BENJAMIN FRANKLIN

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume 77, 6 October 1942, Page 6

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN

THE REARING OF A GENIUS BUILDER Ol THE UNITED STATES The life of Benjamin Franklin embraces almost the whole of the eighteenth century, a century full of great events, which culminated in the declaration of the independence of the United States of America and the French Revolution. Born in Boston, New England, on 6th January, 1706. he died on 17th April. 1790, in Philadelphia, and he had net only witnessed the progress of the century in Europe and America, but had taken an active part in nearly every branch of it. Two of his many achievements, says a writer in the Melbourne “Age." are known to everybody —his discovery of the “lightning con ductor" and the role he played in the foundation of the United States. The incongruity of the two accomplishments is striking. Was Franklin a scientist who in times of leisure dealt* with political problems, or was he a dyed-in-the-wool politician who chose science as a hobby? He was neither. The explanation is simple—he was a genius. A SUNDAY CHILD Benjamin Franklin was the son of a humble tallow chandler, and the

second youngest of fifteen children whom his parents brought up with equal love. There was. however, something special about him, even before his genius was discovered; he was a Sunday child. That would not be worth mentioning had it not influenced his whole development. Benjamin Franklin, very religious in his early days and an upright Protestant by paternal influence and education, was at the same time superstitious and believed in his luck as a Sunday child. The fact gave him strength all his life long to fight on whenever he suffered a setback in his versatile career. The children formed a healthy clamorous band, filled with respect for their father, who raised them on a harsh, simple education based on the Bible. Josiah Franklin had to work hard to nourish his big family, and the children were at a tender age bound to help their father in his candle trade. Nevertheless, he did not neglect their spiritual needs. When Benjamin, as a small boy, showed a special intelligence, father Franklin taught him at five to read the Bible, and at seven the little child knew how to write. In the small community of Calvinist immigrants to whom Josiah Franklin belonged the acquirement of knowledge was identical with the career of a church minister. Therefore, it seemed obvious that the brilliant boy should become a clergyman. Benjamin was sent to a Latin school, but although he learned splendidly, his practical mind refused to accept his father’s plans. After two years the boy left school and became, at the age of ten, his father’s apprentice. As the child showed a certain shrewdness and versatility, very useful qualities for a business career, was it not wiser to make him acquainted with the trade of a candle maker? The Franklins had always been simple workmen, and their ambitions did not go far. True, Josiah was very proud of the intelligence of his little son, but how could he guess that he was rearing a genius? So he believed himself to be very liberal when permitting Benjamin to read as many books as he liked in summer days when the candle trade was slack or during long winter evenings after the day's work was finished. But Benjamin was not satisfied. He did not like the boredom of the candle business. At the fireside he was dreaming of adventures and of good works to be done as he had been taught by the Bible. The future looked very gloomy, when one day something happened. One of his elder brothers, James, who had

been to England to learn the art. of printing, unexpectedly came back to Boston. He had finished his apprenticeship and brought with him the great ideas of freedom of the press, of know-, ledge and progress. He was an adventurer, very courageous and the idol of little Benjamin. PRINTER’S APPRENTICE The boy was still dreaming of running away and of conquering the huge continent of America by great deeds, but he did not dare to do so. because the newspapers were full of frightful stories of what happened to escaped apprentices who died in the wilderness. They were scalped by the Indians or imprisoned when caught by the police. So he stayed on, bored and unhappy. Father Josiah, clever and understanding, noticed what was going u* inside his little son’s mind, ano he advised him to get appren ticed to his brother, who had just started to set up a printing press and to establish a newspaper. Benjrmin agreed; at any rate the printing trade was more alluring than the candle business. Soon —he was then eleven— he signed a curious contract with James, in which he promised to do gladly his brother’s lawful commands, to stay with him until his twenty-second year, to serve him faithfully and to keep his secrets. The contract went on: “Taverns, inns or ale houses he shall not haunt. At cards, dice, tables, or any other unlawful game he shall not play. Matrimony he shall not contract.” Josiah Franklin rubbed his hands when that was settled. Benjamin would not run away like another of his elder brothers, a black sheep of the family, who had joined the navy. For the next eleven years he was to stay with James. It turned out quite differently. Once in close contact with printing matter Benjamin discovered his ability to write. He started with ballads, which he recited in the streets and squares of Boston, and which became so popular that his brother made good money with them. He himself did not get anything; neither from these profits nor from his work in the printing shop. However, he could not do without money for ever; he wanted books, but books he had to buy, for there were at that time no public libraries in America. (Many years later he was to establish the first American library in Philadelphia.) Spiritual food seemed more important for little Benjamin than food for his body. So he came to terms with his brother, renouncing his keep and receiving a few coins instead Whilst the other apprentices enjoyed their daily meals the boy prepared for himself a simple broth in the workshop, and revelled in reading and studying. Some time later he became an anonymous contributor to James Franklin’s paper, the 'New England Courant,” writing under the pseudonym of a “Mrs Silence Dogood.” In his articles he criticised the public affairs, the morals and special events ir. the life of Boston with such briltance that they became the most appreciated feature of the newspaper. Nobody, not even his brother, had the faintest idea who the writer was. for the manuscripts were a I wavs found under the door of the printer’s shop. There was much guessing about the author in town, but the last person to be suspected was the boy of fif-

The “New England Courant" was not very popular with the Boston authorities on account of its fighting spirit, and one day James, as the proprietor of the paper, was imprisoned for having attacked the Government. James released from prison, had to resign as editor. Benjamin, a lad of sixteen, took over the whole responsibility for the paper and the printing shop. The elder brother, becoming very jealous, rewarded him only with severe blows. This was tou much for the boy. With the help of a devoted friend, he prepared for flight to New York. EIGHT AND ACHIEVEMENT New York had nothing to offer him but disillusionment. He called at a printer’s, only to learn that there was no job for him. He continued his journey on feat t Philadelphia, which was to become the stage from which he conquered by his genius first America and later the whole globe. There he settled down as a printer’s apprentice again, left for England to enrich his knowledge when eighteen, came back with employment as a clerk in his pocket, but lost his position, which he had valued because U meant a step up the social ladder. In radiant health and high spirits, however, he immediately set about establishing, with borrowed money, a printer’s shop of his own.- He was still only twenty-one, but he had seen a good deal of the world, he had become a first-class printer in England, he had much practical sense, and so his business flourished. Helped by his young wife, Deborah, in his shop, where he sold, .besides printed matter, brilliant economic pamphlets written by himself, beauty aids, bath salts, bottles of ink and sheets of paper, he devoted the evening and late hours of the nights to his studies. He never indulged in philosophy, literature or science for their own sake; he used them only as a basis for his practical work. He enriched his knowledge in order the better to serve mankind. When ian English friend of his sent him an electrical apparatus “just for fun,” he soon tried to do something useful with it. Although a complete amateur in the field of science, he one day was able to demonstrate the identity of lightning with electricity, and presented humanity with the discovery of the lightning conductor. It was the same with languages, it seemed essential to Franklin to know Latin in a century where one could do without a shirt, but not. without Latin quotations. In order to win new friends, and to fight his enemies with equal weapons, one had to make oneself acquainted with the modern languages. Franklin, therefore, taught himself French, Italian. Spanish, and German. He had a sixth sense for finding opportunities, but his splendid career was by no means the rapid conquest of the world by a daring genius. It was a stony road, built bit by bit. by an indefatigable constructor. H e climbed higher and higher, intellectual leader in Philadelphia. Postmaster-General for the whole of America. Ambassador for the newly formed United Stales to France, collaborator at the first Constitution. President of the Pennsylvanian Executive Council.