The Works of Samuel Johnson</H1>
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The Works of Samuel Johnson The Works of Samuel Johnson Scanned by Charles Keller with OmniPage Professional OCR software donated by Caere Corporation, 1-800-535-7226. Contact Mike Lough THE WORKS OF SAMUEL JOHNSON IN SIXTEEN VOLUMES VOLUME IV THE RAMBLER BY SAMUEL JOHNSON CONTENTS No. 171 Misella's description of the life of a prostitute. page 1 / 331 172 The effect of sudden riches upon the manners. 173 Unreasonable fears of pedantry. 174 The mischiefs of unbounded raillery. History of Dicaculus 175 The majority are wicked. 176 Directions to authors attacked by criticks. The various degrees of critical perspicacity. 177 An account of a club of antiquaries. 178 Many advantages not to be enjoyed together. 179 The awkward merriment of a student. 180 The study of life not to be neglected for the sake of books. 181 The history of an adventurer in lotteries. 182 The history of Leviculus, the fortune-hunter. 183 The influence of envy and interest compared. 184 The subject of essays often suggested by chance. Chance equally prevalent in other affairs 185 The prohibition of revenge justifiable by reason. The meanness of regulating our conduct by the opinions of men 186 Anningait and Ajut; a Greenland history 187 The history of Anningait and Ajut concluded 188 Favour often gained with little assistance from understanding. 189 The mischiefs of falsehood. The character of Turpicula. 190 The history of Abouzaid, the son of Morad. 191 The busy life of a young lady. 192 Love unsuccessful without riches. 193 The author's art of praising himself. 194 A young nobleman's progress in politeness.. 195 A young nobleman's introduction to the knowledge of the town. 196 Human opinions mutable. The hopes of youth fallacious. page 2 / 331 197 The history of a legacy-hunter. 198 The legacy-hunter's history concluded. 199 The virtues of Rabbi Abraham's magnet. 200 Asper's complaint of the insolence of Prospero Unpoliteness not always the effect of pride. 201 The importance of punctuality. 202 The different acceptations of poverty. Cynicks and Monks not poor. 203 The pleasures of life to be sought in prospects of futurity. Future fame uncertain. 204 The history of ten days of Seged, emperour of Ethiopia. 205 The history of Seged concluded. 206 The art of living at the cost of others. 207 The folly of continuing too long upon the stage. 208 The Rambler's reception. His design. THE ADVENTURER NO. 34 Folly of extravagance. The story of Misargyrus. 39 On sleep. 41 Sequel of the story of Misargyrus. 45 The difficulty of forming confederacies. 50 On lying. 53 Misargyrus' account of his companions in the Fleet. 58 Presumption of modern criticism censured. Ancient poetry necessarily obscure. Examples from Horace. 62 Misargyrus' account of his companions concluded. page 3 / 331 67 On the trades of Londo. 69 Idle hope. 74 Apology for neglecting officious advice. 81 Incitement to enterprise and emulation. Some account of the admirable Crichton. 84 Folly of false pretences to importance. A journey in a stage coach. 85 Study, composition and converse equally necessary to intellectual accomplishment. 92 Criticism on the Pastorals of Virgil. 95 Apology for apparent plagiarism. Sources of literary variety. 99 Projectors injudiciously censured and applauded. 102 Infelicities of retirement to men of business. 107 Different opinions equally plausible. 108 On the uncertainty of human things. THE WORKS OF SAMUEL JOHNSON IN SIXTEEN VOLUMES VOLUME IV THE RAMBLER BY SAMUEL JOHNSON No. 171. TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 1751 page 4 / 331 Toeet coeli convexa tueri. VIRG. AEn. iv. 451. Dark is the sun, and loathsome is the day. TO THE RAMBLER. SIR, MISELLA now sits down to continue her narrative. I am convinced that nothing would more powerfully preserve youth from irregularity, or guard inexperience from seduction, than a just description of the condition into which the wanton plunges herself; and therefore hope that my letter may be a sufficient antidote to my example. After the distraction, hesitation, and delays which the timidity of guilt naturally produces, I was removed to lodgings in a distant part of the town, under one of the characters commonly assumed upon such occasions. Here being by my circumstances condemned to solitude, I passed most of my hours in bitterness and anguish. The conversation of the people with whom I was placed was not at all capable of engaging my attention, or dispossessing the reigning ideas. The books which I carried to my retreat were such as heightened my abhorrence of page 5 / 331 myself; for I was not so far abandoned as to sink voluntarily into corruption, or endeavour to conceal from my own mind the enormity of my crime. My relation remitted none of his fondness, but visited me so often, that I was sometimes afraid lest his assiduity should expose him to suspicion. Whenever he came he found me weeping, and was therefore less delightfully entertained than he expected. After frequent expostulations upon the unreasonableness of my sorrow, and innumerable protestations of everlasting regard, he at last found that I was more affected with the loss of my innocence, than the danger of my fame, and that he might not be disturbed by my remorse, began to lull my conscience with the opiates of irreligion. His arguments were such as my course of life has since exposed me often to the necessity of hearing, vulgar, empty, and fallacious; yet they at first confounded me by their novelty, filled me with doubt and perplexity, and interrupted that peace which I began to feel from the sincerity of my repentance, without substituting any other support. I listened a while to his impious gabble, but its influence was soon overpowered by natural reason and early education, and the convictions which this new attempt gave me of his baseness completed my abhorrence. page 6 / 331 I have heard of barbarians, who, when tempests drive ships upon their coast, decoy them to the rocks that they may plunder their lading, and have always thought that wretches, thus merciless in their depredations, ought to be destroyed by a general insurrection of all social beings; yet how light is this guilt to the crime of him, who, in the agitations of remorse, cuts away the anchor of piety, and, when he has drawn aside credulity from the paths of virtue, hides the light of heaven which would direct her to return. I had hitherto considered him as a man equally betrayed with myself by the concurrence of appetite and opportunity; but I now saw with horrour that he was contriving to perpetuate his gratification, and was desirous to fit me to his purpose, by complete and radical corruption. To escape, however, was not yet in my power. I could support the expenses of my condition only by the continuance of his favour. He provided all that was necessary, and in a few weeks congratulated me upon my escape from the danger which we had both expected with so much anxiety. I then began to remind him of his promise to restore me with my fame uninjured to the world. He promised me in general terms, that nothing should be wanting which his power could add to my happiness, page 7 / 331 but forbore to release me from my confinement. I knew how much my reception in the world depended upon my speedy return, and was therefore outrageously impatient of his delays, which I now perceived to be only artifices of lewdness. He told me at last, with an appearance of sorrow, that all hopes of restoration to my former state were for ever precluded; that chance had discovered my secret, and malice divulged it; and that nothing now remained, but to seek a retreat more private, where curiosity or hatred could never find us. The rage, anguish, and resentment, which I felt at this account are not to be expressed. I was in so much dread of reproach and infamy, which he represented as pursuing me with full cry, that I yielded myself implicitly to his disposal and was removed, with a thousand studied precautions, through by- ways and dark passages to another house, where I harassed him with perpetual solicitations for a small annuity that might enable me to live in the country in obscurity and innocence. This demand he at first evaded with ardent professions, but in time appeared offended at my importunity and distrust; and having one day endeavoured to sooth me with uncommon expressions page 8 / 331 of tenderness, when he found my discontent immoveable, left me with some inarticulate murmurs of anger. I was pleased that he was at last roused to sensibility, and expecting that at his next visit he would comply with my request, lived with great tranquillity upon the money in my hands, and was so much pleased with this pause of persecution, that I did not reflect how much his absence had exceeded the usual intervals, till I was alarmed with the danger of wanting subsistence. I then suddenly contracted my expenses, but was unwilling to supplicate for assistance. Necessity, however, soon overcame my modesty or my pride, and I applied to him by a letter, but had no answer. I writ in terms more pressing, but without effect. I then sent an agent to inquire after him, who informed me, that he had quitted his house, and was gone with his family to reside for some time on his estate in Ireland. However shocked at this abrupt departure, I was yet unwilling to believe that he could wholly abandon me, and therefore, by the sale of my clothes, I supported myself, expecting that every post would bring me relief.