The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin (17 page)

Indeed I had some cause to believe that the defense of the country
was not disagreeable to any of them, provided they were not requir'd
to assist in it. And I found that a much greater number of them
than I could have imagined, tho' against offensive war, were clearly
for the defensive. Many pamphlets pro and con were publish'd
on the subject, and some by good Quakers, in favour of defense,
which I believe convinc'd most of their younger people.

A transaction in our fire company gave me some insight into their
prevailing sentiments. It had been propos'd that we should encourage
the scheme for building a battery by laying out the present stock,
then about sixty pounds, in tickets of the lottery. By our rules,
no money could be dispos'd of till the next meeting after the proposal.
The company consisted of thirty members, of which twenty-two
were Quakers, and eight only of other persuasions. We eight
punctually attended the meeting; but, tho' we thought that some of
the Quakers would join us, we were by no means sure of a majority.
Only one Quaker, Mr. James Morris, appear'd to oppose the measure.
He expressed much sorrow that it had ever been propos'd, as he said
Friends were all against it, and it would create such discord as might
break up the company. We told him that we saw no reason for that;
we were the minority, and if Friends were against the measure,
and outvoted us, we must and should, agreeably to the usage
of all societies, submit. When the hour for business arriv'd
it was mov'd to put the vote; he allow'd we might then do it
by the rules, but, as he could assure us that a number of members
intended to be present for the purpose of opposing it, it would
be but candid to allow a little time for their appearing.

While we were disputing this, a waiter came to tell me two gentlemen
below desir'd to speak with me. I went down, and found they were two
of our Quaker members. They told me there were eight of them assembled
at a tavern just by; that they were determin'd to come and vote with us
if there should be occasion, which they hop'd would not be the case,
and desir'd we would not call for their assistance if we could do
without it, as their voting for such a measure might embroil them
with their elders and friends. Being thus secure of a majority,
I went up, and after a little seeming hesitation, agreed to a delay
of another hour. This Mr. Morris allow'd to be extreamly fair.
Not one of his opposing friends appear'd, at which he express'd
great surprize; and, at the expiration of the hour, we carry'd
the resolution eight to one; and as, of the twenty-two Quakers,
eight were ready to vote with us, and thirteen, by their absence,
manifested that they were not inclin'd to oppose the measure,
I afterward estimated the proportion of Quakers sincerely against
defense as one to twenty-one only; for these were all regular members
of that society, and in good reputation among them, and had due
notice of what was propos'd at that meeting.

The honorable and learned Mr. Logan, who had always been of that sect,
was one who wrote an address to them, declaring his approbation of
defensive war, and supporting his opinion by many strong arguments.
He put into my hands sixty pounds to be laid out in lottery tickets
for the battery, with directions to apply what prizes might be drawn
wholly to that service. He told me the following anecdote of his
old master, William Penn, respecting defense. He came over from England,
when a young man, with that proprietary, and as his secretary.
It was war-time, and their ship was chas'd by an armed vessel,
suppos'd to be an enemy. Their captain prepar'd for defense;
but told William Penn and his company of Quakers, that he did
not expect their assistance, and they might retire into the cabin,
which they did, except James Logan, who chose to stay upon deck,
and was quarter'd to a gun. The suppos'd enemy prov'd a friend,
so there was no fighting; but when the secretary went down to
communicate the intelligence, William Penn rebuk'd him severely for
staying upon deck, and undertaking to assist in defending the vessel,
contrary to the principles of Friends, especially as it had not been
required by the captain. This reproof, being before all the company,
piqu'd the secretary, who answer'd, "I being thy servant, why did
thee not order me to come down? But thee was willing enough that I
should stay and help to fight the ship when thee thought there
was danger."

My being many years in the Assembly, the majority of which were
constantly Quakers, gave me frequent opportunities of seeing
the embarrassment given them by their principle against war,
whenever application was made to them, by order of the crown,
to grant aids for military purposes. They were unwilling to offend
government, on the one hand, by a direct refusal; and their friends,
the body of the Quakers, on the other, by a compliance contrary
to their principles; hence a variety of evasions to avoid complying,
and modes of disguising the compliance when it became unavoidable.
The common mode at last was, to grant money under the phrase of its
being "for the king's use," and never to inquire how it was applied.

But, if the demand was not directly from the crown, that phrase was
found not so proper, and some other was to be invented. As, when powder
was wanting (I think it was for the garrison at Louisburg), and the
government of New England solicited a grant of some from Pennsilvania,
which was much urg'd on the House by Governor Thomas, they could
not grant money to buy powder, because that was an ingredient of war;
but they voted an aid to New England of three thousand pounds,
to he put into the hands of the governor, and appropriated it
for the purchasing of bread, flour, wheat, or other grain. Some of
the council, desirous of giving the House still further embarrassment,
advis'd the governor not to accept provision, as not being the thing
he had demanded; but be reply'd, "I shall take the money, for I
understand very well their meaning; other grain is gunpowder,"
which he accordingly bought, and they never objected to it.
[11]

It was in allusion to this fact that, when in our fire company we
feared the success of our proposal in favour of the lottery, and I
had said to my friend Mr. Syng, one of our members, "If we fail,
let us move the purchase of a fire-engine with the money; the Quakers
can have no objection to that; and then, if you nominate me and I
you as a committee for that purpose, we will buy a great gun,
which is certainly a fire-engine." "I see," says he, "you have
improv'd by being so long in the Assembly; your equivocal project
would be just a match for their wheat or other grain."

These embarrassments that the Quakers suffer'd from having
establish'd and published it as one of their principles that
no kind of war was lawful, and which, being once published,
they could not afterwards, however they might change their minds,
easily get rid of, reminds me of what I think a more prudent
conduct in another sect among us, that of the Dunkers. I was
acquainted with one of its founders, Michael Welfare, soon after it
appear'd. He complain'd to me that they were grievously calumniated
by the zealots of other persuasions, and charg'd with abominable
principles and practices, to which they were utter strangers.
I told him this had always been the case with new sects, and that,
to put a stop to such abuse, I imagin'd it might be well to publish
the articles of their belief, and the rules of their discipline.
He said that it had been propos'd among them, but not agreed to,
for this reason: "When we were first drawn together as a society,"
says he, "it had pleased God to enlighten our minds so far as to see
that some doctrines, which we once esteemed truths, were errors;
and that others, which we had esteemed errors, were real truths.
From time to time He has been pleased to afford us farther light,
and our principles have been improving, and our errors diminishing.
Now we are not sure that we are arrived at the end of this progression,
and at the perfection of spiritual or theological knowledge;
and we fear that, if we should once print our confession of faith,
we should feel ourselves as if bound and confin'd by it, and perhaps
be unwilling to receive farther improvement, and our successors still
more so, as conceiving what we their elders and founders had done, to be
something sacred, never to be departed from."

This modesty in a sect is perhaps a singular instance in the history
of mankind, every other sect supposing itself in possession
of all truth, and that those who differ are so far in the wrong;
like a man traveling in foggy weather, those at some distance
before him on the road he sees wrapped up in the fog, as well as
those behind him, and also the people in the fields on each side,
but near him all appears clear, tho' in truth he is as much
in the fog as any of them. To avoid this kind of embarrassment,
the Quakers have of late years been gradually declining the public
service in the Assembly and in the magistracy, choosing rather
to quit their power than their principle.

In order of time, I should have mentioned before, that having, in 1742,
invented an open stove for the better warming of rooms, and at the same
time saving fuel, as the fresh air admitted was warmed in entering,
I made a present of the model to Mr. Robert Grace, one of my early
friends, who, having an iron-furnace, found the casting of the plates
for these stoves a profitable thing, as they were growing in demand.
To promote that demand, I wrote and published a pamphlet, entitled "An
Account of the new-invented Pennsylvania Fireplaces; wherein their
Construction and Manner of Operation is particularly explained;
their Advantages above every other Method of warming Rooms demonstrated;
and all Objections that have been raised against the Use of them
answered and obviated," etc. This pamphlet had a good effect.
Gov'r. Thomas was so pleas'd with the construction of this stove,
as described in it, that he offered to give me a patent for the sole
vending of them for a term of years; but I declin'd it from a principle
which has ever weighed with me on such occasions, viz., That, as we
enjoy great advantages from the inventions of others, we should be
glad of an opportunity to serve others by any invention of ours;
and this we should do freely and generously.

An ironmonger in London however, assuming a good deal of my pamphlet,
and working it up into his own, and making some small changes
in the machine, which rather hurt its operation, got a patent
for it there, and made, as I was told, a little fortune by it.
And this is not the only instance of patents taken out for my
inventions by others, tho' not always with the same success, which I
never contested, as having no desire of profiting by patents myself,
and hating disputes. The use of these fireplaces in very many houses,
both of this and the neighbouring colonies, has been, and is,
a great saving of wood to the inhabitants.

Peace being concluded, and the association business therefore at
an end, I turn'd my thoughts again to the affair of establishing
an academy. The first step I took was to associate in the design
a number of active friends, of whom the Junto furnished a good part;
the next was to write and publish a pamphlet, entitled Proposals
Relating to the Education of Youth in Pennsylvania. This I
distributed among the principal inhabitants gratis; and as soon
as I could suppose their minds a little prepared by the perusal
of it, I set on foot a subscription for opening and supporting
an academy; it was to be paid in quotas yearly for five years;
by so dividing it, I judg'd the subscription might be larger,
and I believe it was so, amounting to no less, if I remember right,
than five thousand pounds.

In the introduction to these proposals, I stated their publication,
not as an act of mine, but of some publick-spirited gentlemen,
avoiding as much as I could, according to my usual rule, the presenting
myself to the publick as the author of any scheme for their benefit.

The subscribers, to carry the project into immediate execution,
chose out of their number twenty-four trustees, and appointed
Mr. Francis, then attorney-general, and myself to draw up constitutions
for the government of the academy; which being done and signed,
a house was hired, masters engag'd, and the schools opened, I think,
in the same year, 1749.

The scholars increasing fast, the house was soon found too small,
and we were looking out for a piece of ground, properly situated,
with intention to build, when Providence threw into our way a large
house ready built, which, with a few alterations, might well
serve our purpose. This was the building before mentioned,
erected by the hearers of Mr. Whitefield, and was obtained for us
in the following manner.

It is to be noted that the contributions to this building being
made by people of different sects, care was taken in the nomination
of trustees, in whom the building and ground was to be vested,
that a predominancy should not be given to any sect, lest in time that
predominancy might be a means of appropriating the whole to the use
of such sect, contrary to the original intention. It was therefore
that one of each sect was appointed, viz., one Church-of-England man,
one Presbyterian, one Baptist, one Moravian, etc., those, in case
of vacancy by death, were to fill it by election from among
the contributors. The Moravian happen'd not to please his colleagues,
and on his death they resolved to have no other of that sect.
The difficulty then was, how to avoid having two of some other sect,
by means of the new choice.

Several persons were named, and for that reason not agreed to.
At length one mention'd me, with the observation that I was merely
an honest man, and of no sect at all, which prevail'd with them
to chuse me. The enthusiasm which existed when the house was built
had long since abated, and its trustees had not been able to procure
fresh contributions for paying the ground-rent, and discharging
some other debts the building had occasion'd, which embarrass'd
them greatly. Being now a member of both sets of trustees,
that for the building and that for the Academy, I had a good
opportunity of negotiating with both, and brought them finally
to an agreement, by which the trustees for the building were to cede
it to those of the academy, the latter undertaking to discharge
the debt, to keep for ever open in the building a large hall
for occasional preachers, according to the original intention,
and maintain a free school for the instruction of poor children.
Writings were accordingly drawn, and on paying the debts the
trustees of the academy were put in possession of the premises;
and by dividing the great and lofty hall into stories, and different
rooms above and below for the several schools, and purchasing some
additional ground, the whole was soon made fit for our purpose,
and the scholars remov'd into the building. The care and trouble
of agreeing with the workmen, purchasing materials, and superintending
the work, fell upon me; and I went thro' it the more cheerfully,
as it did not then interfere with my private business, having the
year before taken a very able, industrious, and honest partner,
Mr. David Hall, with whose character I was well acquainted, as he
had work'd for me four years. He took off my hands all care of
the printing-office, paying me punctually my share of the profits.
This partnership continued eighteen years, successfully for us both.