Evening star., 1923-11-25

The wisdom of Benjamin Franklin
is proverbial, but when he came TO
die he did thing such that time has
demonstrated he is not to be ranked
as high as a seer as he is as a sage.
pounds sterling to the city of Phila-
delphia as a fund from which loans
were to be made upon interest at 5
per cent to such young. married ar
tificers under the age of twenty five
as have served an apprenticeship In
the said town, and faithfully fulfilled
the duties required in their inden-
lures
These loans were to be not less than
is pounds nor more than so pounds
each. Franklin calculated that at the
end Of the first hundred years the
fund would have grown to about 49,
900 pounds, and he stipulated that
81 900 should be set aside for similar
loans for another century, while the
100000 pounds should 'be let out in
public works. fortifications. bridges,
aqueducts, public buildings. baths.
etc, or whatever may make living in
the town more agreeable to strangers
resorting thither for health or tempo
rary residence" He recommended
specifically that, if it had not been
done before, the city of Philadelphia
should consider bringing by pipes
the water of Wissahickon creek into
the town SO as to supply the inhabi-
tants."
Franklin's carefully planned philan-
thropy did not work out In any re-
spect. In the first place. the practice
r,>f {nac n, l.
denture in industry was ended within
a comparatively few years, maxi
mum loan of 5000 at per cent soon
lost it's attractions to young men
anxious to start in business for them
selves, and at the end of 100 years
the fund, instead of amounting TO
s65O,OOO, as Franklin had calculated,
was actually considerably less than
100000. For the last thirty-hVe or
forty years no loans whatever have
been made for the very good reason
that no applicant has qualined unoer
the conditions of the Franklin Will.
And, in the second place, the city OF
Philadelphia grew so rapidly that IT
could not wait 100 years. wnlcn wouiu
have been until 1880, to install an
adequate water supply system.
Two Modern Examples.
Two more modern examples Of how
not to bequeath money for philan-
thrOplC purposes are Clteu, posh oioo
in Pennsylvania. Some sixteen years
ago a citizen Of that state left his for
tune of $3,5oO,0O0 for "the care and
education of poor. white, healthy
girls both Of whose parents shall be
deceased, not under the age of six
years or over ten years. Of at least
average mental capacity" to be dis
charged at the age Of sixteen.
Boys were excluded from the benefi-
cences Of this fund, as were girls who
were colored or sickly or had either
parent living, or who were stupid or
under six or over ten.
Two years later another citizen OF
the same community left his fortune
Of S4,5O0,o0 for the care of full or
nhan or fatherless white girls not
over thirteen until they arrive at
! seventeen years.
After some ten years had passed
these fortunes, aggregating the huge
sum OF $4,000, 900, sufficient to provide
| for many hundreds of worthy and
needy children, were taking care of
only ia girls. and the administrative
problem had become decidedly seri-
It is said that there is not a state
and scarcely city in the country
that does not afford similar instances
Of charity gone wrong. In 1851 Byron