentioned this ob

servation next day to Mr. Wilkes, he pleasantly faid, "What! does he talk of liberty? Liberty is as ridiculous in his mouth as Religion in mine." Mr. Wilkes's advice, as to the best mode of speaking at the bar of the House of Commons, was not more refpectful towards the fenate, than that of Dr. Johnfon. "Be as impudent as you can, as merry as you can, and fay whatever comes uppermoft. Jack Lee is the best heard there of any Counfel; and he is the most impudent dog, and always abufing us."

In my interview with Dr. Johnson this evening, I was quite eafy, quite as his companion; upon which I find in my Journal the following reflection: "So ready is my mind to suggest matter for diffatisfaction, that I felt a fort of regret that I was fo easy. I miffed that aweful reverence with which I used to contemplate MR. SAMUEL JOHNSON, in the complex magnitude of his literary, moral, and religious character. I have a wonderful superftitious love of myftery; when, perhaps, the truth is, that it is owing to the cloudy darkness of my own mind. I should be glad that I am more advanced in my progrefs of being, fo that I can view Dr. Johnson with a steadier and clearer eye. My diffatisfaction to-night was foolish. Would it not be foolish to regret that we shall have less mystery in a future ftate? That we now see in a glass darkly,' but shall then fee face to face ?"-This reflection, which I thus freely communicate, will be valued by the thinking part of my readers, whọ

may

may have themselves experienced a similar state of mind.

He returned next day to Streatham, to Mr. Thrale's; where, as Mr. Strahan once complained to me," he was in a great measure abforbed from the fociety of his old friends." I was kept in London by bufinefs, and wrote to him on the 27th, that a feparation from him for a week, when we were so near, was equal to a feparation for a year, when we were at four hundred miles distance." I went to Streatham on Monday, March 30. Before he appeared, Mrs. Thrale made a very characteristical remark:-" I do not know for certain what will please Dr. Johnson: but I know for certain that it will displease him to praise any thing, even what he likes, extravagantly."

At dinner he laughed at querulous declamations against the age, on account of luxury,-increase of London-scarcity, of provifions,-and other fuch topicks. "Houses (faid he) will be built till rents fall; and corn is more plentiful now than ever it was."

I had before dinner repeated a ridiculous ftory told me by an old man who had been a passenger with me in the stage-coach to-day. Mrs. Thrale, having taken occafion to allude to it in talking to me, called it "The story told you by the old woman."-" Now, Madam, (faid I,) give me leave to catch you in the fact: it was not an old woman, but an old man, whom I mentioned as having told me this." I prefumed to take an opportunity, in prefence of Johnson, of fhewing this lively lady how ready fhe was, unintentionally, to deviate from exact authenticity of narration.

B 3

1778.

Etat. 69.

"Thomas

1778.

"Thomas à Kempis (he observed) must be a Etat. 69. good book, as the world has opened its arms to

receive it. It is faid to have been printed, in one language or other, as many times as there have been months fince it firft came out. I always was ftruck with this fentence in it: Be not angry that you cannot make others as you wish them to be fince you cannot make yourself as you wish to be."

He faid, "I was angry with Hurd about Cowley, for having published a felection of his works; but, upon better confideration, I think there is no impropriety in a man's publishing as much as he chooses of any authour, if he does not put the reft out of the way, A man, for inftance, may print the Odes of Horace alone." He feemed to be in a more indulgent humour than when this fubject was difcuffed between him and Mr. Murphy 5.

When we were at tea and coffee, there came in Lord Trimblestown, in whofe family was an ancient Irish peerage, but it fuffered by taking the generous fide in the troubles of the last century. He was a man of pleafing conversation, and was accompanied by a young gentleman, his fon.

I mentioned that I had in my poffeffion the Lite of Sir Robert Sibbald, the celebrated Scottish antiquary, and founder of the Royal College of Phyficians at Edinburgh, in the original manufcript in his own hand writing; and that it was I believed the most natural and candid account of himself that ever was given by any man. As an inftance, he tells that the Duke of Perth, then Chancellor of

Scotland, preffed him very much to come over to

See p. 391, 392 of Vol. II.

the