Dictionary Johnson

Chesterfield's patronage of the Dictionary never materialized, and indeed he seemed to take little notice of the project during the ordeal of its compilation. However, shortly before its publication in 1755, Chesterfield wrote two articles for the fashionable magazine The World, praising Johnson and his Dictionary. This created the intolerable impression that Chesterfield had been carefully shepherding the project forward all along. This impression was further fostered by the republication of the 1747 Plan of a Dictionary, with its dedication to Chesterfield. Johnson forcefully asserted his place as the true father of the Dictionary in a scathing letter in which he repudiated Chesterfield in particular and patronage in general. "Is not a Patron, My Lord, one who looks with unconcern on a Man struggling for Life in the water and when he has reached ground encumbers him with help?" Although the original letter itself no longer survives, several copies dictated by Johnson do, as he was not shy about sharing its contents with those in his circle (since, of course, the function of the letter was to correct a public misimpression). James Boswell's copy of the letter would end up in his biography of Johnson, but was initially printed in this rare stand-alone publication, presumably issued to secure his copyright in the sensational text.