[27.] Notice his judgment regarding controversy. It will be profitable, from time to time, to consider his remarks as throwing light on the subject, "Franklin, a Manager of Men."
[28.] Read carefully the paragraph opening with a reference to The Spectator, and using Franklin's method, reproduce that paragraph. Apply this method to other good English selections and try to adapt it to your translations from other languages.
As you read Franklin's account of his self-education, ask yourself what quality it is in the student that gives best assurance of final success in securing a real education.
[34.] Is Franklin's use of the word "demeaned" good?
[37.] In his reference to Bunyan and Defoe, Franklin proves himself one of the first critics to recognize those writers as the fathers of the modern novel.
[38.] "Our acquaintance continued as long as he lived." Few men have placed a higher value on friends than did Franklin. He took the trouble necessary to make friends and to keep them.
[61.] Read parts of Young's Night Thoughts.
[77.] Carefully observe the plan of the Junto and its subordinate branches, and consider the value of such organizations for yourself and friends. By referring to Bigelow's Life of Franklin, Vol. I, p, 185, you will find detailed information concerning the rules of the Junto.
[81.] Years later, while in London in 1773, Franklin showed his ability with his pen and put through a successful journalistic hoax. He published in The Public Advertiser what was for a time accepted by many as an authentic edict of the King of Prussia. In this the king held that the English were German colonists settled in Britain, and that they should be taxed for the benefit of the Prussian coffers.
What claims were the English making in 1773? By looking through other lives of Franklin, you may find an account of another literary hoax by which he helped the American cause.