The comet. (Johnson City, Tenn.) 1884-1916, 1885-08-20
HILL NYE
Tell AbOat a Noted Esoston NEan
Who Was n Prfmfer.


MINIS parents, they would have bee
childless Think Of getting up in tn
morning and picking out your shoe
and stockings from among seventeen
pairs OF them. Imagine yourself
child gentle reader, in a family wher
you would be called upon every morn
ing to select your own end of spruc,
gum from collection of seventeen
similar cuds stuck on the window sill
And yet b. Franklin never murmureC
or repined. He desired to go to sea
and to avoid this he was apprenticeC
to his brother James, who was a print
er. Ii is said that Franklin at once
took hold of the great Archimedear
lever, and jerked it early and late II,
the interests OF freedom. 1t is claim
ed that Franklin at this time invent
ed the deadly weapon known as the
printers towel. He found that a
common crash towel could be satur.
ated with glue, molasses, anthony
concentrated I've and roller compost,
ton, and that after Few years of
time and preparation it could harden
50 that the Constant Reader" OF
"Veritas' could be stabbed with it and
die soon.
Many believe that Franklin's 9TH
er scientific experiments were produc-
tive of more lasting benefit to man.
kind than this, but / do not agree
with them.
This paper was called the New Eng
land Courdnt. 1t was edited Jointly
bv James and Benjamin Franklin,
and was started to supply long felt
want Benjamin edited the paper a
part of the time and James a part of
the time. The idea of having two
.editoswas not for the purpose Of Civ
ing variety or volume to the editorial
page, but it was necessary for one to
run the paper while the other was in
jail, In those days you couldn't sass
the king; and the when the king
came i'll the Office next day and
stopped his paper and took out his adj,
you couldn't put it off on "our inform
anti and go right along with the pa
per- You had to go to jail, while
your subscribers wondered why their
paper did not come, and the paste in
the tin dipper in the sanctum and the
circus passed by on the other side.
How many of us to-day, fellow-jour-
nalists, would be willing to stay in
Jail while the lawn festival and the
kangaroo came and went? Who of
all our company would go to a prison
cell for the cause of freedom while a
double colum adj, of sixteen aggre-
grated circuses and eleven congresses
OF ferocious beasts, fierce and fragrant
from their native liar, went by us?
AT the age OF seventeen Ben got dis
gusted with his brother and went to
Philadelphia and New York, where
he got chance to Sub" for a few
weeks and then got a regular "sit."
Franklin was good printer, and final
Iy got to be foreman. He made an
excellent foreman-sitting by the
hour IN the composing. room and spit
ing on the stone, while he cussed the |
make up and press-work of all the 9th
Or papers. Then he would go into
'he editorial rooms and give q wild
shrek for more copy. He knew just
low to conduct himself as foreman, SO
hat strangers would think he owned
The paper.
In 1870, at the age of twenty-four he
married and established the Pennsyl-
'ania Gazette. He was then regarded
Us great man, and most every one
ook his paper. Franklin grew to be
great Journalist, and spelled hard
words with great huency. He never
ried to be humorist, in any of his
newspaper work, and everybody re-
hected him.
Along about 1746 he began to study
he construction and habits of light
ing, and inserted a local in his paper
a which he said that he would be
biiged to any OF his readers who
light notice any new or odd speci-
lens OF lightning if they would send
hem in to the Gazette office by ex-
ress for examination. Every time
here was q thunder storm Franklin
'ould tell the foreman to edit the pa
er, and armed with string and an
Id fruit jar, he would go out on the
ills and get enough lightning for a
less.
In 1853 Franklin was made post-
laster-general Of the colonies. He
lade q good postmaster-general, and
eople say there were less mistakes in
istributing their mail than there has
yer been since. Ii a man mailed a
'tter in those days, old Ben Franklin