124 / 374
154
DJ^INI^S.
"Oil
Wednesday,
April
7,
I
dined
with
him
at
Sir
Joshua
Reynolds''s.
Johnson
harangued
upon
the
quaUties
of
different
liquors;
and
spoke
with
great
con-
tempt
of
claret,
as
so
weak,
that
*
a
man
would
be
drowned
by
it,
before
it
made
him
drunk.'
He
was
persuaded
to
drink
one
glass
of
it,
that
he
might
judge*
not
from
recollection,
which might
be
dim,
but
from
immediate
sensation.
He
shook
his
head,
and
said,
'Poor
stuff!
No,
sir,
claret
is
the
liquor
for
boys;
port
for
n)en
;
but
he
who
aspires
to
be
a
hero
(smiling)
•
must
drink
brandy.
In
the
first
place
the
flavour
of
brandy
is
the
most
grateful
to
the
palate,
and
then
brandy
will
do
soonest
for
a
man
what
drinking
can
do
for
him.
There
are,
indeed,
few
who
are
able
to
drink
brandy.
That
is
a
power
rather
to
be
wished
for
than
attained.'
"
And
two
years
later
on
he
gives
another
illustration
of the
doctor's
liking
for
strong
potations.
"Mr.
Eliot
mentioned
a
curious
liquor
peculiar
to
his
country,
which
the
Cornish
fishermen
drink.
They
call
it
Mahoga7iy
;
and
it
is
made
of
two
parts
gin
and
one
part
treacle,
well
beaten
together.
I
begged
to
have
some
of
it
made,
which
was
done
with
proper
skill
by
Mr.
Eliot.
I
thought
it
very
good
liquor,
and
said
it
was
a
counterpart
of
what
is
called
At
hoi
porridge^
in
the
Highlands
of
Scotland,
which
is
a
mixture
of
whiskey
and
honey.
Johnson
said
'
That
must
be
a
better
liquor
than
the
Cornish,
for
both
its
component
parts
are
better.'
He
also
observed,
'Mahogany
must
be
a
modern
name;
for
it
is
not
long
since
the
wood
called
mahogany
was
known
in
this
country.
I
1
Now
called
Athol
brose.