JOHNSON. 



203 



into most, if not into all the languages of modem Eu- 

 rope. Such, at this period, was the state of his finan- 

 ces, that he was obliged to break up house-keeping, 

 and retire to chambers, where he lived, says his bio- 

 grapher, Mr. Murphy, in poverty, total idleness, and 

 the pride of literature. From this unhappy state, he 

 was at length rescued by the grant of a pension of 

 300 per annum from his Majesty, in 1 "62, during 

 the ministry of Lord Bute. When the liberal offer was 

 made, a short struggle of repugnance, to accept of a 

 favour from the hoiue of Hanover, and become that 

 character " a pensioner," on which he had bestowed 

 a sarcastic definition in hit Dictionary, was overcome 

 by a tense of the s-.iSstanti.il benefit conferred by it 

 From the d;itcs of Johnson's political writings, it is 

 pretty clear that hi* pen-ion was meant as a literary 

 reward, and not ai a political hire. That it might af- 

 terwards have influenced him to favour the court by 

 the influence of personal gratitude, is not impossible; 

 but there i no reason to believe that it ever made him 

 prostitute his opinions. These were innately Tory ; 

 and it is e-isy to conceive how his loyalty, alter the l,i-t 

 hopes of the Jacobite* had expired, might revert with 

 sincere bias to the throne, which had become legiti- 

 mated by possession. 



In the same year that he received his pension, he ac- 

 companied Sir Joshua Reynolds in a visit which he 

 paid to his native county, Devon-hire ; was much de- 

 lighted with his jaunt, and declared that he had cle- 

 n . iil I'M -m it a great accession of new ideas. He was 

 entertained at the *at* of several noblemen and gentle- 

 men in the We*t of England , but the greatest pert of 

 ne was passed at I'l) mouth, where, according to 

 Mr I Unwell, the magnificence of the navy, the ship, 

 building, and all its circunulancca, afforded him a grand 

 subject of contemplation. While at Plymouth, he saw 

 many of its inhabitants, and was not sparing of his 

 lining convocation It was here that he mad* 

 .lial ignorance, pure ignorance, was 

 the cau-e of a wrong definition in hii Dictionary of the 

 word pniterm, to the no small surprise of the lady who 

 put the qiietion t<> him. 



Hi -. -....-. a house in Johnson's Court, Fleet Street, 

 and allotted an apartment in it for Mr*. William*. 



A fondneu for liberal and cultivated conversation, 

 was one of Johnson's strongest propensities ; and be 

 had sought it, as we have before mentioned, in a club 

 of literary men, soon alter bi* settling in the metropolis. 

 His advanced refutation and amended circumstance*, 

 now enabled him to indulge it in a higher style ; and 

 he became member of a weekly club in (ieranl Street, 

 composed of persons eminent for various talents, and 

 ied situations in society. He also 



acqu d source of enjoyment, both social 



and intellectual, by hi> introduction, in 1765, to the 

 acquaintance of Mr. Thru .lent brewer, whose 



lady possessed a lively mind, highly accomplished by 

 an enlarged education. In their hospitable retreat at 

 Streatham, Johnson was for a considerable time do- 

 mestioate. _ every attention that could flatter 



his pride, anil accommodated with every convenience 

 and gratification that wealth could be*tow. His shat- 

 tered spirits were r< .ml his habits of life were 

 rendered more regular in this sgreeable residence. 



In the October of this year, he at length gave to the 

 world bis edition of Shakespeare. His biographer Bos- 

 well's eulogy of this edition we forbear to quote, as we 

 cannot afree with it. Un<loul>trfl!y there is much of 

 Johnson's manliness and perspicuity shewn, both in the 

 notes and in the preface , but the latter is written with 

 .5 



the judgment of one who bad reflected on the opinions Johnson, 

 of others, rather than felt deep impressions of his own samucL 

 respecting Shakespeare ; and there is little or no depth ""^ "V 

 of knowledge in the literature of Shakespeare's age. 

 The edition, upon the whole, disappointed expectation. 

 Its most valuable part is the summary views of the re- 

 spective plays. In 1766 he furnished the preface, and 

 some of the pieces, to a volume of poetical miscellanies 

 by Mrs. Anna Williams. This lady was still an inmate 

 in his house, and was indeed absolute mistress. Al- 

 though her temper was far from pleasant^ she had gain- 

 ed an ascendancy over him which she often maintain- 

 ed with peevishness ; but he forgot her frett'iilness in 

 her distresses. His house was filled with other depen- 

 dants besides Mrs. Williams, whose perverse tempers 

 frequently drove him out of it ; yet nothing that he suf- 

 fered from them could induce him to relieve himself at 

 their expence. His noble expression was, " If I dis- 

 miss them, who will receive them?" In 1767, he had 

 the honour to be admitted to a personal interview with 

 his Majesty in the library of the Queen's palace. Of 

 the conversation which passed, Mr. Boswell has given 

 a \iry interesting and authentic account. On the in- 

 stitution of the Koyal Academy of Arts, Johnson was 

 apjMiintcd Professor in Ancient Literature, and proba- 

 bly at one time nad some design of delivering a course 

 of lectures ; but, if he ever had tlie intention, he never 

 fulfilled it In 1770 he published a political pamphlet, 

 entitled The False Alarm, intended to justify the con- 

 duct of ministry, and their majority in the House of 

 Commons, for having virtually assumed it as an axiom, 

 that the expulsion of a member of parliament was equi- 

 valent to exclusion, and thus having declared Colonel 

 I.uttrrcl to be duly elected for the county of Middle- 

 sex, notwithstanding Mr. Wilkes had a great majority 

 of votes. This being justly considered as a great vio- 

 lation of the right of election, an alarm for the consti- 

 tution extended itself all over the kingdom. To prove 

 this alarm to be false, was the pur|K>*e of Johnson's 

 pamphlet ; but even his great powers were inadequate 

 to cope with constitutional truth and reason, and his 

 arguments failed of effect. The House of Commons 

 were ultimately obliged to retrace their steps, and to 

 expunge the offensive resolution from their journals. 

 That the House of Commons might have expelled Mr 

 Wilkes repeatedly, and as often as* he should In- ie- 

 cfaosen, was not denied; but incapacitation cannot be 

 pronounced but by an act of the whole legislature. It 

 was wonderful to see bow a prejudice in favour of go- 

 vernment in genera), and an aversion to popular cla- 

 mour, could blind and contract such an understanding 

 as Johnson's in this particular case. That it endea- 

 voured to infuse a narcotic indifference as to public 

 concerns into the minds of the people, and that it broke 

 sometimes into an extreme coarseness of contemptuous 

 abuse, is acknowledged even by his most partial bio- 

 grapher. 



( hi the subject of Johnson's 'political opinions, it 

 would be unjust to the small degree of liberality that 

 is to be found in them, to omit the notice of his good 

 wishes in favour of Catholic emancipation. Without 

 inquiring too strictly how far his Toryism might have 

 given him this bias as much as his sense of justice, it 

 should be recorded to his honour, that his views on this 

 subject were humane and liberal, and anticipated those 

 which are gradually gaining ground against the rece- 

 ding prejudices of modern barbarism. He had great 

 compassion, says Mr. Boswell, for the miseries and dis- 

 tresses of the Irish nation, particularly the Papists, and 

 severely reprobated the barbarous debilitating policy 



