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1731Franklin Apology:
1Being frequently censur'd and condemn'd
2 by different Persons
3 for printing Things
4 which they say
5 ought not to be printed,
6I have sometimes thought
7 it might be necessary
8 to make a standing Apology
9 for my self,
10 and publish it once a Year,
11 to be read
12 upon all Occasions
13 of that Nature.
14Much Business
15 has hitherto hindered
16 the execution of this Design;
17but having very lately
18 given extraordinary Offence
19 by printing an Advertisement
20 with a certain N.B.
21 at the End of it,
22I find an Apology
23 more particularly requisite
24 at this Juncture,
25 tho' it happens
26 when I have not yet Leisure
27 to write such a thing
28 in the proper Form,
29 and can only
30 in a loose manner
31 throw those Considerations together
32 which should have been
33 the Substance of it.
34I request all
35 who are angry with me
36 on the Account
37 of printing things they don't like,
38 calmly to consider
39 these following Particulars
401.
41 That the Opinions of Men
42 are almost as various
43 as their Faces;
44 an Observation general enough
45 to become a common Proverb,
46 So many Men so many Minds.
472.
48 That the Business of Printing
49 has chiefly to do
50 with Mens Opinions;
51 most things
52 that are printed
53 tending to promote some,
54 or oppose others.
553.
56 That hence arises
57 the peculiar Unhappiness
58 of that Business,
59 which other Callings
60 are no way liable to;
61 they
62 who follow Printing
63 being scarce able
64 to do any thing
65 in their way
66 of getting a Living,
67 which shall not probably
68 give Offence to some,
69 and perhaps to many;
70 whereas the Smith,
71 the Shoemaker,
72 the Carpenter,
73 or the Man of any other Trade,
74 may work indifferently
75 for People of all Persuasions,
76 without offending any of them:
77 and the Merchant
78 may buy and sell
79 with Jews, Turks, Hereticks,
80 and Infidels of all sorts,
81 and get Money
82 by every one of them,
83 without giving Offence
84 to the most orthodox,
85 of any sort;
86 or suffering
87 the least Censure or Ill-will
88 on the Account
89 from any Man whatever.
904.
91 That it is as unreasonable
92 in any one Man or Set of Men
93 to expect to be pleas'd
94 with every thing that is printed,
95 as to think
96 that nobody ought to be pleas'd
97 but themselves.
985.
99 Printers are educated
100 in the Belief,
101 that when Men differ in Opinion,
102 both Sides ought equally
103 to have the Advantage
104 of being heard
105 by the Publick;
106 and that when Truth and Error
107 have fair Play,
108 the former is always
109 an overmatch for the latter:
110 Hence they chearfully serve
111 all contending Writers
112 that pay them well,
113 without regarding
114 on which side they are
115 of the Question in Dispute.
1166.
117 Being thus continually employ'd
118 in serving all Parties,
119 Printers naturally acquire
120 a vast Unconcernedness
121 as to the right or wrong Opinions
122 contain'd in what they print;
123 regarding it only
124 as the Matter
125 of their daily labour:
126 They print things
127 full of Spleen and Animosity,
128 with the utmost Calmness
129 and Indifference,
130 and without the least Ill-will
131 to the Persons reflected on;
132 who nevertheless unjustly think
133 the Printer as much their Enemy
134 as the Author,
135 and join both together
136 in their Resentment.
1377.
138 That it is unreasonable
139 to imagine Printers approve
140 of every thing they print,
141 and to censure them
142 on any particular thing accordingly;
143 since in the way of their Business
144 they print such great variety of things
145 opposite and contradictory.
146 It is likewise as unreasonable
147 what some assert,
148 That Printers ought not to print
149 any Thing but what they approve;
150 since if all of that Business
151 should make such a Resolution,
152 and abide by it,
153 an End would thereby be put
154 to Free Writing,
155 and the World would afterwards
156 have nothing to read
157 but what happen'd to be
158 the Opinions of Printers.
1598.
160 That if all Printers
161 were determin'd not to print any thing
162 till they were sure
163 it would offend no body,
164 there would be very little printed.
1659.
166 That if they sometimes print
167 vicious or silly things
168 not worth reading,
169 it may not be
170 because they approve such things
171 themselves,
172 but because the People
173 are so viciously
174 and corruptly educated
175 that good things
176 are not encouraged.
177 I have known
178 a very numerous Impression
179 of Robin Hood's Songs
180 go off in this Province
181 at 2s. per Book,
182 in less than a Twelvemonth;
183 when a small Quantity
184 of David's Psalms
185 (an excellent Version)
186 have lain upon my Hands
187 above twice the Time.
18810.
189 That notwithstanding
190 what might be urg'd
191 in behalf of a Man's being allow'd
192 to do in the Way of his Business
193 whatever he is paid for,
194 yet Printers do continually discourage
195 the Printing
196 of great Numbers of bad things,
197 and stifle them in the Birth.
198 I my self have constantly refused
199 to print any thing
200 that might countenance Vice,
201 or promote Immorality;
202 tho' by complying
203 in such Cases
204 with the corrupt Taste
205 of the Majority,
206 I might have got much Money.
207 I have also always refus'd
208 to print such things
209 as might do real Injury
210 to any Person,
211 how much soever
212 I have been solicited,
213 and tempted
214 with Offers of great Pay;
215 and how much soever
216 I have by refusing
217 got the Ill-will
218 of those
219 who would have employ'd me.
220 I have heretofore fallen
221 under the Resentment
222 of large Bodies of Men,
223 for refusing absolutely
224 to print any of their Party
225 or Personal Reflections.
226 In this Manner
227 I have made my self many Enemies,
228 and the constant Fatigue of denying
229 is almost insupportable.
230 But the Publick
231 being unacquainted with all this,
232 whenever the poor Printer happens
233 either through Ignorance
234 or much Persuasion,
235 to do any thing
236 that is generally thought
237 worthy of Blame,
238 he meets with no more Friendship
239 or Favour
240 on the above Account,
241 than if there were no Merit
242 in't at all.
243 Thus, as Waller says,
244Poets loose half the Praise
245 they would have got
246Were it but known
247 what they discreetly blot;
248Yet are censur'd
249 for every bad Line
250 found in their Works
251 with the utmost Severity.
252I come now
253 to the particular Case
254 of the N.B. above-mention'd,
255 about which there has been more Clamour
256 against me,
257 than ever before
258 on any other Account.
259In the Hurry of other Business
260 an Advertisement was brought to me
261 to be printed;
262 it signified
263 that such a Ship
264 lying at such a Wharff,
265 would sail for Barbadoes
266 in such a Time,
267 and that Freighters and Passengers
268 might agree with the Captain
269 at such a Place;
270 so far is what's common:
271But at the Bottom
272 this odd Thing was added,
273 N.B.
274 No Sea Hens nor Black Gowns
275 will be admitted on any Terms.
276I printed it,
277 and receiv'd my Money;
278and the Advertisement
279 was stuck up round the Town
280 as usual.
281I had not so much Curiosity
282 at that time
283 as to enquire the Meaning of it,
284nor did I in the least imagine
285 it would give so much Offence.
286Several good Men
287 are very angry with me
288 on this Occasion;
289 they are pleas'd to say
290 I have too much Sense
291 to do such things ignorantly;
292 that if they were Printers
293 they would not have done such a thing
294 on any Consideration;
295 that it could proceed from nothing
296 but my abundant Malice
297 against Religion and the Clergy:
298 They therefore declare
299 they will not take any more
300 of my Papers,
301 nor have any farther Dealings
302 with me;
303 but will hinder me
304 of all the Custom they can.
305All this is very hard!
306I believe
307 it had been better
308 if I had refused
309 to print the said Advertisement.
310However, 'tis done
311 and cannot be revok'd.
312I have only
313 the following few Particulars to offer,
314 some of them in my Behalf,
315 by way of Mitigation,
316 and some not much to the Purpose;
317 but I desire none of them
318 may be read
319 when the Reader is not
320 in a very good Humour.
3211.
322 That I really did it
323 without the least Malice,
324 and imagin'd the N.B. was plac'd there
325 only to make the Advertisement star'd at,
326 and more generally read.
3272.
328 That I never saw the Word Sea-Hens
329 before in my Life;
330 nor have I yet ask'd
331 the meaning of it;
332 and tho' I had certainly known
333 that Black Gowns in that Place
334 signified the Clergy
335 of the Church of England,
336 yet I have that confidence
337 in the generous good Temper
338 of such of them as I know,
339 as to be well satisfied
340 such a trifling mention
341 of their Habit
342 gives them no Disturbance.
3433.
344 That most of the Clergy
345 in this and the neighbouring Provinces,
346 are my Customers,
347 and some of them my very good Friends;
348 and I must be very malicious indeed,
349 or very stupid,
350 to print this thing
351 for a small Profit,
352 if I had thought
353 it would have given them
354 just Cause of Offence.
3554.
356 That if I have much Malice
357 against the Clergy,
358 and withal much Sense;
359 'tis strange I never write or talk
360 against the Clergy my self.
361 Some have observed
362 that 'tis a fruitful Topic,
363 and the easiest to be witty upon
364 of all others.
365 I can print any thing I write
366 at less Charge than others;
367 yet I appeal to the Publick
368 that I am never guilty this way,
369 and to all my Acquaintance
370 as to my Conversation.
3715.
372 That if a Man of Sense
373 had Malice enough
374 to desire to injure the Clergy,
375 this is the foolishest Thing
376 he could possibly contrive
377 for that Purpose.
3786.
379 That I got Five Shillings by it.
3807.
381 That none who are angry with me
382 would have given me so much
383 to let it alone.
3848.
385 That if all the People
386 of different Opinions
387 in this Province
388 would engage to give me as much
389 for not printing things
390 they don't like,
391 as I can get by printing them,
392 I should probably live
393 a very easy Life;
394 and if all Printers
395 were every where so dealt by,
396 there would be very little printed.
3979.
398 That I am oblig'd
399 to all who take my Paper,
400 and am willing to think
401 they do it out of meer Friendship.
402 I only desire they would think the same
403 when I deal with them.
404 I thank those who leave off,
405 that they have taken it so long.
406 But I beg they would not endeavour
407 to dissuade others,
408 for that will look like Malice.
40910.
410 That 'tis impossible any Man
411 should know what he would do
412 if he was a Printer.
41311.
414 That notwithstanding
415 the Rashness and Inexperience of Youth,
416 which is most likely
417 to be prevail'd with
418 to do things
419 that ought not to be done;
420 yet I have avoided printing such Things
421 as usually give Offence
422 either to Church or State,
423 more than any Printer
424 that has followed the Business
425 in this Province before.
42612.
427 And lastly,
428 That I have printed
429 above a Thousand Advertisements
430 which made not the least mention
431 of Sea-Hens or Black Gowns;
432 and this being the first Offence,
433 I have the more Reason
434 to expect Forgiveness.
435I take leave to conclude
436 with an old Fable,
437 which some of my Readers
438 have heard before,
439 and some have not.
440"A certain well-meaning Man and his Son,
441 were travelling towards a Market Town,
442 with an Ass
443 which they had to sell.
444The Road was bad;
445 and the old Man therefore rid,
446 but the Son went a-foot.
447The first Passenger they met,
448 asked the Father
449 if he was not ashamed
450 to ride by himself,
451 and suffer the poor Lad
452 to wade along thro' the Mire;
453 this induced him
454 to take up his Son behind him:
455He had not travelled far,
456 when he met others,
457 who said,
458 they were two unmerciful Lubbers
459 to get both
460 on the Back of that poor Ass,
461 in such a deep Road.
462Upon this the old Man gets off,
463 and let his Son ride alone.
464The next they met
465 called the Lad
466 a graceless, rascally young Jackanapes,
467 to ride in that Manner
468 thro' the Dirt,
469 while his aged Father
470 trudged along on Foot;
471 and they said the old Man was a Fool,
472 for suffering it.
473He then bid his Son come down,
474 and walk with him,
475 and they travell'd on
476 leading the Ass by the Halter;
477 'till they met another Company,
478 who called them
479 a Couple of sensless Blockheads,
480 for going both on Foot
481 in such a dirty Way,
482 when they had an empty Ass with them,
483 which they might ride upon.
484The old Man could bear no longer;
485 My Son, said he,
486 it grieves me much
487 that we cannot please
488 all these People:
489 Let us throw the Ass
490 over the next Bridge,
491 and be no farther troubled with him."
492Had the old Man been seen
493 acting this last Resolution,
494 he would probably have been call'd a Fool
495 for troubling himself
496 about the different Opinions
497 of all
498 that were pleas'd
499 to find Fault with him:
500Therefore, tho' I have a Temper
501 almost as complying as his,
502 I intend not to imitate him
503 in this last Particular.
504I consider
505 the Variety of Humours among Men,
506 and despair of pleasing every Body;
507 yet I shall not therefore
508 leave off Printing.
509I shall continue my Business.
510I shall not burn my Press
511 and melt my Letters.

Official source · Pennsylvania Gazette, 10 June 1731
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