February 7: A Letter from a Lion (Vol. 39, pp. 206-207)

On this day in 1755, Samuel Johnson wrote a letter to Lord Chesterfield, to remind him of how he brushed Johnson off when he was a struggling writer and only got around to singing his praises well after the fact. This was at the time Johnson's "Dictionary" was published, and Johnson believed that Lord Chesterfield's praise would have meant more to him before he became a renowned writer and essayist.