A Piece of Poetry—Pronounced Good—Proposition to Print his Articles—"The Lighthouse Tragedy"—A Sailor's Song—Printing them—Selling them in the Streets—A Successful Enterprise—His Father opposes—Condemns Poetry in general and Benjamin's in particular—A severe Rebuke—Crestfallen—Conference with James—His Father's Censure a Benefit—Practice of writing Composition excellent—How it Benefited Benjamin, even Pecuniarily—The Farmer's Son and Minister
85-92
THE DISPUTE.
Dispute with John Collins—A Bookish Fellow—The Education of Girls—The Controversial Correspondence—His Father finds the Letters—His Criticisms—Collins versus Benjamin—Bought a Copy of the Spectator and studied it laboriously—Sorry that he did not continue to write Poetry—His Father's Counsel—His Economy of Time—A Book always by his side—His Maxims on this Subject—Violating the Sabbath to gain Time for Study—Useful Conversation and Talking Nonsense—Hundreds ruined by a similar cause—Walter Scott hiding Novels from his Father—Pope going to the Theatre—Exceptions to the General Rule
93-103
PLAIN FARE.
Proposition to board Himself—Became a Vegetarian by Reading Tryon's Book—Why he did it—How much Money he saved by doing it—Spent it for Books—How much Time saved also—Cocker's Arithmetic—Other Books read at odd moments—His Plan to save Time—His Maxims on saving Time—Aim to be Useful—The English Grammar—Shaftesbury's Works—Benjamin a Doubter—Makes known his Doubts to Collins—Danger of Reading Attacks upon the Gospel