' I never arrived at the perfection I had been
so ambitious of obtaining, but fell far short of it, yet I was, by the
endeavour, a better and a happier man than I otherwise should have
been if I had not attempted it; as those who aim at perfect writing by
imitating the engraved copies, tho' they never reach the wish'd-for
excellence of those copies, their hand is mended by the endeavour, and
is tolerable while it continues fair and legible.

It may be well my posterity should be informed that to this little
artifice, with the blessing of God, their ancestor ow'd the constant
felicity of his life, down to his 79th year, in which this is written.
What reverses may attend the remainder is in the hand of Providence;
but, if they arrive, the reflection on past happiness enjoy'd ought to
help his bearing them with more resignation. To Temperance he ascribes
his long-continued health, and what is still left to him of a good
constitution; to Industry and Frugality, the early easiness of his
circumstances and acquisition of his fortune, with all that knowledge
that enabled him to be a useful citizen, and obtained for him some
degree of reputation among the learned; to Sincerity and Justice, the
confidence of his country, and the honorable employs it conferred upon
him; and to the joint influence of the whole mass of the virtues,[71]
even in the imperfect state he was able to acquire them, all that
evenness of temper, and that cheerfulness in conversation, which makes
his company still sought for, and agreeable even to his younger
acquaintance. I hope, therefore, that some of my descendants may
follow the example and reap the benefit.

[71] While there can be no question that Franklin's moral
improvement and happiness were due to the practice of
these virtues, yet most people will agree that we shall
have to go back of his plan for the impelling motive to
a virtuous life. Franklin's own suggestion that the
scheme smacks of "foppery in morals" seems justified.
Woodrow Wilson well puts it: "Men do not take fire from
such thoughts, unless something deeper, which is missing
here, shine through them. What may have seemed to the
eighteenth century a system of morals seems to us
nothing more vital than a collection of the precepts of
good sense and sound conduct. What redeems it from
pettiness in this book is the scope of power and of
usefulness to be seen in Franklin himself, w