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17 - To Peter Collinson (9 May 1753)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 June 2012

Alan Houston
Affiliation:
Associate Professor of Political Science, University of California, San Diego
Alan Houston
Affiliation:
University of California, San Diego
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Summary

Sir

I received your Favour of the 29th. August last and thank you for the kind and judicious remarks you have made on my little Piece. Whatever further occurs to you on the same subject, you will much oblige me in communicating it.

I have often observed with wonder, that Temper of the poor English Manufacturers and day Labourers which you mention, and acknowledge it to be pretty general. When any of them happen to come here, where Labour is much better paid than in England, their Industry seems to diminish in equal proportion. But it is not so with the German Labourers; They retain the habitual Industry and Frugality they bring with them, and now receiving higher Wages an accumulation arises that makes them all rich.

When I consider, that the English are the Offspring of Germans, that the Climate they live in is much of the same Temperature; when I can see nothing in Nature that should create this Difference, I am apt to suspect it must arise from Institution, and I have sometimes doubted, whether the Laws peculiar to England which compel the Rich to maintain the Poor, have not given the latter, a Dependance that very much lessens the care of providing against the wants of old Age.

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Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2004

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  • To Peter Collinson (9 May 1753)
    • By Alan Houston, Associate Professor of Political Science, University of California, San Diego
  • Benjamin Franklin
  • Edited by Alan Houston, University of California, San Diego
  • Book: Franklin: The Autobiography and Other Writings on Politics, Economics, and Virtue
  • Online publication: 05 June 2012
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511806889.022
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  • To Peter Collinson (9 May 1753)
    • By Alan Houston, Associate Professor of Political Science, University of California, San Diego
  • Benjamin Franklin
  • Edited by Alan Houston, University of California, San Diego
  • Book: Franklin: The Autobiography and Other Writings on Politics, Economics, and Virtue
  • Online publication: 05 June 2012
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511806889.022
Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • To Peter Collinson (9 May 1753)
    • By Alan Houston, Associate Professor of Political Science, University of California, San Diego
  • Benjamin Franklin
  • Edited by Alan Houston, University of California, San Diego
  • Book: Franklin: The Autobiography and Other Writings on Politics, Economics, and Virtue
  • Online publication: 05 June 2012
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511806889.022
Available formats
×