>>THE WAY TO WEALTH
BENJAMIN FRANKLIN
COURTEOUS READER: I have heard that nothing
gives an author so great pleasure as to find
his works respectfully quoted 
by others. Judge, then, how much I must have
been gratified by an incident I am going to
relate to you.
I stopped my horse, lately, where a great
number of people were collected at an auction
of merchants' goods. The hour of the sale
not being come, they were conversing on the
badness of the times; and one of the company
called to a plain, clean old man, with white
locks: "Pray, Father Abraham, what think you
of the times? Will not these heavy taxes quite
ruin the country? How shall we ever be able
to pay them? What would you advise us to do?"
Father Abraham stood up and replied: "If you
would have my advice, I will give it to you
in short; for 'a word to the wise is enough,'
as Poor Richard says." They joined in desiring
him to speak his mind, and, gathering around
him, he proceeded as follows: "Friends," said
he, "the taxes are indeed very heavy; and,
if those laid on by the Government were the
only ones we had to pay, we might more easily
discharge them; but we have many others, and
much more grievous to some of us.
"We are taxed twice as much by our idleness,
three times as much by our pride, and four
times as much by our folly; and of these taxes
the commissioners can not ease or deliver
us by allowing an abatement. However, let
us hearken to good advice, and something may
be done for us. 'Heaven helps them that help
themselves,' as Poor Richard says.
"It would be thought a hard government that
should tax its people one tenth part of their
time to be employed in its service; but idleness
taxes many of us much more; sloth, by bringing
on diseases, absolutely shortens life. 'Sloth,
like rust, consumes faster than labor wears;
while the used key is always bright,' as Poor
Richard says. How much more than is necessary
do we spend in sleep! forgetting that 'the
sleeping fox catches no poultry,' and that
there will be sleeping enough in the grave.
"'Lost time is never found again; and what
we call time enough, always proves little
enough.' Let us, then, be up and doing, and
doing to the purpose; so by diligence shall
we do more with less perplexity. 'Drive thy
business, and let not that drive thee'; and
'early to bed, and early to rise, makes a
man healthy, wealthy, and wise,' as Poor Richard
says.
"So, what signifies wishing and hoping for
better times? We may make these times better
if we bestir ourselves. 'Industry need not
wish, and he that lives upon hopes will die
fasting.' 'There are no gains without pains;
then help hands, for I have no lands.' 'He
that hath a trade, hath an estate; and he
that hath a calling, hath an office of profit
and honor'; but then the trade must be worked
at, and the calling well followed, or neither
the estate nor the office will enable us to
pay our taxes. Work while it is called to-day,
for you know not how much you may be hindered
to-morrow. 'One to-day is worth two to-morrows,'
as Poor Richard says; and further, 'Never
leave that till to-morrow which you can do
to-day.'
"If you were a servant, would you not be ashamed
that a good master should catch you idle?
Are you, then, your own master? Be ashamed
to catch yourself idle, when there is so much
to be done for yourself, your family, and
your country. It is true, there is much to
be done, and perhaps you are weak-handed;
but stick to it steadily, and you will see
great effects; for 'constant dropping wears
away stones,' and 'little strokes fell great
oaks.'
"But with our industry we must likewise be
steady, settled, and careful, and oversee
our own affairs with our own eyes, and not
trust too much to others; for, as Poor Richard
says, 'Three removes are as bad as a fire';
and again, 'Keep thy shop, and thy shop will
keep thee'; and again, 'If you would have
your business done, go; if not, send'; and
again, 'The eye of the master will do more
work than both his hands'; and again, 'Want
of care does us more damage than want of knowledge.'
"So much for industry, my friends, and attention
to one's own business; but to these we must
add frugality, if we would make our industry
more certainly successful. A man may, if he
knows not how to save as he gets, keep his
nose to the grindstone all his life, and die
not worth a groat at last. 'If you would be
wealthy, think of saving as well as of getting.'
"Away with your expensive follies, and you
will not then have so much cause to complain
of hard times, heavy taxes, and chargeable
families; for 'what maintains one vice would
bring up two children.' Beware of little expenses.
'Many a little makes a mickle'; 'A small leak
will sink a great ship.' Here you are all
got together at this sale of fineries and
knickknacks. You call them goods, but, if
you do not take care, they will prove evils
to some of you.
"You expect they will be sold cheap, and perhaps
they may be, for less than cost; but, if you
have no occasion for them, they must be dear
to you. Remember what Poor Richard says: 'Buy
what thou hast no need of, and ere long thou
shalt sell thy necessaries.' 'Silks, satins,
scarlet, and velvets put out the kitchen fire.'
These are not the necessaries of life; they
can scarcely be called the conveniences; and
yet, only because they look pretty, how many
want to have them!
"By these and other extravagances, the greatest
are reduced to poverty, and forced to borrow
of those whom they formerly despised, but
who, through industry and frugality, have
maintained their standing. 'If you would know
the value of money, go and try to borrow some;
for he that goes a-borrowing goes a-sorrowing';
and, indeed, so does he that lends to such
people, when he goes to get it again.
"It is as truly folly for the poor to ape
the rich, as for the frog to swell in order
to equal the ox. After all, this pride of
appearance can not promote health, nor ease
pain; it makes no increase of merit in the
person; it creates envy; it hastens misfortunes.
"But what madness it must be to run in debt
for superfluities! Think what you do when
you run in debt: you give to another power
over your liberty. If you can not pay at the
time, you will be ashamed to see your creditor;
you will be in fear when you speak to him;
you will make poor, pitiful, sneaking excuses,
and by degrees come to lose your veracity,
and sink into base, downright lying; for 'the
second vice is lying, the first is running
in debt,' as Poor Richard says; and again,
'Lying rides upon debt's back.'
"This doctrine, my friends, is reason and
wisdom; but industry, and frugality, and prudence
may all be blasted without the blessing of
Heaven. Therefore ask that blessing humbly,
and be not uncharitable to those that at present
seem to want it, but comfort and help them."
The 
old gentleman ended his harangue. The people
heard it, and approved the doctrine, and immediately
practiced the contrary, just as if it had
been a common sermon; for the auction opened,
and they began to buy extravagantly. I found
the good man had thoroughly studied my almanac,
and digested all I had dropped on these topics
during the course of twenty-five years. The
frequent mention he made of me must have tired
any one else; but my vanity was wonderfully
delighted with it, though I was conscious
that not a tenth part of the wisdom was my
own which he ascribed to me, but rather the
gleanings that I had made of the sense of
all ages and nations.
However, I resolved to be the better for the
echo of it; and, although I had at first determined
to buy stuff for a new coat, I went away resolved
to wear my old one a little longer. Reader,
if thou wilt do the same, thy profit will
be as great as mine.--I am, as ever, thine
to serve thee.
Biographical and Historical: These are paragraphs
selected from Benjamin Franklin's "Way to
Wealth," about which he has the following
to say in his Autobiography: "In 1732, I first
published my Almanac, under the name of 'Richard
Saunders'; it was continued by me about twenty-five
years, and commonly called 'Poor Richard's
Almanac.' I filled all the little spaces that
occurred between the remarkable days in 
the calendar with proverbial sentences, chiefly
such as inculcated industry and frugality
as the means of procuring wealth, and thereby
securing virtue. These proverbs, which contained
the wisdom of many ages and nations, I assembled
and formed into a connected discourse, prefixed
to the Almanac of 1757 as 
the harangue of a wise old man to the 
people attending an auction. The bringing
all 
these scattered counsels thus into a focus
enabled them 
to make greater impression."
