Johnson was charming, both in
spirits and humour. I really think he grows gayer and gayer daily, and
more _ductile_ and pleasant.' In June she wrote:--'I found him in
admirable good-humour, and our journey [to Streatham] was extremely
pleasant. I thanked him for the last batch of his poets, and we talked
them over almost all the way.' Mme. D'Arblay's _Diary_, ii. 23, 44.
Beattie, a week or two later, wrote:--'Johnson grows in grace as he
grows in years. He not only has better health and a fresher complexion
than ever he had before (at least since I knew him), but he has
contracted a gentleness of manner which pleases everybody.' Beattie's
_Life_, ed. 1824, p. 289.
[326] See _ante_, iii. 65. Wilkes was by this time City Chamberlain. 'I
think I see him at this moment,' said Rogers (_Table-Talk_, p. 43),
'walking through the crowded streets of the city, as Chamberlain, on his
way to Guildhall, in a scarlet coat, military boots, and a bag-wig--the
hackney-coachmen in vain calling out to him, "A coach, your honour."'
[327] See _ante_, ii. 201, for Beattie's _Essay on Truth_.
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