Nicholas Scull, a furveyor, and who became afterwards furveyor-general. He was fond of books, and wrote verses.

William Parfons, brought up to the trade of a fhoc-maker, but who, having a tafte for reading, had acquired a profound knowledge of mathematics. He firft ftudied them with a view to aftrology, and was afterwards the first to laugh at his folly. He also became furveyor-general.

William Mawgridge, a joiner, and very excellent mechanic; and in other refpects a man of folid understanding.

Hugh Meredith, Stephen Potts, and George Webb, of whom I have already spoken.

Robert Grace, a young man of fortune; generous, animated, and witty; fond of epigrains, but more fond of his friends.

And lastly, William Coleman, at that time a merchant's clerk, and nearly of my own age. He had a cooler and clearer head, a better heart, and more fcrupulous morals, than almost any. ether perfon I have ever met with. He became a very refpectable merchant, and one of our provincial judges. Our friendfhip fubfifted, without interruption, for more than forty years, till the period of his death; and the club continued to exist almost as long.

This was the beft fchool of politics and philofophy that then existed in the province; for our queftions, which were read a week previous to their difcuffion, induced us to perule attentively fuch books as were written upon the fubjects propofed, that we might be able to speak upon them more pertinently. We thus acquired the

habit of converfing more agreeably; every object being difcuffed conformably to our regulations, and in a manner to prevent mutual difguft. To this circumstance may be attributed the long duration of the club; which I fhall have frequent occafion to mention as I proceed.

I have introduced it here, as being one of the means on which I had to count for fuccefs in my business; every member exerting himself to procure work for us. Breintnal, among others, obtained for us, on the part of the Quakers, the printing of forty (heets of their hiftory; of which the rest was to be done by Keimer. Our execution of this work was by no means mafterly; as the price was very low. It was in folio, upon pro patria paper, and in the pica letter, with heavy notes in the fmalleft type. I compofed a fheet a day, and Meredith put it to the prefs. It was frequently eleven o'clock at night, fometimes later, before I had finished my distribution for the next day's tafk; for the little things which our friends occafionally fent us, kept us back in this work but I was fo determined to compofe a fheet a day, that one evening, when my form was impofed, and my day's work, as I thought, at an end, an accident having broken this form, and deranged two complete folio pages, I immediately diftributed, and compofed them anew before I went to bed.

This unwearied induftry, which was perceived by our neighbours, began to acquire us reputation and credit. I learned among other things, that our new printing-houfe being the subject of converfation at a club of merchants, who met every.

evening, it was the general opinion that it would fail; there being already two printing-houfes in the town, Keimer's and Bradford's. But Dr. Bard, whom you and I had occafion to fee, many years after, at his native town of St. Andrew's in Scotland, was of a different opinion. "The industry of this Franklin (faid he) is fuperior to any thing of the kind I have ever witneffed. I fee him ftill at work when I return from the club at night, and he is at it again in the morning before his neighbours are out of bed." This account ftruck the reft of the affembly, and fhortly after one of its members came to our house, and offered to fupply us with articles of ftation ary; but we wished not as yet to embarrass ourfelves with keeping a shop. It is not for the fake of applaufe that I enter fo freely into the particulars of my industry, but that fuch of my defcendants as fhall read these memoirs may know the use of this virtue, by feeing in the recital of my life the effects it operated in my favour.

George Webb, having found a friend who lent him the neceffary fum to buy out his time of Keimer, came one day to offer himself to us as a journeyman. We could not employ him imme diately; but I foolishly told him, under the rofe, that I intended fhortly to publish a new periodical paper, and that we fhould then have work for him. My hopes of fuccefs, which I imparted to him, were founded on the circumftance, that the only paper which we had in Philadelphia at that time, and which Bradford printed, was a paltry thing, miferably conducted, in no refpect anufing, and which yet was profitable. I con

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fequently fuppofed that a good work of this kind could not fail of fuccefs. Webb betrayed my fecret to Keimer, who, to prevent me, immediately publifhed the profpectus of a paper that he intended to institute himself, and in which Webb was to be engaged.

I was exasperated at this proceeding, and, with a view to counteract them, not being able at prefent to inftitute my own paper, I wrote fome humourous pieces in Bradford's, under the title of the Bufy Body*; and which was continued for feveral months by Brientnál. I hereby fixed the attention of the public upon Bradford's paper; and the profpectus of Keimer, which we turned into ridicule, was treated with contempt. He began, notwithstanding, his paper; and after continuing it för nine months, having at inoft not more than ninety fubfcribers, he offered it me for a mere trifle. I had for fome time been ready for fuch an engagement; I therefore inftantly took it upon myself, and in a few years it proved extremely profitable to me.

I perceive that I am apt to speak in the first person, though our partnership still continued. It is, perhaps, because, in fact, the whole bufinefs devolved upon me. Meredith was no compofitor, and but an indifferent preffman; and it was rarely that he abstained from hard drinking. My friends were forry to see me connected with him; but I contrived to derive from it the utmost advantage the cafe admitted.

* A manuscript note in the file of the American Mercury, preferved in the Philadelphia library, fays, that Franklin wrote the first five numbers, and part of the eighth.

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Our firft number produced no other effect than any other paper which had appeared in the province, as to type and printing; but fome remarks, in my peculiar ftyle of writing, upon the difpute which then prevailed between governor Burnet, and the Malfachusett affembly, ftruck fome perfons as above mediocrity, cauled the paper and its editors to be talked of, and in a few weeks induced them to become our fubfcribers. Many others followed their example; and our fubfcription continued to increase. This was one of the first good effects of the pains I had taken to learn to put my ideas on paper. I derived this farther advantage from it, that the leading men of the place, feeing in the author of this publication a man fo well able to use his pen, thought it right to patronife and encourage me.

The votes, laws, and other public pieces, were printed by Bradford. An addrefs of the house of affembly to the governor had been executed by him in a very coarfe and incorrect manner. We reprinted it with accuracy and neatness, and fent a copy to every member. They perceived the difference; and it fo ftrengthened the influence. of our friends in the affembly, that we were nominated its printer for the following year.

Among these friends I ought not to forget one, member in particular, Mr. Hamilton, whom I have mentioned in a former part of my narrative, and who was now returned from England. He warmly interested himself for me on this occafion, as he did likewife on many others afterwards; having continued his kindness to me till his death.