The Printer Boy; Or, How Benjamin Franklin Made His Mark: An Example for Youth.Thayer, William Makepeace
History
The Printer Boy; Or, How Benjamin Franklin Made His Mark: An Example for Youth.
Thayer, William Makepeace
Franklin, Benjamin, 1706-1790
"Where will you go?" inquired Benjamin, deeply interested in the plan,
as well he might be.
"I shall not go out of town. Boston furnishes good examples of the
different trades, and we shall not be under the necessity of extending
our researches beyond its limits. So to-morrow I think we will start."
Benjamin was delighted with the prospect of being delivered soon from
the tallow-chandler's shop, and he anticipated the morrow with
considerable impatience. He rejoiced when the light of the next
morning came in at his chamber window, and brighter and earlier he was
up to await his father's bidding. Suitable preparations were made, and
directly after breakfast they set forth upon their important errand.
The first shop they visited was that of a joiner, where he saw the
plane and hammer used to advantage. He had witnessed such labour
before, and also seen other employments to which his father called his
attention on that day; but he never observed these different trades
with the object which now brought him to the shops. Having spent some
time at the joiner's bench, he next went to a turner's place of
business, where he saw different articles turned to order, in so rapid
a manner as to surprise him. He was more interested in the
turning-lathe, and its rapid movement, than he was in the use of
joiner's tools. Passing through a prominent street, after leaving the
turner's, they came to an unfinished structure, on which bricklayers
were employed. Here another trade was on exhibition, and Benjamin's
attention was called to it, and the various kind of labour which this
class of toilers were obliged to perform were explained to him. In
this way they visited other work-shops, until they had seen the
practical operations of the different trades, and Benjamin understood
what kind of toil each required. One of the last shops they visited
was that of Samuel Franklin, a son of Uncle Benjamin, and, of course,
a cousin of Benjamin. He learned the trade of cutler in London, and
had just come over and established himself in Boston. The business of
a cutler is to make knives and other cutting instruments, in some
respects a very interesting and attractive trade. Benjamin was
evidently more pleased with this kind of business than any he had seen
on that day. Whether it grew out of boyish love for jack-knives, or
was the consequence of closely observing the ingenious modes of
manufacturing cutlery, we need not say. It is enough to know that he
was partially captivated by the trade, and before they reached home
his father was well satisfied which trade he would select, though he
had not questioned him at all on this point.
"What trade have you decided to follow, Benjamin?" inquired his
mother, as they sat at the tea-table; and she let fall a most loving
smile upon her boy.
"I think any of them are better than making candles," he replied,
"although I like Samuel's trade the best of all."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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