TREVELYAN, George Otto, _Life and Letters of Lord Macaulay_, 2 vols.,
London, 1877.
TWINING, Rev. Thomas, _Recreations and Studies of a Country Clergyman
of the Eighteenth Century_, London, 1882.
Twiss, Horace, _Life of Lord Chancellor Eldon_, 3 vols., London, 1844.
TYERMAN, Rev. Luke, _Life of George Whitefield_, 2 vols.,
London, 1876-7.
VICTOR, Benjamin, _Original Letters_, London, 1776.
VOLTAIRE, _Oeuvres Completes_, 66 tom., Paris, 1819-25.
WALPOLE, Horace, _Journal of the Reign of King George III_, 2 vols.,
London, 1859; _Letters_, 9 vols., London, 1861; _Memoirs of the
Reign of George II_, 3 vols., London, 1846; _Memoirs of the Reign of
King George III_, 4 vols., London, 1845.
WALTON, Izaak, _Lives_, London, 1838.
WARBURTON, William, _Divine Legation of Moses_, 5 vols., London, 1765.
WARNER, Rebecca, _Original Letters_, Bath and London, 1817.
WARNER, Rev. Richard, _A Tour through the Northern Counties of England_,
Bath, 1802.
WARTON, Dr. Joseph, _Essay on Pope_, London, vol. i. 1772; vol. ii. 1782;
_Life_: See under WOOLL.
WARTON, Rev. Thomas, _Poetical Works_, 2 vols., Oxford, 1802.
WATSON, Richard, Bishop of Llandaff, _A Letter to the Archbishop of
Canterbury_, London, 1783.
WESLEY, John, _Journals_, 4 vols., London, 1827; _Life_: See under
SOUTHEY.
_Westminster Abbey, with other Poems_, 1813.
WHYTE, Samuel, _Miscellanea Nova_, Dublin, 1800.
WILKES, John, _Correspondence_. See ALMON, John.
WILLIAMS, Anna, _Miscellanies_, London, 1766.
WILLIAMS, Sir Charles Hanbury, _Odes_, London, 1775.
WINDHAM, William, Right Hon., _Diary_, London, 1866.
WOOD, Robert, _The Ruins of Palmyra_, London, 1753; _The Ruins of
Balbec_, London, 1757.
WOOLL, John, D.D., _Biographical Memoirs of Dr. Joseph Warton_, 1 vol.
(vol. ii. never published), London, 1806.
WORDSWORTH, William, _Works_, 6 vols., London, 1857.
WRAXALL, Sir Nathaniel William, Bart., _Historical Memoirs of My Own
Time_, 2 vols., London, 1815; also edited by H.B. Wheatley, 5
vols., London, 1884.
YOUNG, Arthur, _Six Months' Tour through the North of England_, 4 vols.,
London, 1770-1.
ADDENDA
Last summer Messrs. Sotheby and Wilkinson sold some very interesting
autograph letters written by Johnson to William Strahan, the printer.
I was fortunate enough to find that the purchasers, with but one
exception, were mindful of what Boswell so well describes as 'the general
courtesy of literature[1],' and were ready to place their treasures
at my service. To one of them, Mr. Frederick Barker, of 43, Rowan Road,
Brook Green, I am still more indebted, for he entrusted me not only with
the original letters which he had just bought, but also with some others
that he had previously possessed. His Johnsonian collection is one of
unusual interest. I have moreover to acknowledge my obligations to
Mr. Fawcett, of 14, King Street, Covent Garden; to Messrs. J. Pearson
and Co., of 46, Pall Mall; to Messrs. Robson and Kerslake, of Coventry
Street, Haymarket; to Mr. Frank T. Sabin, of 10 and 12, Garrick Street,
Covent Garden; and to Mr. John Waller, of 2, Artesian Road, Westbourne
Grove. Those of the letters which are undated, I have endeavoured to
assign to their proper places by internal evidence. The absence of a
date is in itself very strong evidence that they belong to a comparatively
early period (see _ante_, i. 122, n. 2).
[Footnote 1: Ante, iv. 246.]
I.
_A letter about a projected Geographical Dictionary by Mr. Bathurst, with
Bathurst's Proposal; dated March 22, probably written in 1753_.[In the
possession of Mr. Frederick Barker, of 43, Rowan Road, Brook Green.]
'SIR,
'I have inclosed the Scheme which I mentioned yesterday in which the work
proposed is sufficiently explained.
'The Undertaker, Mr. Bathurst, is a Physician of the University of
Cambridge, of about eight years standing, and will perform the work in
such a manner as may satisfy the publick. No advice of mine will be
wanting, but advice will be all that I propose to contribute unless it
should be thought worth while that I should write a preface, which if
desired I will do and put my name to it. The terms which I am commissioned
to offer are these:
'1. A guinea and half shall be paid for each sheet of the copy.
'2. The authour will receive a Guinea and half a week from the date of
the Contract.
'3. As it is certain that many books will be necessary, the Authour will
at the end of the work take the books furnished him in part of payment
at prime Cost, which will be a considerable reduction of the price of
the Copy; or if it seems as you thought yesterday no reduction, he will
allow out of the last payment fifty pounds for the use of the Books and
return them.
'4. In two months after his first demand of books shall be supplied,
he purposes to write three Sheets a week and to continue the same
quantity to the end of the work, unless he shall be hindered by want of
Books. He does not however expect to be always able to write according
to the order of the Alphabet but as his Books shall happen to supply him,
and therefore cannot send any part to the press till the whole is nearly
finished.
'5. He undertakes as usual the Correction.
'I am, Sir, Your most humble servant,
'SAM. JOHNSON.'
'March 22nd.
'To Mr. Strahan.'
'PROPOSAL.
'There is nothing more apparently wanting to the English Literature,
than a Geographical Dictionary, which, though its use is almost every day
necessary, not only to Men of Study, but of Trade or publick employment,
yet has been hitherto, not only unperformed, but almost unattempted
among us. Bohun's Dictionary, the only one which has any pretension to
regard, owes that pretension only to its bulk; for it is in all parts
contemptibly defective and is therefore deservedly forgotten. In
Collier's Dictionary, what Geography there is, can scarcely be found
among the crowd of other subjects, and when it is found, is of no great
importance. The books of Eachard and Salmon, though useful for the ends
proposed by them, are too small to be considered as anticipations of this
work, which is intended to consist of two volumes of the same size and
print with Harris's Dictionary, in which will be comprised the following
particulars:
'The situation of every Country with its Provinces and dependencies
according to its present state, and latest observation.
'The description of all remarkable Cities, Towns, Castles, Fortresses,
and places observable for their situation, products or other particulars.
'An account of the considerable Rivers, their Springs, Branches, Course,
Outlets, how far navigable, the Produce and Qualities of their waters.
'The course of Voyages, giving directions to sailors for navigating
from one place of the World to another, with particular attention
to the Traffic of these Kingdoms.
'An account of all the principal Ports and Harbours of the known World,
in which will be laid down the Pilotage, Bearings, depth of water,
danger from Sands or Rocks, firmness or uncertainty of Anchorage, and
degree of safety from particular Winds.
'An exact account of the Commodities of each Country, both natural and
artificial.
'A description of the remarkable Animals in every Country, whether
Beasts, Birds or Fishes.
'An account of the Buildings, whether ancient or modern, and of Ruins
or other remains of Antiquity.
'Remarks upon the soil, air, and waters of particular Places, their
several qualities and effects, the accidents to which every Region is
exposed, as Earthquakes and Hurricanes, and the diseases peculiar to
the Inhabitants or incident to strangers at their arrival.
'The political State of the World, the Government of Countries, and the
Magistracy of Cities, with their particular Laws, or Privileges.
'The most probable and authentic Calculations of the number of Inhabitants
of each place.
'The military state of Countries, their Forces, manner of making War,
Weapons, and naval Power.
'The Commercial State, extent of their Trade, Number and strength of
their Colonies, quantity of Shipping.
'The pretensions of Princes with their Alliances, Relations and
Genealogies.
'The customs of Nations with regard to Trade, and receptions of strangers,
their domestic Customs, as Rites of Marriage and Burial. Their particular
Laws. Their habits, recreations and amusements.
'The religious Opinions of all Nations.
'These and many other heads of observation will be collected, not merely
from the Dictionaries now extant in many Languages, but from the best
Surveys, Local Histories, Voyages, and particular accounts[1], among
which care will be taken to select those of the best authority, as the
basis of the Work, and to extract from them such observations as may
best promote Knowledge and gratify Enquiry, so that it is to be hoped,
there will be few remarkable places in the known World, of which the
Politician, the Merchant, the Sailor, or the Man of Curiosity may not
find a useful and pleasing account, of the credit of which the Reader
may always judge, as the Authors from whom it is taken will be regularly
quoted, a caution which if some, who have attempted such general works,
had observed, their labours would have deserved, and found more favour
from the Publick.'
[Footnote 1: That this is done will appear from the authours' names
exactly quoted.]
This letter must have been written about the year 1753, for Bathurst
is described as a physician of about eight years' standing. He took
his degree as Bachelor of Medicine at Peterhouse, Cambridge, in 1745,
and did not, it should seem, proceed to the higher degree. In 1757
he was at the Havannah, where he died (_ante_, i. 242, n. i). He was
Johnson's beloved friend, of whom 'he hardly ever spoke without tears
in his eyes' (_ante_, i. 190, n. 2). The Proposal, I have no doubt,
was either written, or at all events revised, by Johnson. It is quite
in his style. It may be assumed that it is in Bathurst's handwriting.
II.
_An apologetical letter about some work that was passing through the
press; undated, but probably written about the years 1753-5_.[In the
possession of Mr. Frederick Barker.]
'DEAR SIR,
'What you tell me I am ashamed never to have thought on--I wish I had
known it sooner--Send me back the last sheet; and the last copy for
correction. If you will promise me henceforward to print a sheet a day,
I will promise you to endeavour that you shall have every day a sheet
to print, beginning next Tuesday.
'I am Sir, Your most, &c.
'SAM. JOHNSON.'
'To Mr. Strahan.'
In all likelihood Johnson is writing about the Dictionary. The absence
of a date, as I have already said, is strong evidence that the letter
was written comparatively early. As the first edition of the Dictionary
was in folio a sheet consisted of four pages. Johnson writing on April
3, 1753 says, 'I began the second vol. of my Dictionary, room being left
in the first for Preface, Grammar, and History, none of them yet begun'
(_ante_, i. 255). As the book was published on April 15, 1755 (_ante_,
i. 290, n. 1), the printing must have gone on very rapidly, when a
start was once made. By _copy_ he means his _manuscript for printing_.
III, IV.
_Two undated letters about printing the Dictionary_.[In the possession
of Mr. John Waller, 2, Artesian Road, Westbourne Grove.]
'DEAR SIR,
'I must desire you to add to your other civilities this one, to go to
Mr. Millar and represent to him the manner of going on, and inform him
that I know not how to manage. I pay three and twenty shillings a week
to my assistants, in each instance having much assistance from them,
but they tell me they shall be able to pull better in method, as indeed
I intend they shall. The Point is to get two Guineas.
'Sir, Your humble Servant,
'SAM. JOHNSON.'
(Address on back.) 'To Mr. Strahan.'
'SIR,
'I have often suspected that it is as you say, and have told Mr. Dodsley
of it. It proceeds from the haste of the amanuensis to get to the end
of his day's work. I have desired the passages to be clipped close, and
then perhaps for two or three leaves it is done. But since poor Stuart's
time I could never get that part of the work into regularity, and
perhaps never shall. I will try to take some more care but can promise
nothing; when I am told there is a sheet or two I order it away. You
will find it sometimes close; when I make up any myself, which never
happens but when I have nobody with me, I generally clip it close, but
one cannot always be on the watch.
'I am Sir, Your most, &c.
'SAM. JOHNSON.'
These letters refer to the printing of the _Dictionary_, of which
Dodsley and Millar were two among the proprietors, and Strahan the
printer. Francis Stuart or Stewart was one of Johnson's amanuenses
(_ante_, i. 187). In 1779 Johnson paid his sister a guinea for an old
pocket-book of her brother's (_ante_, iii. 418), and wrote on April
8,1780 (_ante_, iii. 421):--'The memory of her brother is yet fresh
in my mind; he was an ingenious and worthy man.' In February 1784 he
gave her another guinea for a letter relating to himself that he had
found in the pocket-book (_ante_, iv. 262). A writer in the _Gent. Mag._
for 1799, p. 1171, who had been employed in Strahan's printing-works,
says that 'Stewart was useful to Johnson in the explanation of low cant
phrases; all words relating to gambling and card-playing, such as
_All-Fours_, _Catch-honours_ [not in Johnson's Dictionary], _Cribbage_
[merely defined as _A game at cards_], were said to be Stewart's
corrected by the Doctor.' He adds that after the printing had gone
on some time 'the proprietors of the _Dictionary_ paid Johnson through
Mr. Strahan at the rate of a guinea for every sheet of MS. copy delivered.
The copy was written upon quarto post, and in two columns each page.
Johnson wrote in his own hand the words and their explanation, and
generally two or three words in each column, leaving a space between
each for the authorities, which were pasted on as they were collected
by the different amanuenses employed: and in this mode the MS. was so
regular that the sheets of MS. which made a sheet of print could be
very exactly ascertained.' The same writer states that Stewart in a
night ramble in Edinburgh with some of his drinking companions 'met with
the mob conducting Captain Porteous to be hanged; they were next day
examined about it before the Town Council, when, as Stewart used to say,
"we were found to be too drunk to have any hand in the business." He
gave an accurate account of it in the Edinburgh Magazine of that time.'
V.
_A letter about Miss Williams, taxes due, and a journey; undated, but
perhaps written at Oxford in 1754_.[In the possession of Mr. Frederick
Barker.]
'SIR,
'I shall not be long here, but in the mean time if Miss Williams wants
any money pray speak to Mr. Millar and supply her, they write to me
about some taxes which I wish you would pay.
'My journey will come to very little beyond the satisfaction of knowing
that there is nothing to be done, and that I leave few advantages here
to those that shall come after me.
'I am Sir, &c.
'SAM. JOHNSON.'
'My compliments to Mrs. Strahan.
To Mr. Strahan.'
Miss Williams came to live with Johnson after his wife's death in 1752
(_ante_, i. 232). The fact that Strahan is asked to supply her with
money after speaking to Mr. Millar seems to show that this letter was
written some time before the publication of the _Dictionary_ in April
1755. Millar 'took the principal charge of conducting its publication,'
and Johnson 'had received all the copy-money, by different drafts, a
considerable time before he had finished his task' (_ante_, i. 287).
His 'journey' may have been his visit to Oxford in the summer of 1754.
He went there, because, 'I cannot,' he said, 'finish my book [the
Dictionary] to my mind without visiting the libraries' (_ante_, i. 270).
According to Thomas Warton 'he collected nothing in the libraries for
his _Dictionary_' (_ib_ n. 5). It is perhaps to this failure that the
latter part of the letter refers, Johnson's visit, however, was one of
five weeks, while the first line of the letter shews that he intended
to be away from London but a short time.
VI.
_A letter about 'Rasselas,' dated_ Jan. 20, 1759.[In the possession of
Mr. Frederick Barker.]
'When I was with you last night I told you of a story which I was
preparing for the press. The title will be
"The Choice of Life
or
The History of ... Prince of Abissinia."
'It will make about two volumes like little Pompadour, that is about
one middling volume. The bargain which I made with Mr. Johnson was
seventy five pounds (or guineas) a volume, and twenty five pounds for
the second edition. I will sell this either at that price or for sixty[2],
the first edition of which he shall himself fix the number, and the
property then to revert to me, or for forty pounds, and I have the
profit that is retain half the copy. I shall have occasion for thirty
pounds on Monday night when I shall deliver the book which I must
entreat you upon such delivery to procure me. I would have it offered
