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Dr. Franklin. When did you live? Why do you have two birthdays? BF: The date of my birth was January 6, 1705. In 1752, there was a change of calenders - from the Julian to the Gregorian - and 11 days were 'taken away' to match the change. My 'date of birth' was modernized to January 17 and the New Year, changed from Easter to January 1st, changed the date of my nativity to 1706. My final day on this earth was April 17, 1790. As to the two birthdays, please do not fret over them... celebrate both!. Dr. Franklin. Why are you called "Doctor"? You only had two years of public education. Did you attend a college?
I never took study at University, but I educated myself with a wide interest in... everything. For my work with the electrical fluid (also called 'electricity') and other philosophical pursuits (now called science) I was given many awards: Tell me a little about your home life. Have you ever lived in a boarding house, habited by an entire troupe of players and mechanics? I remember 13 people at once at our table, the smell of boiling cattle-flesh in preparation of soap and candles, visitors, cousins, friends and the most intriguing conversations from travelers. It was a circus of activity: business, family, religious conversation and political. One had to pay attention to not be run over by the hurley burly of it all. And above it, or rather in the middle of it, like great rocks near the shoreline during a storm where you could mount a light house, stood my good father and mother, as solid as any who root a life on this earth. It is rumored that you were a womanizer. Is this true? A womanizer? A scandalous term, I am certain, and one to which I am not deserving. I have always appreciated and desired the company, and intelligence, of women. If you refer to my conduct while in France and Mr. and Mrs. Adams's statements as to my conduct, I must appeal to a worldly awareness of how things get done in French politics. One must win the affection and support of the French ministers to support the colonies in their hope of establishing independence from Great Britain. To win that support, the French Ministers must be convinced that A) the war is winnable and B) that the Colonies are worthy of the risk. The best way to convince the Ministers of anything is to have the ear, and the persuasion of their wives, daughters, mothers... and mistresses. They, being all women, and all women who seemed to have approbation of my character, I needed to flatter, flirt and converse with them to convince them to convince the men in their lives that our cause was just. This is what I did. As to the prowess suggested by the conquests hinted at in those 'rumors' think of this: I was 70 when I signed the Declaration of Independence. I had gout, pleurisy, psoriasis, kidney stones and age against me. I could barely walk and riding in carriages was excruciating. How much 'hopping' (bed or otherwise) would a mortal such as I be capable of, I ask you. Which inventions of yours are you most pleased with? Personally, the Armonica (the glass musical instrument) gave me great pleasure. Publicly, the lightening rod and Pennsylvania Stove I hope contributed to great general enjoyment. How many relatives did you have? My father had 17 children, 7 by his first wife Ann Child, 10 by my mother, Abiah Folger. 7 sisters and 9 brothers, of which I knew well about a dozen or so. There were too many cousins and in-laws to count easily, but the brood was large. My sister Jane (my favorite) was the only direct relative to survive me, we outliving all the others of our parents and siblings. My first son, William, illegitimate and well-proven so and my daughter Sarah (called Sally) survived me. My son, Francis, died of Small Pox when but 4 years old. |
