He closed by an appeal to boys and young men to direct
their ambition into worthy channels, so that even if they could not
leave behind a great name, they might at least lead useful lives, and
in dying have the satisfaction of thinking that they done some
service to the race.
This will give a very fair idea of Harry's essay. There was nothing
remarkable about it, and no striking originality in the ideas, but it
was very creditably expressed for a boy of his years, and did even
more credit to his good judgment, since it was an unfolding of the
principles by which he meant to guide his own life.
It must not be supposed that our hero was a genius, and that he wrote
his essay without difficulty. It occupied him two evenings to write
it, and he employed the third in revising and copying it. It covered
about five pages of manuscript, and, according to his estimate, would
fill about two-thirds of a long column in the "Standard."
After preparing it, the next thing was to find a _nom de plume_, for
he shrank from signing his own name. After long consideration, he at
last decided upon Franklin, and this was the name he signed to his
maiden contribution to the press.
He carried it to the post-office one afternoon, after his work in the
printing office was over, and dropped it unobserved into the
letter-box. He did not want the postmaster to learn his secret, as
he would have done had he received it directly from him, and noted
the address on the envelope.
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