The Life of Samuel Johnson LlD Author:John Hawkins Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: to her fufferings, Mr. Johnfon caufed a flone to be placed over her grave with this infcription : Here lies the body of Mrs. El1zabeth Blaney, a ftranger. ... more » She departed this life, id of September, 1694 The firft born child of Mr. Johnfon and his wife, their fon Samuel, had the misfortune to receive, together with its nutriment derived from a hired nurfe, the feeds of that difeafe which troubled him through life, the ftruma, or, as it is called, the king's-evil; for the cure whereof his mother, agreeable to the opinion then entertained of the efficacy of the royal touch, prefented him to Queen Anne, who, for the laft time, as it is faid, that fhe ever performed that office, with her accuftomed grace and benignity adminiftered to the child as much of that healing quality as it was in her power to difpenfe, and hung about his neck the ulual amulet of an angel of gold, with the imprefs of St. Michael the archangel on the one, fide, and a fhip under full fail on the other. It was probably thisthis difeafe that deprived him of the fight of his left eye, for he has been heard to fay, that he never re- membered to have enjoyed the ufe of it. This healing gift is faid to have been derived to our princes from Edward the Confeflbr, and is recorded by his hiftorian, Alured Rivallenfis. In Stow's annals we have a relation of the firft cure of this kind which Edward performed ; but, as it is rather difgufting to read it, I chufe to give it in the words of the author from whence it is apparently taken, with this remark, that the kings of France lay claim to the fame miraculous power. Adolefcentula qusedam tradita ' nuptiis duplici laborabat incommode. Nam faciem ejus morbus dc- formaverat, amorem viri fterilitas prolis ademerat: fub faucibus ' qiuppequafiglandeseifuccre...« less