From Benjamin Franklin to William Strahan, 14 April 1745
To William Strahan
Duplicate:3 Rosenbach Foundation
Philada. April 14. 1745
Sir
I wrote to you lately via New York, and sent a Copy via Maryland, one or other of which I hope may come to hand. I have only Time now to desire you to send me the following Books,4 viz.
1 Doz Cole’s Eng. Dictionaries
3 Doz. Mather’s Young Man’s Companion
2 Doz Fisher’s Ditto
2 Quarter Waggoners for America
6 Echard’s Gazetteer
4 Doz Grammars with const[ruin]g Book
1 Doz Clark’s Corderius
1 Doz London Vocabulary
1 Doz Bailey’s English Exercises
6 Clark’s Introduction
6 Esop’s Fables, Latin
1 Doz Accidences.
6 Brightland’s English Grammar
I am, Sir, Your most humble Servant
B Franklin
Copy
3. Written at the top of the sheet which carried the second letter of the same date, printed here directly following.
4. The identifiable works in this list were probably the following: Elisha Coles, An English Dictionary … Now Corrected and Much Improved (London, 1732); William Mather, The Young Man’s Companion (15th edit., London, 1737); George Fisher, The Instructor: or, Young Man’s Best Companion; “Quarter Waggoners for America”: The English Pilot. The Fourth Book. Describing the West India Navigation, from Hudson’s-Bay to the River Amazones (London, 1737 or 1745. “Wagoner” was a term used for an atlas of charts, derived from a work of this nature published in Leyden in 1588 by Lucas Wagenaer); Laurence Echard (or Eachard), The Gazetteer’s: or, Newsman’s Interpreter (15th edit., London, 1741); John Clarke, Corderii Colloquiorum centuria selecta (10th edit., London, 1740); The London Vocabulary, English and Latin (London, [1700?]); Nathan Bailey, English and Latin Exercises (5th edit., London, 1720); John Clarke, An Introduction to the Making of Latin (13th edit., London, 1742); John Brightland, A Grammar of the English Tongue (4th edit., London, 1721).