[Footnote i-446: Not to be neglected in a summary of the factors influencing Franklin during his youth is Quakerism. Taught in Boston to suspect the Quakers, in Philadelphia in the midst of their stronghold he came soon, one may imagine, to have a sympathetic regard for them. Quakerism, in its antagonism towards sacraments and ceremonies, in its emphasis on the priesthood of every man and the right of private judgment, in its strenuous effort to promote fellow-service, was congenial to the young printer, reacting against Presbyterianism. Like the radical thought of the age, Quakerism refused first place to scriptural revelation, which became secondary to the light within, the dictates of one's heart. Often, we may suspect, the light within was blended with the concept in deism, that regardless of the promptings of scripture, each man has within him a natural sense which enables him to apprehend the truths of nature. The effort of deism to simplify religion was historically shared by Quakerism. During the years we have under consideration Franklin was endeavoring to make a simple worship out of the subtle theology which had been offered him during his early years. Presbyterianism had frowned upon a covenant of works; Quakerism attempted to express its covenant with God in terms of human kindliness, fellowship, and service.] [Footnote i-447: It would be interesting to know if M. Faÿ is able to document his statement that the Junto "had Masonic leanings" ("Learned Societies in Europe and America in the Eighteenth Century," _American Historical Review_, XXXVII, 258 [1932]). R. F. Gould (_The History of Freemasonry_, London, 1887, III, 424) conjectures whether where was a lodge in Boston as early as 1720 but can offer no evidence of a real history of Masonry in the colonies until 1730, when colonial Masonry "may be said to have its commencement." Chroniclers of Franklin's Masonic career have found no documentary evidence of his affiliation with Masonry until February, 1731, when he entered St. John's Lodge. See J. F. Sachse, _Benjamin Franklin as a Free Mason_; J. H. Tatsch, _Freemasonry in the Thirteen Colonies_ (New York, 1924); _Early Newspaper Accounts of Free Masonry in Pennsylvania, England, Ireland, and Scotland. From 1730 to 1750 by Dr. Benjamin Franklin. Reprinted from Franklin's Pennsylvania Gazette_ (Philadelphia, 1886); _Masonic Letters of Benjamin Franklin of Philadelphia to H. Price of Boston_, ed. by C. P. MacCalla (Philadelphia, 1888); M. M. Johnson, _The Beginnings of Freemasonry in America_ (New York, 1924). See "Prefatory Note" in W. B. Loewy's reprint of Anderson's _Constitutions_ (a reprint of Franklin's imprint of 1734) in _Publications of the Masonic Historical Society of New York_, No. 3 (New York, 1905). Arriving in London only seven years after the inauguration of the Grand Lodge, Franklin could hardly have been unaware of the broader speculations of Masonry. In London only a