of a lively or epigrammatick turn, he fell asleep, or perhaps pretended to do so x .
Talking one day of the patronage the great sometimes affect to give to literature, and literary men : ' Andrew Millar,' says he, ' is the Maecenas of the age V
Of the state of learning among the Scots, he said : ' It is with their learning as with provisions in a besieged town, every one
Of Sir Joshua Reynolds he requested three things ; that he would not work on a Sunday ; that he would read a portion of Scripture on that day; and that he would forgive him a debt which he had incurred for some benevolent purpose 4 .
When he first felt the stroke of palsy, he prayed to God that he would spare his mind, whatever he thought fit to do with his body 5 .
To some lady who was praising Shenstone's poems very much, and who had an Italian greyhound lying by the fire, he said, e Shenstone holds amongst poets the same rank your dog holds amongst dogs ; he has not the sagacity of the hound, the docility of the spaniel, nor the courage of the bull-dog, yet he is still a pretty fellow 6 .'
1 'When he wanted to sleep he 4 In these requests Reynolds " nodded in company " ; and once ' readily acquiesced.' However, after slumbered at his own table while the a time he resumed his Sunday work. Prince of Wales was talking of poetry.' Ib. iv. 414, n. i. 'Sir Godfrey Works, viii. 309. Kneller,' according to Pope, ' called
2 For Andrew Millar, the book- employing the pencil the prayer of a seller, see Life, i. 287, n. 3. painter.' Warton's Pope's Works,
3 Ib. ii. 363. ed. 1822, viii. 213. Szt post, p. 203. Sir Walter Scott, in his Address 5 Describing the stroke to Mrs.
at the opening of the Edinburgh Thrale, he wrote : ' I was alarmed Academy, quoting Johnson's saying, and prayed God that however he continued : ' Sturdy Scotsman as might afflict my body he would spare he was, he was not more attached to my understanding. This prayer that Scotland than to truth ; and it must I might try the integrity of my facul- be admitted that there was some ties I made in Latin verse.' Letters, foundation for the Doctor's remark.' ii. 301 ; Life, iv. 230 ; ante, i. in. Lockhart's Scott, ed. 1839, vii. 271. 6 'We talked of Shenstone. Dr. ' A Scotchman must be a very sturdy Johnson said he was a good layer- moralist who does not love Scot- out of land, but would not allow him land better than truth.' Life, ii. to approach excellence as a poet.' 311, #. 4. Ib. v. 267.
Johnson
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