The poetical work of Dr. Johnson contains scarcely any instances of compounds, and none either newly invented or applied. “London” and “The Vanity of Human Wishes” have each not more than two or three instances, and even the four poems, in which he successively treats of the seasons, are almost destitute of compound epithets, “_snow-topped_ cot” (“Winter”) being almost the only example. There are many more instances of compound formations in the works of Oliver Goldsmith, most of which, like “_nut-brown_ draughts” (“Deserted Village,” II), “_sea-borne_ gales” (“Traveller,” 121), “_grass-grown_ footway” (“Deserted Village,” 127), had either been long in the language, or had been used by earlier eighteenth century poets. There are, however, instances which testify to a desire to add to the descriptive power of the vocabulary; in “The Traveller” we find mention of “the _hollow-sounding_ bittern” (l. 44), “the _rocky-crested_ summits” (l. 85), “the _yellow-blossomed_ vale” (l. 293), and the “_willow-tufted_ bank” (l. 294). For the rest, Goldsmith’s original compounds are, like so many of this type, mere efforts at verbal condensation, as “_shelter-seeking_ peasant” (“Traveller,” 162), “_joy-pronouncing_ eye” (_ibid._, 10), etc. Of the more famous blank verse poems of the eighteenth century the first and most important was “The Seasons” of James Thomson, which appeared in their original form between 1726 and 1730. The originality of style, for which Johnson praised him,[172] is perhaps to be seen especially in his use of compound formations; probably no other poet has ever used them so freely. As a general rule, Thomson’s compounds fall into the well-defined groups already mentioned. He has a number of noun _plus_ noun formations (Type I), where the first element has usually a purely adjectival value; “_patriot-council_” (“Autumn,” 98), “_harvest-treasures_” (_ibid._, 1217), as well as a few which allow him to indulge in grandiose periphrasis, as in the “_monarch-swain_” (“Summer,” 495) for a shepherd with his “_sceptre-crook_” (_ibid._, 497). These are all commonplace formations, but much more originality is found in his compound epithets. He frequently uses the noun _plus_ present participle combinations (Type III), “_secret-winding_, _flower-enwoven_ bowers” (“Spring,” 1058) or “_forest-rustling_ mountains” (“Winter,” 151), etc. Moreover, the majority of his compounds are original, though now and then he has taken a “classical” compound and given it a somewhat curious application, as in “_cloud-compelling_ cliffs” (“Autumn,” 801). A few of this class are difficult to justify logically, striking examples being “_world-rejoicing_ state” (“Summer,” 116) for “the state of one in whom the world rejoices,” and “_life-sufficing_ trees” (_ibid._, 836) for “trees that give sustenance.”