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Southland Times, Issue 1307, 13 September 1870, Page 3

A STABTiura Discoveet. — Dr Johnson, as we all know, was a good hater, ; and his hatred to the Scotch was one of his most strongly marked peculiarities. "What, then, is the surprise of the literary world on hearing it asserted that Johnson was himself a Scotchman ? The story is not authenticated, but it is put forward by an adventurous writer as an explanation of the doctor's mysterious antipathy to the Land o' Cakes and all its belongings, which has given rise to so many various conjectures on the part of his critics and biographers. Bishop Percy believes his invectives were uttered more in jest than in earnest. Croker suspects that he had some personal cause for his unwarrantable dislike, and Boswell plainly intimates .that he was jealous of the success of the Scotch. The enterprising exponent of the mystery, who believes the illustrious Samuel to have been himself born north of the Tweed, considers that his explanation clears up the matter. The Scotch were unpopular in England in Johnson's time, and he therefore sought to conceal a damaging fact, and affected great bitterness to mislead the public. He had to dissemble his I love, and somewhat overdid the process. His hatred was a sham, as Percy supposes, and Croker and Boswell were right in believing he had a personal object. This explanation, based as it is on the supposed unpopularity of the Scotch in Johnson's time, does not tally with Boswell's assertion that "their success in England rather exceeded the due proportion of their real merit."— Shipping Gazette. Fididle-de-dee. — We have discovered, from profound study of Boman History, that the Emperor Ncro — although he played the violin very nicely while Rome blazed — was little better than a fool for doing it. He is ,to be regarded, in fact, as the Pagan-ninny of his day. — Fun.