ADAM SMITH. 107 



criticism on Johnson's Dictionary. Allowing full praise to 

 the merits of that important work, he yet very clearly shewed 

 the want of strict philosophical principle with which it is 

 justly chargeable, the different senses of words being rarely 

 arranged in classes, or the particular modifications of 

 each signification under the more general, and as it were 

 leading or prevailing sense, and words apparently syno- 

 nymous, being very often distinguished with little care. 

 He illustrates his remarks by examining the words, but 

 and humour, as given by Johnson, and by giving them on 

 his own more systematic plan. The article is masterly 

 in all respects, and carries conviction to every attentive 

 reader. The specimen is as well executed as possible, 

 and makes it a matter of regret, not indeed that the 

 author should have confined his own labours as a lexi- 

 cographer to pointing out the way instead of walking in 

 it himself, but that his plan should not have been adopted 

 and executed by others whose labour might have been 

 better spared for so useful a work. This service to letters, 

 indeed to science itself, still remains to be rendered, and 

 if individuals should be scared from so toilsome an 

 undertaking, it seems well suited to the joint exertions of 

 some literary society. The zeal and activity of Voltaire, 

 it may be mentioned, broke out almost on his death-bed, 

 in persuading his colleagues of the Academy to accomplish 

 a work of this kind, in some sort fellow to the one I 

 speak of ; for it was to remodel their Dictionary, giving 

 the historical progress of the meaning attached to the 

 words, with quotations from contemporary writers, and 

 each Academician was to have taken a letter ; he had 

 begun himself to write upon the letter A, with his wonted 

 industry, when that hand arrested him, to which the 



