He
made some valuable acquaintances there, amongst whom were Mr. Porter,
a mercer, whose widow he afterwards married, and Mr. Taylor, who by his
ingenuity in mechanical inventions, and his success in trade, acquired
an immense fortune. But the comfort of being near Mr. Hector, his old
school-fellow and intimate friend, was Johnson's chief inducement to
continue here.
His juvenile attachments to the fair sex were very transient; and it is
certain that he formed no criminal connection whatsoever. Mr. Hector,
who lived with him in his younger days in the utmost intimacy and social
freedom, has assured me, that even at that ardent season his conduct
was strictly virtuous in that respect; and that though he loved to
exhilarate himself with wine, he never knew him intoxicated but once.
In a man whom religious education has secured from licentious
indulgences, the passion of love, when once it has seized him, is
exceedingly strong; being unimpaired by dissipation, and totally
concentrated in one object.
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