tten better than
Savage."

This relation will not be wholly without its use, if those, who languish
under any part of his sufferings, shall be enabled to fortify their
patience, by reflecting that they feel only those afflictions from which
the abilities of Savage did not exempt him; or if those, who, in
confidence of superiour capacities or attainments, disregard the common
maxims of life, shall be reminded, that nothing will supply the want of
prudence, and that negligence and irregularity, long continued, will
make knowledge useless, wit ridiculous, and genius contemptible.

-----

[Footnote 47: The first edition of this interesting narrative, according
to Mr. Boswell, was published in 1744, by Roberts. The second, now
before me, bears date 1748, and was published by Cave. Very few
alterations were made by the author, when he added it to the present
collection. The year before publication, 1743, Dr. Johnson inserted the
following notice of his intention in the Gentleman's Magazine.

"MR. URBAN

"As your collections show how often you have owed the ornaments of your
poetical pages to the correspondence of the unfortunate and ingenious
Mr. Savage, I doubt not but you have so much regard to his memory, as to
encourage any design that may have a tendency to the preservation of it
from insults or calumnies; and, therefore, with some degree of
assurance, intreat you to inform the publick, that his life will
speedily be published by a person who was favoured with his confidence,
and received from himself an account of most of the transactions which
he proposes to mention, to the time of his retirement to Swansea, in
Wales.

"From that period to his death in the prison of Bristol, the account
will be continued from materials still less liable to objection; his own
letters and those of his friends; some of which will be inserted in the
work, and abstracts of others subjoined in the margin.

"It may be reasonably, imagined that others may have the same design,
but as it is not credible that they can obtain the same materials, it
must be expected that they will supply from invention the want of
intelligence, and that under the title of the Life of Savage, they will
publish only a novel, filled with romantick adventures and imaginary
amours. You may, therefore, perhaps, gratify the lovers of truth and
wit, by giving me leave to inform them, in your magazine, that my
account will be published, in octavo, by Mr. Roberts,