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moral science, his excellence is unrivalled. His acute penetration was conftantly alive to" catch the manners living as they rife," and but few follies or peculiarities could escape his observation.

The habitual weakneffes of his mind form a ftriking and melancholy contraft to the vigour of his understanding. His opinions were tainted with prejudices almost too coarfe and childish for the vulgar to imbibe. His attachment to the university of Oxford, to which in his youth he owed no great obligations, led him unjustly to depreciate the merit of every person who had ftudied at that of Cambridge. His averfion to Whigs, Diffenters, and Presbyterians, and his diflike to Scotland, and many more extravagancies of opinion, that it would be painful to enumerate, inflamed his converfation, and influenced his conduct. He was fo prone to fuperftition as

to make it a rule that a particular foot should conftantly make the first actual movement, when he came clofe to the threshold of any door or paffage, which he was about to enter, or to quit. So deeply was he infected upon this fubject, that Mr.

Bofwell relates that he has often feen him

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when he had neglected or gone wrong in this fort of magical movement, go back again, put himself in a proper posture to begin the ceremony, and having gone through it, break from his abftraction, walk brifkly on, and join his companion." He took off his hat in token of reverence, when he approached the places on which Popish churches had formerly stood; and bowed before the monaftic veftiges. He was folicitous to give authenticity to stories of apparitions, and eager to credit the exiftence of a second-fight, while he appeared fcrupulous and fceptical as to particular facts. These mental diftempers were

the offspring of his melancholic temperament, and were fostered by folitary contemplation, till they had laid fetters upon the imagination too ftrong for reason to burst through. We fee it exerted in different circumstances, and expanding its gloomy influence, till at last it terminated little fhort of infanity. To this state we must attribute his mentioning fecret tranfgreffions, his conftant fear of death, and his religious terrors, not very confiftent with his ftrength of mind, or his conviction of the goodnefs of God. This, at leaft, seems to have been his own opinion of the progress of these diseases, as appears from his history of the Mad Aftronomer in Raffelas, the defcription of whofe mind he seems to have intended as a representation of his own.

But let us turn from these foibles and fingularities, which fhow him weaker than the generality of his fellow men, and point

to those perfections of mind, which prove him to have been of a rank fo much above

them.

As an author, Johnson has distinguished himself as a philologist, a biographer, a critic, a moralift, a novelist, a political writer, and a poet.

On his Dictionary of the English Language, it is unneceffary to enlarge. It is in every body's hands; its utility is universally acknowledged; and its popularity is its beft eulogium. The etymologies, though they exhibit learning and judgment, are not entitled to unqualified praife. The definitions exhibit astonishing proofs of acutenefs of intellect, and precision of language. A few of them must be admitted to be erroneous. Thus, Windward and Leeward, though directly of oppofite meaning, are defined identically the fame way. The definition of Net-work has been often quoted with sportive malignity, as obfcuring

a thing in itself very plain. His introducing his own opinions, and even prejudices, under general definitions of words, as Tory, Whig, Penfion, Oats, Excife, and a few more, must be placed to the account of capricious and humourous indulgence. To his lift of technical and provincial words, nine thousand have been added by Mr. Herbert Croft, in his Dictionary of the English Language;" the publication of which is delayed for want of fuitable encourage

ment.

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As a biographer, his merit is of the higheft kind. His narration in general is vigorous, connected, and perfpicuous; and his reflections numerous, appofite, and moral. But it must be owned that he neither dwells with pleasure or fuccefs upon thofe minuter anecdotes of life which oftener fhow the genuine man, than actions of greater importance. Sometimes, alfo, his colourings receive a tinge from preju

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