Franklin's Way to Wealth; or, "Poor Richard Improved"

by Benjamin Franklin

Franklin's Way to Wealth, first printed in 1758 as the preface to the last of his Poor Richard's almanacs, is Benjamin Franklin's most reprinted piece of writing. He imagines an old man, Father Abraham, addressing a crowd waiting for an auction, who strings together the maxims on industry, frugality and self-reliance that Poor Richard had scattered through twenty-five years of almanacs: early to bed and early to rise, God helps them that help themselves, a penny saved is a penny earned, and dozens more. The joke is that the crowd listens, approves and then spends freely as soon as the sale opens. The little piece was translated into many languages and became the proverbial statement of the Yankee virtues. The full text is available to read online in your browser on Vinteuil, and the opening pages are free.