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CHARACTERS. 



LETTERS FROM THE PRIVATE COK- 

 KESPONDKNCE OK BENJAMIN 

 FRANKLIN, LL.D. F.R.S. &.C. 



To George Whitefield, 

 (The Preacher.) 



On Faith and Good Works. 



SiH, Philadelphia, June 6, 1753. 



I RECEIVED your kimlletter of 

 the 2cl instant, and am glad to 

 hear that you increase in strength; 

 I hope you will continue mending 

 till you recover your former liealth 

 and hrnmess. Let me know 

 wliethrr you still u-e the cold 

 bath, and wliat effect it has. 



As to the kindness you mention, 

 I wish it could have been of more 

 use to you. But if it had, the only 

 thanks I should desire is, that you 

 would always be equally ready to 

 serve any other person that may 

 need your assistance, and so let 

 good offices go round ; for man- 

 kind are all of a family. 



For my own part, when I am 

 employed in serving others, I do 

 not look upon myself as conferrii»g 

 favours, but as paying debts. In 

 niy travels, and since my. settle- 

 ment, 1 have received much kind- 

 ness from men, to whom I sh.all 

 jie^er have any op]!ortunity of 



making the least direct return ; 

 and numberless mei cies from God, 

 who is infinitely above being bene- 

 lited by oiu" services. Those kind- 

 nesses fiom men, I can therefore 

 only leturn on their fellow men, 

 and 1 can only show my gratitude 

 for these mercies from God, by a 

 readiness to help his other chil- 

 dren, and my brethren. For 1 do 

 not think that thanks and compli- 

 ments, though repeated weekly, 

 can discharge our real obligations 

 to each other, and much less those 

 to our Creator. You will see in 

 this my notion of good works, that 

 I am far from exjjecting to meiit 

 heaven by them. By heaven we 

 understand a state of happiness, 

 infinite in degree, and eternal in 

 duration : I can do nothing to de- 

 serve such rewards. He that for 

 giving a draught of water to a 

 thirsty peison, should expect to be 

 paid with a good plantation, would 

 be modest in his demands, com- 

 pared with those who think they 

 deserve heaven for the little good 

 they do on earth. Even the mixed 

 im;)erfect pleasures we enjoy in 

 tliis woild, are rather from God's 

 goodness than oiu' meiit : how 

 much more such happiness of 

 Heaven! For my part, I have not 



the 



