ABSTRACT
Exactly when Johnson became acquainted with James is not known certainly, but he told Mrs. Thrale that "Doctor James can give a better Account of my early Days than most Folks."7 Late in his life Johnson remembered early days in Lichfield with his old friend when he wrote a tribute to Gilbert Walmesley in the Life of Edmund Smith: "At this man's table I enjoyed many chearful and instructive hours, with companions such as are not often found: with one who has lengthened and one who has gladdened life; with Dr. James, whose skill in physick will be long remembered; and David Garrick .... " 8 Few records have survived that indicate the nature of their friendship. Boswell describes James as "an old schoolfellow, and one with whom he had lived a good deal afterwards." (However, James was six years older than Johnson so their friendship was probably solidified around Walmesley's table rather than in John Hunter's classroom.) Johnson, touched by the news of James's death, said, "Ah, poor Jamie," and later, "I have lost an old friend." 9 Almost a year after James's death, the controversy over his Fever Powder still raging, Johnson continued loyal to his old friend, vigorously defending him in a concluding paragraph to the advertisement of James's Vindication of the Fever Powder.'"
