' In short, I saw male succession strong in
his mind, even where there was no name, no family of any long standing.
I said, it was lucky he was not present when this misfortune happened.
JOHNSON. 'It is lucky for ME. People in distress never think that you
feel enough.' BOSWELL. 'And Sir, they will have the hope of seeing you,
which will be a relief in the mean time; and when you get to them, the
pain will be so far abated, that they will be capable of being consoled
by you, which, in the first violence of it, I believe, would not be the
case.' JOHNSON. 'No, Sir; violent pain of mind, like violent pain of
body, MUST be severely felt.' BOSWELL. 'I own, Sir, I have not so much
feeling for the distress of others, as some people have, or pretend to
have: but I know this, that I would do all in my power to relieve them.'
JOHNSON. 'Sir it is affectation to pretend to feel the distress of
others, as much as they do themselves. It is equally so, as if one
should pretend to feel as much pain while a friend's leg is cutting off,
as he does.
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