at he had formerly shewn others such proofs of his
regard, that it was not necessary to crowd his Will with their names.
Mrs. Lucy Porter was much displeased that nothing was left to her; but
besides what I have now stated, she should have considered, that she had
left nothing to Johnson by her Will, which was made during his
life-time, as appeared at her decease.

His enumerating several persons in one group, and leaving them 'each a
book at their election,' might possibly have given occasion to a curious
question as to the order of choice, had they not luckily fixed on
different books. His library, though by no means handsome in its
appearance, was sold by Mr. Christie, for two hundred and forty-seven
pounds, nine shillings [F-14]; many people being desirous to have a book
which had belonged to Johnson. In many of them he had written little
notes: sometimes tender memorials of his departed wife; as, 'This was
dear Tetty's book:' sometimes occasional remarks of different sorts. Mr.
Lysons, of Clifford's Inn, has favoured me with the two following:

In _Holy Rules and Helps to Devotion_, by Bryan Duppa, Lord Bishop of
Winton, '_Preces quidam (? quidem) videtur diligenter tractasse; spero
non inauditus (? inauditas).'_

In _The Rosicrucian infallible Axiomata_, by John Heydon, Gent.,
prefixed to which are some verses addressed to the authour, signed Ambr.
Waters, A.M. Coll. Ex. Oxon. '_These Latin verses were written to Hobbes
by Bathurst, upon his Treatise on Human Nature, and have no relation to
the book.--An odd fraud_.'--BOSWELL. [Note: See Appendix F for notes on
this footnote.]

[1233] 'He burned,' writes Mrs. Piozzi, 'many letters in the last week,
I am told, and those written by his mother drew from him a flood of
tears. Mr. Sastres saw him cast a melancholy look upon their ashes,
which he took up and examined to see if a word was still
legible.'--_Piozzi Letters_, ii. 383.

[1234] Boswell in his _Hebrides_ (_post_, v. 53) says that Johnson,
starting northwards on his tour, left in a drawer in Boswell's house
'one volume of a pretty full and curious _Diary of his Life_, of which I
have,' he continues, 'a few fragments.' The other volume, we may
conjecture, Johnson took with him, for Boswell had seen both, and
apparently seen them only once. He mentions (_ante_, i. 27) that these
'few fragments' had been transferred to him by the residuary legatee
(Francis Barber). One large fragment, which was published afte