d to move,
he found his arm totally benumbed. The rapidity with which this work was
composed, is a wonderful circumstance. Johnson has been heard to say, 'I
wrote forty-eight of the printed octavo pages of the Life of Savage at a
sitting; but then I sat up all night.'

It is remarkable, that in this biographical disquisition there appears a
very strong symptom of Johnson's prejudice against players; a prejudice
which may be attributed to the following causes: first, the imperfection
of his organs, which were so defective that he was not susceptible
of the fine impressions which theatrical excellence produces upon the
generality of mankind; secondly, the cold rejection of his tragedy; and,
lastly, the brilliant success of Garrick, who had been his pupil,
who had come to London at the same time with him, not in a much more
prosperous state than himself, and whose talents he undoubtedly rated
low, compared with his own. His being outstripped by his pupil in the
race of immediate fame, as well as of fortune, probably made him feel
some indignation, as thinking that whatever might be Garrick's merits
in his art, the reward was too great when compared with what the most
successful efforts of literary labour could attain. At all periods of
his life Johnson used to talk contemptuously of players; but in this
work he speaks of them with peculiar acrimony; for which, perhaps, there
was formerly too much reason from the licentious and dissolute manners
of those engaged in that profession. It is but justice to add, that in
our own time such a change has taken place, that there is no longer room
for such an unfavourable distinction.

His schoolfellow and friend, Dr. Taylor, told me a pleasant anecdote of
Johnson's triumphing over his pupil David Garrick. When that great actor
had played some little time at Goodman's fields, Johnson and Taylor went
to see him perform, and afterwards passed the evening at a tavern with
him and old Giffard. Johnson, who was ever depreciating stage-players,
after censuring some mistakes in emphasis which Garrick had committed in
the course of that night's acting, said, 'The players, Sir, have got
a kind of rant, with which they run on, without any regard either to
accent or emphasis.' Both Garrick and Giffard were offended at this
sarcasm, and endeavoured to refute it; upon which Johnson rejoined,
'Well now, I'll give you something to speak, with which you are little
acquainted, and then we shall see h