'
Here I must observe, that he conquered by deserting his ground, and not
meeting the argument as I had put it. The assiduity of the Scottish
clergy is certainly greater than that of the English. His taking up the
topick of their not having so much learning, was, though ingenious, yet
a fallacy in logick. It was as if there should be a dispute whether a
man's hair is well dressed, and Dr. Johnson should say, 'Sir, his hair
cannot be well dressed; for he has a dirty shirt. No man who has not
clean linen has his hair well dressed.' When some days afterwards he
read this passage, he said, 'No, Sir; I did not say that a man's hair
could not be well dressed because he has not clean linen, but because
he is bald.'
He used one argument against the Scottish clergy being learned, which I
doubt was not good. 'As we believe a man dead till we know that he is
alive; so we believe men ignorant till we know that they are learned.'
Now our maxim in law is, to presume a man alive, till we know he is
dead. However, indeed, it may be answered, that we must first know he
has lived; and that we have never known the learning of the Scottish
clergy. Mr. M'Queen, though he was of opinion that Dr. Johnson had
deserted the point really in dispute, was much pleased with what he
said, and owned to me, he thought it very just; and Mrs.
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