Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-10-29
LIFE OF DR.. JOHNSON
Facts About Him Recalled by
Recent Anniversary.
Monument AT LlTCHFIELD
Dedicated in Village Where He Was
Born 200 Years Ago.
FAMOUS PENANCE INCIDENT
This and Other Events in His
Career Pictured in Bronze
and Marble.
Monument AT LITCHFIELD
FAMOUS PENANCE INCIDENT
RY WILLIAM r. CURTIS

BY WILLIAM f. CURTIS.
Written for The ,'tar and the Chicago Record
I,erald
Among the accumulated correspondence
Of the summer are several inquiries con-
corning the celebration Of the 20Oth an
niversary of the birth of DR.. Samuel
Johnson. which occurred September Is.
1909 The event was appropriately COM
memorated by the British literary public
and a monument was dedicated at the
little village of I.itchfeld. Berks county
about thirty miles southwest of London,
near Winchester, where Samuel Johnson
was born. September Is, 100.
His father. Michael johnson. was
bookseller. and one of those quaint old
characters that are often associated with
bookshops. He knew the contents of
every volume on his shelves and spent
more time in reading them than in ex-
tending his trade. His shop was in the
market square of Litchfield very near to
the site Of a monument that has been
erected to his son, and on market days
he used to take load of books to the
neishboring towns and set up his stall
among the hucksters. One day. having
a heavy cold. he ordered his son Samuel
to take load of books to UttoXeter VIII
lage market, but being too proud or too
lazy the boy refused to go. and suffered
his father at the risk of his life to go
in his stead. This little act of disobedi-
ence was the source of bitter remOrse
until his death. and fifty years after it
occurred in writing his memoirs he al
llded to the incident thus:
ITO do away with the sin of this DIS
obedience, ! this day. went in a post
chaise to Uttoxeter and going into the
market at the time of high business, I'M
covered my head and stood with it bare
an hour before the stall which my father
had formerly used. exposed to the sneers
of standers-by and the inclemency of the
weather. penance. by which l trust, l
have propitiated heaven for this, the only
instance, l believe, Of contumacy to my
father"
Birthplace q Museum.
The birthplace of the philosopher was
purchased by a rich man of Litchfield
and presented to the city. 1t is a house
of three stories and more than three
hundred years old. 1t is preserved as
museum and is filled with relics. the most
interesting of which is an extract from
prayer. written in 1854 and used by DR..
Johnson during the last years of his life
Ii is an epitome of his all that he desired:
Give me such ease Of body as may ena-
bic me to be useful, and remove from
me all such scruples and perplexties as
cucumber and obstruct my mind
Johnson was man of deep religious
sentiment. His Bible. which he read daily
throughout his life, although he did not
always observe its precepts, lies i'm the
living room In the old house, and hang
ing on the wall above it is a sepia draw
ing Of the act of penance in the market
place HIS school books, many manu-
scripts and letters portraits and other
mementos have been preserved, similarly
to those of Burns in the ancient cottage
at Ayr.
Tho monument =, d.. .,..
resents DR.. Johnson seated i'm a comfort-
able chair. looking toward his birthplace
with benevolent smile upon his face.
1pon the pedestal are three scenes in
relief, one representing him. three years
old. perched upon his fathers shoulder,
listening to celebrated sermon preached
by Dr. Sacheverely. the parson of the
village church The second represents
schoolmates after having distinguished
himself in an extraordinary manner in
scholarship and the third is the pathetic
penance' in Uttoxeter market
A Hero in Litchfield.
Everybody at Litchfield knows all about
DIR. Johnson, and If you care to talk with
the butcher Or the baker or the CANDLE
stick maker they will relate with reyer-
ence his literary achievements the dis
tlhctions that were conferred upon him
during his life. and tell you stories of his
boyhood which are more or less apochry-
phal. He is as much part of Litchfield
as the famous cathedral-the only catbe-
drai In England with three spires. every
body Will tell you-and, although thew will
admit that II is not the largest the tes-
fimony of the angels could not shake
their belief that il is the most bea utifuI
tire most splendid fabric of stone that
was ever raised. Litchfield Cathedral has
stood for eleven centuries in that uIratnt
Old town and has been preserved moro
diligently than most Of the other ecclesi
Ssucal edinces of Europe. None of them
has had closer care or is regarded with
greater reverence.
There are tablets on every house identi
heo In any way with DIR. Johnson's ca
reer One of these reads:
On this site stood Dame OIIiyer's In
rant School. where DIR. Samuel Johnson
was taught English. ma
Inc amman school. where he got most
OF MS education is now private house.
Head Master Hunter used to heat ne
numerically, DIR. johnson saws "and he
did not distinguish between ignorance
and negligence While Hupte- was Hnso
S,nf AZ the =, ooys he used 10 say. IAN this
oo 90 10 save you from the gallows,
Married a Rich Widow.
when he was twenty years old Johnson,
went to Oxford, where he remained ,uo
years, but was compelled 10 give I'm his
studies because of his fathers nover,y
anu anu re.ufhed TO Ltchfield, looking for a
1ob He found a position as usher mr.
undermaster at school I'm Market Pos
worth, but the treatment he received
there was more than he could endure and
ne went TO Birmingham where he began
literary career upon the Birmingham
Journal and translated 'Iobo's Voyage
to Abyssinia.' He married Mrs Porter a
widow. who was just twice his age He
was twenty-four. and she was forty-
eight. but ii was a love match, and TO
the day of her death, seventeen years lat
er. they were devoted to each other and
showed unfAtering affection. She was
rich Tor those times. having an income of
about fS0O. and could afford literary
husband; but Johnson insisted upon start
Ing school for young gentlemen at
Edial. suburb of Birmingham which
existed only one year because there We're
no pupils. For the first six months there
were eight young gentlemen under in
stluction. and one of them was David
Garrick. the famous actor, who formed
friendship with his teacher which last
ed for lie.
Young johnson felt keenly the failure of
MS educational enterprise and never for
gave the people of Birmingham for theil
1nolnerence to the advantages he offered
Ihem. Many years later, speaking of
I-tchneid. he wrote, 1--WE work there
win our brains. and make the boobies of
birmingham work for us with their
hands," ~ 'ieh
Johnson returned to his literary caraer
ana journalism. and in I73S became a
regular contributor to the Gen;lemen,s
Magazine. Until 1I43 he was engaged In