Summary
When the Stamp Act passed, Franklin believed there was
nothing to be done. The battle was over, he thought–but he did
not understand how deeply Americans resented the Act. When he saw
how many Americans refused to obey the Stamp Act, however, he changed
his mind. Energized by the American resistance, he sprang into
action and argued against the Act in a series of brilliant essays.
On February 13, 1766, he testified against the Act before the House
of Commons, answering the questions put to him so skillfully that
the Members of Parliament could not help but see the foolishness
of their actions. The Act was soon repealed, thanks in part to
Franklin's efforts.
Though Franklin worked hard to fight the Stamp Act and
lobby for royal governorship in Pennsylvania, he still found time
in England for other interests. He continued his scientific experiments, investigating
the relationship between the depth of canals and the speed of boats
in them. He also developed a new method for manufacturing wheels
from a single piece of wood. In January 1769, he was elected President
of the American Philosophical Society, a position he held until
his death.
Franklin also traveled widely. In 1767, and again in 1769,
he visited France, where aristocrats and scientists greeted him
as a celebrity. In 1771, he toured Scotland and Ireland, meeting
more famous writers and thinkers. During that year, on vacation
in the English countryside, Franklin began work on his Autobiography, which would
ultimately become his most famous written work. He began the Autobiography in
the form of a letter to his son William, intending to show his
children and grandchildren how he achieved his success in life.
Grandchildren were probably on his mind: Franklin had been overseeing
the education of William's illegitimate child, William Temple Franklin.
Meanwhile, Franklin's daughter, Sarah (who had married Richard
Bache in 1767) had her first child, Richard Franklin Bache, in 1769.
Seven more were to follow.
Franklin's success in dealing with the British government
earned him the respect of colonists across America. In April 1768,
Georgia appointed Franklin as its representative in London. New
Jersey did the same in November of 1769, and Massachusetts followed
suit in October of 1770. Combined with his original job as representative from
Pennsylvania, Franklin now looked after the interests of four colonies.
Increasingly, he was the voice of America in Britain.
Commentary
Franklin misjudged American opposition to the Stamp Act.
It must have surprised him to realize that Americans had grown
so hostile to British rule during his time in London. In 1762 to
1762, during the brief interlude between his two missions to Britain,
he had been neck-deep in Pennsylvania politics. The Paxton Boys
affair and the fight with the proprietors probably kept him busy
enough that when he returned to London in 1764, he was out of touch
with American attitudes.
Franklin treated the Stamp Act as inevitable. After it
was passed, the British minister in charge of the Act asked Franklin
to recommend someone in Pennsylvania to be appointed the stamp
distributor, responsible for selling the stamps required by the
Act on contracts and other official documents. Franklin suggested
John Hughes, a good friend in Philadelphia. When the Act came into
force, Americans directed their anger toward these distributors. John
Hughes soon feared for his life as angry mobs surrounded him. Franklin's
role in the appointment caused many Philadelphians to mistakenly
believe he had supported the Act as a way to get rich. At one point
a mob marched on Franklin's home, threatening his wife Deborah.
Home alone and frightened, she reached for her gun and called on
friends to help. Fortunately the mob went home without doing any
harm.
