The best definition of the underlined word 'hapless' in the Johnson preface sentence is:

• A. unlucky or unfortunate; pitiable
• B. unknown or unfamiliar; mysterious
• C. without intelligence; foolish
• D. without tenderness; harsh

Answer: (A)

The key idea is to know how hapless expresses misfortune. Hap means luck or fortune, and adding -less makes something lacking that quality. So hapless literally means lacking luck—unlucky or unfortunate, often with a sense of pitiable circumstance. In Johnson’s preface, using hapless would describe someone or something that is unfortunate yet sympathetic, not mysterious or stupid or cruel. The other options push the sense in the wrong direction: unknown or unfamiliar would describe something obscure, not something deprived of luck; without intelligence points to foolishness; and without tenderness suggests harshness. So the best fit is the idea of being unlucky or pitiable.