Depend upon it, Sir, when a man knows he is to be hanged in a fortnight, it concentrates his mind wonderfully.
Quoted in The Life of Samuel Johnson, LL.D, by James Boswell
Authentication Score 3
Original Citation
Johnson, Samuel. Quoted in journal entry, written by James Boswell. 19 Sept. 1777.
Current Citation
Johnson, Samuel. Quoted in The Life of Samuel Johnson, written by James Boswell, edited by David Womersley. Penguin Classics, 2008.