To recollect, however, and to repeat the sayings of Dr. Johnson, is
almost all that can be done by the writers of his life, as his life, at
least since my acquaintance with him, consisted in little else than
talking, when he was not absolutely employed in some serious piece of
work; and whatever work he did seemed so much below his powers of
performance that he appeared the idlest of all human beings, ever musing
till he was called out to converse, and conversing till the fatigue of
his friends, or the promptitude of his own temper to take offence,
consigned him back again to silent meditation.

The remembrance of what had passed in his own childhood made Mr. Johnson
very solicitous to preserve the felicity of children: and when he had
persuaded Dr. Sumner to remit the tasks usually given to fill up boys'
time during the holidays, he rejoiced exceedingly in the success of his
negotiation, and told me that he had never ceased representing to all the
eminent schoolmasters in England the absurd tyranny of poisoning the hour
of permitted pleasure by keeping future misery before the children's
eyes, and tempting them by bribery or falsehood to evade it. "Bob
Sumner," said he, "however, I have at length prevailed upon. I know not,
indeed, whether his tenderness was persuaded, or his reason convinced,
but the effect will always be the same. Poor Dr. Sumner died, however,
before the next vacation."

Mr. Johnson was of opinion, too, that young people should have
_positive_, not _general_, rules given for their direction. "My mother,"
said he, "was always telling me that I did not _behave_ myself properly,
that I should endeavour to learn _behaviour_, and such cant; but when I
replied that she ought to tell me what to do, and what to avoid, her
admonitions were commonly, for that time at least, at an end."

This I fear was, however, at best a momentary refuge found out by
perverseness. No man knew better than Johnson in how many nameless and
numberless actions _behaviour_ consists--actions which can scarcely be
reduced to rule, and which come under no description. Of these he
retained so many very strange ones, that I suppose no one who saw his odd
manner of gesticulating much blamed or wondered at the good lady's
solicitude concerning her son's _behaviour_.

Though he was attentive to the peace of children in general, no man had a
stronger contempt than he for such parents as openly profess that they
cannot govern their