fjgi. A^TECDOTES OF THE LATE DR. SMITH. 3 



** upon his knees behind a chair, repeat the Lord's 

 * Prayer, and then refame his feat at table. — He has 

 '* played this freak over and over, perhaps five or fix 

 " times in the courfe of an evening. It is not hypo- 

 " crify, but madnefs. Though an honell fort of man 

 " himfelf, he is always patroniling fcoundrels. Sa- 

 *' "vage, for inftance, whom he fo loudly praifes, was 

 *' but a worthlefs fellow ; his penfion of fifty pounds 

 *' never lafted him longer than a few days. As a 

 " fample of his oeconomy, you may take a clrcum- 

 " ftance, that Johnfon himfelf once told me. It was, 

 ** at that period, falhionable to wear fcarlet cloaks trim» 

 ** med with gold lace ; and the Doftor met him one 

 ^* day, juft after he had got his penfion, with one of 

 ■*' thefe cloaks upon his back, while, at the fame time, 

 " his naked toes vw;re fticlcing through his ihoes." 



He was no admirer of the Rambler or the Idler, and 

 hinted, that he had never been able to read them. — He 

 was averfe to the contell with America, yet he fpoke 

 highly of Johnfon's political pamphlets : But, above 

 all, be was charmed with that refpeftmg Falkland's 

 Illands, as it difplayed, in fuch forcible language, the 

 madnefs of modern wars. 



I inquired his opmion of the late Dr. Campbell, au- 

 thor of the Political Survey of Great Britain. He told 

 me, that he never had been above once in his compa- 

 ny ; that the Doitor was a voluminous writer, and one 

 of thofe* authors who write from one end of the week 

 to the other, without interruption. A gentleman, who 

 happened to dine with Dr. Campbell in the houfe of a 

 common acquaintance, remarked, that he would be glad to 

 poflTefs a complete fet of the Doctor's works. Thelnntwas 

 not lo(t ; for next morning he was furprifedat the appear- 

 ance of a cart before his door. This cart was loaded with 

 the books he had alked for ; — the driver's bill amounted 

 to feventjf pounds .' As Dr. Campbell compofed a part 

 of the iiiiivevfal hiftofy, and of the Biographia Biitan- 



a, we may fuppofe, that thefe two ponderous articles 



A 2 



