The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1888-04-14
BEN fRANL|N'S LETTERS,
Especially Those He Wrote When an
Aged and Celebrated
Parsonage.
HIS LIFE IN THE Old WORLD.
The Great Philosophers Letter Of Advice
to His Daughter Relations
With Arthur Lee.

With Arthur Lee.
In critically estimating the epistolary
reliques of DIR. Franklin, one Of the re
viewers in the service Of the New ! ORR
Times makes this statement: Save 70,
those in the first forty pages, all tbs
letters contained in this volume belong
to the years when franklin was en-
gagged on his last mission to the Old
World. The first is dated in January,
l777, and the last in December, 1779,
Frapklin's stay in France and England!
continued, however, nearly six years
longer, so tila5 IN the coming volumes
we shall still see him writing many let
ters from foreign places. Franklin did
not die until 1870, He therefore had
more thar q decade Of life yet before
him. Possibly, had he known ttlis he
would have been less disturbed by his
physical infrnit2es. There are signs
of irriuabiiity IN these letters which
have not appeared before Old age and
rheumatic affections We're beginning to
| undermine that superb calnness and
| self-pOssessiOn which were most dis.
tinctive marks o. Frank}il1's mind. III
| cannot, remarks this reviewer, I've an
act of suDererogation to quote freely
from these franklin letters in an article
| whose mean purpose presumably is
news. The public has not been per-
mitted to maintain that close acquain~
tance with all the writings Of this great
man which should have been main
tanned. 1t does no violence to what is
virtually true to say that Franklin S
| complete writings have not been here.
tofore easily accessible to the reading
public. Edition after edition OF parts
of his writings and so-called editions Of
the whole Of them have been in print,
but who that cared for Eranklin could
be satisfied with them? No letters III
this volume can better Illustrate the AZ
rival in Franklin of the irritable stage
than one addressed to s'a friend and
another addressed to his t1aught5r, now
FOR some years a wife and mother.
You know, my dear frie1d,'' he says
in the first Of these that I am not
capable Of refusing vou anything III NY
power which would be real kindness
to you, or ANY friend Of yours, but when
[ am certain that what YOU request
would be directly to the contrary: /
ought TO refuse it, With these words
he begins his letter and with the fol-
lowing ns closes it.: " on can !iave 10
conception how lam harassed. ALI my
friends are sought out and teased TO
tease me. Great officers OF all ranks, in
all departments, ladies. great and small
besides professed solicitors, Worry me
from morning 70 night. The noise OF
every coach that enters my court ter
rifles me. an afraid to accept Hi in
Yitation to dine abroad, BENG almost
sure of meeting with some officer, OF
sonae officers friend, who, as soon as [
am put in good humor by glass or two
of champagne, begins his attack On me.
Luckily. I do not often in my sleep
dream Of these vexatious situations, or
I should be afraid Of what aae now my
only hours Of comfort. If, therefore,
you have the Least remaining kindness
for me, if you would not help to drive
Inc out Of France, for Gods sake, my
dear friend, let this: your twenty third
application, be your last.' The letter
TO his daughter was written in reply to
two he had received from her in the
previous eighteen months. He IS dis
appointed al having heard from her so
seldom. and thinks she would write
oftener if she knew how happy her let
ters make him. He is ''cha1med" with
her account Of her own industry in
spinning table cloths, but she dlssolves
the charm by sending for linen from
Franc, while s'your sending for long
black pins and laces and feathers dis.
gusted me,'' he says, ''as much as if
you had put salt ITO nay strawberries -
And he proceeds further to lecture her
for her extravaganza: "When I began
to read your account Of the high price
Of goods-'a pair Of gloves, 81, a yard Of
common eauze, S24,' and that it now
required a fortune to maintain family
in very plain way'-I expected you
would conclude with telling me that
everybody. as we'll az Yourself. was
grown frugal and Industrious; and I
could scarce believe my eyes in reading
forward that there never was 80 much
pleasure and dressing going on, and
that you Yourself wanted black pins
and feathers from France, to appear, I
suppose, in the mode. This leads me to
imagine that perhaps it is not so much
the goods that the goods are grown dear