His love of Literature was a passion that stuck to his last sand. Seven days before his death he wrote the following letter to his friend Mr. Nichols.

“SIR,

"The late learned Mr. Swinton of Oxford having one day remarked that one man, meaning, I suppose, no man but himself, could assign all the parts of the Ancient Universal History to their proper authors, at the request of Sir Robert Chambers, or myself, gave the account which I now transmit to you in his own hand, being willing that of so great a work the history should be known, and that each writer should receive his due proportion of praise from posterity.

"I recommend to you to preserve this scrap of literary intelligence in Mr. Swinton's own hand, or to deposit it in the Museum*, that the veracity of this account may never be doubted.

"I am, SIR,

"Your most humble servant,

" Dec. 6, 1784.

"SAM. JOHNSON."

* It is there deposited. J. N.

Mr. Swinton.

The History of the Carthaginians.

Numidians.

Mauritanians.

Gætulians.

Garamantes.

Melano Gætulians.

Nigritæ.

Cyrenaica.

Marmarica.

Regio Syrtica.

Turks, Tartars,and Moguls.
Indians.

Chinese.

The Dissertation on the peopling of Ame

rica.

The Dissertation on the Independency of the Arabs.

The Cosmogony, and a small part of the History immediately following. By M. Sale. To the Birth of Abraham. Chiefly by Mr. Shelvock.

History of the Jews, Gauls, and Spaniards. By Mr. Psalmanazar.

Xenophon's Retreat. By the same.

History of the Persians, and the Constantinopolitan Empire. By Dr. Campbell. History of the Romans. By Mr. Bower*.

On the morning of Dec. 7, Dr. Johnson requested to see Mr. Nichols. A few days before, he had borrowed some of the early volumes of the Magazine, with a professed intention to point out the pieces which he had written in that collection. The books lay on the table, with many leaves doubled down, and in particular those which contained his share in the Parliamentary De

* Before this authentic communication, Mr. Nichols had given in the volume of the Gentleman's Magazine for 1781, p. 370, the following account of the Universal History. The proposals were published October 6, and the authors of the first seven volumes were, Vol. I. Mr. Sale, translator of the Koran.

1729;

II. George Psalmanazar.

III. George Psalmanazar.

Archibald Bower.

Captain Shelvock.
Dr. Campbell.

IV. The same as vol. III.

V. Mr. Bower.

VI. Mr. Bower.

Rev. John Swinton.

VII. Mr. Swinton.

Mr. Bower.

bates.

Such was the goodness of Johnson's heart, that he then declared, that "those "debates were the only parts of his writings "which gave him any compunction: but "that at the time he wrote them he had no "conception that he was imposing upon the "world, though they were frequently writ"ten from very slender materials, and often "from none at all, the mere coinage of his "own imagination." He added, "that he never wrote any part of his work with

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equal velocity. Three columns of the "Magazine in an hour," he said, "was no 66 uncommon effort; which was faster than 66 most persons could have transcribed that quantity. In one day in particular, and "that not a very long one, he wrote twelve pages, more in quantity than ever he wrote

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66 at any other time, except in the Life of

Savage, of which forty-eight pages in octavo were the production of one long day, including a part of the night."

In the course of the conversation he asked whether any of the family of Faden the printer were living. Being told that the geographer near Charing-cross was Faden's

son,

he said, after a short pause, "I borrowed a guinea of his father near thirty years ago; "be so good as to take this, and pay it for "me."

Wishing to discharge every duty and every obligation, Johnson recollected another debt of ten pounds, which he had borrowed from his friend Mr. Hamilton, the printer, about twenty years before. He sent the money to Mr. Hamilton at his house in Bedford-row, with an apology for the length of time. The Reverend Mr. Strahan was the bearer of the message, about four or five days before Johnson breathed his last,

Mr. Sastres (whom Dr. Johnson esteemed and mentioned in his will) entered the room during his illness. Dr. Johnson, as soon as he saw him, stretched forth his hand, and in a tone of lamentation, called out, JAM MORITURUS! But the love of life was still an active principle. Feeling himself swelled with the dropsy, he conceived that, by incisions in his legs, the water might be discharged. Mr. Cruikshank apprehended that a mortification might be the consequence;