1773.

readers may perhaps be defirous to know our bill of fare. Foote, I remember, Atat. 64. in allufion to Francis, the negro, was willing to fuppofe that our repast was black broth. But the fact was, that we had a very good soup, a boiled leg of lamb and fpinach, a veal pye, and a rice pudding.

Of Dr. John Campbell, the authour, he faid, "He is a very inquifitive and a very able man, and a man of good religious principles, though I am afraid he has been deficient in practice. Campbell is radically right; and we may hope, that in time there will be good practice."

He owned that he thought Hawkefworth was one of his imitators, but he did not think Goldfmith was. Goldfmith, he faid, had great merit. BosWELL. "But, Sir, he is much indebted to you for his getting so high in the publick eftimation." JOHNSON. "Why, Sir, he has, perhaps, got fooner to it by his intimacy with me."

Goldsmith, though his vanity often excited him to occafional competition,, had a very high regard for Johnson, which he at this time expreffed in the strongest manner in the Dedication of his comedy, entitled, "She ftoops to conquer 4."

Johnson obferved, that there were very few books printed in Scotland before the Union. He had feen a complete collection of them in the poffeffion of the Honourable Archibald Campbell, a nonjuring Bishop. I wish this collection had been kept entire. Many of them are in the library of the Faculty of Advocates at Edinburgh. I told Dr. Johnfon that I had fome intention to write the life of the learned and worthy Thomas Ruddiman. He faid, "I fhould take pleasure in helping you to do honour to him. But his farewell letter to the Faculty of Advocates, when he refigned the office of their Librarian, fhould have been in Latin.”

I put a queftion to him upon a fact in common life, which he could not anfwer, nor have I found any one else who could. What is the reason that women fervants, though obliged to be at the expence of purchafing their own clothes, have much lower wages than men servants, to whom a great proportion of that article is furnished, and when in fact our female house fervants work much harder than the male?

4By infcribing this flight performance to you, I do not mean fo much to compliment you, as myfelf. It may do me fome honour to inform the publick, that I have lived many years in intimacy with you. It may ferve the interests of mankind also to inform them, that the greatest wit may be found in a character, without impairing the most unaffected piety."

5 See an account of this learned and refpectable gentleman, and of his curious work on the Middle State," Journal of a Tour to the Hebrides," 3d edit. p. 371.

He told me, that he had twelve or fourteen times attempted to keep a 1773. journal of his life, but never could perfevere. He advised me to do it. "The Etat. 64. great thing to be recorded, (faid he,) is the state of your own mind; and you should write down every thing that you remember, for you cannot judge at first what is good or bad; and write immediately while the impreffion is fresh, for it will not be the fame a week afterwards."

I again folicited him to communicate to me the particulars of his early years. He said, "You shall have them all for two-pence. I hope you fhall know a great deal more of me before you write my Life." He mentioned to me this day many circumstances, which I wrote down when I went home, and have interwoven in the former part of this narrative.

On Tuesday, April 13, he and Dr. Goldfmith and I dined at General Oglethorpe's. Goldsmith expatiated on the common topick, that the race of our people was degenerated, and that this was owing to luxury. JOHNSON. "Sir, in the first place, I doubt the fact. I believe there are as many tall men in England now, as ever there were. But, fecondly,, fuppofing the stature of our people to be diminished, that is not owing to luxury; for, Sir, confider to how very small a proportion of our people luxury can reach. Our foldiery, furely, are not luxurious, who live on fix-pence a day; and the fame remark will apply to almost all the other claffes. Luxury, fo far as it reaches the poor, will do good to the race of people: it will strengthen and multiply them. Sir, no nation was ever hurt by luxury; for, as I faid before, it can reach but to a very few. few. I admit that the great increase of commerce and manufactures hurts the military spirit of a people; because it produces a competition for fomething else than martial honours,-a competition for riches. It alfo hurts the bodies of the people; for you will obferve, there is no man who works at any particular trade, but you may know him from his appearance to do fo. One part or other of his body being more ufed than the rest, he is in some degree deformed: but, Sir, that is not luxury. A tailor fits cross-legged; but that is not luxury." GOLDSMITH. "Come, you're just going to the fame place by another road." JOHNSON. "Nay, Sir, I fay that is not luxury. Let us take a walk from Charing-crofs to Whitechapel, through, I fuppofe, the greatest series of fhops in the world, what is there in any of these shops, (if you except gin-fhops,) that can do any human being any harm?" GOLDSMITH. "Well, Sir, I'll accept your challenge. The very next shop to Northumberland-house is a pickle-fhop." JOHNSON. "Well, Sir: do we not know that a maid can in one afternoon make pickles fufficient to ferve a whole family for a year? nay, that five pickle-fhops can ferve all the kingdom? Befides, Eee 2 Sir,

1773.

Sir, there is no harm done to any body by the making of pickles, or the eat-
Etat. 64 ing of pickles."

We drank tea with the ladies; and Goldfmith fung Tony Lumpkin's fong
in his comedy," She stoops to conquer," and a very pretty one, to an Irish
tune, which he had defigned for Mifs Hardcastle; but as Mrs. Bulkeley, who
played the part, could not fing, it was left out.
could not fing, it was left out. He afterwards wrote it down
for me, by which means it was preferved, and now appears amongst his poems.
Dr. Johnson, in his way home, ftopt at my lodgings in Piccadilly, and fat
with me, drinking tea a fecond time, till a late hour.

I told him that Mrs. Macaulay faid, fhe wondered how he could reconcile
his political principles with his moral; his notions of inequality and fubordi-
nation with wishing well to the happiness of all mankind, who might live fo
agreeably, had they all their portions of land, and none to domineer over
another. JOHNSON. "Why, Sir, I reconcile my principles very well, because
mankind are happier in a state of inequality and fubordination. Were they to
be in this pretty ftate of equality, they would foon degenerate into brutes ;-
they would become Monboddo's nation;—their tails would grow. Sir, all
would be lofers, were all to work to all:—they would have no intellectual
improvement. All intellectual improvement arifes from leifure: all leisure
arifes from one working for another."

Talking of the family of Stuart, he faid, "It should feem that the family
at prefent on the throne has now established as good a right as the former.
family, by the long confent of the people; and that to disturb this right might.
be confidered as culpable. At the fame time I own, that it is a very difficult.
question, when confidered with respect to the house of Stuart.. ́To oblige.
people to take oaths as to the difputed right, is wrong. I know not whether.
So confcientious and

I could take them: but I do not blame thofe who do."
fo delicate was he upon this fubject, which has occafioned fo much clamour.
against him..

Talking of law cafes, he faid, "The English reports, in general, are very.
poor only the half of what has been faid is taken down; and of that half,
much is mistaken. Whereas, in Scotland, the arguments on each fide are
deliberately put in writing, to be confidered by the Court.. I think a collec-
tion of your cafes upon fubjects of importance, with the opinions of the
Judges upon them, would be valuable."

On Thursday, April 15, I dined with him and Dr. Goldsmith at General Paoli's. We found here, Signor Martinelli, of Florence, authour of a History; of England in Italian, printed at London.

I spoke

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I spoke of Allan Ramfay's "Gentle Shepherd," in the Scottish dialect, as the best pastoral that had ever been written; not only abounding with beauti- Etat. 64. ful rural imagery, and just and pleasing sentiments, but being a real picture of manners; and I offered to teach Dr. Johnson to understand it. "No, Sir, (faid he,) I won't learn it. You fhall retain your fuperiority by my not knowing it."

This brought on a queftion whether one man is leffened by another's acquiring an equal degree of knowledge with him. Johnfon afferted the affirmative. I maintained that the pofition might be true in thofe kinds of knowledge which produce wisdom, power, and force, fo as to enable one man to have the government of others; but that a man is not in any degree leffened by others knowing as well as he what ends in mere pleasure :-eatingfine fruits, drinking delicious wines, reading exquifite poetry.

The General obferved, that Martinelli was a Whig. JOHNSON. "I am forry for it. It fhews the fpirit of the times: he is obliged to temporife." BOSWELL. "I rather think, Sir, that Toryifm prevails in this reign." JOHNSON. "I know not why you fhould think fo, Sir. You see your friend Lord Lyttelton, a nobleman, is obliged in his History to write the most vulgar Whiggifm.”

An animated debate took place whether Martinelli fhould continue his Hiftory of England to the present day. GOLDSMITH. "To be fure he fhould." JOHNSON. "No, Sir; he would give great offence. He would. have to tell of almost all the living great what they do not wish told." GOLDSMITH. "It may, perhaps, be neceffary for a native to be more cautious; but a foreigner who comes among us without prejudice, may be confidered as holding the place of a Judge, and may fpeak his mind freely." JOHNSON. “Sir, a foreigner, when he fends a work from the press, ought to be on his guard against catching the errour and mistaken enthusiasm of the people among whom he happens to be." GOLDSMITH. “ GOLDSMITH." Sir, he wants only to fell. his history, and tell truth; one an honest, the other a laudable motive." JOHNSON. "Sir, they are both laudable motives. It is laudable in a man to wish to live by his labours; but he should write fo as he may live by them, not fo as he may be knocked on the head. I would advise him to be at Calais. before he publishes his history of the prefent age. A foreigner who attaches himself to a political party in this country, is in the worst state that can be imagined: he is looked upon as a mere intermeddler. A native may do it from intereft." BOSWELL. "Or principle." GOLDSMITH. "There are people who tell a hundred political lies every day, and are not hurt by it. Surely,

then,

1773.

Etat. 64.

then, one may tell truth with fafety." JOHNSON. "Why, Sir, in the first place, he who tells a hundred lies has difarmed the force of his lies. But befides; a man had rather have a hundred lies told of him, than one truth which he does not wifh fhould be told." GOLDSMITH. "For my part, I'd tell truth, and fhame the devil." JOHNSON. "Yes, Sir; but the devil will be angry. I wish to shame the devil as much as you do; but I fhould choose to be out of the reach of his claws." GOLDSMITH. "His claws can do you no harm, when you have the fhield of truth."

It having been obferved that there was little hofpitality in London; JOHNSON. "Nay, Sir, any man who has a name, or who has the power of pleafing, will be very generally invited in London. The man, Sterne, I have been told, has had engagements for three months." GOLDSMITH. GOLDSMITH." And a very dull fellow." JOHNSON. "Why no, Sir."

Martinelli told us, that for feveral years he lived much with Charles Townshend, and that he ventured to tell him he was a bad joker. JOHNSON. "Why, Sir, thus much I can fay upon the subject. One day he and a few more agreed to go and dine in the country, and each of them was to bring a a friend in his carriage with him. Charles Townshend asked Fitzherbert to go with him, but told him, You must find fomebody to bring you back: I can only carry you there.' Fitzherbert did not much like this arrangement. He however confented, obferving farcaftically, It will do very well; for then the fame jokes will ferve you in returning as in going."

An eminent publick character being mentioned;-JOHNSON. "I remember being present when he fhewed himself to be fo corrupted, or at least something fo different from what I think right, as to maintain, that a member of parliament fhould go along with his party right or wrong. Now, Sir, this is fo remote from native virtue, from fcholaftick virtue, that a good man must have undergone a great change before he can reconcile himself to fuch a doctrine. It is maintaining, that you may lie to the publick; for you lie when you call that right which you think wrong, or the reverfe. A friend of ours, who is too much an echo of that gentleman, obferved, that a man who does not ftick uniformly to a party, is only waiting to be bought. Why then, faid I, he is only waiting to be what that gentleman is already.”

We talked of the King's coming to fee Goldfmith's new play." I wish he would," faid Goldsmith; adding, however, with an affected indifference, "Not that it would do me the leaft good." JOHNSON. "Well then, Sir, let us fay it would do him good, (laughing.) No, Sir, this affectation will not pafs-it is mighty idle. In fuch a ftate as ours, who would not wish to

please