and that the wrath of God will arise, and there will be no
remedy. I cannot but pity poor Franklin, who, though but a young man, it
may be, speedily he must appear before the judgment seat of God; and
what answer will he be able to give for printing things so vile and
abominable?' In sober truth, it would be well for all those connected
with the press to bear in mind this passage from that excellent man; for
who can estimate the evil of even one lie, once put into circulation?

It was not long before Franklin was arrested by the Government, and
imprisoned four weeks in the common jail, for the conduct of his paper.
The council also published an order, setting forth that Franklin had
published many passages, boldly reflecting upon the Government of the
province, the ministry, the churches, and the college, and that it often
contained paragraphs tending to fill the readers' minds with vanity to
the dishonor of God, and the service of good men--in consequence of
which, it was resolved that nothing should be published in the said
colony, that had not been first perused and allowed by the secretary of
the colony.

The order does not seem to have been enforced; and the first number of
the paper, after James Franklin's release, contained another essay from
the club, of increased boldness. It was headed by a sort of a text as
follows: '_And then, after they had anathematized and cursed a man to
the devil, and the devil would not, or did not, take him, then to make
the sheriff and the jailer take the devil's leavings._'

Other publications, equally liberal, and equally offensive to the civil
authorities, were brought before both Houses of the General Court, and a
joint committee was appointed to consider and report. This committee
reported that the tendency of Franklin's paper was 'to mock religion and
bring it into contempt.' They therefore recommended that James Franklin
be prohibited from publishing anything not previously examined and
approved by the secretary. The recommendation was adopted, but Franklin
again disregarded the order, for which he was prosecuted for a contempt
of the General Court; but the jury ignored the bill. He was, however,
bound to good behavior, in conformity to the order of the General Court.

These proceedings were severely attacked in the _American Weekly
Mercury_, which by that time had been established in Philadelphia; and
the Assembly of the Province of Massachusetts was denounced as being
ma