to-morrow at one o'clock, and communicate all
he knows about Pope.'--Here I paused, in full expectation that he would
be pleased with this intelligence, would praise my active merit, and
would be alert to embrace such an offer from a nobleman. But whether I
had shewn an over-exultation, which provoked his spleen; or whether he
was seized with a suspicion that I had obtruded him on Lord Marchmont,
and humbled him too much; or whether there was any thing more than an
unlucky fit of ill-humour, I know not; but, to my surprize, the result
was,--JOHNSON. 'I shall not be in town to-morrow. I don't care to know
about Pope.' MRS. THRALE. (surprized as I was, and a little angry,) 'I
suppose, Sir, Mr. Boswell thought, that as you are to write Pope's Life,
you would wish to know about him.' JOHNSON. 'Wish! why yes. If it rained
knowledge I'd hold out my hand; but I would not give myself the trouble
to go in quest of it.' There was no arguing with him at the moment. Some
time afterwards he said, 'Lord Marchmont will call on me, and then
I shall call on Lord Marchmont.' Mr. Thrale was uneasy at his
unaccountable caprice; and told me, that if I did not take care to bring
about a meeting between Lord Marchmont and him, it would never take
place, which would be a great pity. I sent a card to his Lordship, to be
left at Johnson's house, acquainting him, that Dr. Johnson could not be
in town next day, but would do himself the honour of waiting on him at
another time. I give this account fairly, as a specimen of that unhappy
temper with which this great and good man had occasionally to struggle,
from something morbid in his constitution. Let the most censorious of
my readers suppose himself to have a violent fit of the tooth-ach, or to
have received a severe stroke on the shin-bone, and when in such a
state to be asked a question; and if he has any candour, he will not
be surprized at the answers which Johnson sometimes gave in moments of
irritation, which, let me assure them, is exquisitely painful. But it
must not be erroneously supposed that he was, in the smallest degree,
careless concerning any work which he undertook, or that he was
generally thus peevish. It will be seen, that in the following year he
had a very agreeable interview with Lord Marchmont, at his Lordship's
house; and this very afternoon he soon forgot any fretfulness, and fell
into conversation as usual.

JOHNSON. 'How foolish was it in Pope to give all his friendship