A very erroneous notion has circulated as to Johnson's deficiency in the
knowledge of the Greek language, partly owing to the modesty with which,
from knowing how much there was to be learnt, he used to mention his own
comparative acquisitions. When Mr. Cumberland[1172] talked to him of the
Greek fragments which are so well illustrated in The Observer[1173],
and of the Greek dramatists in general, he candidly acknowledged his
insufficiency in that particular branch of Greek literature. Yet it may
be said, that though not a great, he was a good Greek scholar. Dr.
Charles Burney[1174], the younger, who is universally acknowledged by
the best judges to be one of the few men of this age who are very
eminent for their skill in that noble language, has assured me, that
Johnson could give a Greek word for almost every English one; and that
although not sufficiently conversant in the niceties of the language, he
upon some occasions discovered, even in these, a considerable degree of
critical acumen. Mr. Dalzel, Professor of Greek at Edinburgh, whose
skill in it is unquestionable, mentioned to me, in very liberal terms,
the impression which was made upon him by Johnson, in a conversation
which they had in London concerning that language.
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