He described the father of one of his friends thus:'Sir,he was so exuberant a talker at publick meeting,that the gentlemen of his county were afraid of him.No business could be done for his declamation.'
He did not give me full credit when I mentioned that I had carried on a short conversation by signs with some Esquimaux who were then in London,particularly with one of them who was a priest.He thought I could not make them understand me.No man was more incredulous as to particular facts,which were at all extraordinary;and therefore no man was more scrupulously inquisitive,in order to discover the truth.
I dined with him this day at the house of my friends,Messieurs Edward and Charles Dilly,booksellers in the Poultry:there were present,their elder brother Mr.Dilly of Bedfordshire,Dr.
Goldsmith,Mr.Langton,Mr.Claxton,Reverend Dr.Mayo a dissenting minister,the Reverend Mr.Toplady,and my friend the Reverend Mr.
Temple.
BOSWELL.'I am well assured that the people of Otaheite who have the bread tree,the fruit of which serves them for bread,laughed heartily when they were informed of the tedious process necessary with us to have bread;--plowing,sowing,harrowing,reaping,threshing,grinding,baking.'JOHNSON.'Why,Sir,all ignorant savages will laugh when they are told of the advantages of civilized life.Were you to tell men who live without houses,how we pile brick upon brick,and rafter upon rafter,and that after a house is raised to a certain height,a man tumbles off a scaffold,and breaks his neck;he would laugh heartily at our folly in building;but it does not follow that men are better without houses.No,Sir,(holding up a slice of a good loaf,)this is better than the bread tree.'
I introduced the subject of toleration.JOHNSON.'Every society has a right to preserve publick peace and order,and therefore has a good right to prohibit the propagation of opinions which have a dangerous tendency.To say the MAGISTRATE has this right,is using an inadequate word:it is the SOCIETY for which the magistrate is agent.He may be morally or theologically wrong in restraining the propagation of opinions which he thinks dangerous,but he is politically right.'MAYO.'I am of opinion,Sir,that every man is entitled to liberty of conscience in religion;and that the magistrate cannot restrain that right.'JOHNSON.'Sir,I agree with you.Every man has a right to liberty of conscience,and with that the magistrate cannot interfere.People confound liberty of thinking with liberty of talking;nay,with liberty of preaching.
Every man has a physical right to think as he pleases;for it cannot be discovered how he thinks.He has not a moral right,for he ought to inform himself,and think justly.But,Sir,no member of a society has a right to TEACH any doctrine contrary to what the society holds to be true.The magistrate,I say,may be wrong in what he thinks:but while he thinks himself right,he may and ought to enforce what he thinks.'MAYO.'Then,Sir,we are to remain always in errour,and truth never can prevail;and the magistrate was right in persecuting the first Christians.'JOHNSON.'Sir,the only method by which religious truth can be established is by martyrdom.The magistrate has a right to enforce what he thinks;and he who is conscious of the truth has a right to suffer.I am afraid there is no other way of ascertaining the truth,but by persecution on the one hand and enduring it on the other.'
GOLDSMITH.'But how is a man to act,Sir?Though firmly convinced of the truth of his doctrine,may he not think it wrong to expose himself to persecution?Has he a right to do so?Is it not,as it were,committing voluntary suicide?'JOHNSON.'Sir,as to voluntary suicide,as you call it,there are twenty thousand men in an army who will go without scruple to be shot at,and mount a breach for five-pence a day.'GOLDSMITH.'But have they a moral right to do this?'JOHNSON.'Nay,Sir,if you will not take the universal opinion of mankind,I have nothing to say.If mankind cannot defend their own way of thinking,I cannot defend it.Sir,if a man is in doubt whether it would be better for him to expose himself to martyrdom or not,he should not do it.He must be convinced that he has a delegation from heaven.'GOLDSMITH.'Iwould consider whether there is the greater chance of good or evil upon the whole.If I see a man who had fallen into a well,I would wish to help him out;but if there is a greater probability that he shall pull me in,than that I shall pull him out,I would not attempt it.So were I to go to Turkey,I might wish to convert the Grand Signor to the Christian faith;but when I considered that Ishould probably be put to death without effectuating my purpose in any degree,I should keep myself quiet.'JOHNSON.'Sir,you must consider that we have perfect and imperfect obligations.Perfect obligations,which are generally not to do something,are clear and positive;as,"thou shalt not kill?'But charity,for instance,is not definable by limits.It is a duty to give to the poor;but no man can say how much another should give to the poor,or when a man has given too little to save his soul.In the same manner it is a duty to instruct the ignorant,and of consequence to convert infidels to Christianity;but no man in the common course of things is obliged to carry this to such a degree as to incur the danger of martyrdom,as no man is obliged to strip himself to the shirt in order to give charity.I have said,that a man must be persuaded that he has a particular delegation from heaven.'GOLDSMITH.'How is this to be known?Our first reformers,who were burnt for not believing bread and wine to be CHRIST'--JOHNSON.(interrupting him,)'Sir,they were not burnt for not believing bread and wine to be CHRIST,but for insulting those who did believe it.And,Sir,when the first reformers began,they did not intend to be martyred:as many of them ran away as could.'BOSWELL.'