o
philosophical research, he is represented to have been at this time, a
jovial man, very fond of convivial gatherings. He could not only write
a good song, but he could sing it, to the acceptance of his
companions. One of these songs entitled "The Old Man's Wish" he says
he sang over a thousand times. We give the concluding stanza,
illustrative of its general character.

"With a courage undaunted, may I face the last day,
And when I am gone may the better sort say,--
In the morning when sober, in the evening when mellow,
He has gone and not left behind him his fellow,
For he governed his passions with absolute sway."

There was, as usual, war in Europe. Enormous armies were burning
cities and villages, drenching the trampled harvest fields with blood,
and filling the humble hamlets of the poor with misery. There was
every reason to fear that these awful storms, raised by the passions
of depraved men, would reach the peaceful shores of the Delaware.
Philadelphia was entirely undefended. It is said that there was not an
available cannon in Pennsylvania.

A well-armed privateer could at any hour, seize and sack the city.
Quaker influence so far prevailed that the legislature could not be
induced to raise a battery, or purchase a gun. Franklin wrote a very
powerful pamphlet, called Plain Truth, urging the necessity of
adopting some measures of defence. He showed how the colony could, at
any time, be ravaged by a few vessels from any European nation then in
conflict with England. I give a few extracts from this admirable
pamphlet:

"On the first alarm, terror will spread over all. Many will
seek safety by flight. Those that are reputed rich will
flee, through fear of torture to make them produce more than
they are able. The man that has a wife and children, will
find them hanging on his neck, beseeching him to quit the
city, and save his life. All will run into confusion, amid
cries and lamentations, and the hurry and disorder of
departures. The few that remain, will be unable to resist.

"Sacking the city will be the first; and burning it, in all
probability, the last act of the enemy. This I believe will
be the case, if you have timely notice. But what must be
your condition, if suddenly surprised without previous
alarm, perhaps in the night. Confined to your houses, you
will have nothing to trust but the enemy's mercy.