Boswell's Life of Johnson
intended this to introduce his book the better among genteel people,
who might be unwilling to read too grave a treatise. There is a general
levity in the age. We have physicians now with bag-wigs; may we not have
airy divines, at least somewhat less solemn in their appearance than
they used to be?' JOHNSON. 'Jenyns might mean as you say.' BOSWELL. 'YOU
should like his book, Mrs. Knowles, as it maintains, as you FRIENDS do,
that courage is not a Christian virtue.' MRS. KNOWLES. 'Yes, indeed, I
like him there; but I cannot agree with him, that friendship is not a
Christian virtue.' JOHNSON. 'Why, Madam, strictly speaking, he is right.
All friendship is preferring the interest of a friend, to the neglect,
or, perhaps, against the interest of others; so that an old Greek
said, "He that has FRIENDS has NO FRIEND." Now Christianity recommends
universal benevolence, to consider all men as our brethren, which
is contrary to the virtue of friendship, as described by the ancient
philosophers. Surely, Madam, your sect must approve of this; for, you
call all men FRIENDS.' MRS. KNOWLES. 'We are commanded to do good to
all men, "but especially to them who are of the household of Faith."'
JOHNSON. 'Well, Madam. The household of Faith is wide enough.' MRS.
KNOWLES. 'But, Doctor, our Saviour had twelve Apostles, yet there was
ONE whom he LOVED. John was called "the disciple whom JESUS loved."'
JOHNSON. (with eyes sparkling benignantly,) 'Very well, indeed, Madam.
You have said very well.' BOSWELL. 'A fine application. Pray, Sir, had
you ever thought of it?' JOHNSON. 'I had not, Sir.'
From this pleasing subject, he, I know not how or why, made a sudden
transition to one upon which he was a violent aggressor; for he said, 'I
am willing to love all mankind, EXCEPT AN AMERICAN:' and his inflammable
corruption bursting into horrid fire, he 'breathed out threatenings and
slaughter;' calling them, Rascals--Robbers--Pirates;' and exclaiming,
he'd 'burn and destroy them.' Miss Seward, looking to him with mild but
steady astonishment, said, 'Sir, this is an instance that we are always
most violent against those whom we have injured.' He was irritated
still more by this delicate and keen reproach; and roared out another
tremendous volley, which one might fancy could be heard across the
Atlantick. During this tempest I sat in great uneasiness, lamenting
his heat of temper; till, by degrees, I diverted his attention to other
topicks.
Talking of Miss ------, a literary lady, he said, 'I was obliged to
speak to Miss Reynolds, to let her know that I desired she would not
flatter me so much.' Somebody now observed, 'She flatters Garrick.'
JOHNSON. 'She is in the right to flatter Garrick. She is in the right
for two reasons; first, because she has the world with her, who have
been praising Garrick these thirty years; and secondly, because she is
rewarded for it by Garrick. Why should she flatter ME? I can do nothing
for her. Let her carry her praise to a better market. (Then turning to
Mrs. Knowles.) You, Madam, have been flattering me all the evening; I
wish you would give Boswell a little now. If you knew his merit as well
as I do, you would say a great deal; he is the best travelling companion
in the world.'
Somebody mentioned the Reverend Mr. Mason's prosecution of Mr. Murray,
the bookseller, for having inserted in a collection of Gray's Poems,
only fifty lines, of which Mr. Mason had still the exclusive property,
under the statute of Queen Anne; and that Mr. Mason had persevered,
notwithstanding his being requested to name his own terms of
compensation. Johnson signified his displeasure at Mr. Mason's conduct
very strongly; but added, by way of shewing that he was not surprized at
it, 'Mason's a Whig.' MRS. KNOWLES. (not hearing distinctly,) 'What! a
Prig, Sir?' JOHNSON. 'Worse, Madam; a Whig! But he is both.'
Of John Wesley, he said, 'He can talk well on any subject.' BOSWELL.
'Pray, Sir, what has he made of his story of a ghost?' JOHNSON. 'Why,
Sir, he believes it; but not on sufficient authority. He did not take
time enough to examine the girl. It was at Newcastle, where the ghost
was said to have appeared to a young woman several times, mentioning
something about the right to an old house, advising application to be
made to an attorney, which was done; and, at the same time, saying the
attorneys would do nothing, which proved to be the fact. "This (says
John,) is a proof that a ghost knows our thoughts." Now (laughing,) it
is not necessary to know our thoughts, to tell that an attorney will
sometimes do nothing. Charles Wesley, who is a more stationary man, does
not believe the story. I am sorry that John did not take more pains to
inquire into the evidence for it.' MISS SEWARD, (with an incredulous
smile,) 'What, Sir! about a ghost?' JOHNSON. (with solemn vehemence,)
'Yes, Madam: this is a question which, after five thousand years, is
yet undecided; a question, whether in theology or philosophy, one of the
most important that can come before the human understanding.'
Mrs. Knowles mentioned, as a proselyte to Quakerism, Miss ------,
a young lady well known to Dr. Johnson, for whom he had shewn much
affection; while she ever had, and still retained, a great respect for
him. Mrs. Knowles at the same time took an opportunity of letting him
know 'that the amiable young creature was sorry at finding that he was
offended at her leaving the Church of England and embracing a simpler
faith;' and, in the gentlest and most persuasive manner, solicited his
kind indulgence for what was sincerely a matter of conscience. JOHNSON.
(frowning very angrily,) 'Madam, she is an odious wench. She could not
have any proper conviction that it was her duty to change her religion,
which is the most important of all subjects, and should be studied with
all care, and with all the helps we can get. She knew no more of the
Church which she left, and that which she embraced, than she did of the
difference between the Copernican and Ptolemaick systems.' MRS. KNOWLES.
'She had the New Testament before her.' JOHNSON. 'Madam, she could not
understand the New Testament, the most difficult book in the world, for
which the study of a life is required.' MRS. KNOWLES. 'It is clear as to
essentials.' JOHNSON. 'But not as to controversial points. The heathens
were easily converted, because they had nothing to give up; but we ought
not, without very strong conviction indeed, to desert the religion
in which we have been educated. That is the religion given you, the
religion in which it may be said Providence has placed you. If you
live conscientiously in that religion, you may be safe. But errour is
dangerous indeed, if you err when you choose a religion for yourself.'
MRS. KNOWLES. 'Must we then go by implicit faith?' JOHNSON. 'Why,
Madam, the greatest part of our knowledge is implicit faith; and as to
religion, have we heard all that a disciple of Confucius, all that a
Mahometan, can say for himself?' He then rose again into passion, and
attacked the young proselyte in the severest terms of reproach, so that
both the ladies seemed to be much shocked.
We remained together till it was pretty late. Notwithstanding occasional
explosions of violence, we were all delighted upon the whole with
Johnson. I compared him at this time to a warm West-Indian climate,
where you have a bright sun, quick vegetation, luxuriant foliage,
luscious fruits; but where the same heat sometimes produces thunder,
lightning, earthquakes, in a terrible degree.
April 17, being Good Friday, I waited on Johnson, as usual. I observed
at breakfast that although it was a part of his abstemious discipline
on this most solemn fast, to take no milk in his tea, yet when Mrs.
Desmoulins inadvertently poured it in, he did not reject it. I talked of
the strange indecision of mind, and imbecility in the common occurrences
of life, which we may observe in some people. JOHNSON. 'Why, Sir, I am
in the habit of getting others to do things for me.' BOSWELL. 'What,
Sir! have you that weakness?' JOHNSON. 'Yes, Sir. But I always think
afterwards I should have done better for myself.'
I expressed some inclination to publish an account of my Travels
upon the continent of Europe, for which I had a variety of materials
collected. JOHNSON. 'I do not say, Sir, you may not publish your
travels; but I give you my opinion, that you would lessen yourself
by it. What can you tell of countries so well known as those upon the
continent of Europe, which you have visited?' BOSWELL. 'But I can
give an entertaining narrative, with many incidents, anecdotes, jeux
d'esprit, and remarks, so as to make very pleasant reading.' JOHNSON.
'Why, Sir, most modern travellers in Europe who have published their
travels, have been laughed at: I would not have you added to the number.
The world is now not contented to be merely entertained by a traveller's
narrative; they want to learn something. Now some of my friends asked
me, why I did not give some account of my travels in France. The reason
is plain; intelligent readers had seen more of France than I had. YOU
might have liked my travels in France, and THE CLUB might have liked
them; but, upon the whole, there would have been more ridicule than good
produced by them.' BOSWELL. 'I cannot agree with you, Sir. People would
like to read what you say of any thing. Suppose a face has been painted
by fifty painters before; still we love to see it done by Sir Joshua.'
JOHNSON. 'True, Sir, but Sir Joshua cannot paint a face when he has
not time to look on it.' BOSWELL. 'Sir, a sketch of any sort by him is
valuable. And, Sir, to talk to you in your own style (raising my voice,
and shaking my head,) you SHOULD have given us your travels in France. I
am SURE I am right, and THERE'S AN END ON'T.'
I said to him that it was certainly true, as my friend Dempster had
observed in his letter to me upon the subject, that a great part of what
was in his Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland had been in his
mind before he left London. JOHNSON. 'Why yes, Sir, the topicks were;
and books of travels will be good in proportion to what a man has
previously in his mind; his knowing what to observe; his power of
contrasting one mode of life with another. As the Spanish proverb says,
"He, who would bring home the wealth of the Indies, must carry the
wealth of the Indies with him." So it is in travelling; a man must carry
knowledge with him, if he would bring home knowledge.' BOSWELL. 'The
proverb, I suppose, Sir, means, he must carry a large stock with him to
trade with.' JOHNSON. 'Yes, Sir.'
It was a delightful day: as we walked to St. Clement's church, I again
remarked that Fleet-street was the most cheerful scene in the world.
'Fleet-street (said I,) is in my mind more delightful than Tempe.'
JOHNSON. 'Ay, Sir; but let it be compared with Mull.'
There was a very numerous congregation to-day at St. Clement's church,
which Dr. Johnson said he observed with pleasure.
And now I am to give a pretty full account of one of the most curious
incidents in Johnson's life, of which he himself has made the following
minute on this day: 'In my return from church, I was accosted by
Edwards, an old fellow-collegian, who had not seen me since 1729. He
knew me, and asked if I remembered one Edwards; I did not at first
recollect the name, but gradually as we walked along, recovered it, and
told him a conversation that had passed at an ale-house between us. My
purpose is to continue our acquaintance.'
It was in Butcher-row that this meeting happened. Mr. Edwards, who was
a decent-looking elderly man in grey clothes, and a wig of many curls,
accosted Johnson with familiar confidence, knowing who he was, while
Johnson returned his salutation with a courteous formality, as to a