Show THE versatility OF BENJAMIN FRANKLINS NATURE dy by mary hatch student at at II 11 SL S A lack jack of oc all trades and master of none la Is usually the epitaph of one alio has been born with a versa tile nature it was not so in tho the case of benjamin franklin ile he possessed a master mind lie he was capable of handling any situation and above all lie he possessed common sense of which lie he made very valuable use when only twelve years of age he became an apprentice in fit his brothers printing office hero lie he worked for five years during which time ho he wrote and printed several poems and pieces preces of prose these small attempts were the beginnings of what afterwards became genuine specimens ot of literature upon leaving ills his brother at the age of se seventeen enteen franklin went vent to england where lie ho finally bought a printing press of ills his own returning to america lie ho started tho the second but by far the best newspaper in the colonies lie he himself being printer editor and oftentimes the writer of anonymous articles published dished in he paper ile ho was so thrifty and tho the business flourished so be greatly that at the age of founty two lie ho was ablo able to retire on a comfortable income thus tar far in his life franklin had not nor acco accomplished anything that showed ills his versatility had lie he died at that time his name would not have gone down in history he be would have merely been a wealthy phill delphias delphi delph lan ai who owned paper and printing press however to the great benefit of everyone concerned lie he lid did not die at this time the year 1736 saw tho the beginning of franklins varied political career it was so long and so great that it would bo be impossible to relate all of these positions position which lie he held A few will suffice in 1736 lie he was appointed dork clerk of tile tho general assembly of pennsylvania then he became postmaster representative postmaster general for the colonies and a delegato delegate to tho the continental congress all in succession last but not least when on ail aged man he became ono one of tha lite signers odthe of the declaration of independence when only a young man of twenty three franklin formed a club known as tile the junto at the meetings of thlu club political questions wore discussed debated and written upon franklin finally conceived the idea of instituting a library for tho the uso use of club members only As time went vent oa 01 tills this ever growing library was turned into a public one thus wo we be bio that franklin instituted the first firs t public library in america it was franklin who raised tile the study of oc electricity to the dignity of a science through ills his experiment with the kite you are all familiar with it lie he proved that electricity atia and lightning are the same thing oxford and Eden edenborough burough conferred erred on this self educated printers titers apprentice degrees in recognition of ills hta work with electricity james parton said bald that franklin originated the modern system of business advertising ills essays prepared the way for ills almanac tile the au inga of poor richard in ill taits publication combined more wisdom and good sense in fit a brief compass than any other hook book published in america during tho the eighteen th century tho the following aro are a few of poor It lUchart Ichards lB sayings god goa heals and tile the doctor takes the tee fee honesty Is the best plan A sleeping fox catches catches no poultry none Af these sayings ro ed wa tho the q bial u needs ils but ut with the material needs poor richard the people what they wanted it inculcated thrift and economy in plain english besides the almanac Frank Ilif wrote and published political antislavery anti slavery financial economic and scientific papers concerning the important topics of tile the time ills his autobiography written at first only for the tha benefit of ills his soil eon is now considered one of the genis gems of american literature As an independent and wealthy citizen of philadelphia franklin interested te to in fit all matters of I 1 public improvement ile ho fou founded a philosophical society to spread useful knowl tAgo of all kinds lie ile laid the foundation of what la Is now the university of pennsylvania and secured a charter from king george 11 II we see in all hla his public improvements the tha utilitarian spirit which has marked the genius of this country but a spirit directed into phillan lililan channels hence he lie secured funds to build a hospital which lias has grown into one of the largest in the united states ile ho established the first tire fire company in philadelphia as aa well as the first fire inaura insurance n cc company lie he induced the citizens of philadelphia to pavo pava and swoop sweep their streets which were almost impassable in winter he reorganized tile the night watch of tile the town ho he improved the street lighting lie ho was wag tha trustee of a society to aid gorman german immigrants lie ho started a volunteer military organization tor for defence of the state against the indians indiana ho he made a now new fertilizer tor for the use of farmers lie he invented tile the open franklin stove he be introduced into pennsylvania the cil culture ture of the vino in short lie he was always on the abort to improve the material condition of tho the people but it was not as a public spirited citizen nor noi as a successful business man nor even as a scientific investigator that franklin earned his permanent fame it waa ills hla work aa a a skillful diplomatist in ho was elected by the assembly of penn sylvania syl vanla as agent of tho the province to london where he was to lay tho grievances grievance of the colonists before the government and obtain relief from parliament in 1764 pennsylvania again sent him to Eng england larid to protest against the taxation system in ame america rica in 1776 at the ago 0 fae venty I 1 lie ho wa waa sent to france as aa commissio or tilon plen to negotiate streaty a treaty of amity nud and commerce between franco france anti and tile tho united states tills this delicate business required a skillful financier and diplomat both of which franklin frankill was As usual tho the enterprise wits successful atul and tho of 0 name of 0 Pr franklin anklin became ono one to ha be revered rev rod erod franklin stands out in history as a shining example ot of versatility a sun bull among lite stars although reared under very humble circumstances receiving no education whatever lie ho accomplished more things which wore were beneficial to humanity than any other man mail that america has produced in fit the past or is likely to product produce in the future |