Read Ebook: From Boyhood to Manhood: Life of Benjamin Franklin by Thayer William Makepeace

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Ebook has 2642 lines and 122177 words, and 53 pages

Persecution Driving Franklin and Others Away--Discussion about Emigrating--Josiah Franklin--His Trade--Benjamin Franklin--Doctor Franklin's Account of His Ancestors--Meetings of Dissenters Broken Up--Why Josiah Decided to Go--Account of Their Family Bible--The Final Decision--The Franklin Family Influential--Thomas Franklin--The Franklin Poet--Doctor Franklin about His Father--What Boston was Then and Now--Exploring the Wilderness--Influence of Franklins in Boston.

Birth of Benjamin Franklin on Sunday--The Fifteenth Child--God's Gift--Proposition to Baptize Him the Same Day--Discussion over It--Baptized on That Day by Doctor Willard--The Church Record--House in Which He was Born--Josiah's Children--Death of Wife and Second Marriage--The Folger Family--Name for Uncle Benjamin--Personal Beauty--Words of Parton--Josiah Took Up Trade of Tallow-chandler--The Business and Place Described--Sons Apprenticed--Josiah a Good Musician--Condition of the World When Benjamin was Born in 1706.

Seven Years Old--First Money to Spend as He Pleased--Advice Gratis--Boy with Whistle--Benjamin Buys a Whistle--Going into the Concert Business--Scene in the Family--Tormented by John for Paying All His Money--Ben Breaks Down--Father and Mother Takes His Part--The Lesson He Learned--What He Wrote about It at Seventy-two Years of Age--When Boys Pay Too Dear for the Whistle--Dickens--Keeping the Secret--How the Secret Came Out.

Uncle Benjamin and His Poetry--His Family--His Letter about Ben--Plans for School and Doctor Willard--Goes to School at Eight Years of Age--Description of His Father--Of His Mother--Inscription on Their Monument--Nathaniel Williams, Teacher--Description of School-house--His Scholarship High--His Teacher Praises Him--Led the School--Prophecies about Him--Webster--Rittenhouse--Stephenson.

Poverty Forces Him to Leave School--His Mother's View--Hard Time for Ministers--Brownell's School of Penmanship--How Ben Could Help His Father--Boys Put to Work Young Then--His Obedience--A Well-Disciplined Boy--Incident of His Manhood to Rebuke a Landlord--Robert Peel and Harry Garland--The Eight Hall Brothers--His Progress.

Arrival of Uncle Benjamin--Opposed to Taking His Nephew Out of School-- Thinks Ben is Very Talented--Prospects of the Business--Benjamin's Talk with His Mother--Blessings of Industry--Doctor Franklin's Proverbs--Became Wiser Than His Father--Tallow-Chandler at Ten Years of Age--His Father Saw His Dissatisfaction--Josiah, the Runaway Son, Returns--Wanted to Go to Sea--The Proposition Vetoed--Uncle Benjamin Against It.

Love of a Trade Necessary to Success--Following "Natural Bent"--Square Boys in Round Holes--Smeaton--Benjamin Pleased with a New Plan-- Examining Different Trades--The Cutler, Brazier, etc.--Chooses Cutler's Trade--Enters Shop on Trial--Disagreement on Terms--The Good It Did Him--Sport on the Water--An Evil Proposition--Stealing Stones--The Wharf Built--The Thieves Detected--How Benjamin's Father Found Him Out--Benjamin's Confession and Promise--The End.

James Franklin Returns from England a Printer--His Father's Talk About Learning That Trade--Benjamin Likes It--Arrangement with James-- Printing in Its Infancy Then--Censorship over Printing--Bound to His Brother--Form of Indenture--William Tinsley--White Slavery--Poor Children Sold at Auction--A Printer-boy and How He Liked--Time for Reading--Budget!--The Printing-office, Where and What--Being on Time--After a Book Before Breakfast--Washington's Punctuality-- Franklin's Like It.

What Franklin Said of Table-talk--What Heard at Table Now--Its Moulding Influence--That of His Grandfather--The Franklins Good in Conversation--Extract from Parton--Letter of Franklin to His Wife in 1758--Pythagoras--Cicero--Josiah Franklin--His Wise Counsels--Origin of His Temperance Principles--No Temperance Cause Then--The Washburne Family--The Way the Twig is Bent.

Love of Reading and Fun--The Best Swimmer, etc.--Invention to Promote Swimming--His Secret of Success--The Trial of the Apparatus--Hard on the Wrists--Another Experiment Proposed--Swimming Promoted by a Kite--Delight of the Boys--What Franklin Said of It in Manhood--The Seed Thought of Drawing Lightning from a Cloud with a Kite--His Experiment and Joy--What He Wrote about It--Advocate of Liberal Female Education--Correspondence with Collins--His Father's Opinion--How Benjamin Tried to Improve--How He Gained Time--Wise Maxims in Age--Maxims--C.G. Frost and One Hour a Day--What Spare Moments Did for Benjamin.

Only Three Newspapers in America--Created a Stir--What Newspaper Business is in Boston Now--How to Estimate It--Benjamin Manages the Printing of It--His Interest in It--Its Warm Reception--Proposition to Board Himself--What He Gained by It--His Object Self-improvement-- James Selfish, Benjamin Generous--Their Talk about the Plan--What His Bill-of-Fare Was--How Come to Adopt Vegetable Diet--More Maxims-- Cocker's Arithmetic--His Success.

Four Classes of Readers--Ben after Diamonds--Hungry Mind--Words of Thomas Hood--What Franklin Said--First Book Pilgrim's Progress--Talk with His Father--What Franklin Said of Narrative--Plutarch's Lives--Easy to Do Good--What They Were--Incident by Parton--Plan to Buy Burton's Historical Collections--Describes Them--Boyle's Lectures--Kind Offer of Matthew Adams--Borrowing Books of Booksellers' Clerks--Great Favor--Books Very Scarce Then--Greenwood's English Grammar--Talk with Collins--Other Books Read--Habit of Taking Notes--Letter of Franklin about It--Professor Atkinson's Words--Garfield Had Same Habit.

Reading Shaftesbury's Work--Discussion with Collins--Ben's Orthodoxy in Peril--Benjamin a Thinker--Saying Grace over the Pork Barrel--Reading from Collins--Several Paragraphs Repugnant to Orthodoxy--Shaftesbury Attacking Miracles--Ben's Influence over John--Charged with Being Atheist--His Confession--Letter to His Father--Letter to Sister--Seeing His Folly--His Prayer--Sad Experience with Infidel Books--Similar to Lincoln's and Garfield's--Lincoln's Farewell.

Decision to Leave James--Cruelty of the Latter--The Indenture-- Discussion over It with Collins--Advised to Get Place in Another Printing Office in Boston--James Had Warned Them against Hiring Him--Discloses His Decision to James--Unfair Use of Indenture--What Benjamin Said of It Afterwards--Resolved to Run Away--Planned The Method With Collins--Why Go by Water--How He Obtained Money--Collins Engages His Passage--Collins' Deliberate Lie--On the Road to Ruin--Collins' Report to Benjamin--Final Arrangements--Boarding the Sloop--Scene off Block Island--Ben Converted to Flesh--Benjamin Franklin's Experience Like William Hutton's.

Applies for Work in New York--Bradford's Advice and Kindness--Starts for Philadelphia--The Drunken Dutch man--Driven on Shore by a Squall-- A Fearful Night--At Amboy--Benjamin Sick--A Young Man Travelling in Maine--Advantage of Reading--Sir Walter Scott's Advice--Going in Rain to Burlington--Landlord Suspected He Was a Runaway--At Doctor Brown's--A Fine Time with the Doctor--Buying Gingerbread of Old Woman--His Disappointment--Way out of It--Unexpected Deliverance--His Skill at Rowing Again Useful--Finally Reaches Philadelphia.

Meeting a Boy Eating--Buys Three Loaves--His Surprise--A Walking Comedy--Sees His Future Wife--His Generosity to Mother and Child--A Trait of His Life--Back to the Boat--On the Street Again and in Quaker Church--Sleeping in Church--The Kind Quaker--The Crooked Billet-- Suspected of being a Runaway--Meeting the New York Bradford--Interview with Young Bradford--Interview with Keimer--Showing His Skill at Type-setting--Senior Bradford's Ruse--Giving Account of His Boston Life--Doing Things Well--Case of Budgett--What Parton Said to Maydoll.

Repairing the Old Printing Press--Caution to Keep Secrets--Repairing for Bradford--Conversation with Bradford about Work in Boston-- Unbelief--Changing Boarding-place--Talk with Boarding-master Read-- Study and Companions There--High Rank of Printing Then--Letter from Collins--Found by His Brother-in-law, Captain Homes--Letter from the Captain--Benjamin's Reply--His Letter Read by Governor Keith--His History Told Keith--The Latter's Promise--Colonel French--Two Traits of Ben's Character, Observation and Humility.

Governor Keith and Colonel French Call on Benjamin--Keimer's Surprise--Benjamin's Interview with Them--Proposition to Establish Printing House--Keith Proposed He Should See His Father--Keimer Very Inquisitive about the Interview--Waiting for Vessel to Boston--Letter to Collins--How Long Take to Start Printing House--Tells Keimer He is Going to Boston--Sails for Boston--A Great Storm--Experience in Reaching Boston.

Leaves Boston for New York--Collins to Meet Him There--Calls at Newport to See His Brother John--Takes a Debt to Collect--Finds Collins Drunk in New York--Talk with Landlord--Governor Burnett Sends for Him-- Benjamin's Words about It--Rebukes John Drunk--Arrival in Philadelphia-- Called on Governor Keith--The Governor Proposes to Set Him up--Amusing Talk with Keimer--Collins Can Not Get Work--Trouble with Collins on the Delaware--End of Collins--Governor Keith Sends for Him--Going to England to Buy Outfit.

Keimer's Religious Creed--Argument with Benjamin--Establishing a New Sect and Foregoing a Good Dinner--Benjamin's Three Literary Associates--Literary Club Formed--Discussion on Ralph as a Poet--Benjamin's Views--Each One Writing Poetry--Paraphrase of 18th Psalm--Benjamin Reading Ralph's--Plan to Outwit Osborne--Its Success--Osborne's Mortification--The Club a Good One--Benjamin and Deborah Read--The Result.

Ralph Going to England with Benjamin--Time to Sail--Governor Keith Promises Letters--No Suspicion of Keith--Letters Not Ready as Promised--Second Application for Letters--Final Promise--Bag of Letters Come on Board--Looked over Letters in English Channel--The Revelation of Rascality--Benjamin's Situation Alone in London--Ralph Discloses that He Has Abandoned His Wife--Rebuked by Benjamin--Advice of Denham--Governor Keith a Fraud--Finds Work at Palmer's Printing House--Had Ralph to Support--Ralph a Schoolmaster--Accepting Trouble Philosophically.

Letter from Ralph to Benjamin--Ralph's Epic Poem--Assisted Ralph's Wife--How He and Ralph Separated--Kindness of Wilcox, the Bookseller-- Loaning Books--Benjamin Reviews "Religion of Nature"--Talk with Watts, and His Opinion of It--Interview with Doctor Lyons--Doctor Pemberton-- Lived to See His Folly--Interview with Sir Hans Sloane--Benjamin's Attack on Beer Drinking--His Sound Argument--Jake, the Ale Boy--Called "A Water Drinker"--Discussion with Watts--Refused to Treat the Company-- Visits His Old Press Forty Years After.

What Became of Ralph--Benjamin Teaching Two Companions to Swim--Who Was Wygate?--The Excursion to Chelsea--Benjamin Swims Four Miles--Antics in the Water--Sir W. Wyndham Proposes He Should Open a Swimming School-- Wygate's Proposition to Travel--Denham's Advice--Cheaper Board--Incident Showing Denham's Character--Denham Offers to Employ Him as Clerk in Philadelphia--Leaves Printing House for Warehouse--Returns to Philadelphia.

Visits Keimer's Printing Office--Calls on Deborah Read--Her Marriage to Rogers, and Divorce--Visit to Deborah Leads to Re-engagement--Now a Merchant's Clerk--Denham and Benjamin Both Sick--Denham Died and Left Legacy to Benjamin--Arrival of Captain Homes--Working for Keimer Again--The Latter Making Trouble--Benjamin Leaves Him--Interview with Meredith--Proposition to Go into Company in Printing Business--Meredith's Father Loans Capital.

Time is Money--The Lounger Rebuked--Maxims--Avoiding Slander and Abuse--Revising His Religious Belief--Articles of Belief--Code of Morals Adopted--Creed for "United Party of Virtue "--Letters to Friends--Proposed Prayers in Congress and Speech--Epitaph for His Tombstone Written at Twenty-three.

Publishing an Almanac--Discussion about It--When It Was Started-- Maxims Found in It--Very Popular, and Great Circulation--Franklin's Fame Spreading--The Junto Pleased--Franklin's Account of Success-- How He Conducted His Paper--The Libeller Suppressed--Success of His Stationer's Shop--Visit to Boston--Visits His Brother James-- Reconciliation--Takes His Son Home--He Buries a Child--His Defense of Rev. George Whitefield--Building a House of Worship for Him.

Clerk of the Assembly--Postmaster--Night-watch Discussed in the Junto--Plan of a Fire Department--Many Fire Companies Formed--Plan to Pave the Streets--Paper on Smoky Chimneys--Franklin Invents a Stove--Gives Away the Patent--Franklin Founds the University of Philadelphia--Its Great Success--Franklin Organized Militia--Influence of Quakers against It--Eighty Companies Formed--Franklin Secured Fast Day--Peace.

BOYHOOD TO MANHOOD.

FROM OLD ENGLAND TO NEW ENGLAND.

"I am tired of so much persecution under the reign of our corrupt king," said a neighbor to Josiah Franklin, one day in the year 1685, in the usually quiet village of Banbury, England, "and I believe that I shall pull up stakes and emigrate to Boston. That is the most thriving port in America."

"Well, I am not quite prepared for that yet," replied Franklin. "Our king is bad enough and tyrannical enough to make us all sick of our native land. But it is a great step to leave it forever, to live among strangers; and I could not decide to do it without a good deal of reflection."

"Nor I; but I have reflected upon it for a whole year now, and the more I reflect the more I am inclined to emigrate. When I can't worship God here as my conscience dictates, I will go where I can. Besides, I think the new country promises much more to the common people than the old in the way of a livelihood."

"Perhaps so; I have not given the subject much attention. Dissenters have a hard time here under Charles II, and we all have to work hard enough for a livelihood. I do not think you can have a harder time in Boston."

Josiah Franklin was not disposed to emigrate when his neighbor first opened the subject. He was an intelligent, enterprising, Christian man, a dyer by trade, was born in Ecton, Leicestershire, in 1655, but removed to Banbury in his boyhood, to learn the business of a dyer of his brother John. He was married in Banbury at twenty-two years of age, his wife being an excellent companion for him, whether in prosperity or adversity, at home among kith and kin, or with strangers in New England.

"You better consider this matter seriously," continued the neighbor, "for several families will go, I think, if one goes. A little colony of us will make it comparatively easy to leave home for a new country."

"Very true; that would be quite an inducement to exchange countries, several families going together," responded Franklin. "I should enjoy escaping from the oppression of the Established Church as much as you; but it is a too important step for me to take without much consideration. It appears to me that my business could not be as good in a new country as it is in this old country."

"I do not see why, exactly. People in a new country must have dyeing done, perhaps not so much of it as the people of an old country; but the population of a new place like Boston increases faster than the older places of our country, and this fact would offset the objection you name."

"In part, perhaps. If Benjamin could go, I should almost feel that I must go; but I suppose it is entirely out of the question for him to go."

Benjamin was an older brother of Josiah, who went to learn the trade of a dyer of his brother John before Josiah did. The Benjamin Franklin of this volume, our young hero, was named for him. He was a very pious man, who rendered unto God the things that are God's with full as much care as he rendered unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's. He was a very intelligent, bright man, also quite a poet for that day, and he invented a style of short-hand writing that he used in taking down sermons to which he listened. In this way he accumulated several volumes of sermons, which he held as treasures.

"I have not spoken with your brother about the matter," replied the neighbor. "I think it would be more difficult for him to arrange to go than for most of us, at least for the present. I intend to speak with him about it."

"He will not want me to go if he can not," added Josiah, "and I shall think about it a good while before I should conclude to go without him. We have been together most of our lives, and to separate now, probably never to meet again, would be too great a trial."

"You will experience greater trials than that if you live long, no doubt," said the neighbor, "but I want you should think the matter over, and see if it will not be for your interest to make this change. I will see you again about it."

While plans are being matured, we will see what Doctor Franklin said, in his "Autobiography," about his ancestors at Ecton:

"Some notes, which one of my uncles, who had the same curiosity in collecting family anecdotes, once put into my hands, furnished me with several particulars relative to our ancestors. From these notes I learned that they lived in the same village, Ecton, in Northamptonshire, on a freehold of about thirty acres, for at least three hundred years, and how much longer could not be ascertained. This small estate would not have sufficed for their maintenance without the business of a smith which had continued in the family down to my uncle's time, the eldest son being always brought up to that employment, a custom which he and my father followed with regard to their eldest sons. When I searched the records in Ecton, I found an account of their marriages and burials from the year 1555 only, as the registers kept did not commence previous thereto. I, however, learned from it that I was the youngest son of the youngest son for five generations back. My grandfather, Thomas, who was born in 1598, lived in Ecton till he was too old to continue his business, when he retired to Banbury, Oxfordshire, to the house of his son John, with whom my father served an apprenticeship. There my uncle died and lies buried. We saw his grave-stone in 1758. His eldest son, Thomas, lived in the house at Ecton, and left it with the land to his only daughter, who, with her husband, one Fisher, of Wellingborough, sold it to Mr. Ioted, now lord of the manor there. My grandfather had four sons, who grew up, viz.: Thomas, John, Benjamin, and Josiah."

"I do not know how you like it, but it arouses my indignation to have our meeting broken up, as it was last week," remarked Josiah Franklin to the aforesaid neighbor, a short time after their previous interview. "If anything will make me exchange Banbury for Boston it is such intolerance."

"I have felt like that for a long time, and I should not have thought of leaving my native land but for such oppression," replied the neighbor, "and what is worse, I see no prospect of any improvement; on the other hand, it appears to me that our rights will be infringed more and more. I am going to New England if I emigrate alone."

"Perhaps I shall conclude to accompany you when the time comes. There do not appear to be room in this country for Dissenters and the Established Church. I understand there is in New England. I may conclude to try it."

"I am glad to hear that. We shall be greatly encouraged if you decide to go. I discussed the matter with Benjamin since I did with you, and he would be glad to go if his business and family did not fasten him here. I think he would rather justify your going."

"Did he say so?"

"No, not in so many words. But he did say that he would go if his circumstances favored it as much as your circumstances favor your going."

"Well, that is more than I supposed he would say. I expected that he would oppose any proposition that contemplated my removal to Boston. The more I think of it the more I am inclined to go."

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