. Benjamin Franklin: his autobiography : with a narrative of his public life and services. fstones, which were intended for a new house near 14 LIFE OF FRANKLIN. the marsh, and which would very well suit our pur-pose. Accordingly, in the evening, when the work-men were gone home, I assembled a number of myplay-fellows, and we worked diligently like so manyemmets, sometimes two or three to a stone, till wehad brought them all to make our little wharf. Thenext morning the workmen were surprised at miss-ing the stones which formed our wharf. Inquiry wasmade after the authors of this transfer; we
. Benjamin Franklin: his autobiography : with a narrative of his public life and services. fstones, which were intended for a new house near 14 LIFE OF FRANKLIN. the marsh, and which would very well suit our pur-pose. Accordingly, in the evening, when the work-men were gone home, I assembled a number of myplay-fellows, and we worked diligently like so manyemmets, sometimes two or three to a stone, till wehad brought them all to make our little wharf. Thenext morning the workmen were surprised at miss-ing the stones which formed our wharf. Inquiry wasmade after the authors of this transfer; we werediscovered, complained of, and corrected by ourfathers; and, though I demonstrated the utility ofour work, mine convinced me that that which wasnot honest could not he tndy useful. I suppose you may like to know what kind of aman my father was. He had an excellent consti-tution, was of a middle stature, well set, and verystrong: he could draw prettily, and was skilled a littlein music ; his voice w as sonorous and agreeable, sothat when he played on his violin and sung withal, iiii. LIFE OF FRANKLIN. 15 as lie was accustomed to do after the business ofthe day was over, it was extremely agreeable tohear. He had some knowledge of mechanics, and,on occasion, was very handy with other tradesmenstools; but his great excellence was his sound under-standing and solid judgment in prudential matters,both in private and public affairs. It is true, hewas never employed in the latter, the numerousfamily he had to ed,ucate and the straitness of hiscircumstances keeping him close to his tiade: butI remember well his being frequently visited by lead-ing men, who consulted him for his opinion in pub-lic affairs, and those of the church he belonged to,and who showed a great respect for his judgment andadvice: he was also much consulted by private per-sons about their affairs when any difficulty occurred,and frequently chosen an arbitrator between con-tending parties. At his table he liked t
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