Page:Johnsonian Miscellanies II.djvu/83

 Anecdotes by Richard Cumberland.

��he was in. He presented himself always in his fashion of apparel ; a brown coat with metal buttons, black waistcoat and worsted stockings, with a flowing bob wig T was the style of his wardrobe, but they were in perfectly good trim 2, and with the ladies, which he generally met, he had nothing of the slovenly philosopher about him ; he fed heartily, but not vora ciously 3, and was extremely courteous in his commendations of any dish that pleased his palate ; he suffered his next neigh bour to squeeze the China oranges 4 into his wine glass after dinner, which else perchance had gone aside, and trickled into his shoes, for the good man had neither straight sight nor steady nerves.

At the tea table he had considerable demands upon his favourite beverage, and I remember when Sir Joshua Reynolds at my house reminded him that he had drank eleven cups, he replied e Sir, I did not count your glasses of wine 5, why should you number up my cups of tea ? ' And then laughing in perfect good humour he added ' Sir, I should have released the lady

��1 Johnson defines a bobwig as a short wig, so \\&& flowing seems an inconsistent epithet.

2 Cumberland could only have known him after his dress had been improved by associating with the Thrales. Life, iii. 325. Johnson seems to show how regardless he was of dress by his note on King John, Act iv. sc. 2, where Hubert describes a smith,

' Standing on slippers, which his

nimble haste Had falsely thrust upon contrary

feet.'

On this Johnson remarks : ' Shakespeare seems to have con founded a man's shoes with his gloves. He that is frighted or hurried may put his hand into the wrong glove, but either shoe will equally admit either foot. The authour seems to be disturbed by the disorder which he describes.' Johnson's slippers were his old shoes. Life, i. 396 ; ii. 406.

��3 This is at variance with the ac counts of Boswell (Life, i. 468 ; iv. 72) and Hawkins (post, p. 105).

'Violent hunger, though upon many occasions not only natural, but unavoidable, is always indecent, and to eat voraciously is universally regarded as a piece of ill manners.' Adam Smith's Moral Sentiments, ed. 1801, i. 45.

4 Life, ii. 330.

5 Johnson wrote on Jan. 2 1, 1 775: ' Reynolds has taken too much to strong liquor, and seems to delight in his new character.' Life, ii. 292. 'SiR JOSHUA. "You have sat by quite sober, and felt an envy of the happiness of those who were drink ing." JOHNSON. "Perhaps con tempt." ' Ib. iii. 41. ' SIR JOSHUA. " At first the taste of wine was dis agreeable to me ; but I brought my self to drink it, that I might be like other people.' Ib. iii. 329.

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