LEAVES THEY HAVE TOUCHED. 331 



Comitis, 1652, bears on a fly-leaf the autograph, " R. Heber," which 

 is held to be that of Reginald, and not Richard, Heber ; as it appears 

 not to have been the habit of the latter to inscribe his name in his 

 books. This volume is additionally of interest for having likewise 

 the autograph of " H. Grove," who was one of the collahorateurs of 

 Addison in the production of The Spectator. He was the writer of 

 Numbers 588, 601, 626 and 635, in that series of papers. From 

 some contemporary verses on the death of Mr. Grove, who was a 

 Presbyterian minister, I quote the following : 



" If every grace that e'er the good adorn'd, 

 If every science that the wisest learn'd, 

 Could merit thy regard and ask thy love, 

 Behold them join'd, and weep them lost, in Grove." 



I now produce some autographic manuscript which brings us nearer 

 still to Dr. Samuel Johnson than we were brought above. Though 

 not penned by the Doctor, it was written by a hand that had grasped 

 his, viz., by the hand of Dr. Samuel Pan\ We know that intellec- 

 tual encounters took place between Parr and Johnson. Thus Boswell 

 records, in the year 1780, that "having spent an evening at Mr. 

 Langton's with the Rev. Dr. Parr, he (Dr. Johnson) was much pleased 

 with the conversation of that learned gentleman ; and after he was 

 gone, said to Mr. Langton : " Sir, I am obliged to you for having 

 asked me this evening. Parr is a fair man. I do not know when I 

 have had an occasion of such free controversy. It is remarkable how 

 much of a man's life may pass without meeting with any instance of 

 this kind of open discussion." During a discussion between these 

 two formidable personages, one of them, Dr. Johnson, stamped his 

 foot. Immediately, the other. Dr. Parr, stamped his foot. " Why 

 do you stamp your foot, Dr. Parr f " Because, Dr. Johnson," replied 

 the other, " I would not have you think that you have the advantage 

 of me by even a single stamp of the foot." Society was in a curious 

 state when such phenomena as Drs. Johnson and Parr were possible. 

 The general range of thought and experience was narrow ; and culture 

 was one-sided. Men of unusual capacity and vigour and keenness of 

 view were thus tempted to be dogmatical ; and the deference of infe- 

 riors readily bransformed them into despots. English communities 

 cannot evolve such characters now, nor would they endure them. 

 There are in these days scores of persons scattered about quite the 

 equal of Johnson and Parr in strong sense, and power and decision 

 2 



