"Is not a patron, my lord, one who looks with unconcern on a man struggling for life in the water, and when he has reached ground encumbers him with help? The notice which you have been pleased to take care of my labors, had it been early, had been kind; but it has been delayed till I am indifferent, and cannot enjoy it; till I am solitary, and cannot impart it; till I am known, and do not want it."

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Source: Quoted in James Boswell, The Life of Samuel Johnson (1791) (letter to Lord Chesterfield, 7 Feb. 1755)

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Samuel Johnson

Lexicographer, Essayist, Critic

Samuel Johnson was an 18th-century English writer and lexicographer, known for his influential work 'A Dictionary of the English Language' and his profound insights into human nature.

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