Franklin had a great talent for making friends; and one of the greatest pleasures of his life was the enjoyment of his children and grandchildren. He was always ready with a witty retort, and he loved a joke and a hearty laugh. In fact, nothing seemed too large or too small for Benjamin Franklin. Regarding religion, he early revolted against New England Puritanism and went through various stages of belief; but in his old age he had faith in the immortality of the soul. His tolerance led John Adams to say: “The Catholics thought him a Catholic. The Church of England claimed him. The Presbyterians thought him half a Presbyterian, and Friends believed him a wet Quaker.” Of his morals he has himself written, and he prepared a moral code with comments. Intellectual, practical, industrious, capable and genial, combining so many qualities in one mind and with a vast amount of public work achieved, Franklin remains a puzzle, for he seems to have had abundant time to enjoy those social talents which amounted to genius. PREPARED BY THE EDITORIAL STAFF OF THE MENTOR ASSOCIATION ILLUSTRATION FOR THE MENTOR. VOL. 6. No. 7. SERIAL No. 155 COPYRIGHT, 1918, BY THE MENTOR ASSOCIATION, INC. [Illustration: FROM AN ENGRAVING BY ROBERT WHITECHURCH. FROM THE PAINTING BY C. SCHUESSELE FRANKLIN BEFORE THE LORDS IN COUNCIL. WHITEHALL CHAPEL, LONDON, 1774] _BENJAMIN FRANKLIN_ _As Politician and Diplomat_ THREE Franklin prepared himself unconsciously for political life even in his boyhood, when he wrote articles for his brother’s newspaper attacking the established religious and political system of Massachusetts. In the paper that he established when he was but twenty-three--the _Pennsylvania Gazette_--he handled the questions of the day in masterly fashion. About this time he published a pamphlet in favor of paper money, which shows how early his mind was directed towards large questions concerning the government. When he joined the Pennsylvania Assembly, he became a leader of the Quaker majority; and, to represent the interests of the Colony, he was sent as commissioner, or agent, to England. He remained there for five years, returning to Philadelphia in 1762, only to stay at home until 1764, when he was sent on his second mission to England. This time he remained for ten years. The period covered the exciting agitations regarding the Stamp Act, its passage, its repeal, and all the tumultuous proceedings that finally led to the Revolution.