1From Benjamin Franklin to Cadwallader Colden, 13 August 1747 (Franklin Papers)
ALS : New-York Historical Society I am glad the electrical Observations please you. I leave them in your hands another Week. Our Workmen have undertaken the Electrical Apparatus, and I believe will do it extreamly well: It being a new Job they cannot say exactly what their Work will come to, but they will charge reasonably when done, and they find what Time it has taken. I suppose the whole...
2From Benjamin Franklin to Cadwallader Colden, 4 November 1743 (Franklin Papers)
ALS : New-York Historical Society; also transcript: Library of Congress I received the Favour of yours, with the Proposal for a new Method of Printing, which I am much pleased with: and since you express some Confidence in my Opinion, I shall consider it very attentively and particularly, and in a Post or two send you some Observations on every Article. My long Absence from home in the Summer,...
3From Benjamin Franklin to Cadwallader Colden, 6 August 1747 (Franklin Papers)
ALS : New-York Historical Society; draft: American Philosophical Society The Observations I sent you on Baxter’s Book were wrote on a Sheet or two of Paper in Folio. He builds his whole argument on the Vis Inertiae of Matter: I boldly deny’d the Being of such a Property, and endeavour’d to demonstrate the contrary. If I succeeded, all his Edifice falls of course, unless some other way...
4From Benjamin Franklin to Cadwallader Colden, 27 August 1747 (Franklin Papers)
ALS : Yale University Library This just serves to enclose you a Letter from our Friend Bertram; and to request you would deliver my Papers on Electricity to the Bearer Mr. Darling. I have not Time to add, but that I am, with great Respect, Sir, Your most humble Servant P.S . I think you wrote me Word you had lent Watson’s Book on Electricity which I sent you last Winter to Dr. Bard. Please to...
5From Benjamin Franklin to Cadwallader Colden, 14 May 1752 (Franklin Papers)
ALS : New-York Historical Society I find Parker has been indiscreet enough, to print a Piece in his Paper, which has brought him into a great deal of Trouble. I cannot conceive how he was prevail’d on to do it, as I know him to be a thorough Believer himself, and averse to every thing that is commonly called Freethinking. He is now much in his Penitentials, and requests me to intercede with...
6From Benjamin Franklin to Cadwallader Colden, 25 October 1744 (Franklin Papers)
ALS : New-York Historical Society I communicated your Piece on Fluxions to Mr. Logan, and being at his House a few Days after, he told me, he had read it cursorily, that he thought you had not fully hit the Matter, and ( I think ) that Berkley’s Objections were well founded: but said he would read it over more attentively. Since that, he tells me there are several Mistakes in it, two of which...
7From Benjamin Franklin to Cadwallader Colden, 25 October 1753 (Franklin Papers)
ALS : New-York Historical Society This last Summer I have enjoy’d very little of the Pleasure of Reading or Writing. I made a long Journey to the Eastward, which consum’d 10 Weeks; and two Journeys to our Western Frontier: One of them to meet and hold a Treaty with the Ohio Indians, in Company with Mr. Peters and Mr. Norris. I shall send you a Copy of the Treaty as soon as ’tis printed. I...
8From Benjamin Franklin to Cadwallader Colden, 21 July 1754 (Franklin Papers)
ALS : New-York Historical Society I wrote a Line to you from your Landing, promising to send you a Copy of the Plan of Union, which I now enclose. We had a great deal of Disputation about it, almost every Article being contested by one or another; but at length we agreed on it pretty unanimously; and Copies are ordered for the several Governments: How they will relish it, or how it will be...
9From Benjamin Franklin to Cadwallader Colden, 30 July 1747 (Franklin Papers)
ALS : Yale University Library I receiv’d your Favour of the 26th. which I shall answer at large per next Post. In the mean time please to send me, if you have it with you, my Paper of Observations on Baxter’s Book, which I want to make some present Use of, and have no other Copy. Mesnard sail’d this Day for London. But here is a Vessel bound to Bristol, which the next Post will reach. In haste...
10From Benjamin Franklin to Cadwallader Colden, 5 December 1760 (Franklin Papers)
ALS : New-York Historical Society I take this first Opportunity of congratulating you most sincerely on your Accession to the Government of your Province, which I am the more pleas’d with, as I learn that the Ministry are well satisfy’d the Administration has fallen into so good Hands, and therefore that you are not like to be soon superseded by the Appointment of a new Governor. The Abbé...