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PTitle: Autobiography of Benjamin FranklinAuthor: Benjamin FranklinEditor: Frank Woodworth PineIllustrator: E. Boyd SmithRelease Date: December 28, 2006 [EBook #20203]Language: EnglishCharacter set encoding: ISO-8859-1*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF BENJAMIN FRANKLIN ***Produced by Turgut Dincer, Brian Sogard and the OnlineDistributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net[Illustration: FRANKLIN ARMS][Illustration: FRANKLIN SEAL][Illustration: Franklin at the Court of Louis XVI"He was therefore, feasted and invited to all the courtparties. At these he sometimes met the old Duchess ofBourbon, who, being a chess player of about his force,they very generally played together. Happening once toput her king into prize, the Doctor took it. 'Ah,' saysshe, 'we do not take kings so.' 'We do in America,' saidthe Doctor."--Thomas Jefferson.]AUTOBIOGRAPHYOFBENJAMINFRANKLINWITH ILLUSTRATIONS

_by_ E. BOYD SMITHEDITED _by_ FRANK WOODWORTH PINE[Illustration: Printers Mark] _New York_ HENRY HOLT AND COMPANY1916Copyright, 1916,BYHENRY HOLT AND COMPANYJune, 1922THE QUINN & BODEN CO. PRESSRAHWAY, N. J.CONTENTSPAGEIntroduction viiThe AutobiographyI. Ancestry and Early Life in Boston 3II. Beginning Life as a Printer 21III. Arrival in Philadelphia 41IV. First Visit to Boston 55V. Early Friends in Philadelphia 69VI. First Visit to London 77VII. Beginning Business in Philadelphia 99VIII. Business Success and First Public Service 126IX. Plan for Attaining Moral Perfection 146X. _Poor Richard's Almanac_ and Other Activities 169XI. Interest in Public Affairs 188XII. Defense of the Province 201XIII. Public Services and Duties 217XIV. Albany Plan of Union 241XV. Quarrels with the Proprietary Governors 246XVI. Braddock's Expedition 253XVII. Franklin's Defense of the Frontier 274XVIII. Scientific Experiments 289XIX. Agent of Pennsylvania in London 296Appendix

Electrical Kite 327The Way to Wealth 331The Whistle 336A Letter to Samuel Mather 34OBibliography 343ILLUSTRATIONSFranklin at the Court of Louis XVI _Frontispiece_ "He was therefore, feasted and invited to all the courtparties. At these he sometimes met the old Duchess ofBourbon, who, being a chess player of about his force,they very generally played together. Happening once toput her king into prize, the Doctor took it. 'Ah,' saysshe, 'we do not take kings so.' 'We do in America,'said the Doctor."--Thomas Jefferson.PAGEPortrait of Franklin viiPages 1 and 4 of _The Pennsylvania Gazette_, NumberXL, the first number after Franklin took control xxiFirst page of _The New England Courant_ of December4-11, 1721 33"I was employed to carry the papers thro' the streetsto the customers" 36"She, standing at the door, saw me, and thought Imade, as I certainly did, a most awkward, ridiculousappearance" 48"I took to working at press" 88"I see him still at work when I go home from club" 120Two pages from _Poor Richard's Almanac_ for 1736 171"I regularly took my turn of duty there as a commonsoldier" 204"In the evening, hearing a great noise among them,the commissioners walk'd out to see what was thematter" 224"Our axes ... were immediately set to work tocut down trees" 278"We now appeared very wide, and so far from eachother in our opinions as to discourage all hopeof agreement" 318