s domestic
virtues. Nay, it is more than probable that the king daily, in prayer,
looked to God for guidance, and that he thought that he was doing that
which was promotive of the interests of England. Alas for man! He can
perpetrate the most atrocious crimes, honestly believing that he is
doing God's will. He can burn aged women under the charge of their
being witches. He can torture, in the infliction of unutterable
anguish, his brother man--mothers and daughters, under the charge of
heresy. He can hurl hundreds of thousands of men against each other in
most horrible and woe-inflicting wars, while falling upon his knees
and praying to God to bless his murderous armies.

Franklin had with him his grandson, William Temple Franklin, the
dishonored son of William Franklin, then Governor of New Jersey. He
was a bright and promising boy, and developed an estimable character,
under the guidance of his grandfather, who loved him.

William Franklin in New Jersey was, however, becoming increasingly the
scourge of his father. It would seem that Providence was thus, in some
measure, punishing Franklin for his sin. The governor, appointed by
the Court of England to his office, which he highly prized, and which
he feared to lose, was siding with the Court. He perceived that the
storm of political agitation was increasing in severity. He felt that
the power of the colonies was as nothing compared with the power of
the British government. Gradually he became one of the most violent of
the Tories.

The moderation of Franklin, and his extraordinarily charitable
disposition, led him to refrain from all denunciations of his
ungrateful son, or even reproaches, until his conduct became
absolutely infamous. In 1773, he wrote, in reference to the course
which the governor was pursuing,

"I only wish you to act uprightly and steadily, avoiding
that duplicity which, in Hutchinson, adds contempt to
indignation. If you can promote the prosperity of your
people, and leave them happier than you found them, whatever
your political principles are, your memory will be honored."

While Franklin was absent, a young merchant of Philadelphia, Richard
Bache, offered his hand to Franklin's only daughter, from whom the
father had been absent nearly all of her life. Sarah was then
twenty-three years of age, so beautiful as to become quite a
celebrity, and she was highly accomplished. Mr. Bache was not
successful in business, a