but Mr. Bofwell ftates, upon Johnson's own authority, that he compofed fortyeight of the prefent octavo pages at a fitting, but that he fat up all night. It came out in February, from the fhop of Roberts, who, in April following, republished his Life of Barettier, in a separate pamphlet, It was no fooner published than the following liberal praife was given to it by Fielding, in " The Champion," which was copied into the "Gentleman's Magazine" for April, and confirmed by the approbation of the public.

"This pamphlet is, without flattery to its author, as juft and well-written a piece of its kind as I ever faw. It is certainly penned with equal accuracy and fpirit, of which I am so much the better judge, as I knew many of the facts to be strictly true, and very fairly related. It is a very amufing, and withal a very inftructive and valuable performance. The author's ob

fervations are short, fignificant, and just, as his narrative is remarkably fmooth, and well difpofed. His reflections open to all the receffes of the human heart; and, in a word, a more just or pleasant, a more engaging, or a more inftructive treatise on all the excellencies and defects of human nature, is fcarce to be found in our own, or perhaps any other language."

Johnson had now lived nearly half his days, without friends or lucrative profeffion; he had toiled and laboured, yet ftill, as he himself expreffes it, was " to provide for the day that was paffing over him.” Of the profeffion of an unfriended author he faw the danger and the difficulties. Amhurft, who had conducted "The Craftfman," Savage, Boyfe, and others who had laboured in literature, without emerging from diftrefs, were recent examples, and clouded his profpect.

Sir John Hawkins has preferved a lift of literary projects, not lefs than thirty-nine articles, which he had formed in the course of his ftudies; but fuch was his want of encouragement, or the verfatility of his temper, that not one of all his schemes was ever executed.

A new edition of Shakspeare now occurred to him, and, as a prelude to it, in April 1745, he published a pamphlet, intituled Miscellaneous Obfervations on the Tragedy of Macbeth, with Remarks on Sir Thomas. Hanmer's edition of Shakspeare; to which is affixed, propofals for a new edition of ShakSpeare, with a Specimen, 8vo. The notice of the public was, however, not excited to his anonymous proposals for the execution of a task which Warburton was known to have undertaken; the project, therefore, died at that time, to revive at a future period. His pamphlet, however, was highly efteemed, and even the fupercilious War

burton, in the "Preface" to his Shakfpeare, published two years afterwards, had the candour to exempt it from his general cenfure" of those things which have been published under the titles of "Effays," "Remarks," Obfervations," &c. on "Shak

fpeare," and spoke of it as the work of "a man of great parts and genius." This obligation Johnfon always acknowledged in terms of gratitude. He praised me (faid he) at a time when praise was of value to me,"

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In the year 1746, which was marked by a civil war in Britain, when a rash attempt was made to restore the house of Stuart to the throne, his literary career appears to have been almost totally fufpended. His attachment to that unfortunate family is well known; fome máy imagine that a sympathetic anxiety impeded the exertion of his intellectual powers; but it is probable that he was, during that

time, employed upon his Shakspeare, or sketching the outlines of his Dictionary of the English Language.

Having formed and digested the plan of his great philological work, which might then be esteemed one of the defiderata of English literature, he communicated it to the public, in 1747, in a pamphlet intituled, The Plan of a Dictionary of the English Language, addressed to the Right Honourable Philip Dormer, Earl of Chesterfield, one of his Majefty's Secretaries of State. The hint of undertaking this work is faid to have been first suggested to Johnson by Dodsley, who contracted with him for the execution of it in conjunction with Mr. Charles Hitch, Mr. Andrew Millar, the two Meffrs. Longman, and the two Meffrs. Knapton. The price ftipulated was 15751.

The Plan has not only the fubftantial merit of comprehenfion, perfpicuity, and precifion, but the language of it is unex