him from this undertaking, as a thing that was not likely to fucceed; a fingle newspaper being, in their opinion, fufficient for all America. At prefent, however, in 1771, there are no lefs than twenty-five. But he carried his project into execution, and I was employed in diftributing the copies to his cuftomers, after having aflifted in compofing and working them off.

Among his friends he had a number of literary characters, who, as an amusement, wrote fhort effays for the paper, which gave it reputation and increafed its fale. Thefe gentlemen frequently came to our house. I heard the converfation that paffed, and the accounts they gave of the favourable reception of their writings with the public. I was tempted to try my hand among them; but, being ftill a child as it were, I was fearful that my brother might be unwilling to print in his paper any performance of which he fhould know me to be the author. I therefore contrived to disguise my hand, and having written an anonymous piece, I placed it at night under the door of the printing-houfe, where it was found the next morning. My brother communicated it to his friends, when they came as usual to see him, who read it, commented upon it within my hearing, and I had the exquifite

pleaf tior

na

find that it met with their approbaat, in the various conjectures they author, no one was mentiy a high reputation in the genius. I now fuppofed judges, and began to fuffuch excellent writers as them. Be that as it may, adventure, I wrote and fame way, many other lly approved; keeping

the

the fecret till my flender ftock of information and knowledge for fuch performances was pretty completely exhaufted, when 1 made myfelf known.

My brother, upon this difcovery, began to entertain a little more refpect for me; but he still regarded himself as my mafter, and treated me like an apprentice. He thought himfelf entitled to the fame fervices from me as from any other perfon. On the contrary, I conceived that, in many inftances, he was too rigorous, and that, on the part of a brother, I had a right to expect indulgence. Our difputes were frequently brought before my father; and either my brother was generally in the wrong, or I was the better pleader of the two, for judgment was commonly given in my favour. But my brother was paffionate, and often had recourfe to blows; a circumftance which I took in very ill part. This fevere and tyrannical treatment contributed, I believe, to imprint on my mind that averfion to arbitrary power, which during my whole life I have ever preferved. My apprenticeship became infupportable to me, and I continually fighed for an opportunity of fhortening it, which at length unexpectedly offered.

An article inferted in our paper, upon fome political fubject which I have now forgotten, gave offence to the Affembly. My brother was taken into cuftody, cenfured, and ordered into confinement for a month, because, as I prefume, he would not discover the author. I was alfo taken up, and examined before the council; but, though I gave them no fatisfaction, they contented themfelves with reprimanding, and tlen difmiffed me; confidering me probably as bouid, in quality of apprentice, to keep my mafte's fecrets.

Tle

The imprisonment of my brother kindled my refentment, notwithstanding our private quarrels. During its continuance the management of the paper was entrusted to me, and I was bold enough to infert fome pafquinades against the governors; which highly pleased my brother, while others began to look upon me in an unfavourable point of view, confidering me as a young wit inclined to fatire and lampoon.

My brother's enlargement was accompanied with an arbitrary order from the house of affembly, "That James Franklin fhould no longer "print the newspaper entitled the New-England

"

Courant." In this conjuncture, we held a confultation of our friends at the printing-house, in order to determine what was proper to be done. Some proposed to evade the order, by changing the title of the paper: but my brother forefeeing inconveniences that would refult from this ftep, thought it better that it should in future be printed in the name of Benjamin Franklin; and to avoid the cenfure of the affembly, who might charge him with ftill printing the paper himself, under the name of his apprentice, it was refolved that my old indentures fhould be given up to me, with a full and entire discharge written on the back, in order to be produced upon an emergency; but that, to fecure to my brother the benefit of my fervice, I fhould fign a new contract, which fhould be kept fecret during the remainder of the term. This was a very fhallow arrangement. It was, however, carried into immediate execution, and the paper continued, in confequence, to make its appearance for fome months in my name. At length a new difference arifing between my brother and me, I ventured to take advantage of my liberty, prefuming that he would not dare to produce the new

contract

contract. It was undoubtedly dishonourable to avail myself of this circumftance, and I reckon this action as one of the firft errors of my life; but I was little capable of eftimating it at its true value, embittered as my mind had been by the recollection of the blows I had received. Exclufively of his paffionate treatment of me, my brother was by no means a man of an ill temper, and perhaps my manners had too much of impertinence not to afford it a very natural pretext.

When he knew that it was my determination. to quit him, he wifhed to prevent my finding employment elsewhere. He went to all the printing-houfes in the town, and prejudiced the mafters against me; who accordingly refufed to employ me. The idea then fuggefted itself to me of going to New-York, the nearest town in which there was a printing-office. Farther reflection confirmed me in the defign of leaving Boston, where I had already rendered myself an object of fufpicion to the governing party. It was probable, from the arbitrary proceedings of the Affembly in the affair of my brother, that, by remaining, I fhould foon have been exposed to difficulties, which I had the greater reafon to apprehend, as, from my indifcreet difputes upon the fubject of religion, I began to be regarded, by pious fouls, with horror, either as an apoftate or an atheift. I came therefore to a refolution; but my father, in this inftance, fiding with my brother, I prefumed that if I attempted to depart openly, measures would be taken to prevent me. My friend Collins undertook to favour my flight. He agreed for my paffage with the captain of a New-York floop, to whom he reprefented me as a young man of his acquaintance, who had had an affair with a girl of bad character, whofe parents wished to compel me to marry her, and

that

that of confequence I could neither make my ap. pearance nor go off publicly. 1 fold part of my books to procure a fmall fum of money, and went privately on board the floop. By favour of a good wind, I found myself in three days at New-York, nearly three hundred miles from my home, at the age only of feventeen years, without knowing an individual in the place, and with very little money in my pocket.

The inclination I had felt for a fea-faring life was entirely fubfided, or I should now have been able to gratify it; but having another trade, and believing myfelf to be a tolerable worknian, I hefitated not to offer my fervices to the old Mr. William Bradford, who had been the first printer in Pennsylvania, but had quitted that province on account of a quarrel with George Keith, the governor. He could not give me employment himself, having little to do, and already as many perfons as he wanted; but he told me that his fon, printer at Philadelphia, had lately loft his principal workman, Aquila Rofe, who was dead, and that if I would go thither, he believed that he would engage me. Philadelphia was a hundred miles farther. I hefitated not to embark in a boat in order to repair, by the shorteft cut of the fea, to Amboy, leaving my trunk and effects to come after me by the ufual and more tedious conveyance. In croffing the bay we met with a fquall, which fhattered to pieces our rotten fails, prevented us from entering the Kill, and threw us upon Long Island.

During the fquall a drunken Dutchman, who like myself was a paffenger in the boat, fell into the fea. At the moment that he was finking, I feized him by the fore-top, faved him, and drew him on board. This immersion fobered him a little, fo that he fell asleep, after having taken

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