Rising Sun

by Margaret Byfield

The men affectionately remembered, as America’s Founding Fathers did nothing less than overthrow the world’s greatest power and establish an independent nation based upon the principles of individual liberty for the first time in the history of the world.

It took this remarkable combination of men to achieve this. If you take anyone of our Founding Fathers away, the American Revolution most surely would have concluded differently. Imagine winning the revolutionary war without the leadership of George Washington, or the creation of the Declaration of Independence without the wisdom and brilliant expression of Thomas Jefferson, or the meticulously crafted Constitution without the insight of James Madison.

One man in this unique class of Founding Fathers, however, stands out not only for his individual deeds, but also because he was the only patriot involved in all it’s major events. It is Benjamin Franklin. Franklin’s life, born in 1706 and deceased in 1790, spans the entire revolutionary period, and he had his hand in every facet of the development of this new nation, from the colonial uprising to the final ratification of the new nation’s governing document, the United States Constitution.

It was Thomas Jefferson who predicted that of all the revolutionary leaders Benjamin Franklin would be remembered long after he and the others were forgotten because they recognized that Franklin was indispensable to the establishment of America’s independence. In a letter to William Smith after Franklin’s death, Jefferson fondly remembered Franklin, “as our great and dear friend, whom time will be making greater while it is sponging us from it’s records.”

Franklin’s first political activities began as early as age 14 when he was helping his brother James run the Boston Newspaper, The New England Courant. Because of the paper’s political opinions, which were critical of British rule, James was imprisoned for a short time while the paper continued under Benjamin’s name. This early introduction into politics was only the beginning for young Ben. By the time the Stamp Act was passed in 1765, which sparked the colonist’s uprising, Ben was 59 and had developed well-seasoned political opinions, which he gladly shared with other colonists. He is credited with creating America’s first political cartoon, published in order to galvanize the support against British oppression. It is the famous drawing of the snake cut into sections with the words “Join or Die,” inscribed.

Franklin left his Boston home at age 17 after a disagreement with his brother James. He arrived in Philadelphia with only a Dutch dollar and about a shilling in copper. Within seven years he started The Pennsylvania Gazette and was an active community leader in Philadelphia where he was busy organizing the many service organizations he is credited with starting.

These include the first fire department and night patrol in Philadelphia. He was our nation’s first Postmaster, founded the Pennsylvania Hospital and the Library Company of Philadelphia. But it was science that truly inspired him. He was continually studying the discipline and took advantage of his official trips to Europe as America’s Ambassador in order to consult with other scientists. The result is the creation of several useful conveniences. For instance, he invented the first stove of its kind, the Franklin Stove, which unlike a fireplace could produce heat and direct the smoke out of the dwelling. We are all familiar with the image of Ben flying a kite with a metal key in a lighting storm. He was the first to prove that lighting produced electricity.

Franklin was also a prolific writer. He had published several papers including “Disertation on Liberty & Necessity” before publishing his first book at age 26, Poor Richards Almanac, which contains numerous popular sayings still common today, such as “a penny saved, a penny earned.” The Poor Richard series was so popular in its time that even John Paul Jones named his ship “Bonhomme Richard,” which defeated the British “Serapis,” after Franklin’s memorable character.

By age 42, Franklin had earned enough money from his business ventures and inventions that he retired and devoted much of his time to his political activities. As a member of the Second Continental Congress, he was assigned to the Committee of Five along with John Adams, Roger Sherman, Robert Livingston and a young Thomas Jefferson who was only 33 at the time. The committee was charged with the duty of writing the Declaration of Independence. After signing the Declaration, Franklin’s diplomatic skills were called upon, and he was dispatched to France to negotiate a critical alliance with the European power.

Franklin was one of 17 children, and the father of three. His first son was born out of wedlock to an unknown mother. He later took Deborah Read Rogers as his common law wife where he fathered a daughter and second son. His second son died at a young age while Franklin disowned his eldest son for siding with the British. Franklin lived
his long life without ever speaking to his son after
their disagreement.

Franklin also earned a reputation as a philanderer, often seen in the European brothels while serving as America’s Ambassador of France. Although Franklin claims his wife changed his habits and made him an honest man, history has accounted for this part of his life differently.

It is certain however, that Franklin was well respected by his peers and his contributions to the Revolution were instrumental in shaping American independence. Even at age 82, he was deeply embroiled in the intellectual debate of America’s future, and the type of government that would follow. He attended the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia where the delegates carefully debated every word of the Constitution.

Franklin believed, as did many of the delegates, that the newly crafted Constitution designed to replace the Articles of Confederation gave the federal government too much power, and he fought hard to shape it differently. Many of the delegates relied upon Franklin’s aged wisdom and held back their own support because of his concerns. But a few months before the final passage of the document, Franklin made one of his last political contributions to the new nation and threw his full support behind its passage.

“… I doubt too whether any other Convention we can obtain, may be able to make a better Constitution. For when you assemble a number of men to have the advantage of their joint wisdom, you inevitably assemble with those men, all their prejudices, their passions, their errors of opinion, their local interests, and their selfish views. From such an assembly can a perfect production be expected? It therefore astonishes me, Sir, to find this system approaching so near to perfection as it does; … Thus I consent Sir, to this Constitution because I expect no better, and because I am not sure, that it is not the best. … On the whole, Sir, I can not help expressing a wish that every member of the Convention who may still have objections to it, would with me, on this occasion doubt a little of his own infallibility, and to make manifest our unanimity, put his name to this instrument.”

Franklin himself did not deliver the speech but rather asked a colleague, James Wilson, to read it for him. His age prohibited him from standing very long. He was too feeble to even walk in and out of the hall each day. Instead he had prisoners carry him into the Great Hall and prop him up in a chair. Most of his contributions were written by him and delivered by another. But when the man who had seen the Revolution from beginning to end gave approval for the great document, it signaled a new era, and the beginning of a remarkable new nation.

The Constitution was eventually adopted by the delegation, and as Franklin sat watching each member sign their name on the nation’s new Constitution, he remarked to one of his colleagues that during the debates he often noticed the painting on the back of the Convention Presidents chair, where George Washington presided. It was the painting of half a sun. Franklin told his colleague that he had wondered if the sun was rising or setting, and now he was certain it was rising.

Franklin’s last political role was as President of the Society for Promoting the Abolition of Slavery. He was one of several of the Founding Fathers that fought against the practice throughout the debates believing slavery contradicted the principles of individual liberty the nation was founded upon. But it was one political battle they were unable to win. Still, Franklin never gave up and even submitted resolutions abolishing slavery to the new government in his last two years of life. He died April 17th, 1790.

As Franklin left Independence Hall after signing the United States Constitution, a young citizen inquired: “What kind of government did you give us? A monarchy or a republic?” Franklin responded “A republic, if you can keep it!”