>>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."
