Johnson's style was grand and Gibbon’s elegant; the stateliness of the former was sometimes pedantic, and the polish of the latter was occasionally f… - George Colman the Younger

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Johnson's style was grand and Gibbon’s elegant; the stateliness of the former was sometimes pedantic, and the polish of the latter was occasionally finical. Johnson marched to kettle-drums and trumpets. Gibbon moved to flutes and hautboys. Johnson hewed passages through the Alps, while Gibbon levelled walks through parks and gardens.