He had read but little Poetry when he came to LONDON: but he had not
been long there before he was struck, looking, as was his custom, at
Books on a stall, with the Title of NIGHT THOUGHTS. "He had never heard
of it before: but it's name was an irresistible charm to his melancholy,
enquiring mind. This has been ever his favourite Book. He would have
bought it had it been double the price. And as he possesses an
uncommonly retentive memory, he us'd to repeat great part of it by
rote in his walks with his Brothers. He afterwards read MILTON."

Such a Memory, and the study of two such Authors with poetic enthusiasm,
may in part account for what exceedingly surpriz'd me in reading the
MSS. of THE ESSAY ON WAR:--a greater mastery in the mechanism, and
greater power of numbers, than I should have almost thought possible
in the first attempt in BLANK VERSE; even to a person of the best
education.

He read too, GOLDSMITH and FIELDING. And he added to these some of our
English Poets as they fell in his way. Among these THOMSON could hardly
fail to be: but Mr. G. BLOOMFIELD remarks, "he never was so struck with
THOMSON as I should have expected."

While single, he made it the amusement of his evenings to read
_Entick's Dictionary_, and write down every word of which he wish'd to
remember the spelling or the meaning. He has often said that since his
buying of the Sermons in his early youth, he had never bought for his
own reading any but poetical Books: and when he could get hold of any
miscellaneous Book, he read first the Poetry, and after look'd at no
other part.