约翰逊4-6-81

formerly belonged, though the Duke of Argyle has at present possessionof it, ran eagerly to him.We were accommodated this night in a large barn, the island, affordingno lodging that we should have liked so well. Some good hay was strewedat one end of it, to form a bed for us, upon which we lay with ourclothes on; and we were furnished with blankets from the village[899].Each of us had a portmanteau for a pillow. When I awaked in the morning,and looked round me, I could not help smiling at the idea of the chiefof the M'Leans, the great English Moralist, and myself, lying thusextended in such a situation.WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 20.Early in the morning we surveyed the remains of antiquity at this place,accompanied by an illiterate fellow, as _Cicerone_, who called himself adescendant of a cousin of Saint Columba, the founder of the religiousestablishment here. As I knew that many persons had already examinedthem, and as I saw Dr. Johnson inspecting and measuring several of theruins of which he has since given so full an account, my mind wasquiescent; and I resolved to stroll among them at my ease, to take notrouble to investigate minutely, and only receive the general impressionof solemn antiquity, and the particular ideas of such objects as shouldof themselves strike my attention.We walked from the monastery of Nuns to the great church or cathedral,as they call it, along an old broken causeway. They told us, that thishad been a street; and that there were good houses built on each side.Dr. Johnson doubted if it was any thing more than a paved road for thenuns. The convent of Monks, the great church, Oran's chapel, and fourother chapels, are still to be discerned. But I must own that Icolmkilldid not answer my expectations; for they were high, from what I had readof it, and still more from what I had heard and thought of it, from myearliest years. Dr. Johnson said, it came up to his expectations,because he had taken his impression from an account of it subjoined toSacheverel's _History of the Isle of Man_[900], where it is said, thereis not much to be seen here. We were both disappointed, when we wereshewn what are called the monuments of the kings of Scotland, Ireland,and Denmark, and of a King of France. There are only some grave-stonesflat on the earth, and we could see no inscriptions. How far short wasthis of marble monuments, like those in Westminster Abbey, which I hadimagined here! The grave-stones of Sir Allan M'Lean's family, and ofthat of M'Quarrie, had as good an appearance as the royal grave-stones;if they were royal, we doubted.My easiness to give credit to what I heard in the course of our Tour wastoo great. Dr. Johnson's peculiar accuracy of investigation detectedmuch traditional fiction, and many gross mistakes. It is not to bewondered at, that he was provoked by people carelessly telling him, withthe utmost readiness and confidence, what he found, on questioning thema little more, was erroneous[901]. Of this there were innumerableinstances.I left him and Sir Allan at breakfast in our barn, and stole back againto the cathedral, to indulge in solitude and devout meditation[902].While contemplating the venerable ruins, I refleeted with muchsatisfaction, that the solemn scenes of piety never lose their sanctityand influence, though the cares and follies of life may prevent us fromvisiting them, or may even make us fancy that their effects are only 'asyesterday, when it is past[903],' and never again to be perceived. Ihoped, that, ever after having been in this holy place, I shouldmaintain an exemplary conduct. One has a strange propensity to fix uponsome point of time from whence a better course of life may begin[904].Being desirous to visit the opposite shore of the island, where SaintColumba is said to have landed, I procured a horse from oneM'Ginnis[905], who ran along as my guide. The M'Ginnises are said to bea branch of the clan of M'Lean. Sir Allan had been told that this manhad refused to send him some rum, at which the knight was in greatindignation. 'You rascal! (said he,) don't you know that I can hang you,if I please?' Not adverting to the Chieftain's power over his clan, Iimagined that Sir Allan had known of some capital crime that the fellowhad committed, which he could discover, and so get him condemned; andsaid, 'How so?' 'Why, (said Sir Allan,) are they not all my people?'Sensible of my inadvertency, and most willing to contribute what I couldtowards the continuation of feudal authority, 'Very true,' said I. SirAllan went on: 'Refuse to send rum to me, you rascal! Don't you knowthat, if I order you to go and cut a man's throat, you are to do it?''Yes, an't please your honour! and my own too, and hang myself too.' Thepoor fellow denied that he had refused to send the rum. His making theseprofessions was not merely a pretence in presence of his Chief; forafter he and I were out of Sir Allan's hearing, he told me, 'Had he senthis dog for the rum, I would have given it: I would cut my bones forhim.' It was very remarkable to find such an attachment to a Chief,though he had then no connection with the island, and had not been therefor fourteen years. Sir Allan, by way of upbraiding the fellow, said, 'Ibelieve you are a _Campbell_.'The place which I went to see is about two miles from the village. Theycall it _Portawherry_, from the wherry in which Columba came; though,when they shew the length of his vessel, as marked on the beach by twoheaps of stones, they say, 'Here is the length of the _Currach_', usingthe Erse word.Icolmkill is a fertile island. The inhabitants export some cattle andgrain; and I was told, they import nothing but iron and salt. They areindustrious, and make their own woollen and linen cloth; and they brew agood deal of beer, which we did not find in any of the otherislands[906].We set sail again about mid-day, and in the evening landed on Mull, nearthe house of the Reverend Mr. Neal M'Leod, who having been informed ofour coming, by a message from Sir Allan, came out to meet us. We werethis night very agreeably entertained at his house. Dr. Johnson observedto me, that he was the cleanest-headed man that he had met with in theWestern islands. He seemed to be well acquainted with Dr. Johnson'swritings, and courteously said, 'I have been often obliged to you,though I never had the pleasure of seeing you before.'He told us, he had lived for some time in St. Kilda, under the tuitionof the minister or catechist there, and had there first read Horace andVirgil. The scenes which they describe must have been a strong contrastto the dreary waste around him.THURSDAY, OCTOBER 21.This morning the subject of politicks was introduced. JOHNSON. 'Pulteneywas as paltry a fellow as could be[907]. He was a Whig, who pretended tobe honest; and you know it is ridiculous for a Whig to pretend to behonest. He cannot hold it out[908].' He called Mr. Pitt a meteor; SirRobert Walpole a fixed star[909]. He said, 'It is wonderful to thinkthat all the force of government was required to prevent Wilkes frombeing chosen the chief magistrate of London[910], though the liverymenknew he would rob their shops,--knew he would debauch theirdaughters[911].'BOSWELL. 'The History of England is so strange, that, if it were not sowell vouched as it is, it would hardly be credible.'JOHNSON. 'Sir, if it were told as shortly, and with as littlepreparation for introducing the different events, as the History of theJewish Kings, it would be equally liable to objections ofimprobability.' Mr. M'Leod was much pleased with the justice and noveltyof the thought. Dr. Johnson illustrated what he had said, as follows:'Take, as an instance, Charles the First's concessions to hisparliament, which were greater and greater, in proportion as theparliament grew more insolent, and less deserving of trust. Had theseconcessions been related nakedly, without any detail of thecircumstances which generally led to them, they would not have beenbelieved.'Sir Allan M'Lean bragged, that Scotland had the advantage of England, byits having more water. JOHNSON. 'Sir, we would not have your water, totake the vile bogs which produce it. You have too much! A man who isdrowned has more water than either of us;'--and then he laughed. (Butthis was surely robust sophistry: for the people of taste in England,who have seen Scotland, own that its variety of rivers and lakes makesit naturally more beautiful than England, in that respect.) Pursuing hisvictory over Sir Allan, he proceeded: 'Your country consists of twothings, stone and water. There is, indeed, a little earth above thestone in some places, but a very little; and the stone is alwaysappearing. It is like a man in rags; the naked skin is stillpeeping out.'He took leave of Mr. M'Leod, saying, 'Sir, I thank you for yourentertainment, and your conversation.'Mr. Campbell, who had been so polite yesterday, came this morning onpurpose to breakfast with us, and very obligingly furnished us withhorses to proceed on our journey to Mr. M'Lean's of _Lochbuy_, where wewere to pass the night. We dined at the house of Dr. Alexander M'Lean,another physician in Mull, who was so much struck with the uncommonconversation of Dr. Johnson, that he observed to me, 'This man is just a_hogshead_ of sense.'Dr. Johnson said of the _Turkish Spy_[912], which lay in the room, thatit told nothing but what every body might have known at that time; andthat what was good in it, did not pay you for the trouble of readingto find it.After a very tedious ride, through what appeared to me the most gloomyand desolate country I had ever beheld[913], we arrived, between sevenand eight o'clock, at May, the seat of the Laird of _Lochbuy_. _Buy_, inErse, signifies yellow, and I at first imagined that the loch or branchof the sea here, was thus denominated, in the same manner as the _RedSea_; but I afterwards learned that it derived its name from a hillabove it, which being of a yellowish hue has the epithet of _Buy_.We had heard much of Lochbuy's being a great roaring braggadocio, a kindof Sir John Falstaff, both in size and manners; but we found that theyhad swelled him up to a fictitious size, and clothed him with imaginaryqualities. Col's idea of him was equally extravagant, though verydifferent: he told us he was quite a Don Quixote; and said, he wouldgive a great deal to sec him and Dr. Johnson together. The truth is,that Lochbuy proved to be only a bluff, comely, noisy old gentleman,proud of his hereditary consequence, and a very hearty and hospitablelandlord. Lady Lochbuy was sister to Sir Allan M'Lean, but much older.He said to me, 'They are quite _Antediluvians_.' Being told that Dr.Johnson did not hear well, Lochbuy bawled out to him, 'Are you of theJohnstons of Glencro, or of Ardnamurchan[914]?' Dr. Johnson gave him asignificant look, but made no answer; and I told Lochbuy that he was notJohns_ton_, but John_son_, and that he was an Englishman[915]. Lochbuysome years ago tried to prove himself a weak man, liable to imposition,or, as we term it in Scotland, a _facile_ man, in order to set aside alease which he had granted; but failed in the attempt. On my mentioningthis circumstance to Dr. Johnson, he seemed much surprized that such asuit was admitted by the Scottish law, and observed, that 'In England noman is allowed to _stultify_ himself[916].'Sir Allan, Lochbuy, and I, had the conversation chiefly to ourselvesto-night: Dr. Johnson, being extremely weary, went to bed soonafter supper.FRIDAY, OCTOBER 22.Before Dr. Johnson came to breakfast, Lady Lochbuy said, 'he was a_dungeon_ of wit;' a very common phrase in Scotland to express aprofoundness of intellect, though he afterwards told me, that he neverhad heard it. She proposed that he should have some cold sheep's-headfor breakfast. Sir Allan seemed displeased at his sister's vulgarity,and wondered how such a thought should come into her head. From amischievous love of sport, I took the lady's part; and very gravelysaid, 'I think it is but fair to give him an offer of it. If he does notchoose it, he may let it alone.' 'I think so,' said the lady, looking ather brother with an air of victory. Sir Allan, finding the matterdesperate, strutted about the room, and took snuff. When Dr. Johnsoncame in, she called to him, 'Do you choose any cold sheep's-head, Sir?''No, MADAM,' said he, with a tone of surprise and anger[917]. 'It ishere, Sir,' said she, supposing he had refused it to save the trouble ofbringing it in. They thus went on at cross purposes, till he confirmedhis refusal in a manner not to be misunderstood; while I sat quietly by,and enjoyed my success.After breakfast, we surveyed the old castle, in the pit or dungeon ofwhich Lochbuy had some years before taken upon him to imprison severalpersons[918]; and though he had been fined in a considerable sum by theCourt of Justiciary, he was so little affected by it, that while we wereexamining the dungeon, he said to me, with a smile, 'Your father knowssomething of this;' (alluding to my father's having sat as one of thejudges on his trial.) Sir Allan whispered me, that the laird could notbe persuaded that he had lost his heritable jurisdiction[919].We then set out for the ferry, by which we were to cross to the mainland of Argyleshire. Lochbuy and Sir Allan accompanied us. We were toldmuch of a war-saddle, on which this reputed Don Quixote used to bemounted; but we did not see it, for the young laird had applied it to aless noble purpose, having taken it to Falkirk fair _with a drove ofblack cattle._ We bade adieu to Lochbuy, and to our very kindconductor[920], Sir Allan M'Lean, on the shore of Mull, and then gotinto the ferry-boat, the bottom of which was strewed with branches oftrees or bushes, upon which we sat. We had a good day and a finepassage, and in the evening landed at Oban, where we found a tolerableinn. After having been so long confined at different times in islands,from which it was always uncertain when we could get away, it wascomfortable to be now on the mainland, and to know that, if in health,we might get to any place in Scotland or England in a certain numberof days.Here we discovered from the conjectures which were formed, that thepeople on the main land were entirely ignorant of our motions; for in aGlasgow newspaper we found a paragraph, which, as it contains a justand well-turned compliment to my illustrious friend, I shallhere insert:--'We are well assured that Dr. Johnson is confined by tempestuous weatherto the isle of Sky; it being unsafe to venture, in a small boat, uponsuch a stormy surge as is very common there at this time of the year.Such a philosopher, detained on an almost barren island, resembles awhale left upon the strand. The latter will be welcome to every body, onaccount of his oil, his bone, &c., and the other will charm hiscompanions, and the rude inhabitants, with his superior knowledge andwisdom, calm resignation, and unbounded benevolence.'SATURDAY, OCTOBER 23.After a good night's rest, we breakfasted at our leisure. We talked ofGoldsmith's _Traveller_, of which Dr. Johnson spoke highly; and, while Iwas helping him on with his great coat, he repeated from it thecharacter of the British nation, which he did with such energy, that thetear started into his eye:--'Stern o'er each bosom reason holds her state,With daring aims irregularly great,Pride in their port, defiance in their eye,I see the lords of human kind pass by,Intent on high designs, a thoughtful band,By forms unfashion'd, fresh from nature's hand;Fierce in their native hardiness of soul,True to imagin'd right, above control,While ev'n the peasant boasts these rights to scan,And learns to venerate himself as man.'We could get but one bridle here, which, according to the maxim _deturdigniori_, was appropriated to Dr. Johnson's sheltie. I and Joseph rodewith halters. We crossed in a ferry-boat a pretty wide lake[921], and onthe farther side of it, close by the shore, found a hut for our inn. Wewere much wet. I changed my clothes in part, and was at pains to getmyself well dried. Dr. Johnson resolutely kept on all his clothes, wetas they were, letting them steam before the smoky turf fire. I thoughthim in the wrong; but his firmness was, perhaps, a species of heroism.I remember but little of our conversation. I mentioned Shenstone'ssaying of Pope, that he had the art of condensing sense more than anybody[922]. Dr. Johnson said, 'It is not true, Sir. There is more sensein a line of Cowley than in a page (or a sentence, or ten lines,--I amnot quite certain of the very phrase) of Pope.' He maintained thatArchibald, Duke of Argyle[923], was a narrow man. I wondered at this;and observed, that his building so great a house at Inverary was notlike a narrow man. 'Sir, (said he,) when a narrow man has resolved tobuild a house, he builds it like another man. But Archibald, Duke ofArgyle, was narrow in his ordinary expences, in his quotidianexpences.'The distinction is very just. It is in the ordinary expences of lifethat a man's liberality or narrowness is to be discovered. I never heardthe word _quotidian_ in this sense, and I imagined it to be a word ofDr. Johnson's own fabrication; but I have since found it in _Young'sNight Thoughts_, (Night fifth,)'Death's a destroyer of quotidian prey,'and in my friend's _Dictionary_, supported by the authorities of CharlesI. and Dr. Donne.It rained very hard as we journied on after dinner. The roar of torrentsfrom the mountains, as we passed along in the dusk, and the othercircumstances attending our ride in the evening, have been mentionedwith so much animation by Dr. Johnson, that I shall not attempt to sayany thing on the subject[924].We got at night to Inverary, where we found an excellent inn. Even here,Dr. Johnson would not change his wet clothes.The prospect of good accommodation cheered us much. We supped well; andafter supper, Dr. Johnson, whom I had not seen taste any fermentedliquor during all our travels, called for a gill of whiskey. 'Come,(said he,) let me know what it is that makes a Scotchman happy[925]!' Hedrank it all but a drop, which I begged leave to pour into my glass,that I might say we had drunk whisky together. I proposed Mrs. Thraleshould be our toast. He would not have _her_ drunk in whisky, but rather'some insular lady;' so we drank one of the ladies whom we had latelyleft. He owned to-night, that he got as good a room and bed as at anEnglish inn.I had here the pleasure of finding a letter from home, which relieved mefrom the anxiety I had suffered, in consequence of not having receivedany account of my family for many weeks. I also found a letter from Mr.Garrick, which was a regale[926] as agreeable as a pine-apple would bein a desert[927]. He had favoured me with his correspondence for manyyears; and when Dr. Johnson and I were at Inverness, I had written tohim as follows:--Inverness,Sunday, 29 August, 1773.MY DEAR SIR,'Here I am, and Mr. Samuel Johnson actually with me. We were a night atFores, in coming to which, in the dusk of the evening, we passed overthe bleak and blasted heath where Macbeth met the witches[928]. Your oldpreceptor[929] repeated, with much solemnity, the speech--"How far is't called to Fores? What are these,So wither'd and so wild in their attire," &c.This day we visited the ruins of Macbeth's castle at Inverness. I havehad great romantick satisfaction in seeing Johnson upon the classicalscenes of Shakspeare in Scotland; which I really looked upon as almostas improbable as that "Birnam wood should come to Dunsinane[930]."Indeed, as I have always been accustomed to view him as a permanentLondon object, it would not be much more wonderful to me to see St.Paul's Church moving along where we now are. As yet we have travelledin post-chaises; but to-morrow we are to mount on horseback, and ascendinto the mountains by Fort Augustus, and so on to the ferry, where weare to cross to Sky. We shall see that island fully, and then visit somemore of the Hebrides; after which we are to land in Argyleshire, proceedby Glasgow to Auchinleck, repose there a competent time, and then returnto Edinburgh, from whence the Rambler will depart for old England again,as soon as he finds it convenient. Hitherto we have had a veryprosperous expedition. I flatter myself, _servetur ad imum, qualis abincepto processerit_[931]. He is in excellent spirits, and I have a richjournal of his conversation. Look back, Davy[932], to Litchfield,--runup through the time that has elapsed since you first knew Mr.Johnson,--and enjoy with me his present extraordinary Tour. I could notresist the impulse of writing to you from this place. The situation ofthe old castle corresponds exactly to Shakspeare's description. While wewere there to-day[933], it happened oddly, that a raven perched upon oneof the chimney-tops, and croaked. Then I in my turn repeated--"The raven himself is hoarse,That croaks the fatal entrance of Duncan,Under my battlements."'I wish you had been with us. Think what enthusiastick happiness I shallhave to see Mr. Samuel Johnson walking among the romantick rocks andwoods of my ancestors at Auchinleck[934]! Write to me at Edinburgh. Youowe me his verses on great George and tuneful Cibber, and the bad verseswhich led him to make his fine ones on Philips the musician[935]. Keep