Under this notion of works written with a view to gain, and those that owe their existence to a more liberal motive, a distinction of literary productions arises which provements of that art; of the different opinions of authors an⚫cient and modern. • Translation of the Hiftory of Herodian. • New edition of Fairfax's Tranflation of Taffo, with notes, gloffary, &c. Chaucer, a new edition of him, from manufcripts and old editions, with various readings, conjectures, remarks on his lan guage, and the changes it had undergone from the earliest times to his age, and from his to the prefent. With notes explanatory of customs, &c. and references to Boccace and other authors ⚫ from whom he has borrowed, with an account of the liberties he has taken in telling the ftories, his life, and an exact etymologi⚫cal gloffary. Ariftotle's Rhetoric, a tranflation of it into English. A Collection of Letters, tranflated from the modern writers, with fome account of the feveral authors. Oldham's Poems, with notes historical and critical. • Rofcommon's Poems, with notes. Lives of the Philofophers, written with a polite air, in fuch a manner as may divert as well as inftruct. History of the Heathen Mythology, with an explication of the fables, both allegorical and hiftorical, with references to the < poets. History of the State of Venice, in a compendious manner. Ariftotle's Ethics, an English translation of them with notes. Hierocles upon Pythagoras, tranflated into English, perhaps ⚫ with notes. This is done by Norris. A book of Letters upon all kinds of fubjects. Claudian, a new edition of his works, cum notis variorum in the manner of Burman. Tully's Tufculan Questions, a tranflation of them. Tully de Natura Deorum, a tranflation of those books. Benzo's New History of the New World, to be translated. Hißory which Johnson would never allow; on the contrary, to the astonishment of myself who have heard him, and many others, he has frequently declared, that the only Hiftory of the Revival of Learning in Europe, containing an ' account of whatever contributed to the restoration of literature, 'fuch as controverfies, printing, the destruction of the Greek em'pire, the encouragement of great men, with the lives of the most eminent patrons, and most eminent early professors of all kinds of learning in different countries. ⚫ A Body of Chronology, in verfe, with historical notes. A table of the Spectators, Tatlers, and Guardians, distinguished by figures into fix degrees of value, with notes giving the reasons ⚫ of preference or degradation. A Collection of Letters from English authors, with a preface giving fome account of the writers, with reasons for felection and criticism upon ftiles, remarks on each letter, if needful. 53. A Collection of Proverbs from various languages :-Jan. 6 A Dictionary to the Common Prayer in imitation of Calmet's • Dictionary of the Bible. March -52. • A Collection of Stories and Examples like those of Valerius Maximus. Jan. 10-53. From Ælian, a volume of select ftories, perhaps from others. Jan. 28-53 Collection of Travels, Voyages, Adventures, and Defcriptions of Countries. Dictionary of Ancient History and Mythology. Treatife on the Study of Polite Literature, containing the hif'tory of learning, directions for editions, commentaries, &c. Maxims, Characters and Sentiments, after the manner of • Bruyere, collected out of ancient authors, particularly the Greek, with Apophthegms. ⚫ Claffical Mifcellanies, Select Tranflations from ancient Greek and Latin authors. ⚫ Lives of illuftrious perfons, as well of the active as the learned, ⚫ in imitation of Plutarch. Judgment of the learned upon English authors. • Poetical Dictionary of the English tongue. only true and genuine motive to the writing of books was the affurance of pecuniary profit. Notwithstanding' the boldness of this affertion, there are but few that can be perfuaded to yield to it; and, after all, the best apology for Johnson will be found to confift in his want of a profeffion, the preffure of his neceffities, and the example of fuch men as Caftalio, Gefner, and Salmafius, among foreigners; and Fuller, Howel, L'Estrange, Dryden, Chambers, and Hume, not to mention others now living, among ourselves. The principle here noted was not only in the above instance avowed by Johnson, but feems to have been wrought by him into a habit. He was never greedy of money, but without money could not be ftimulated to write. I have been told by a clergyman of fome eminence with whom he had been long acquainted, that, being to preach on a particular occafion, he applied, as others under a like neceffity had frequently done, to Johnson for help. I will write a 6 Confiderations upon the present state of London. Collection of Epigrams, with notes and observations. Obfervations on the English language, relating to words, phrafes, and modes of Speech. Minutia Literaria, Mifcellaneous reflections, criticifms, emendations, notes. Hiftory of the Conftitution. Comparison of Philofophical and Chriflian Morality by fentences collected from the moralifts and fathers. Plutarch's Lives in English, with notes. POETRY and works of IMAGINATION. The Palace of Sloth-a vifion. Coluthus, to be tranflated. Prejudice a poetical effay. The Palace of Nonfenfe-a vifion.? fermoa * fermon for thee,' faid Johnfon, “but thou must 'me for it.' pay Yet was he not fo indifferent to the fubjects that he was requested to write on, as at any time to abandon either his religious or political principles. He would no more have put his name to an Arian or Socinian tract than to a defence of Atheifim. At the time when 'Faction Detected' came out, a pamphlet of which the late lord Egmont is now generally underfood to kave been the author, Ofborne the bookfeller, held out to him a ftrong temptation to answer it, which he refused, being convinced, as he affured me, that the charge contained in it was made good, and that the argument grounded thereon was unanswerable. Indeed whoever perufes that mafterly performance must be convinced that a fpirit fimilar to that which induced the Ifraelites, when under the conduct of their wife legiflator, to cry out ' Ye take too much upon ye,' is the most frequent motive to oppofition, and that whoever hopes to govern a free people by reafon, is miftaken in his judgment of human nature. 'He," fays Hooker, that goeth about to perfuade a people 'that they are not well governed, fhall never want atten'tive and favourable hearers:' and the fame author fpeaking of legislation in general, delivers this as his fentiment: Laws politic ordained for external order and regimen amongst men are never framed as they fhould be, unless prefuming the will of man to be obstinate, ' rebellious and averfe from all obedience unto the fa'cred laws of his nature: In a word, unless prefuming man, in regard of his depraved mind, little better than awild beaft,they do accordingly provide, notwithstanding, fo to frame his outward actions as that they be no ⚫ hindrance unto the common good, for which focieties < were instituted. Unless they do this they are not perfect.' Ecclef. Pol. Lib. I. Sect. 1. Ibid. Sect. 10. That these were the sentiments of Johnson also, I am warranted to fay, by frequent declarations to the fame purpose, which I have heard him make; and to these I attribute it, that he ever after acquiefced in the meafures of government through the fucceffion of adminiftrations. It has already been mentioned in the account above given of Savage, that the friends of that ill-ftarred man had fet on foot a fubfcription for his fupport, and that Swansea was the place they had fixed on for his refidence: the fame was completed at the end of the year 1739. Johnson at that time lodged at Greenwich, and there parted with that friend and companion of his midnight rambles, whom it was never his fortune again to fee. The event is antedated in the poem of London'; but in every particular, except the difference of a year, what is there faid of the departure of Thales must be understood of Savage, and looked upon as true hiftory. In his life of Savage, Johnfon has mentioned the circumstances that attended it, and deplored this feparation as he would have done a greater misfortune than it proved: that it was, in reality, none, may be inferred from Savage's inability, arifing from his circumstances, his course of life, and the laxity of his mind, to do good to any one: it is rather to be sufpected that his example was contagious, and tended to confirm Johnfon in his indolence and thofe other evil habits which it was the labour of his life to conquer. They who were witneffes of Johnson's perfevering temperance in the article of drinking, for, at leaft, the latter half of his life, will fcarcely believe that, during part of the former, he was a lover of wine, that he not only |