From the Introduction
"A sampling of his wit and wisdom is in the pages that follow, printed as faithfully as possible in the style of the original. Many of Poor Richard's sayings were re-worked from various sources, but all bear the unmistakable stamp of "B. Franklin, Printer."
Some of Poor Richard's philosophy seems as quaint as the ancient spelling. Thrift, hard work, saving for a rainy day, moderation in diet, wariness toward debt: these are not watchwords of the twentieth century. One wonders whether some of them may be in the twenty-first; whether the best of Poor Richard is not so much outgrown as ahead of us, waiting for use to sense its perennial wisdom."
Benjamin Franklin was an important conservative figure in the American Restoration Movement, especially as the leading antebellum conservative in the northern United States branch of the movement. He is notable as the early and lifelong mentor of Daniel Sommer, whose support of the 1889 Sand Creek Declaration set in motion events which led to the formal division of the Churches of Christ from the Disciples of Christ in 1906.
According to contemporary biographies "His early religious training was according to the Methodist faith, though he never belonged to any church until he united with the Disciples."
In 1856, Franklin began to publish the ultra-conservative American Christian Review, which he published until his death in 1878. Its influence, initially considerable, was said to have waned following the American Civil War. Franklin undertook a rigorous program of publication correspondence, and traveling lectures which took him to "many" U. S. states and Canada.
Franklin's last move was to Anderson, Indiana, where he lived from 1864 until his death.
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