66 66 66 "mifplaces every thing. He difputes with heat "indifcriminately, mindlefs of the rank, cha"racter, and fituation of thofe with whom he difputes. Abfolutely ignorant of the feveral "gradations of familiarity and refpect, he is exactly the fame to his fuperiors, his equals, and his inferiors; and therefore, by a neceffary confequence, is abfurd to two of the "three. Is it poffible to love fuch a man? "No. The utmost I can do for him is, to "confider him a refpectable Hottentot." Such was the idea entertained by Lord Chesterfield. After the incident of Colley Cibber, Johnson never repeated his vifits. In his high and decifive tone, he has been often heard to say, "Lord Chesterfield is a Wit among Lords, "and a Lord among Wits." In the course of the year 1747, Garrick, in conjunction with Lacy, became patentee of Drury-lane Playhoufe. For the opening of the theatre, at the ufual time, Johnson wrote for his friend the well-known prologue, which, to say no more of it, may at least be placed on a level with Pope's to the tragedy of Cato. The play-houfe being now under Garrick's the direction, Johnson thought the opportunity fair to think of his tragedy of Irene, which was his whole ftock on his firft arrival in town, in year 1737. That play was accordingly put into rehearsal in January 1749. As a precurfor to prepare the way, and awaken the public attention, The Vanity of Human Wishes, a Poem in Imitation of the Tenth Satire of Juvenal, by the Author of London, was published in the fame month. In the Gentleman's Magazine, for February, 1749, we find that the tragedy of Irene was acted at Drury-lane, on Monday, February the 6th, and from that time, without interruption, to Monday, February the 20th, being in all thirteen nights. Since that time it has not been exhibited on any stage. Irene may be added to fome other plays in our language, which have loft their place in the theatre, but continue to please in the closet. During the reprefentation of this piece, Johnson attended every night behind the fcenes. Conceiving that his character, as an author, required fome ornament for his perfon, he chofe, upon that occafion, to decorate himself with a handfome waistcoat, and a gold-laced hat. The late Mr. Topham Beauclerc, clerc, who had had a great deal of that humour which pleases the more for feeming undefigned, used to give a pleasant defcription of this Green-room finery, as related by the author himself; "But," faid Johnson, with great gravity, "I foon laid afide my gold-laced hat, " left it should make me proud." The amount of the three benefit nights for the tragedy of Irene, it is to be feared, was not very confiderable, as the profit, that ftimulating motive, never invited the author to another dramatic attempt. Some years afterwards, when the prefent writer was intimate with Garrick, and knew Johnfon to be in diftrefs, he asked the manager why he did not produce another tragedy for his Lichfield friend? Garrick's anfwer was remarkable: "When Johnson writes 66 tragedy, declamation roars, and paffion fleeps: "when Shakspeare wrote, he dipped his pen "in his own heart." There may, perhaps, be a degree of famenefs in this regular way of tracing an author from one work to another, and the reader may feel the effect of a tedious monotony; but in the life of Johnson there are no other land marks. He was now forty years old, and had, mixed but little with the world. He followed no profeffion, tranfacted no bufinefs, and was a ftranger to what is called a town-life. We are now arrived at the brighteft period he had hitherto known. His name broke out upon mankind with a degree of luftre that promised a triumph over all his difficulties. The Life of Savage was admired as a beautiful and inftructive piece of biography. The two Imitations of Juvenal were thought to rival even the excellence of Pope; and the tragedy of Irene, though uninteresting on the ftage, was univerfally admired in the closet, for the propriety of the fentiments, the richness of the language, and the general harmony of the whole compofition. His fame was widely diffused; and he had made his agreement with the bookfellers for his English Dictionary at the fum of fifteen hundred guineas; part of which was to be, from time to time, advanced in proportion to the progrefs of the work. This was a certain fund for his fupport, without being obliged to write fugitive pieces for the petty fupplies of the day. Accordingly we find that, in 1749, he established a club, confifting of ten in num ber, ber, at Horfeman's, in Ivy-lane, on every Tuesday evening. This is the first scene of focial life to which Johnson can be traced out of his own house. The members of this little fociety were, Samuel Johnson; Dr. Salter (father of the late Mafter of the Charterhouse); Dr. Hawkefworth; Mr. Ryland, a merchant; Mr. Payne, a bookfeller, in Paternofter-row; Mr. Samuel Dyer, a learned young man; Dr. William M'Ghie, a Scotch phyfician; Dr. Edmund Barker, a young physician; Dr. Bathurst, another young phyfician; and Sir John Hawkins. This lift is given by Sir John, as it fhould feem, with no other view than to draw a spiteful and malevolent character of almost every one of them. Mr. Dyer, whom Sir John fays he loved with the affection of a brother, meets with the harfheft treatment, because it was his maxim, that to live in peace with mankind, and in a temper to do good offices, was the most effential part of our duty. That notion of moral goodness gave umbrage to Sir John Hawkins, and drew down upon the memory of his friend the bittereft imputations. Mr. Dyer, however, was admired and loved through life. He was a |