r RAN 
fpcnt the greater part of the night. It was not long before 
lie began to imitate what he fo much admired, and his lirft 
attempts were in verfe. He wrote ballads and printed 
tlrem ; but notwithdanding their temporary fuccefs, Ids 
father was able to convince him that his talent was not 
poetry. His efforts to acquire a facility in writing profe 
were better diredted, and purfued with great afliduity ; 
and to their fuccefs may be chiefly attributed his early 
fuperiority fo his brethren of i he prcfs, and his fnbfeqiient 
elevation to (lations of public importance. Wi,th a paflion 
for reading and writing, be imbibed the kindred one of 
difputing. This met with fuel from his familiarity with 
a youth of a fimilar turn, and he was for a time a very 
doughty and dogmatical polemic. The n'erufal of a tranfla- 
tion of Xenophon’s Memorabilia, foftened him into a 
Socratic, and be became very dextrous in tlte fubtile mode 
of confuting or confounding an antagonifl by a feries of 
qucftions. In fucb a courfe of mental exercife he natu¬ 
rally became a fceptic with refpect to the religion in which 
lie had been educated; and with the zeal of a convert, 
took all opportunities of propagating liis unbelief. The 
unhappy moral effedis this produced upon fome of his 
companions, at length convinced him that it was unfafe 
to loofen the ties of religion, without the probability of 
fubftituting others equally efficacious. The doubts which 
fubfifled in his own mind, he appears never to have been 
able to remove ; but he took care flrongly to fortify him- 
felf with fuch moral principles of conduct, as diredted 
liim to the mofl valuable ends by honourable means. He 
early obtained that dominion over his appetites which 
is lo important a ftep in moral difcipline. Of this, a re¬ 
markable inflance was the effedt produced upon him by 
reading, in his llxteenth year, a treatife by oneTryon, in 
recommendation of vegetable diet. He immediately dif- 
carded animal food ; and oltering to his brother to main¬ 
tain himfelf for half the furn paid for his board, he W'as 
able out of that allowance to make favings for the pur- 
chafe of books. Though he afterwards relaxed in the 
aufterity of his diet, the habit of being contented with a 
little, and difregarding the gratifications of tjte palate, 
remained with him through life, and was highly ufeful 
on various occafions. 
His brother fet up a new fpaper, and Benjamin ventured 
anonymonfly to fend fome pieces for infertion, and had 
the fatisfaciion of finding them applauded by the befl: 
judges in the place. His confeious merit probably made 
him more impatient under the harfli treatment of his 
brother, who behaved to him more like a mafter than a 
relation. At length an arbitrary interdiflion from the 
ftate to James Franklin, upon a political offence, to con¬ 
tinue his paper, caufed Benjamin’s name to be employed 
as publifher, and, in confequence, his indentures to be 
given up,to him. He was obliged, however, to fign a 
private agreement for fervingont his term ; but not think¬ 
ing himfelf bound by it, (which he acknowledges to have 
been a fault,) he fecretly departed by fea to New York, 
whence he foon proceeded to Philadelphia. This eyent 
®f his life took place in his feventeenth year. At that city 
be engaged in the fervice of one Keimer, a printer, whofe 
affairs he foon put into better order. He contrafted an 
acquaintance with feveral young men fond of reading, in 
whofe fociety he fpent his evenings, and improved his li¬ 
terary tafle. 
After fome tirpe he became known to fir William Keith, 
the governor of the province, who took much notice of 
him, and urged him to fet up for himfelf, with many pro- 
mifes of fupport. At his inftigation, Franklin paid a vifit 
to his parents at Bofion, in order to obtain an advance of 
money for his projeft; but though he was kindly received, 
he was unable to gain his point. Upon his return to Phi¬ 
ladelphia, the governor offered to take the whole burthen 
upon himfelf, and propoled to him to make a voyage to 
England in order to furnifh himfelf with all the neceffa- 
ries of a new printing-office. Franklin gladly embraced 
the propofal, and fet fail about the beginning of 1725/ 
K LIN. 11 
accompanied by his inti’nnte companion, Ralph, who aK 
terwards became a political writer in England of fome 
note, and is commemorated in the Dunciad. Previous 
to his departure, he exchtmged promifes of fidelity with 
niifs Read of Philadelphia, witli whofe father he had 
lodged. Upon his arrival in I.ondon, Franklin found that 
governor Keith, upon whofe promifed letters of credit 
and recomntendation he had relied, had entirely deceived 
him. He was therefore i/biiged to have recourfe to the 
bnfinefs in his hands for a fupi'ort, and engaged himfelt 
as a workman in the office of Palmer, a printer of note in 
Bartholomew-clofe. His friend Ralph, whole dependence 
was upon his head, did not fo readily obtain employment, 
and he was long a drain upon Fianklin’s puiTe. The mo¬ 
rals of the two friends did not improve from their focietyr 
Ralph forgot his wife and child in America, and Franklin 
forgot his mifs Read. He has candidly marked this as 
anotlier great error of his life ; to which he has added the 
printing, about this period, of a Difl'ertation on Liberty 
and Necelfity, Pleafiire and Pain, dedicated to Ralph, 
and intended as an anfwer to fome of tlie arguments of 
WooUifton’s Religion of Nature, which paffed through 
his hands at the prefs. This piece, hovyever, gained him 
fome fame, and introduced him to the acquaintance, among 
others, of Dr. Mandeville, author of the celebrated fable 
of the Bees. In whatever other virtues Franklin might 
be defeflive, he retained in a high degree thofe ot induftry 
and temperance, which eventually were the means of fe- 
curing his morals, as well as of raifing his fortune. He 
has given a curious and infiruiSlive account of his endea¬ 
vours, in the lecond printing-office in which he worked, 
(Watts’s, near Lincoln’s-inn-fields,) to reform the lottilh 
habits of his fellow-workmen. He attempted to perfuade 
them that there was more real fuftenance in a penny roll 
than in a pint of porter; and though he was at firfl: ftig- 
matifed by the name of the American dquatic, he was able 
in the end to induce feveral of them to fubfiitute grnel 
and toafted bread as a breakfaff, to their nftial morning 
libation from the tankard. They who are acquainted 
with the London artificers, will conlider this as no Imall 
proof of his perfitafive powers. 
After an abode of eighteen months, in London, he re- 
turned, in 1726, to Philadelphia, where he had engaged 
to aft in the capacity of clerk to Mr. Denham, a worthy 
perfon, who opened a warehoufe in that city. fie.foon 
obtained a confiderable knowledge of trade, and paffed 
his time happily, till the death of Mr. Denham, in 1727, 
dilfolved the connedlion. He was again obliged to apply 
for fupport to the prefs, and accepted an offer from Keimer 
to become the fuperintendant of his office. In this fitua- 
tion he acquired general efteem, and improved his con¬ 
nexions, fo that at length he began to entertain thoughts 
of fettiiig up for himlelf. This he brought to effieX by 
means of a partncrfhip with one Meredith, a fellovv-work- 
man, whofe father was capable of advancing lome money. 
They took a houfe in Philadelphia ; and rranklin has re¬ 
corded the extraordinary pleaftwi lie received from a pay¬ 
ment of five fliillings, the firfl; fruits of their earnings. 
“ The recolleXion of what 1 felt on this occalion,” lays 
he, “ has rendered me more difpofed, than perhaps I 
flioiild otherwife have been, to encourage young begin¬ 
ners in trade an amiable effeX, indicating the radical 
benevolence of his heart. His habitual induflry was now 
fharpened by the confeioufnefs of w’orking for his own 
benefit. It obtained the notice of fome of tiie leading 
men of the place, and, joined to his punXuality, gave 
him increafing reputation. A club which he inflitnted, 
under the name of the Junto, for the-difenflion of political 
and philofophical queliions, proved an excellent Ichool 
of mutual improvement among the members, and united 
them in fupporting each other’s interefls. The queries 
pint to the candidates for admiflion, by way of tefl, deferve 
copying, as indicating the liberal and philanthropical fpi- 
rit of the founder. “ Do you fincerely declare that you 
love mankind in general, of what profeflion or religion 
foeverf 
