not to be found; for to those of others he often gave that preservative care not always bestowed upon his own. But the replies of this friend let us into the main events of this period of his life, so that we are not left wholly uninformed. Chetwood writes thus in November, 1765:—
You see, my dear Malone, that I am not of the number of those correspondents who never write but to answer their friends’ letters, and who think it a work of supererogation to address two successive letters to the same person without the regular intervention of a reply. However ceremonious I may wish to be with others in this respect, I want no encouragement to make me think every circumstance a favourable one that gives me a pretence for employing my pen to you. An opportunity that I have just met with by accident, of sending this free to Bath, is the reason for writing to you at present; and I am not without hopes that a passport thence to the Grecian (coffee-house) will be procured by the gentleman to whom this is enclosed. Were I to write a long letter you might say that I had more compassion for your pocket than yourself. . . . .
How happy are you who can sweeten even confinement with the company of men and works of genius! I envy you your intimacy with the editor of Shakspeare, and the opportunities you have by your situation in London of collecting books. I wish you may have sufficient influence over Mr. Johnson to urge him to continue his writings. His Prince of Abyssinia has been of use in the world enough to encourage him to prosecute the theme of morals. You amaze me by accusing him of indolence. I imagined from the perusal of his dictionary, that his application was at least equal to his abilities. I have received a few hours’ entertainment from a dialogue of Hurd’s, upon the uses of foreign travel, which I take for granted you have seen long ago. I should he highly obliged to you if you would give me an account of anything that appears in the literary world, worth notice. Books of the highest reputation may be read over half the globe}}