Authors, Scottish -- 18th century -- Biography; Biographers -- Great Britain -- Biography; Boswell, James, 1740-1795
He adds a cool puff of his own verses, 'which, it is thought, are well
suited to the occasion, while at the same time they preserve the true
Corsican character.' About a month after this masquerade, Goldsmith
dined at Boswell's lodging with Garrick, Johnson, Davies, and others,
where 'Goldsmith,' says the biographer, 'strutted about, bragging of his
dress, and I believe was seriously vain of it, for his mind was
wonderfully prone to such impressions!' Bozzy could criticise, as on all
occasions, the bloom coloured coat of 'honest Goldsmith,' yet he was
eager for Garrick to fall in with the idea of the tradesmen of Stratford
to make the Jubilee an annual event in the interests of local trade, and
'I flatter myself with the prospect of attending you at several more
Jubilees.'
Though he had again commenced in London his attendance on Johnson and
note-taking, there was now a divided source of attraction. Things had
gone hard with Paoli since Boswell had been in the island. In spite of
his Irish brigades and his British volunteers, the overwhelming forces
which the French were able to put in the field, on the cession of the
island to them by the Genoese, brought to an end the stubborn resistance
of the inhabitants. In the August of 1768 Boswell had raised in Scotland
a subscription of L700 for ordnance furnished by the Carron Iron Work
Company, and in 1769 there had issued from the press a little duodecimo,
'_British Essays in favour of the Brave Corsicans_: collected and
published by James Boswell, Esq.' The papers are twenty in number, some
by himself, others by 'a gentleman whose name would do honour to any
cause (whom we think to have been Trecothick, the successor of Beckford,
as Lord Mayor of London), and the greatest part furnished by persons
unknown to me.' They deal with the dangers to trade from France and the
Bourbon Compact, and point at the value of Corsica as a station superior
to Gibraltar or Minorca. One paper signed 'P. J.' has the undoubted
Boswellian touch in dealing with the sailors thrown idle by the
cessation of the along-shore Mediterranean trade. 'None are less
avaricious than our honest tars, nor have they, in reality, any reason
to be discontented. Every common sailor has at least five and thirty
shillings a month, over and above which _he has his victuals and drink,
and that in great abundance_. There is no such thing as stinting aboard
a ship, unless when reduced to difficulties by stormy weather. The crew
have their three meals a day regularly, and if they should be hungry
between meals, _there is always a biscuit or a luncheon of something
cold to be had_.'
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account