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portunity of entertaining Johnson for a day or two at Wickham, when its Lord was abfent. One night, pretty late, Mr. Morgan and he had a dispute in which Johnfon would not give up, though he had the wrong fide, and in fhort both kept the field. Next morning, when they met in the breakfafting-room, Dr. J. with great candour, accofted Mr. Morgan thus: "Sir, I have been thinking on our difpute last night-You were in the right."

Sir Joshua Reynolds once obferved to him, that he had talked above the capacity of fome people with whom they had been in company together. "No matter, Sir (faid Johnson), they confider it as a compliment to be talked to as if they were wifer than they are."

"There is nothing more likely to betray a man into abfurdity than condefcenfion; when he feems to fuppofe his understanding too powerful for his company."

"No man (he ufed to fay) fpeaks concerning another, even fuppofing it to be in his praife, if he thinks he does not hear him, exactly. as he would, if he thought he was within hearing."

"Never (faid he) fpeak of a man in his own prefence. It is always indelicate, and may be offenfive,”

Johnfon

Johnfon could not brook appearing to be worfted in argument, even when, to fhow the force and dexterity of his talents, he had taken the wrong fide. When, therefore, he perceived that his opponent gained ground, he had recourfe to fome fudden mode of robuft fophiftry. Once when Mr. B. was preffing upon him with vifible advantage, he stopped him thus: My dear B. let's have no more of this; you'll make nothing of it. I'd rather have you whistle a Scotch tune."

Care, however, must be taken to diftinguish between Johnfon when he "talked for victory," and Johnson when he had no defire but to inform and illuftrate. "One of his principal talents (fays an eminent friend of his) was fhown in maintaining the wrong fide of an argument, and in a splendid perverfion of the truth. If you could contrive to have his fair opinion on a fubject, and without any bias from perfonal prejudice, or from a wish to be victorious in argument, it was wisdom itself, not only convincing, but overpowering."

He had, however, all his life habituated himfelf to confider conversation as a trial of intellectual vigour and fkill; and to this may perhaps be afcribed that unexampled richnefs and brilliancy which appeared in his own,

As

As a proof at once of his eagerness for colloquial diftinction, and his high notion of this eminent friend, he once. addreffed him thus: « We now have been feveral hours together, and you have faid but one thing for which I envied you."

He difliked much all fpeculative defponding confiderations, which tended to difcourage men from diligence and exertion. He was in this like Dr. Shaw, the great traveller, who used to fay, "I hate a cui bono man." Upon being afked by a friend what he should think of a man who was apt to lay non eft tanti ? "That he's a ftupid fellow, Sir (anfwered Johnfon). What would these tanti men be doing the while ?" When one, in a low-fpirited fit, was talking to him with indifference of the purfuits which generally engage us in a courfe of action, and inquiring a reafon for taking fo much trouble "Sir, (faid he in an animated tone) it is driving on the fyftem of life."

Of his fellow collegian Mr. Edwards, with whom he had accidentally met after many years feparation, he faid, "Here is a man who has paffed through life without experience: yet I would rather have him with me than a more fenfible man who will not talk readily. This man is always willing to fay what he has to fay." Yet (fays Mr. B.) Dr. J. had himfelf

himself by no means that willingness which he praised fo much and fo-juftly; for who has not felt the painful effect of the dreary void, when there is a total filence in a company for any length of time; or, which is as bad, or perhaps worse, when the converfation is with difficulty kept up by a perpetual effort?

He related, that he had once in a dream a conteft of wit with fome other person, and that he was very much mortified by imagining that his opponent had the better of him. "Now (faid he) one may mark. here the effect of fleep in weakening the power of reflection; for had not my judgment failed me, I fhould have feen, that the wit of this fuppofed antagonist, by whofe fuperiority I felt myfelf depreffed, was] as much furnished by me, as that which I thought I had been uttering in my own character."

Of a certain player he remarked, that his converfation ufually threatened and announced more than it performed; that he fed you with a continual renovation of hope, to end in a conftant fucceffion of disappointment.

When exasperated by contradiction, he was apt to treat his opponents with too much acrimony; as," Sir, you don't fee your way | through that queftion :"-" Sir, you talk the language of ignorance." On its being observed

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to him, that a certain gentleman had remained filent the whole evening in the midst of a very brilliant and learned fociety, "Sir (faid he), the converfation overflowed and drowned him."

His philofophy, though auftere and folemn, was by no means morofe and cynical, and never blunted the laudable fenfibilities of his character, or exempted him from the influence of the tender paffions. Want of tenderness, he always alledged, was want of parts, and was no less a proof of ftupidity than depravity.*

Of Goldfiith he faid, "He is fo much afraid of being unnoticed, that he often talks merely left you fhould forget that he is in company.-B. "Yes, he ftands forward."-J. "True, Sir; but if a man is to ftand forward, he should wish to do it not in an aukward pofture, not in rags, not fo as that he shall only be expofed to ridicule."-B. "For my part, I like very well to hear honest Goldfmith talk away carelessly."-J. "Why yos, Sir; but he fhould not like to hear himself."

At another time he faid, "Goldsmith fhould not be for ever attempting to fhine in converfation he has not temper for it; he is fo much mortified when he fails. A game of jokes is compofed partly of fkill, partly of chance; a

man