[More exactly than any other author Thomas Paine delineates every Circumstantial Events, private or Public in his Writings; nevertheless, since many pretended Histories of the Life of T. P. have been published, tracing him back to the day of his]* birth, we shall shortly observe, that, as was never denied by himself, he was born at Thetford, in the County of Norfolk, England on the 29. January, in the year 1737; that his father Joseph Paine was a stay-maker, and by religion a Quaker; that his mother was the daughter of a country attorney, and that she belonged to the Church of England; but, it appears, that she also afterwards became a Quaker; for these parents both belonged to the Meeting in 1787, as appears from a letter of the father to the son. * The bracketed words, Madame Bonneville's, are on a separate slip. An opening paragraph by Cobbett is crossed out by her pen: "The early years of the life of a Great Man are of little consequence to the world. Whether Paine made stays or gauged barrels before he became a public character, is of no more importance to us than whether he was swaddled with woollen or with linen. It is the man, in conjunction with those labours which have produced so much effect in the world, whom we are to follow and contemplate. Nevertheless, since many pretended histories of the life of Paine have been published, etc." The above-mentioned histories relate (and the correctness of the statement has not been denied by him), that Paine was educated at the free-school of Thetford; that he left it in 1752, when he was fifteen years of age, and then worked for some time with his father: that in a year afterwards, he went to London: that from London he went to Dover: that about this time he was on the eve of becoming a sailor: that he afterwards did embark on board a privateer: that, between the years 1759 and 1774 he was a stay maker, an excise officer, a grocer, and an usher to a school; and that, during the period he was twice married, and separated by mutual consent, from his second wife.* * The dates given by Cobbett from contemporary histories require revision by the light of the careful researches made by myself and others, as given at the beginning of this biography. In this year 1774 and in the month of September, Paine sailed from England for Philadelphia, where he arrived safe; and now we begin his history; for here we have him in connection with his literary labours. It being an essential part of our plan to let Thomas Paine speak in his own words, and explain himself the reason for his actions, whenever we find written papers in his own hand, though in incomplete notes or fragments, we shall insert such, in order to enable the reader to judge for himself, and to estimate the slightest circumstances. _Sauvent d'un grand dessin un mot nous fait juger_. "A word often enables us to judge of a great design."