-street, November
26. I have seen a new region.

'I have been upon seven of the islands, and probably should have visited
many more, had we not begun our journey so late in the year, that the
stormy weather came upon us, and the storms have I believe for about
five months hardly any intermission.

'Your Letter told me that you were better. When you write do not forget
to confirm that account. I had very little ill health while I was on the
journey, and bore rain and wind tolerably well. I had a cold and
deafness only for a few days, and those days I passed at a good house. I
have traversed the east coast of Scotland from south to north from
Edinburgh to Inverness, and the west coast from north to south, from the
Highlands to Glasgow, and am come back as I went,

'Sir,

'Your affectionate humble servant,

'SAM. JOHNSON.'

'Jan. 15, 1774.

'To the Reverend Dr. Taylor,

'in Ashbourn,

'Derbyshire.'

[1122] Johnson speaking of this tour on April 10, 1783, said:--'I got an
acquisition of more ideas by it than by anything that I remember.'
_Ante_, iv. 199.

[1123] See _ante_, p. 48.

[1124] See _ante_, i. 408, 443, note 2, and ii. 303.

[1125] 'It may be doubted whether before the Union any man between
Edinburgh and England had ever set a tree.' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 8.

[1126] See _ante_, p. 69.

[1127] Lord Balmerino's estate was forfeited to the Crown on his
conviction for high treason in 1746 (_ante_, i. 180).

[1128] 'I know not that I ever heard the wind so loud in any other
place; and Mr. Boswell observed that its noise was all its own, for
there were no trees to increase it.' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 122. See
_ante_, p. 304.

[1129] See _ante_, ii. 300.

[1130] 'Strong reasons for incredulity will readily occur. This faculty
of seeing things out of sight is local and commonly useless. It is a
breach of the common order of things, without any visible reason or
perceptible benefit.' Johnson's _Works_, ix. 106.

[1131] 'To the confidence of these objections it may be replied... that
second sight is only wonderful because it is rare, for, considered in
itself, it involves no more difficulty than dreams.' _Ib._

[1132] The fossilist of last century is the geologist of this. Neither
term is in Johnson's _Dictionary_, but Johnson in his _Journey (Works_,
ix. 43) speaks of 'Mr. Janes the fossilist.'

[1133] _Ib_. p. 157.

[1134] _Ib_. p. 6. I do not see anything silly in the story. It is
however