The Writings of Benjamin Franklin Volume 6

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TH WRITINGS
I906
AB r i g h t s r i u r v i d
8/18/2019 The Writings of Benjamin Franklin Volume 6
1 9 0 6 ,
By THE MACMILLAN COMPANY.
S e t u p a n d
e l e c t r o t y p c d .
P u b l i s h e d
A p r i l , 1 9 0 6 .
N e r t o o o B fim
J . 8 . G u s h i n g A C o . — B e r w i c k & S m i t h C o .
N o r w o o d , M a s s . ,
U . S . A .
. .
.
.
1
6 3 7 . To Mrs. Deborah F r a n k l i n . January 6 , 1773 4
6 3 8 . To Joseph Galloway. January 6 , 1 773
6 3 9 . To Mrs. Deborah F r a n k l i n . February 2 , 1773 7
6 4 0 . To John Bartram.
February
To Anthony
B e n e z e t . February 1 0 , 1773
6 4 2 . To Abel James an d Benjamin
Morgan.
6 4 3 . To
.
William
F r a n k l i n . February 1 4 ,
1773
M a r s h a l l .
February 1 4 ,
To
Rev.
William
M a r s h a l l . February 1 4 , 1773
5
To
Mrs.
Deborah F r a n k l i n . February 1 4 ,
1773
D av en por t. Febr uar y 1 4 ,
1773
7
.
6 5 1 . To Thomas Cushing. March 9 , 1773 1
6 5 2 . To Barbeu
Dubourg. March
6 5 4 . To Abel James
an d Benjamin
Jean
B a p t i s t e L e Roy. March
3 0 ,
1773 8
3 , 1 7 7 3 29
6 5 7 . To
A p r i l 6 , 1773 30
6 5 8 .
6 , 1773
6 6 0 . To Rev. Thomas
Coombe. A p r i l 6 , 1773

Dr.
February
Bedford. A p r i l 9 , 1773 36
6 6 3 . To Dean Woodward. A p r i l 1 0 , 1773 9
6 6 4 . To William
Deane.
6 6 5 .
? ]
v i
May
4 ,
6 6 9 .
To Barbeu Du bou rg . J u ne I , 1773 5 2
6 7 0 .
6 7 1 .
To Thomas Cushing. J u ne 2 , 1 7 7 3
5 5
•
Samuel Cooper
t o
.
5 7
6 7 4 . To Jean B a p t i s t e L e Roy.
June 2 2 ,
2 9 ,
62
1773 72
6 7 8 .
To Mrs. Deborah F r a n k l i n .
J u l y
6 8 0 .
6 8 1 .
6 8 2 . To
7 ,
7 ,
1773 93
6 8 4 . To Samuel F r a n k l i n . J u l y 7 ,
1773 95
7 ,
1773
5
J u l y
1773
96
6 8 7 . To Benjamin Rush. J u l y 1 4 , 1773 100
6 8 8 . To Anthony Benezet. J u l y 1 4 , 1773 1 0 2
6 8 9 .
To
John F o x c r o f t . J u l y 1 4 . 1 7 7 3 1 0 2
6 9 0 . To Abel James an d
Benjamin
. 1 0 4
Danforth.
1773 106
2 5 ,
August
3 ,
1773
August
August
6 9 8 . To Thomas Cushing. August 2 4 , 1773 . . .
.114
6 9 9 . To William F r a n k l i n . September 1 , 1773 . . . . 1 1 5
7 0 0 .
To
Mrs. Deborah F r a n k l i n . September I , 1773 . .118
> . 7 0 1 . An Edict by t h e King o f
P r u s s i a . September
5 , 1773
September
7 0 3 .
To John B a s k e r v i l l e .
September 2 1 ,
t o
7 0 5 .
7 0 6 . To
, ,
,
To William
F r a n k l i n . October 6 , 1 7 7 3 44
7 0 9 .
7 1 0 . To
November 3 , 1773 149
7 1 1 . To Joseph Galloway. November 3 , 1773 . ' 5 1
7 1 2 . To William F r a n k l i n . November 3 , 1773 5 2
. . .
o f
Common P r a y e r . ( ? ) 1773 . 1 6 5
7 1 5 .
F r a n k l i n . January 5 ,
1774
Rhoads. January
5 , 1774
7 5
February
2 ,
December
o t h e r s .
February 2 , 1774 . .178
7 2 1 . To J o s i a h Tucker. February 1 2 , 1774 8 0
7 2 2 .
Cushing. February 1 5 , 1774 8 2
7 2 3 . To Richard Bache. February 1 7 , 1774 . . . -193
7 2 4 . To Joseph Galloway. February 1 8 , 1774 94
7 2 5 .
February
February 1 8 ,
7 2 7 . From J . Tucker
t o B . F r a n k l i n .
February
7 2 8 . To J o s i a h
Tucker.
7 2 9 .
From J . Tucker
t o B . F r a n k l i n . February 2 4 , 1774 . . 1 9 9
7 3 0 . To J o s i a h
Tucker. February 2 6 , 1774
00
03
7 3 2 . On t h e Rise an d
Progress o f
t h e
D i f f e r e n c e s
between Great
B r i t a i n an d her American C o l o n i e s . [February?] 1774 . 205
7 3 3 . To J a n . Ingenhousz. March 1 8 , 1774 19
7 3 4 .
March
2 0 ,
.
.
.
.223
7 3 7 . To Thomas Cushing. A p r i l
2 ,
To
Joseph P r i e s t l e y . A p r i l 1 0 . 1774 226
7 3 9 . To
A p r i l 1 6 , 1774 28
7 4 0 . To Mrs. Deborah F r a n k l i n . A p r i l
2 8 , 1774
2 3 1
Thomas
Coombe.
J u l y
1774 236
2 7 , 1774
Cushing.
September
7 ,
1774
7 ,
September 7 ,
i M r s . Jane Mecom. September 2 6 , 1774 . . .
246
«
. .
7 5 7 . To Joseph Galloway. October 1 2 , 1774
52
.
Love. [November?]
Tract
r e l a t i v e t o t h e A f f a i r o f Hutchinson's L e t t e r s . [No
vember?]
1774
258
R e s u l t o f
England's
P e r s i s t e n c e
i n h e r
P o l i c y
towards
t h e C o l o n i e s i l l u s t r a t e d .
[November?]
1774 2 9 1
7 6 3 . T he Intended Speech f o r t h e Opening o f t h e F i r s t Session
o f t h e P r e s e n t P a r l i a m e n t .
November
1 7 7 5 0 1
7 6 5 . To C h a r l e s Thomson. February J , 1 7 7 5 03
7 6 6 . To Samuel Tucker an d o t h e r s . February 1 4 , 1 7 7 5 . . 307
7 6 7 . To James Bowdoin. February 2 5 , 1 7 7 5 09
7 6 8 . To
.
. . . 3 1 1
7 6 9 . To J o s i a h Quincy.
February 2 6 , 1 7 7 5
14
7 7 0 . To C h a r l e s Thomson. March 1 3 , 1 7 7 5 15
7 7 1 .
An Account
o f N e g o t i a t i o n s i n
London f o r
a
Recon
c i l i a t i o n between
Great B r i t a i n
an d t h e American Colo
n i e s . March 2 2 , 1 7 7 5
318
7 7 2 . To William
F r a n k l i n . May 7 , 1 7 7 5
399
To
Joseph P r i e s t l e y . May 1 6 , 1 7 7 5
400
7 7 4 . From N. W. Jones t o B . F r a n k l i n . May
1 6 , 1775
To Thomas
B r a d f o r d . May 1 6 , 1 7 7 5
02
03
7 7 7 . To Rev. Nathaniel S e i d e l . J u ne 2 , 1 7 7 5 03
7 7 8 .
To W. T . F r a n k l i n . J u ne 1 3 , 1 7 7 5
405
7 7 9 . To John S a r g e n t .
June 2 7 ,
1 7 7 5 406
7 8 0 . To William S t r a h a n . J u l y
5 ,
-^781.
To
Joseph
J u l y
1775 10
7 8 3 . To Mrs. Margaret Stevenson. J u l y 1 7 , 1775
. .411
7 8 4 . Vindication
an d O f f e r from Congress t o
P a r l i a m e n t . J u l y
1 8 , I77S 412
7 8 5 . A r t i c l e s o f Confederation an d P e r p e t u a l Union. J u l y 2 1 ,
1775
To
Peter V. B. L i v i n g s t o n . August
2 9 , 1775 ,
, , 42 7
7 8 7 . To Robert M o r r i s . August
2 9 .
1775 42 7
. . .
42 8
—8 9 . To Joseph P r i e s t l e y . October 3 , 1775 29
7 9 0 . To a Fr ien d i n
England.
October
, 43°
W.
F .
Dumas.
.
.
.
Don G a b r i e l o f
Bourbon. December
1 2 ,
7 9 4 .
To C h a r l e s L e e . February
1 9 , 1776
February
7 9 6 . To
S c h u y l e r .
March 1 1 ,
1776 443
7 9 7 . To Lord S t i r l i n g . March
2 7 ,
1776 444
To
J o s i a h Quincy. A p r i l 1 5 , 1776
445
7 9 9 . To P h i l i p S c h u y l e r .
May 2 7 ,
1776
447
8 0 0 . To t h e Commissioners i n Canada. May 2 7 , 1776 . . 448
8 0 1 . To George Washington. J u ne 2 1 , 1776 49
8 0 2 . To George Washington. J u l y
2 2 ,
1776 50
8 0 3 . To Horatio G a t e s . August 2 8 , 1776 4 5 1
8 0 4 . Sketch o f
P r o p o s i t i o n s
f o r
45 2
Mazzei.
8 0 6 .
Correspondence an d I n t e r v i e w
with
Lord
Howe.
September
September 2 2 , 1776 . .
4 , 1776
Deane.
December 4 , 1776 470
8 1 1 . To Barbeu Du bou rg . December 4 , 1776 72
8 1 2 . To
Hancock. December 8 , 1776 73
8 1 3 . To t h e Committee of S e c r e t Correspondence. December 8 ,
1776
476
de
TABLEOFABBREVIATIONS
A. P . S American P h i l o s o p h i c a l S o c i e t y .
B . M B r i t i s h Museum.
B . N
B i b l i o t h e q u e
N a t i o n a l e .
D . S .W Department o f
S t a t e ,
Washington.
H Harvard U n i v e r s i t y .
L .
C
Library
L . L
Lans
H i s t o r i c a l
S o c i e t y .
P . C
C o l l e c t i o n .
P . H. S Pennsylvania H i s t o r i c a l S o c i e t y .
P . R. O
P . R. O. A.
O f f i c e
:
P .
Departement des
—
U.
P
U n i v e r s i t y o f Pennsylvania.
Y Yale
U n i v e r s i t y .
B Bigelow.
F Benjamin F r a n k l i n .
S S p a r k s .
V Benjamin Vaughan.
W. T . F r a n k l i n .
F r a n k l i n ' s Mss. e xi s t i n
s e v e r a l f o r m s .
He made
a rough
o f
t h a t
copy
an d
o f t e n r e t a i n e d a l e t t e r - p r e s s c o p y . To i n d i c a t e t h e s t a t e o f t h e docu
ment, t h e f o l l o w i n g a b b r e v i a t i o n s a r e
used
: d . = d r a f t , t r a n s . = t r a n s c r i p t ,
I . p . = l e t t e r - p r e s s c o p y .
London, J a n . 5 , 1 7 7 3 .
Sir,
I
di d
myself t he Honour of wr i t i n g to you on the 2 d of
December
past,
inclosing
some
original
Letters
from
Persons
I
Compass so
of ou r Grievances, the Steps
necessary to remove them, and the happy E f fects that must
follow,
I
i t
to
communicate i t to Lord Dartmouth ; t he rat her t o o , as
he
would
there
find
himself
occasionally
mentioned
was esteemed in t he
Colonies. Accordingly I w rote him a f ew l i n e s , and inclosed
i t a
to consider the Con ten ts.1
1
T he f o l l o w i n g
n o t e accompanied t h e
l e t t e r ,
when
Craven S t r e e t ,
—
D r . F r a n k l i n p r e s e n t s
h i s b e s t
r e s p e c t s t o Lord D a r t m o u t h ,
a n d ,
i t may
b e a g r e e a b l e a s
w e l l
a s
u s e f u l t o hi m t o r e c e i v e o t h e r i n f o r m a t i o n o f t h e s e n t i m e n t s and d i s p o s i t i o n s
o f t h e
l e a d i n g p e o p l e i n A m e r i c a , b e s i d e s what
m i n i s t e r s
a r e
u s u a l l y f u r n i s h e d
w i t h from t h e
o f f i c e r s
o f t h e crown
r e s i d i n g
t h e r e ,
t a k e s t h e
l i b e r t y o f com
m u n i c a t i n g t o h i s L o r d s h i p a l e t t e r j u s t r e c e i v e d f r o m t h e S p e a k e r o f t h e
Assembly
t h e
M a s s a c h u s e t t s B a y , w r i t t e n
n o t a s
S p e a k e r b u t i n h i s
p r i v a t e
c a p a c i t y .
D r . F r a n k l i n p u r p o s e s t o w a i t on Lord Dartmouth a t h i s l e v e e t o - m o r r o w ,
and s h a l l
b e
happy
i f h e may b r i n g f r o m
t h e n c e
any t h i n g p r o p e r t o w r i t e i n
a n s w e r ,
t h a t
t e n d
minds o f p e o p l e
i n t h a t
p r o v i n c e ,
a t
p r e s e n t g r e a t l y d i s q u i e t e d and a l a r m e d by some l a t e m e a s u r e s o f g o v e r n
ment. —
S .
he
return'd
me
great
Complaisance
that People
in America w e r e dispos'd to think so favour
ably of
him bu t Justice in believing he had
the best Disposition t ow ar ds t he m, for he wish'd sincerely
their
Welfare,
w i t h them, as
to
Heads
of Complaint in y o u r Letter w e r e
many,
some
of
them
requiring
much
Consideration,
and
therefore
could
scarce
be expected that a sudden Change should be made in so many
Me asu r es, su p p osi n g
them a l l
his
Opi n ion , t h a t , i f the Americans
continued
quiet,
and
gave
no fresh Offence to go ve r nme n t , those Measures would be
reconsidered, and such Relief
Discourse ; bu t I cou l d t he n
obtain
nothing
more
particular,
except that his Lordship expressed in direct terms his D i s
approbation of the Instruction
from
of his
on
in
ou r
f avou r w it h reg ard to the Duties. I t i s fo u n d by t he l a s t
year's Accounts
transmitted by
Ballance
&c. , ex cl usi v e
of the
to enforce
the c o l l e c t i o n . Then i t
i s
observed,
that
the
India
Company
i s so ou t of Cash, that i t cannot pay the b i l l s drawn
upon
;
and at the same t ime so ou t of Credit,
n ot
care t o a s s i s t them, whence they find
themselves oblig'd t o lower their
D i v i d e n d
; the Apprehension
whereby several
Millions of
Propert y
Bankruptcies and other Distress, besides a Loss t o the
Public
T reasu r y of £400,000 p er Annum, which t he Company ar e
not to pay into i t
as
heretofore,
their D i v i d e n d at
twe lve and a h a l f .
And,
Warehouses, to the Amount of Four Millions, as some say,
for
and
been
sold,
their Credit, I
take the O p p o r t u n i t y of
remarki n g in
Imprudence of losin g
the American Market, by keeping up the Duty on Tea, which
has throw n that Trade into the Hands of the D u t ch, D an es,
Swedes, and
French, who,
sm u g g l i n g
the
whole
Continent,
w i t h Tea only,
bu t accompany that Article w i t h other India Goods, amount
ing,
Alarm,
taken
hal f of
or
had
g r o w i n g Strength, 1
ot h
i n
creates an increasing
Abi li ty of assisting t h i s Nation in i t s Wars, which w i l l
make
be
t hou g ht p r op e r to t reat
u s not
w i t h Justice only, bu t w i th Kindness, and thence we
may
expect
in
a
Change
of
Measures
by
military
should
lose
a l l martial S p i r i t , and
ou r
Western People
of
Britain,
when
we may expect the same Oppressions; for there i s much
Truth in the Italian saying,/Ma£e yourselves Sheep, and the
Wolv es will e a t you^> In
Confidence
in
and
Resolutions, Memorials, and Remonstrances; bu t bearing
patiently t he l i t t l e present Notice that
i s
Weight
i s
no great Distance. With the greatest Esteem, I have the
Honour to be, &c }
dear Child,
I f e e l s t i l l some
Regard
for
as
my
ol d nominal Birthday, tho' the Change of S t i l e
has
carried
the
real
Day
forward
l i v e
t i l l
then, 67 Years of Age. I t seems bu t t'other Day since you
and I
among the Boys Girls, so swiftly does
Time f l y
We have however great
ou r L i v es has pass'd so happily ;
and that
Share of Health
and S t r en g t h r emai n s, as to render
L i f e yet comfortable.
I
by Sutton.
O JOSEPH GALLOWAY
The App les ar e not yet come on shore, bu t I thank you for
them. Capt. Al l
so good as to send me a Barrel of excel
lent
have
in
than
that
he
gone
up
to
B u r l i n g ton . Pray give in y o u r next as usual, a l i t t l e of his
History.
Love
to you. G i v e mine to a l l
that
me, and
am ever, my
B . Franklin.
Dear Friend :
Favours of Oct.
in the Affair
of my Salary.
As
I
never made any Bargain w i t h the House, I accept thank
f u l l y
whatever
they
please
to
more
than
s u f f i c i e n t for
that purpose;
bu t
be continued,
Yearly Act, which I am told the Gov
ernor w i l l n ot agai n pass w i t h
my Name
FRANKLIN
[1773
Boston I have never receiv'd a Farthing, perhaps never s h a l l ,
as their Gov1 i s instructed to pass no Salary t o an Agent
whose
t o . v jn
i n
Losses
together w i t h my
now
my
Days
in
private
Life,
having
had
rather
more
than
my
Share
of
f i r s t
to improve a l i t t l e , for the general Advantage
of ou r Countr y, the
favourable
Minister,, and
told
the Successor. If I
instrumental i n
[ i l l e g i b l e ] Things in good t r a i n , w i t h a
Prospect
of
their
[ i l l e g i b l e ] on a better Foot i n g t han
they
have had for some
Years past, I shall think a l i t t l e additional Time well spent,
tho' I
n ot
may s t i l l
be greatly serviceable to y o u r Countr y. I t would be, I think,
something criminal t o b u r y
in
private Re t i reme n t so e a r l y ,
a l l
the Usefulness of so much E x p e r ie nce and
such great
The People
sometimes
mistaken,
and sometimes misled ; bu t soon er or later they come right
again, and redouble
f i d e n t , w i l l
happen
as i t
often has in
at
the
bu t have gon e beyond i t .
1 G a l l o w a y
was
a b o u t f o r t y y e a r s o f
a g e .
7
I am afraid the b i l l , Wi lcock on
Col.
I
shall
consult
Mr.
and
that
of a l l concerned.
By y o u r S p r in g Shi ps I shall wr i t e you more f u l l y . At
present
I
unalterable esteem
London, Feb. 2 , 1 7 7 3 .
My
I
have
on
shore, and they come ou t ver y g ood. Accept my best
Thanks. Mr.
plentifully supply'd.
I know you love to have a L i n e from me by e ver y Pack et ,
so I
I have l i t t l e to say,
having
In Return for y o u r History
of
you r Grandson, I must give
you a l i t t l e of the History of my Godson. He i s now 21
Months
speak a
and even
grew fond of me, and would
n ot
c a l l
Pa, rejoicing when he
had g ot me
the
Nut
crackers, he took anothe r and try'd t o do t he same w i t h the
Tea-Tongs. I t
a l l
Friends.
and Sally he r D u t y .
I am
ever, my
London, Feb. 1 0 , 1 7 7 3 .y dear
good
old
Friend,
t he
and the Rhubarb
grow w i t h you, and that the Turnip i s approved. I t may be
depended on ,
g e n u i n e Sort.
But
7 Years.
He r e w i t h I send you a
f ew
Seeds
of what i s called the Cabbage T u r n i p . They say
that [ i t ] w i l l stand the Frost of the severest Wi n ter, and so
make
a
for Cattle
other Fodder may be
of the
that
and
I think there
has been
no good
O p p o r t u n i t y
of
sending
y o u r Medal since I received i t t i l l n o w . I t
goes
T he p a s s a g e s
i n
b r a c k e t s a r e
n o t found i n t h e
rough d r a f t
i n D .
I
withstanding
of
w . )
Pleasure
of
Sept.
1 3 , as i t i n fo rmed me of y o u r Welfare.
With
on e of Young's Night Thoughts —he largest
Print I
y ou
sent
me
of
the French Book; I have give n two of them
t o Friends here,
have commenced an Acquaintance w i t h Mr.
G ranvil le
you send
me relating
to Surinam ar e i ndeed t e r r i b l e .
Go
on
Yours most affectionately
System
of
Morals
that may give distinct Ideas on that Subject to Youth, and
perhaps
for
send
i t .
1 G r a n v i l l e Sharp ( 1 7 3 5 — 1 8 1 3 ) , p h i l a n t h r o p i s t and p a m p h l e t e e r ,
w ho
j u s t w on
( 1 7 7 2 ) t h e f i r s t v i c t o r y i n t h e
s t r u g g l e
f o r t h e
e m a n c i p a t i o n o f s l a v e s
b y s e c u r i n g t h e
freedom o f
James S o m e r s e t t . His c o r r e s p o n d e n c e
w i t h
F r a n k l i n i s
i n
Dubourg: P e t i t Code
de l ' H u m a n i t e . — Ed.
MORGAN
Gentlemen
l a t e d ] ,
and have, after a
from the
order
valued
and
afterwards
Offer t o
advises i t s
and
recommends the same
Broker. E v e r y one I have consu l t ed ar e of the same Opin
ion.
He
a
Sale
about
April
next.
The S p i t a l f i e l d ' s
Silk
The
so freely
t he Master
employ
make
more Goods than the Market r e a l l y
required, and the Blow such Credit has l a t e l y
received,
obliges
them
great
Q u a n t i t y of Goods on hand, wh ich some
say i s
t w e l v e mo n t h
to
come.
S o the disbanded Workmen ar e starvin g , tho' great Sums
ar e collected to distribute among them in Chari ty . Several
1
i n
P e n n s y l v a n i a
f o r t h e m a n u f a c t u r e
o f s i l k
was
o r g a n i z e d
a s t h e F i l a t u r e , and h e l d i t s f i r s t m e e t i n g , November 1 7 , 1 7 7 2 . James and
Mor gan , t wo a c t i v e
members
o f t h e s o c i e t y , c o n d u c t e d t h e
c o r r e s p o n d e n c e
w i t h F r a n k l i n .
T he
o f
t h e y e a r 1 7 7 2 was
two
t r u n k s f u l l
o f s i l k ,
o f
which a p a r t was s e n t t o F . — Ed.
ABEL
JAMESAND
BENJAMIN
MORGAN
n
have
Masters he
strongly in
and S k i l l
in his
his
Sobriety
a sensible
young
Man ; so that I was strongly i ncl in 'd t o send him,
t i l l
I understood he had a Wife and young Family, whi** would
make i t too expensive
: Tho' he
i s endeavoring to get Subscriptions t o pay the
Passage-
than pay
appl y
i t to that may best contribute to t he encouragement of the
Produce. Please t o offer them my thankful Acknowledg
ments, and assure
With
great
Esteem
and
Respect, I am, G e n t l eme n ,
Your
most
London,
Feb.
Letter w i t h the Sample of North
American
Senna,
Hands of
made some
WRITINGS OFBENJAMINFRANKLIN [1773
Trial of i t . He t e l l s me that to render i t merchantable here,
t he
from
among
you might see some
of
the manner. He has n ot y et had
s u f f i c i e n t E x p e r ie nce of i t to be decisive in his Opinion of i t s
Qualities in comparison w i t h
other
Sen n a, bu t thinks i t
l i k e l y that i t may answer t he same purposes. Of the Quan
t i t y
London, Feb. 1 4 . 1773ear Son,
The Opposition ar e now at tack i n g t he Min istry on t he S t .
Vincent's
which i s generally condemned
here,
and
succeeds perhaps
over. The Ministry ar e
more
embarras'd w i t h the India
A f f a i r s . The continu'd refusal of North America to take
Tea
i n f i n i t e
Distress
on
the Faith that
not
hold;
and
now
they
can
neither
pay their D ebt s n or D ividends; their Stock has sunk to the
annihilating
Gov
lose i t s
upon
1 Only a p a r t o f t h e l e t t e r i s p r i n t e d h e r e . T he r e m a i n d e r r e l a t e s t o unim
p o r t a n t p e r s o n a l and b u s i n e s s a f f a i r s . — Ed,
1773]
have
n ot been
here since the S o u t h S ea
Year.
affected the
much,
their Hands, and thousands of
S p i t a l f i e l d and
Manchester
London, February 1 4 , 1 7 7 3 .
SIR,
A considerable t ime after i t s a r r i v a l , I r ecei v ed t he box of
seeds
of
them.
The observations I commu
nicated to ou r ast r on ome rs of t he Royal Society, who ar e
much pleased w i t h them, and hand them about
from
of
them
myself,
they
not
being
about
t he solar spots. Some
think them vast clouds of smoke and soot arising from the
consuming
fuel
on
the
f i r e
t i l l they
t o t a l l y
disappear.
Others think them spots of the surface,
in wh ich t he f i r e has been extinguished, and which by degrees
i s
i s however remarkable, t h a t , thou gh
large
14
become small
observation.
I f t h i s be s o , i t should seem they ar e suddenly formed of their
f u l l s i z e
;
such
constant
and
be observing
a t
w e r e
D r .
Wilson,1 has
a new
;
i s
actually on f i r e to a certain depth, and a l l below that dep th
unkindled, like
deep may be
b u r n i n g c o a l ,
while
quakes,
the
part
may
be
blown
away
from
a
p ar
ticular d i s t r i c t , leaving bare t he u nk i nd led part
below,
which
lessens as
the f l u i d b u r n i n g
matter
by
degrees
flows in upon i t on a l l s i d e s , and at
l a s t
He
founds t h i s opinion on certain appearances of the edges
of t he spots as they
t u r n u n d e r
the sun's
face as he supposes,
and
t he br i ght border r o u n d their
edges
be t he f l u i d b u r n i n g matter
flowing
follow,
i s
in the
middle of
the
sun's disk, the ey e looking directly upon the whole, may d i s -
1
A l e x a n d e r Wilson ( 1 7 1 4 - 1 7 8 6 ) ,
F i r s t
P r o f e s s o r o f Astronomy
a t
G l a s g o w .
I n 1 7 6 9 he made h i s d i s c o v e r y
c o n c e r n i n g
s o n s p o t s . S e e P h i l o s o p h i c a l
T r a n s a c t i o n s ,
1 7 7 4 .
1773]
TO
REV.
bu t when
r o u n d to
near the
f u l l
the farthest bank, yet
hidden,
distinguished
and
when t he same spot comes to emerge again on the other
side of t he su n , t he bank
wh ich before was v i s i b l e
i s
gradually
changing, however, t i l l the spot reaches the middle of the disk,
when
the
bank
may
be
seen
as
before.
Perhaps
find the same appearances.
When y o u r observations ar e retur ned to me, and I have con
sidered them, I shall lodge them among the papers of the
Society, and l e t you know their sentiments.
With great
London, Feb. 1 4 , 1 7 7 3 .
Rev S i r
d u l y received you r respected Letter of
Oct.
30,
and
am
very
sensible
of
the Act passed to i n d u l g e you r Friends in their Scruples,
relating
to
the
Mode
of
Taking
an
Oath,
has
now
Majesty
in
Council.
of
any
Objection
to
bu t i f such
should a r i s e , I shall do my utmost to remove them, and
1
R e v . W i l l i a m M a r s h a l l was
b o r n a b o u t
1 7 4 0
i n F i f e s h i r e . He
was
t e r o f t h e
A s s o c i a t e
P r e s b y t e r i a n
C h u r c h ,
i n
P h i l a d e l p h i a .
He
Ed.
1
S i r ,
Religious as well as
Civil L i be r t y thro'out the World ; and that I am, w i t h great
Regard, y o u r most
obedient
My
dear
Child
by
the
Packet.
In
a
Box
Manufacture
now much the Mode here. There i s another for S a l l y .
People l i n e them w i t h some ol d
Silk
very
handsome.
sent
on
Capt.
Stevenson that
you wish'd
i t
things for B e n n y-boy .
Now having nothing very material to add, l e t u s t r i f l e a
l i t t l e .
The
f i n e large g rey Squirrel y ou sent, who was a
great Favourite in
his Cage in
the Cou n t r y , r amb l ed , and was ram
bling over
a
Man
D o g .
he f l e d
t o
up to
his Shoulder,
and
after
ward, some Varment or o t h e r . S o p oor Mungo, as his Mis
tress c a l l ' d
him,
and
nobody
House,
I en cl ose you the l i t t l e Correspon
dence
Occasion.1
S e e l e t t e r t o
G e o r g i a n a
S h i p l e y ,
September
—
you
must
know
a l l
cats ar e
i n
and
the enclos'd E p i t a p h p u t upon his
Monument.
So
Walker,
in
maker. She
i t ,
I chose to pay he r for i t at he r usual Price,
3/6
Price
that
i f i t does n ot s u i t
you
to
wear
laid
of i t ,
w i l l g i v e he r t he Reason.
My Love to Sally and the dear B oy . I am ever you r
affectionate
Husband,
B .
Franklin
648.
TO
JOSIAH
DAVENPORT1
( d .
s .
w . )
London,
Feb.
in
and there
fore send y ou 4 D o z . of Evans' Maps, which, i f you can
s e l l
y ou ar e welcome to ap p l y the Money towards Clothing you r
1 Son o f
J o s e p h
D a v e n p o r t , w ho m a r r i e d
F r a n k l i n ' s s i s t e r
S a r a h . — Ed.
v o l . V I — C
Boys,
or to any other Purpose. Enoch seems a s o l i d , sen
s i b l e
Lad,
and
I
hope
he
w i l l
be
advis'd
[ i l l e g i b l e ] , think of
any
thro' you r Fingers,
behindhand imperceptibly,
or y o u r
Employers.
I
grow
such Risques,
and therefore w ish y ou to p r op ose n ot hi n g
more of
have been hurt too much by endeavourin g to help
Cousin
Ben
Mecom.
I
have
w i t h
w i t h others, from a
Confidence
n ot
su e
resolve and
such
can have
Misfortune
or
Difficulty
Affairs
and
render
t h i s
I t i s
Business
yet might
1 4 . 1 7 7 3
Dear Friend :— w rote to you the 6t h of l a s t Month in
answer
Oct . 18
have
no
you,
the
New
being
B i l l
on Col. Johnston, which I men t io ned as l i k e l y
to
be
protested,
about
refus'd t o accept i t ,
then
came
to
then
wanted
i n form'd
be cautious.
The Man
embarrased
at
present
a
more
common
Case
than
usual,
owing
to
the
great
Blow
Paper Credit has received, which f i r s t f e l l upon the India
Company, and by degrees became
general. Hence,
a great
which retain
i n g the Duty on Tea in America, and thereby the Loss of
that Market, ar e
The
Ministry
now
Honour by
Duty;
and
the
Company
has i t u n d e r Consideration. They see
Government
oblig'd,
for
i t s own sake, to support them, and therefore
must repeal
for
and
' t
i s said they ar e n ot willing t o
ask i t
that should be made a Foundation for
some additional
Demand upon them. A f i n e Hobble they ar e a l l g ot into
by
their
unjust
and
blundering
Politics
I
mention'd.
of
Paris,
a Man of very extensive L e a r n i n g and
an
the Honour, as
i s Lord Stanhope for himself and son, Lord Mahone,1 who
1 Dubourg was e l e c t e d a
member o f T he American
P h i l o s o p h i c a l S o c i e t y ,
,1773]
S ist er
:— received you r k i n d Let ter of Dec. 30,
and rejoice to find you w e r e w e l l . I may possibly have
t he gr eat Pleasure of
seeing you
I have desired Cousin W i l l iams to
g i ve
may
recover
from
Hall.
I
would
only
to
you
that
when I was in Boston in 175 [mutilated] Brother John then
l i v i n g ,
an ol d
Bond
or 17 Pound,
i f
I remember r i g h t , desiring I would pay
i t , which
w i t h t h i s Answe r ,
that
as I had never receiv'd any th i n g from
the Estate, I did n ot
think
Debts. But
more properly to my
Brother. If you know that Person, I w ish you would now,
ou t of Hall's Money, pay that D e b t ; for I remember his
Mildness
Re gard .
him
ou t when I next g o to the City.
651. TO THOMAS CUSHING (d. s . w . )
SIR
London,
1 7 7 3 .
I did myself t he Honour of W r i t i n g to you the 2 d
of
Decem
ber and t he 5 th of Ja n uar y past.
Since
22
ceedings
which I have reprinted here,
w i t h a Preface. He r e w i t h I
send
Governor
Hutchinson's
Speech,
at
JanT
People,
no good Sign. The
not y et a r r i v ' d ,
and i n the mean while i t seems to make Impression
on
the
Minds
of
Consideration
of Parlia
ment, for a Repeal on a Petition f rom the East
India Com
pany, and no new Measures have been talked of ag ai nst
America, or ar e l i k e l y t o
be
taken d u r i n g the present session.
I was therefore
prepari n g to return home by the S p r i n g
Ships,
stay
t i l l the
Session i s over; as the Commission sent to Rhode Island,
and the
Discontents in
Correspon
dence
of
Use t o
ou r Coun t ry .
I conclude to stay a l i t t l e longer. In the mean time I must
hope, that great Care w i l l
be
taken
to
;
for by
than
that
u s
more
severe
Restraints. And i t must be evident to a l l , that, by ou r
rap idly i ncreasi n g S t ren g th, we shall soon become of so much
Importance,
Privilege
be
as
heretofore u na t te nded t o , n or any
Security we can w ish
for ou r R i ghts be de n y 'd
u s .
With great
Sir,
produced by
e l e c t r i c i t y ,
my real
a f f i n i t y
w i t h
of
magnetism
called the magne t ic
f l u i d ,
which e x i s t s in a l l ferruginous bodies,
equally
attracted by
a l l their parts, and equally diffused through their whole su b
stance; at
the equil ibrium
wh ich
i s contained in a give n piece of iron, may be p u t in motion
so as to be more raref ied i n on e part and more condensed in
another;
negative
at l e a s t relatively t o
i t s
n at ur al q uan ti ty ;
neither can i t be introduced so as to p u t the iron into
a
posi
or
render
magnetism d i f f e r s from
e l e c t r i c i t y .
4thly.
which
i t
contains t o be p u t in motion by a moderate force ;
so
t h a t ,
being placed in a line w i t h the magne t ic pole of the earth, i t
immediately acquires the properties of a magnet, i t s magne t ic
1
T h i s l e t t e r
i s t r a n s l a t e d
f r o m
CEuvres
Tom. I ,
p p .
Ed.
being
drawn or f or ced from on e extremity to the other ;
and
continues
as
long
as
as soon
iron i s
t u r n ed east and west, t he f l u i d imme
diately diffusing i t s e l f equally through the whole iron, as in
i t s natural s t a t e .
Sthly. The
in hard iron, or
p u t in
motion w i t h more d i f f i c u l t y , requiring a
force greater
when once i t has been forced from
one extremity of the s t e e l to the other, i t i s not easy for i t to
return ;
i s converted into
expand i n g
the substance of t h i s
s t e e l , and increasing t he distance bet ween i t s p a r t i c l e s ,
affords
a
passage
magne t ic
f l u i d , which i s t hu s ag ai n
restored
to
possess magne t ic v i r t u e .
7 t h l y . A bar
of
i s n ot mag n et i c, being
placed
in
earth,
The reason i s ,
that
while the bar was hot, the magnetic f l u i d
wh ich i t naturally contained was easily forced from one
extremity to the
;
t h i s
state w i thout
permi t t i n g i t to resume i t s original situation.
8thly.
The
violent v ibr at i on s of the particles of a s t e e l
bar, when
forcibly struck
par t icles i n
such a manner
that they
to pass,
earth ;
and i t i s afterwards so
forcibly retained by the re-approach of t h e * particles, when
the vibration ceases, that the bar becomes a permanent
magnet.
9thly.
An
shock
needle
for
the
n ot by
f l u i d
t o
p u t i t s e l f in motion.
iothly. Thus there i s n ot in r e a l i t y more magnetism in a
g i ven piece
after
in
natural quantity i s only di sp l aced or
repelled.
Hence
mag
nets may charge millions of bars of s t e e l , without communi
cating t o them any part of
i t s
that
of
Petersburg, Mr. ^Epinus,1 for t h i s hypothesis, which appears
t o
and s o l i d .
I say c h i e f l y , because, as
i t
his
book,
that I
I
have
misrepresented
any
thing,
t he error ought to b e char g e d t o my account.
If t h i s hypothesis
appears admissible,
serve
as
an
answer to
t he g r eat er part of you r questions.
I have only
the
force
convert a give n
1 F r . - U l r i c h - T h e o d o r e y E p i n u s ( 1 7 2 4 - 1 8 0 2 ) , P r o f e s s o r o f P h y s i c s a t S t .
P e t e r s b u r g . — Ed.
magnet of
capacity
i t s
in
the
new
position
in wh ich i t i s placed, without letting i t return. Now
this
power
kinds of s t e e l ,
bu t
I shall
n ot
damp
clothes
occasion
colds, rather than w et ones, because I doubt the fact; I
imag i n e that n ei t her t he on e n or the
other contribute
e f f e c t ,
and
colds
ar e t o t a l l y i nde p e nde n t
of
a
short
paper
on
t h i s subject, t he f i r s t moment of
leisure
I have at mydisposal.
In the mean time I can only say, t h a t , having some suspicions
that the common notion, which
at t ri bu t es to
col d t he p rop
erty of stopping t he pores and obstructing perspiration,
was
making
some experiments w i t h Sanctorius's balance, to est i mat e t he
different proportions of
on e
for eight
hours
successively, and fo u n d his perspiration almost doubled dur
i n g those hours in which he
was
naked.
B . Franklin.
—
p .
MORGAN ( d . s . w . )
Mar. 1 5 . 1773
Gentlemen :—n mine of Feb. 1 0 , I men t io ned a Silk
Weaver who
;
they
hav e been so k i n d as to
double the
Sum he requested,
and that he i s to g o in Sutton. He takes w i t h him a good
Certificate
him t o t he
Notice and
advantageous
inues so
high, to send a l l ou r raw Silk hither, y et as the^Sj*1
\ L > *j j r \ y \
Bounty w i l l gradually
diminish
and a t len g th cease, I should , y
C'-'.'A.
< * . ; « <hink i t n ot amiss to beg i n early t he l ay i ng a Foundation
for
of i t ;
i f
he finds Employment, may be a means of raising Hands for
that purpose. , ) Hi s Name i s Joseph Clark.
By the
when
the
Silk
be
sold.
I
hope
to
send
you
a
Esteem, G e n t l e m e n ,
y ou r most obed', hum? s e r v ' ,
B . F[ranklin]
28
s . )
London,
Dear
Sis,
You p u n i sh my delay of wr i t i n g to you very properly by
not w r i t i n g
to
me.
I
must
of ten er , tho'
say, or
y ou
forget
me.
I thank you for y o u r Advice to send an E n g l i sh Copy of
my
to t he Academy, and shall
do
new Edition
I
am
some
Weight
in
the E x p e r i me n t s I
sent
Mr.
grown
angry,
that
for
Pamphlet reflecting on t he R . Society, the Committee and
myself,
w i t h
some Asperity; and e ndeavour i n g to alarm t he
City w i t h t he
supposed
L i g h t n i n g into
them,
u p .
I shall
do s o , tho' I have an ex t reme Aversion to
Public
Altercation
on philosophic Points, and have never yet disputed w i t h any
one,
who
thought
There i s
bu t considering the Weight of you r Reputation, I
think
there
i s l i t t l e Reason to doubt the Success of
y o u r
B a p t i s t e
LeRoy
( 1 7 2 4 - 1 8 0 0 ) , p h y s i c i s t , f a m o u s f o r
h i s e x p e r i m e n t s
i n e l e c t r i c i t y . H i s t h r e e b r o t h e r s , P i e r r e , C h a r l e s , and D a v i d , were
a l l
n u m
among F r a n k l i n ' s
f r i e n d s .— Ed.
here
Number
at
the
next
Election.1
In
the
mean
time w i l l you for my sake confer the same
ki nd
of Honour
on my
ou r f i r s t volume
of American
Transactions
was
favourably
r ecei v' d i n E u ro p e , and had procur'd u s some Reputation,
I took the L i be r t y of nomi nat i n g you for a Member,
and
you
chosen at
in
Philadelphia
on
when i t f i r s t came out,
bu t
i t .
by
the f i r s t
O p p o r t u n i t y on e
for
yourself.
Two
here,
by
the
Admiralty,
at
the Re q uest of the Royal Society, to make a Voyage to the
North
Pole,
or
to
graphical
B . Franklin.
3 ,
of the 9t h past, since which nothing material
has occurr'd relating to the Colonies. The
Assembly's An-
June 1 0 ,
Hyacinthe d e
Magalhaens
( 1
7 2 3 - 1 7 9 0 ) , b o r n
a t L i s b o n ,
l i v e d
from
1764 u n t i l h i s d e a t h i n E n g l a n d . He was e l e c t e d a member o f T he American
P h i l o s o p h i c a l S o c i e t y , J a n u a r y 1 6 , 1 7 8 4 . — Eo.
30
ar e apprehensive of
some i l l Con se q u en ce s f r om his forcing the Assembly into
that
was
n ot p r u de n t l y done,
tho'
inclose
i s
some Means could be
f a l l e n upon to heal the Breach. I took the Freedom to t e l l
him,
that
he
could
do
much
in
of
some others.
the
Society for Propagating
the Gospel i s much talk'd o f , for i t s
Catholic
I
deavour
to
and most humble
6 ,
i t .
1 I have sent to Mr. Galloway one of t he Bishop
of S t . Asaph's
w i l l receive
i t of course as a Member. I t contains such l i b e r a l
and
1 A
p a r a g r a p h
o m i t t e d c o n t a i n i n g
a n s w e r s t o
q u e r i e s
i n W i l l i a m F r a n k l i n ' s
l e t t e r . — Ed.
OFBENJAMINFRANKLIN [1773
1 . . . The Parliament i s l i k e to s i t t i l l the End of
Ju ne,
me.
I
had
thoughts
of
about that t ime. The Boston Assembly's Answer to the
Governor's Speech, which I have just received, may possibly
p r od u ce some t hi n g
here
y o u r
London,
6 . 1773
Dear
Sa l l y , I r ecei ved you r pleasing
Letter
5 .
I
am glad y ou hav e undertaken the Care of the Housekeeping ,
as i t
be an Ease to y ou r Mot he r,
especially
a
D i f f i c u l t y . I t w i l l be of
Use
to you i f y ou get a Habit of
keeping
w i l l be some Satisfaction to
me to see
Encouragement
in
of i t s Parents'
Money, will be i t s own another Day. S t u d y P oor R i char d a
l i t t l e , and y ou may find some Benefit from his Instructions.
I long
to be
and
I
i s
near lying-in
Her Bo y , my God
son, i s a very f i n e Child, and begins to t a l k .O m i s s i o n o f p a r a g r a p h r e l a t i n g t o b u s i n e s s w i t h Thomas Wharton.— Ed.
TO
JOSEPH
GALLOWAY
33
GALLOWAY
( d .
s .
w . )
London, A p r i l 6 . 1 7 7 3 .
Dear
and
from you. T h i s
just serves to cover a Sermon of my Fr ie nd the
Bishop
of
i t replete w i t h very liberal Senti
ments
and be the Foundation of a
better U nde rstand i n g
be t w ee n
t he
two Countries.
Instance of his Good-Will, as his Censure of t he
late Conduct
in
the
least
to
his
Promotion.
about
no End of t he B usi ness.
I t
i s thought they w i l l s i t t i l l the
End
France and
blow
France
and
American
then be taken to con
c i l i a t e ou r Friendship, ou r
Grievances would
be redress'd,
and ou r Claims allow'd. And t h i s w i l l be the Case soon e r or
l a t e r . For as the House of
Bourbon
clearly see Land. I
begin
t o be a l i t t l e of the Sailor's Mind
when they
handing a Cable ou t of a Store into a
Ship,
and
me,
says
another,
I
beg
leave
C i v i l i t i e s
Mr. Robert
He
a l l that know him here,
and purposes s e t t l i n g in America to carry on there the
Brewing
Business.
With
the
sincerest
Dear
f ew welcome L i n e s
f rom
y ou
Philad*, and promis
long
Letter, which I su p p ose has miscarried. S o I
know nothing of
y o u r
Reception and E n ga geme n ts , yo u r
Views, Pursuits,
better
chance, therefore of hitting you r Taste, I send you a
Sample
The
Poetry
Satyr.
in i t ,
my
Pen,
stuck up there a certain Enemy of America. The j u s t ,
l i b e r a l , and benevolent Sentiments in my Friend the Bishop's
1 He s e t t l e d
i n P h i l a d e l p h i a ,
and became t h e f a t h e r
o f R o b e r t
H a r e , t h e
i n v e n t o r o f t h e o x y hydrogen b l o w p i p e . —
Ed.
a Thomas Coombe 1 7 4 7 - 1 8 2 2 ) was C h a p l a i n t o
t h e
M a r q u i s o f Rockingham
( 1 7 6 8 - 1 7 7 2 ) , and on h i s r e t u r n t o
America
was c h o s e n
a n a s s i s t a n t m i n i s t e r
o f C h r i s t Church and S t . P e t e r ' s , i n P h i l a d e l p h i a .— E d ,
1773]
FROM
MRS.
t he
Doctri ne cannot be r e l i s h ' d at Court,
and therefore cannot conduce t o his Promotion. My Re
spects to y o u r good Father, and believe me ever
Your affectionate friend,
C i v i l i t i e s ,
the Bearer,
Settling
FRANKLIN'
2 , 1 7 7 3onoured
S i r
At
my
Mama's
p a r t i c u l a r r e qu e s t ,
I
o f
t o
y o u ,
whom o n c e I c o u l d a d d r e s s w i t h o u t c e r e m o n y , b u t
t h e
unhappy d i f f e r e n c e
between o u r
f a m i l i e s r e n d e r s
t h a t p e r h a p s
n ow more
n e c e s s a r y , which
would
f o r m e r l y h a v e been l o o k e d upon a s a n A c t o f D u t y . You my D r S i r — I was
e v e r
l o o k
upon
a s t h e F r i e n d , t h e B e n e f a c t o r
o f
b e s t
o f
P a r e n t s and he i s
n ow
no m o r e , an d h i s memory and
A c t i o n s
t o o s o o n f o r g o t
b y s o m e . Y e t t h a t hand which s o k i n d l y a s s i s t e d hi m and t h o u g h t him
w o r t h y
when
h e r e
o f f r i e n d s h i p ,
w e hope w i l l n o t f o r g e t
h i s
n ow he i s
no m o r e . When my Papa
d i e d
s o m e t h i n g
p r i t t y
b e h i n d h i m ,
enough t o m a i n t a i n Mama, and f o r h i s C h i l d r e n t o e n t e r i n t o t h e World
a g a i n .
His E s t a t e w as n o way i n c u m b r e d , b u t w i t h t h o s e Bonds t o M r . F r a n k l i n , a s
n ow
—
which
my
Mama
h a v e f r e q u e n t l y h e a r d
hi m
h i s
D e a t h , were
a l m o s t d i s c h a r g e d , t h a t
h e had
r e m i t t e d
money t o M™ F r a n k l i n
t o n e a r t h e amount o f t h e m , and p a r t i c u l a r l y t h e l a s t t i m e he went f r o m
home
he t o l d Mama h e b e l i e v e d he
had
s u f f i c i e n t
w i t h him t o d i s c h a r g e t h e m .
However t h a t b e
a s
i t
w i l l an d ow in g t o
what c a u s e
i t
may
on e i t h e r s i d e
t h e r e a r e
n ow
Sums
a p p e a r due on t h o s e B o n d s .
We h a v e s e e n Powers o f A t t o r n e y i n
t h e
hands o f b o t h G o v '
F r a n k l i n
an d
Mr.
Bache t o r e c e i v e and s e c u r e t h e Debt — a s s o o n
a s
1 Jenny B e d f o r d
was t h e
d a u g h t e r o f James
P a r k e r ,
p r i n t e r , o f Woodbridge,
New J e r s e y . —
Ed.
w e
Account
an d were r e a d y t o s e t t l e . — Governor F r a n k l i n
t h e n t o o k t i m e
t o
upon
him
a g a i n h e s a i d h e had
n o t h i n g
t o do
t h e
m a t t e r , t h a t M'
Bache had
come
w i t h a l a t e r Power o f A t t o r n e y , and t h a t w e must s e t t l e w i t h h i m . We
t h e n
f u r n i s h e d Mr Bache
w i t h
t h e same
had
t h e G o v e r n o r , w ho i n
a n s w e r s a i d h e c o u l d n o t s e t t l e
t i l l
h e had h e a r d f a r t h e r f r o m
y o u .
S i n c e t h a t w e
have
w a i t e d and c a l l e d upon
you
a g a i n and a g a i n — b u t he
s a y s
home—
l e t go
t i l l t h e n . Mama t h i n k s i t
v e r y h a r d .
I f i n t e r e s t
r u n s
t h e y h a v e
a l m o s t consumed t h e
E s t a t e — t h o t h i s i s
what
w e p r i n c i p a l l y want t o know — papa i n h i s Books
m e n t i o n s
i t , t h a t i f I n t e r e s t
i s c h a r g e d
upon
M r .
h e
i t
b u t r e a s o n a b l e
h e
h a v e
c o m m i s s i o n s
upon
he
d i d f o r hi m— n ow what b u s i n e s s he d i d — o r what c o m m i s s i o n s t o
c h a r g e
w e kn ow n o t ,
a s
h e
and t h e r e f o r e
w e would
know
f r o m y o u r s e l f w e t h e r { s i c ) o r n o t
w e
must
p a y I n t e r e s t upon
t h e
and
i f w e do— w e t h e r i t i s r e a s o n a b l e w e s h o u l d f r o m
t h e
t i m e t h a t w e h a v e
been r e a d y t o
s e t t l e
them — i t
i n t h e
I n t e r e s t . .
.
n o t
h a v e
t r o u b l e d o r w r o t e
t o
y o u , good S i r , was i t n o t f o r
Mamas
g r e a t a n x i e t y t o h a v e h e r A f f a i r s s e t t l e d , and h e r p a r t i cu l a r d e s i r e t h a t you
s h o u l d
i n some measure
b e
c o n c e r n e d i n them
t h a t s h e
may kn ow
may
a s t o
y o u r a c c o u n t s ;
a s
s h e f i n d s some d i f f i c u l t y
i n s e t t l i n g them i n h e r
p r e s e n t s i t u a t i o n . She
i s n ow advanced i n Y e a r s
and
an d w ou ld
w i l l i n g l y
l i v e
and
i f
Bonds
were d i s c h a r g e d s h e c o u l d b e happy
a s t h e y a r e
t h e o n l y incumbrance on t h e
E s t a t e ,
b u t
w i l l
most
She
s i n c e r e l y j o i n s
w i t h me i n much l o v e and
g r a t i t u d e
f o r y o u r many f a v o u r s ,
a s
would M r . B ed
f o r d , t h e p e r s o n whom I am s o happy t o c a l l Husband, were h e p r e s e n t — a
Gentleman t h o
m y s e l f
whose
good q u a l i t i e s
would recommend t o y o u r f a v o u r — p e r m i t me t h e r e f o r e f o r hi m—
w i t h
and
r e t u r n
t o
y o u r
F a m i l y and F r i e n d s ,rom Honor'd S i r
Your a f f e c t i o n a t e
humble
J e n n i e
B e d f o r d .
662.
( p .
c . )
DEAR JenKY, London, A p r i l 9 , . 7 7 3 -
For so I must s t i l l c a l l you, tho' you seem a
l i t t l e an g r y
w i t h me.— received y o u r Le tter of Feb. 2 , and shallFrom
t h e
p r i v a t e c o l l e c t i o n o f M r . John Boyd T h a c h e r , o f A l b a n y . — E d .
upon
them
very
soon.
In
or
desired on my Part inconsistent w i t h the Re
gard I always had for
he r and
you, and t he an ci en t F r i e nd
ship that so
Mr
Attorne y you men t io n and seem to
take amiss, was a general one, to
s e t t l e
Accounts for me w i t h
any Person in my
Accounts
to setde
shall be
pleas'd to
find l i t t l e due to me than much. In a
Le tter some
years
since to Mr Parker, I gave my Reasons for expecting his
Bond, bearing Interest
I took my
Money ou t
and
when I bought Goods for him here, and paid my Money for
them, I charg'd no Profit or Commissions upon them, being
no Merchant.
Any Business
in Money; as
well as to return K i nd ness for Kindness: But I think i t
contributes to the
of Friendship, to
served
i n tended making Mr Parker an Allowance for the
Time
in settling
Hall after I
l e f t
America. T h i s i s the only thing I
at
present
recollect
unsatisfy'd.
shall
be
OFBENJAMINFRANKLIN [1773
allow'd f o r . And notwithstanding what i s said above, of
Interest,
I
think
Accounts,
Ballance,
no
from
which
t ime the Interest of that Sum must be struck o f f in the Bonds.
I t
was
upon
my Ap p l i cat i on he re t hat t he Q u ar t er ' s S al ar y
after
i t i s
n ot y et pai d, i t w i l l
be : I
I f
had better pay i t there
ou t of
the Money you ar e to receive
from the Office. If not, I w i l l pay him here, as you desire i t .
Present
my
good
Mother,
and
myCompliments to Mr B edford tho' unknown, to whom w i t h
yourself I w ish
Regard
Your
affectionate
B . Franklin.
P. S .—The £i35„o . o remitted in March, 1770, was part
of a B i l l
of
Father
thus
8 .
This
covers
a B i l l of 250£ S t e r l ' *
Exch.
67 \ .
here.—Of
Account
of
remai n i n g j£283„i5„o the
same
Office
soon
as
the
be l i t t l e
more
ar e paid.—
s e e .
be
Proceeds
I
l e s s
w i l l debit my own A c c ' , and credit you for
i t .
the Money I've y et got in. —
I suppose you may find by his Books how t h i s Acc 1 was
closed.— B F.
never
heard of such a Thing bu t in y o u r Letter, and wonder
at
London, A p r i l
1 0 , 1 7 7 3 .
Revd Sir,esirous of being reviv'd in y o u r Memory, I take t h i s
O p p o r t u n i t y by my good Friend Mrs. Blacker, of sending
you
a
printed
Piece,
and
a
Manuscript,
both
similar
Sentiments,
of
seeing you in D u b l i n . I have
since had the Satisfaction to learn that
a Disposition
to
abolish Slavery prevails i n North America, that many of the
Pennsylvanians
have s e t their Slaves at Liberty, and that
even
the
Virginia
more
Re q uest
n ot
ki nd
have always
and as the Interest of a f ew Merchants here
has
more
than that of Thousands
a t a Distance.
1 R i c h a r d Woodward ( 1 7 2 6 - 1 7 9 4 ) ; Dean o f Gogher
( 1 7 6 4 - 1 7 8 1 ) ;
C h a n c e l l o r o f S t . P a t r i c k ' s , 1 7 7 2 ;
B i s h o p
o f
( 1 7 8 1 - 1 7 9 4 ) . — Ed.
WRITINGS OFBENJAMINFRANKLIN [1773
W i t n e ss a late Fact. The Goal
D is tempe r being
frequently
People there,
Ships
arriving
t o
But the
alledg-
i n g that t h i s might increase the Expence of their Voyages,
the
Law
was at their i n stance r ep eal ed
here.
1 7 7 3 .
cannot
omit
t he O p p o r t u n i t y
i t gives
me
of chatting a l i t t l e w i t h on e
whose
communicating
to
you,
unless
Circle
and su rrou n ded by a
Hoop of Iron , the whole very l i g h t and strong, there being no
cross'd G r a i n in the Wood, which i s
also
of
The
Wood
steam'd
in
I
have
seen pieces so bent of 6 Inches wide, and 3$ thick, into
a
diameter.
These,
for
be
exceeded by y o u r Iron Wheels. Pray, have you compleated
that inge nious Inve n t io n ?
What i s
TO
his
Pr i n t i n g Schemes, or has he got into some better
Employment?1
some
Person
of
i c a l
Operations; that i t consists i n the Explosion of Iron
Tears c h i l l ' d suddenly from the melt i n g State in cold Wat er .
That Explosion I have often seen in Drops of Glass w i t h
Wonder,
understanding
Time
i t ,
t i s
t h a t
g l a s s y B u b b l e ,
That g i v e s P h i l o s o p h e r s
s u c h
Whose l e a s t
p a r t
c r a c k ' d ,
t h e whole d o e s f l y ,
An d Wits
a r e
c r a c k ' d t o f i n d o u t w h y .
May
I
ask you, i f you know any thing of the Application
of this Power , of which I have n ot at
present
Smoke
t u r n 'd into Flame, operates as Fuel
in
heating
the
Room.
Winter ;
i t answer
even beyond my Expectation. I p u rpose to pr i n t a l i t t l e
Description of i t s Use and Construction, shall send you
a
Copy.
as
happy
My
them, bei n g ever, w i t h sincere
Esteem,
B . F[rankx i n . ]
1 J .
K e t t i l b y , p r i n t e r , M i t r e A l l e y , D u b l i n ,
i n v e n t o r
o f n ew
o f
Your observations on the causes of death, and the experi
ments which you propose f or r ecal li ng to l i f e those who
appear
to
lightning, demonstrate equally you r
sagacity
and death
l i t t l e understood.
A
in
sand
i s
becomes
petrified;
and
then,
bei n g enclosed in the stone, i t may s t i l l
l i v e for
we know n ot how many
ages.
and
too
of
c r e d i t .
As we ar e accustomed to see a l l the animals w i t h which we
ar e acquainted eat and drink,
i t appears
to u s
t o
that
the
necessity
of
nourishment
ordinary
substance by
that some
s t a t e , perspiring l e s s
because they
of aliment
ar e covered
w i t h scales or s h e l l s , which stop perspiration,
such
serpents,
and
some
species
of
i t s flowers, fades
and dies
immediately, i f exposed to t he a i r without
having i t s
root
immersed in a humid s o i l , f rom w hi ch i t may draw a
s u f f i -
1 T r a n s l a t e d f r o m M. D u b o u r g ' s CEu vres d e M. F r a n k l i n ( 1 7 7 3 ) , V o l . I ,
p . 3 2 7 . I t i s w i t h o u t d a t e , b u t
t h e
which
i t i s an a n s w e r i s d a t e d A p r i l
1 5 t h , 1 7 7 3 .
—
1773]
43
O
that which exhales f rom
i t s
bu ried
i t
of
time
smell, and
If t h i s be the case, i t
might p rove
modious method of transporting f rom distant countries those
delicate plants, wh ich ar e u nable to sustain the
inclemency
wh ich
preserved
in
apparently about the t ime when i t was
botded in Virginia, to be sent hither ( t o London). At the
ope n i n g
of on e of the
b o t t l e s ,
at the house of
f e l l into the
f i r s t
glass that
was f i l l e d . Having heard i t remarked that drowned
f l i e s
w e r e
capable of being revived
by
t he r ay s of the su n, I p r o
posed
making
the
upon
these;
they
there
fore exposed to the su n upon a s i e v e , which had
been
employed
ou t of
the w in e. In l e s s than t hr ee hou rs,
two of them began by degrees to recover l i f e . They com
menced
by
length
they
raised
themselves
eyes w i t h
their
fore
w i t h
their hi nd f e e t , and soon after began to f l y , finding them
selves i n Old
wi thout
The
third
cont i n ued
l i f e l e s s t i l l
sunset,
he
was
thrown
away.
I
i n ven t
that
they may be recalled to l i f e at any period, however di s
tant ; for having a very ardent desire to see and observe the
FRANKLIN [1773
state of America a hundred y ears he nce , I should
prefer
a f ew friends,
to be then recalled
l i v e in an ag e too early
and too near the
w i t h
the t r e a t , wh ich you are so ki nd as to promise me, of
the resurrection of a fowl or a turkey cock.
I am,
FRANCOIS DALIBARD1
concerning the mode of
rendering meat tender by e l e c t r i c i t y , can
only
be
fo u nded
upon conjecture; for I have n ot experiments enough t o
warrant the f a c t s . Al l that I can say a t present i s ,
that I
think
e l e c t r i c i t y
might
purpose, and I
or
reducing into vapour the moisture contained in solid wood,
i n
i t s f i b r e s , and
broken
t h a t ,
by penetrating intimately
1 T h i s l e t t e r h a s no d a t e , b u t t h e one t o which i t i s a n a n s w e r i s d a t e d
May
i s
t r a n s l a t e d f r o m Dubourg C E u v r e s
d e
I ,
iron,
parts
i t
i s
that the same
matter, pass
i n g th ro u gh the bodies of animals w i t h rapidity, should
possess s u f f i c i e n t
force
t o produce an e f f e c t nearly similar.
The
f l e s h of animals, fresh killed in the usual manner,
i s
particles
period,
the
cohesion
progress
towards
putrefaction, which tends t o produce a t o t a l separat ion , t he
f l e s h becomes what we c a l l
tender,
animals killed by
lightning p u t ref y immediately. T h i s cannot be invariably
the case, since a quantity of lightning,
s u f f i c i e n t
t o k i l l , may
not
be s u f f i c i e n t to
tear
and particles of
f l e s h , and reduce them to that tender s t a t e , which
i s the p re
lude
some
animals
killed
in
keep
faction sometimes p r oceeds w it h
surprising
respectable
flock
Scotland,
being
closely assembled under a t r e e , w e r e
killed
by
a
flash
and,
proprietor, desirous of saving
next morning
t o
f l a y them ; bu t the putrefaction was such,
and the stench so abominable, that they had
n ot
the courage
to execute their orders, and the bodies w e r e accordingly
bu ried
I t i s
unreasonable to presume,
t h a t , be t wee n the period of
their death
and that
might
be
46
THE
only
tender,
and only s u f f i c i e n t l y so t o
be served at
Add
to
by
ou r
feeble imitation
of U g h t n i n g ( e l e c t r i c i t y ) , and
dressed
immediately,
have
was
remarkably
tender.
The l i t t l e
u t i l i t y of t h i s practice
has perhaps preven ted
thou gh i t sometimes happens,
that a company u nex pectedly arriving at a country-house, or
an
conflux of
appetite, l i t t l e attention
has been paid to the t r i f l i n g inconvenience of having their
meat
a
tough.
ki nd
of death
i s
than
any other,
i f t h i s should operate as a mot i v e w i t h compassionate
persons
duct
of s i x large glass jars (each f rom
t w e n t y to twe nty-four pints)
as
for
the
interior surface
of
each w i t h the p r i m e conductor,
and
having
(which,
the
exterior
of the jars must be wrapped r o u n d the
thighs
by
back and made
that
the head may receive the f i r s t shock f rom the p r i m e conductor.
The animal dies instantly. L et the head be immediately
cu t
may
quantity of
e l e c t r i c i t y
i s
supposed suffi
TO
BARBEU
DUBOURG
47
lamb. E x pe r i e nce alone
will
i n f o r m u s of the requisite p r o
portions for animals of
will
be required to render a small bird, wh ich i s very
old,
for
a
larger
one, which i s y o u n g . I t i s easy
to
requisite
quantity
of
e l e c t r i c i t y ,
by
of
charged
g i v i n g a very violent shock,
the
operator
must
be
instead
a l l
experiments ar e
by some accident l o s t be t wee n ou r friends Sir John Pringle
and D r . Huck (S au n der s);* b u t these gen t lemen , i f the
papers
recovered,
i t i s to be presumed, w i l l repeat
the
B .
Franklin.
1 T r a n s l a t e d f r o m M. D u b o u r g ' s
CEuvres
de M. F r a n k l i n ( 1 7 7 3 ) ,
VoL
—
Ed.
1 W i l l i a m S t a r k 1 7 4 0 - 1 7 7 0 ) . — Ed.
* R i c h a r d
Huck-Saunders ( 1 7 2 0 - 1 7 8 5 ) ,
p h y s i c i a n t o
t h e B r i t i s h Army i n
A m e r i c a , under Lord Loudoun, d u r i n g t h e Seven Y e a r s ' War. He was b o r n
Huck;
h e m a r r i e d J a n e , n i e c e
and
h e i r e s s o f A d m i r a l S i r
C h a r l e s
S a u n d e r s ,
and assumed t h e name o f S a u n d e r s . —
Ed.
t h e
.
.
.
c o n s i s t i n g o f c l i n i c a l and
a n a t o m i c a l
O b s e r v a t i o n s w i t h E x p e r i m e n t s D i e t e t i c a l
and
S t a t i s t i c a l , e d i t e d
b y
C a r m i c h a e l
S m y t h ,
London,
1
48
THE
Sir,
I have received none of y o u r Favours since that of Nov 2 8 .
I
have
since
Jan. 5 , March 9 , and
April 3 ,
caused
to be pr i n ted here, as soon as I received
them. Hi s Reply I see since pr i n ted a l s o , bu t their Rejoinder
i s n ot yet come. I f he intended, by reviving that Dispute,
to recommend
himself here,
he has
greatly missed
his Aim;
their Intention
having
been to l e t a l l Contention subside, and
by degrees
They
now embarras'd by his Proceedings; f o r , i f
they
lay t he gov e rnor 's D ispatches, containing the Declaration of
t he
apprehend
Measures may be taken that w i l l w i d e n the Breach ; which
would
be
more
particularly
the
disturbed
hand,
in
Yesterday I had a
of which
Account. On my
since
S peech ; bu t
what D i f f i c u l t i e s says
he,
that
Gentleman
has
Imprudence
ho'
I
suppose
he meant well ; yet what can now be done ? I t
i s
impossible,
I
hat Parliament can suffer su ch a Declaration of t he G e ne ra l
Assembly,
asserting
take
ar e
submitted
to
there.
No
Force
that
seem
such Declarations
had ever
ag ai nst t he Province w i l l
n ot change the
of
the
Inconveniences,
that
Declaration.
Can
they
they
of
themselves, voluntarily, and thus l eav e t hi n gs be t wee n u s on
the old Footing, the Points undiscuss'd. D o n ' t you think,
(continues
his
Lp),
Lord,
says
I ,
they
Speech,
and
the
obliterated,
they
cannot
withdraw
their
Answers
w i thdraws
an awkward
hardly
be
i s
i t
only
p u t them as heretofore upon i n ven t i n g some Method of in
commoding this
Country t i l l the Act i s repealed
; and
so we
shall g o on injuring and p r ovok i n g e ach other, i n st ead of cul-
V O L .
$0 THE
WRITINGS OFBENJAMIN
FRANKLIN [1773
t iv at in g t hat Good W i l l
and
general
Welfare.
; for we ar e yet on e Empire (says he )
whatever may be the Sentiments of the Massachusetts As
sembly ; bu t he di d n ot
see how
that could
was now of public Notoriety, Par-
b'ament had n ot al r eady called for the Dispatches; and he
thought he cou ld n ot omit much longer the
communicating
them, however
u n w i l l i n g he was
to do i t , from
his Appre
(his Lp was
Place, would
or could you do?
Would y ou hazard the being c a l l ' d to Account in some fu t u re
Session
by
Parliament
for
could
his Situation was
for him to
w i t h
regard
to
Par
liament, t h a t , supposing the Dispatches laid before them,
they would
in
Table,
and
w e r e I as
much an Englishman as I am an American, and ever so
desi rous of establishing t he Authority of Parliament, I p r o
t e s t to y o u r L p, I
cannot
Step
the
Par l i amen t can take to encrease i t , that w i l l n ot t e nd to
diminish
Mischief
they
must
f i n a l l y lose i t . The
Loss in
perhaps
consequence, because i t i s an Authority they can
never
and
therefore
i s n ot
w o r t h hazarding the Mischief t o p r e
serve i t .
TO
THOMAS
CUSHING
i t ,
to withdraw their Answers to the Governor's
Speech. There i s not, says I , the l e a s t Probability they
w i l l ever
do
a l l
of a
Party only,
i n g a l l
the
Influence
Office,
dissenting
any
thing
am
by
p re t e n d to
know i t , that there ar e
many
Op i ni on , bu t
they
dare
show
their Sentiments. I never heard, says I , that any one has
suffered Violence for siding w i t h the Go ve r nor . Not Vi o
lence,
and
knew Gov1 B e r n a r d had
been in
was
probably on e of these G e n t l e
men Informants,
advis'd
to magn i f y
t he Numbers of those they would have understood as approv
i n g
f o r , whoever
;
and he agreed w i t h me, that, tho' a Nemine Con-
tradicente di d
58
THE
l e a s t
demonstrated
Prevalence
Opinion.
Thus e nded ou r Conference. I shall watch t h i s Business
t i l l the Parliament r i s e s , and endeavour to make People i n
g en eral as
that may attend a Con t i n uance
of
the Con test , as the Spital-
f i e l d s Weavers seem already to be in their Petition to the K i n g ,
which
I
to
and Respect, I have
B .
Franklin.
1 7 7 3 .
that
some
chemist
(who should, i f possible,
be at t he same time an electrician) wou ld, in p u rsuance of the
excellent
u nde r take to
work
upon
glass w i t h the v i e w you
have
i t s
e l e c t r i c a l q u a l i t i e s ,
we
might
proceed
own
experiments, as in r ep eat i n g t hose
wh ich have been made
by
different
employed, thence
occasi on i n g f r eq u en t
misunderstandings
opinions.
There i s anothe r ci rc umstance much to be desired w i t h
1773]
O BARBEU DUBOURG
respect to g l a s s , and that i s , that i t should
not
Leyden
ou t of t wen t y , and, at another
time,
t h i r t y - f i v e .
A
power for
hitherto to account for the cause of such misfortunes. The
f i r s t idea which occurs i s , that t he positive e l e c t r i c i t y , being
accumulated
on
rushes
violently
through
and
to
restore t he eq u il i br i um.
This, however, I cannot conceive
to be the t r ue reason, when I consider, that, a great number of
jars being
same
time,
the
breaking
t he acci de n t proceeded from t he
weakness of
the g l a s s , i t i s
n ot
pre
c i s e l y of the same degree of weakness, as to break
every
instant,
i t being more l i k e l y , that the weakest
should
by breaking,
secu re t he r e s t ; and again,
when
means
through
a det er mi n ed c i r c l e ,
( a s , for instance, t o melt a small wire,) i f t he charge , i nstead
of passing
rushed
through
the
would
not
be
produced
I
in the substance
of
the g l a s s , either some l i t t l e globules
of
unverified sand or s a l t , into which a
quantity of the e l e c t r i c f l u i d may be forced d u r i n g the charge,
and
there
retained t i l l the general discharge; and that t he
force
being
su dde n ly w i t hdr aw n , the
e l a s t i c i t y of
the f l u i d
acts upon
escape hastily without breaking the g l a s s .
I
as
a
conjecture,
which
I
leave
to
others
which furnished the other
excellent globes in my possession, was n ot of the same
f r i t .
The glass wh ich was usually manu fact u red there, was rather
of the g reen kind, and chiefly
i n tended for
attempting
a t r i a l of whi te g l a s s , the
globe
in
question
f r i t .
The glass not bei n g of a perfect white, the
proprietors
di s
s a t i s f i e d w i t h i t ,
and abandoned their project.
admitted
1773
Dear S i r :— received you rs of Apri l 7 inclosing Con-
ingham and Nesbit's B i l l on D. Harvey Co. for £200,
w i t h wh ich
y o u r
my
acknowl
edged
B i l l for £338
17
2J.
Year's
have
the whole settled and pass'd
together, there hav in g been a D e l a y for some time, occasioned
by
Acc
at the Office. I f at the
Settlement a n y th i n g new should be required in the Mode
of
I
shall acquaint y ou w i t h i t .
I admi r e y ou r good Father's rare Fel ici ty i n retaining soA l e x a n d e r Colden
( 1 7 1 6 - 1 7 7 4 ) ,
p o s t m a s t e r a t New Y o r k . — Ed.
TO
THOMAS
CUSHING
and
particularly
of
t o
philosophical Disquisitions. For my
own part, every thing
d i f f i c u l t Discussion,
and
that
requires
of
rather irksome
there
I am
usually
attending
Age,
in
postponing
such
Business
from
time
i t .
T h i s has been the
Case w i t h regard to you r Father's Philosophical
Piece on
some time since to
desire
my O p i n i o n o f . I have read i t
carefully, and l on g i n ten ded to read i t w i t h close Attention,
and s t i l l
i n tend i t ,
bu t
what w i th B u si n ess that
takes
Indolence
o f f .
In myVoyage home wh ich I am now prepari n g f o r , I promise
myself
I
him, we
may discourse
i t together.
In t he meantime, present my best Respects to him, and
believe
Regard, dear
B .
Franklin.
London,
Sir,
Since my l a s t which was of t he 6th past, I have
been
honour'd
w i th y ou rs of March 6 and 2 4 ,
inclosing
56 THE WRITINGS OFBENJAMINFRANKLIN [1773
t o the K i n g , and a Letter to Lord Da r tmou th . On con
si der in g t he
whole,
I
concluded
that
a
longer
senting
the f i r s t Petition and Remonstrance was not l i k e l y to
answer any
Letter, and
the
second Pet it ion , at the same t ime re-delivering the f i r s t , and
press'd his
Packet
(the Mail for wh ich i s to be made
up and dispatch'd in a f ew Hours) i s the e a r l i e s t Oppor
tunity, the Ships
for
Boston not bei n g to s a i l t i l l the B e g i n n i n g
of next
n ot now permit
In the mean while I
would just beg leave t o say , that I hope the House w i l l come
to
no
hasty
Resolves
upon
Respect,
&c.
Sir,he
of mine
p er
and
Remonstrance.
I
of the
to accompany
some Observations,
and my Se n t im e n ts on the general S tat e of ou r Affairs in this
1773]
for u s to hold on t h i s
Occa
sion.
B u t ,
b e g i n n i n g t o w ri te, I
find
in a hasty Letter;
I
must postpone i t to
an ot he r O pp or t u n i t y .
I t was thought at the
B e g i n n i n g of
the Session, that
But now the
wise Scheme i s to take o f f so much Duty
here,
as
will
make
Tea
cheaper

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The Writings of Benjamin Franklin Volume 6