This evening one of our married ladies, a lively pretty little woman, good-humouredly sat down upon Dr. Johnson’s knee, and, being encouraged by some of the company, put her hands round his neck, and kissed him.  ‘Do it again, (said he,) and let us see who will tire first.’  He kept her on his knee some time, while he and she drank tea.  He was now like a buck[712] indeed.  All the company were much entertained to find him so easy and pleasant.  To me it was highly comick, to see the grave philosopher,—­the Rambler,-toying with a Highland beauty[713]!—­But what could he do?  He must have been surly, and weak too, had he not behaved as he did.  He would have been laughed at, and not more respected, though less loved.

He read to-night, to himself, as he sat in company, a great deal of my Journal, and said to me, ’The more I read of this, I think the more highly of you.’  The gentlemen sat a long time at their punch, after he and I had retired to our chambers.  The manner in which they were attended struck me as singular:—­The bell being broken, a smart lad lay on a table in the corner of the room, ready to spring up and bring the kettle, whenever it was wanted.  They continued drinking, and singing Erse songs, till near five in the morning, when they all came into my room, where some of them had beds.  Unluckily for me, they found a bottle of punch in a corner, which they drank; and Corrichatachin went for another, which they also drank.  They made many apologies for disturbing me.  I told them, that, having been kept awake by their mirth, I had once thoughts of getting up, and joining them again.  Honest Corrichatachin said, ‘To have had you done so, I would have given a cow.’

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 28.

The weather was worse than yesterday.  I felt as if imprisoned.  Dr. Johnson said, it was irksome to be detained thus:  yet he seemed to have less uneasiness, or more patience, than I had.  What made our situation worse here was, that we had no rooms that we could command; for the good people had no notion that a man could have any occasion but for a mere sleeping-place; so, during the day, the bed chambers were common to all the house.  Servants eat in Dr. Johnson’s; and mine was a kind of general rendezvous of all under the roof, children and dogs not excepted.  As the gentlemen occupied the parlour, the ladies had no place to sit in, during the day, but Dr. Johnson’s room.  I had always some quiet time for writing in it, before he was up; and, by degrees, I accustomed the ladies to let me sit in it after breakfast, at my Journal, without minding me.

Dr. Johnson was this morning for going to see as many islands as we could; not recollecting the uncertainty of the season, which might detain us in one place for many weeks.  He said to me, ’I have more the spirit of adventure than you.’  For my part, I was anxious to get to Mull, from whence we might almost any day reach the main land.