of an instinctively religious character.
They were both exceedingly fond of amusement and especially of
pleasure excursions on the Sabbath. Very seldom, did either the
intellect or the heart lure them to listen to such teachings as they
would hear from the pulpit. It certainly would have been better for
them both, had they been church-going young men. There was no pulpit
in all London from which they would not hear the reiterated counsel,
Cease to do evil; learn to do well.

Franklin was faithful in the highest degree to his employer.
Weary with the day's toil, which with his active mind was highly
intellectual as well as mechanical, he almost invariably in the
evening sought recreation with Ralph in the theatre. It is safe to
infer that the best productions of our best dramatists, were those
which would most interest the mind of our young philosopher. Ralph was
daily gaining an increasing influence over his mind. It is said that
we are prone to love more ardently those upon whom we confer favors
than those from whom we receive them.

To these two young men the pleasures of London seemed inexhaustible.
Franklin began to forget his old home and his friends. He began to
think that London was a very pleasant place of residence, and that it
was doubtful whether he should ever return to America again. He had
constant employment, the prospect of an increasing income, and with
his economical habits he had ample funds to relieve himself from all
pecuniary embarrassment. With his friend Ralph, he was leading a very
jovial life, free from all care.

His love for Deborah Read began to vanish away. He thought very
seldom of her: seldom could he find time to write to her; and ere
long his letters ceased altogether; and she was cruelly left to the
uncertainty of whether he was alive or dead. Ralph had entirely
forgotten his wife and child, and Franklin had equally forgotten his
affianced. In subsequent years the memory of this desertion seems to
have weighed heavily on him. He wrote in his advanced life in
reference to his treatment of Deborah,

"This was another of the great errors of my life; which I
could wish to correct were I to live it over again."

For nearly a year, Franklin thus continued in the employment of Mr.
Palmer, receiving good wages and spending them freely. A very highly
esteemed clergyman of the Church of England named Wollaston, had
written a book entitled, "The Religion of Nature Delineated." It