332 LIFE AND CORRESPONDENCE OF THE [l/QI 



societies for the promotion of agriculture, commerce, and the mechanic 

 arts; to the founding of schools, libraries, and hospitals, for the diffu- 

 sion of useful knowledge, and the advancement of humanity — when you 

 consider this, you will "go and do likewise;" you will, with profes- 

 sional joy and pride, observe, that from the torch which Franklin 

 kindled by the means of his press, in the New World, "Sparks have 

 been already stolen which are lighting up the sacred flame of liberty, 

 virtue and wisdom over the entire face of the globe."* Be it your part 

 Still to feed that torch by means of the press, till its divine flame reaches 

 the skies ! 



For the purpose of aiding his press, and increasing the materials of 

 information, one of the first societies formed by Dr. Franklin was in 

 the year 1728, about the twenty-second year of his age, and was called 

 the Junto. It consisted of a select number of his younger friends, who 

 met weekly for the " Discussion of questions in morality, politics, and 

 natural philosophy." The number was limited to twelve members, who 

 were bound together in all the ties of friendship, and engaged to assist 

 each other, not only in the mutual communication of knowledge, but 

 in all their worldly undertakings. This society, after having subsisted 

 forty years, and having contributed to the formation of some very great 

 men, besides Dr. Franklin himself, became at last the foundation of the 

 American Philosophical Society, now assembled to pay the debt of 

 gratitude to his memory. A book containing many of the questions 

 discussed by the Junto was, on the formation of the American Philoso- 

 thical Society , delivered into my hands, for the purpose of being digested, 

 and in due time published among the transactions of that body. Many 

 of the questions are curious and curiously handled ; such as the 

 following : . . . 



'C5 



Dr. Smith here gives several of them. 



These and such similar questions of a very mixed nature, being pro- 

 posed in one evening, were generally discussed the succeeding evening, 

 and the substance of the arguments entered in their books. 



But Dr. Franklin did not rest satisfied with the institution of this 

 literary club for the improvement of himself and a few of his select 

 friends. He proceeded, year after year, in the projecting and estab- 

 lishing other institutions for the benefit of the community at large. 



Thus, in 1731, he set on foot the " Library Company of the City of 

 Philadelphia," a most important institution to all ranks of people; 

 giving them access, at a small expense, to books on every useful subject; 

 amounting in the whole to near ten thousand volumes, and the number 

 daily increasing. The affairs of the company have been managed from 

 the beginning by directors of the most respectable characters. Their 



* The Abbe Fauchet. 



