Introduction vii

The Autobiography I. Ancestry and Early Life in Boston 3 II. Beginning Life as a Printer 21 III. Arrival in Philadelphia 41 IV. First Visit to Boston 55 V. Early Friends in Philadelphia 69 VI. First Visit to London 77 VII. Beginning Business in Philadelphia 99 VIII. Business Success and First Public Service 126 IX. Plan for Attaining Moral Perfection 146 X. _Poor Richard's Almanac_ and Other Activities 169 XI. Interest in Public Affairs 188 XII. Defense of the Province 201 XIII. Public Services and Duties 217 XIV. Albany Plan of Union 241 XV. Quarrels with the Proprietary Governors 246 XVI. Braddock's Expedition 253 XVII. Franklin's Defense of the Frontier 274 XVIII. Scientific Experiments 289 XIX. Agent of Pennsylvania in London 296 Appendix Electrical Kite 327 The Way to Wealth 331 The Whistle 336 A Letter to Samuel Mather 34O Bibliography 343 ILLUSTRATIONS Franklin at the Court of Louis XVI _Frontispiece_ "He was therefore, feasted and invited to all the court parties. At these he sometimes met the old Duchess of Bourbon, who, being a chess player of about his force, they very generally played together. Happening once to put her king into prize, the Doctor took it. 'Ah,' says she, 'we do not take kings so.' 'We do in America,' said the Doctor."--Thomas Jefferson. PAGE Portrait of Franklin vii Pages 1 and 4 of _The Pennsylvania Gazette_, Number XL, the first number after Franklin took control xxi First page of _The New England Courant_ of December 4-11, 1721 33 "I was employed to carry the papers thro' the streets to the customers" 36 "She, standing at the door, saw me, and thought I made, as I certainly did, a most awkward, ridiculous appearance" 48 "I took to working at press" 88 "I see him still at work when I go home from club" 120 Two pages from _Poor Richard's Almanac_ for 1736 171 "I regularly took my turn of duty there as a common soldier" 204 "In the evening, hearing a great noise among them, the commissioners walk'd out to see what was the matter" 224 "Our axes ... were immediately set to work to cut down trees" 278 "We now appeared very wide, and so far from each other in our opinions as to discourage all hope of agreement" 318 "You will find it stream out plentifully from the key on the approach of your knuckle" 328 Father Abraham in his study 330 The end papers show, at the front, the Franklin arms and the Franklin seal; at the back, the medal given by the Boston public schools from the fund left by Franklin for that purpose as provided in the following extract from his will: "I was born in Boston, New England, and owe my first instructions in literature to the free grammar-schools established there. I therefore give one hundred pounds sterling to my executors, to be by them ... paid over to the managers or directors of the free schools in my native town of Boston, to be by them ... put out to interest, and so continued at interest forever, which interest annually shall be laid out in silver medals, and given as honorary rewards annually by the directors of the said free schools belonging to the said town, in such manner as to the discretion of the selectmen of the said town shall seem meet." [Illustration: B. Franklin From an engraving by J. Thomson from the original picture by J. A. Duplessis] [Illustration: B. Franklin's signature]