eems to be talking in my own praise, that those of my
posterity, who shall read it, may know the use of that virtue, when
they see its effects in my favour throughout this relation.

George Webb, who had found a female friend that lent him wherewith to
purchase his time of Keimer, now came to offer himself as a
journeyman to us. We could not then employ him; but I foolishly let
him know as a secret that I soon intended to begin a newspaper, and
might then have work for him. My hopes of success, as I told him, were
founded on this, that the then only newspaper, printed by Bradford,
was a paltry thing, wretchedly manag'd, no way entertaining, and yet
was profitable to him; I therefore thought a good paper would scarcely
fail of good encouragement. I requested Webb not to mention it; but he
told it to Keimer, who immediately, to be beforehand with me,
published proposals for printing one himself, on which Webb was to be
employ'd. I resented this; and, to counteract them, as I could not yet
begin our paper, I wrote several pieces of entertainment for
Bradford's paper, under the title of the Busy Body, which Breintnal
continu'd some months. By this means the attention of the publick was
fixed on that paper, and Keimer's proposals, which we burlesqu'd and
ridicul'd, were disregarded. He began his paper, however, and, after
carrying it on three quarters of a year, with at most only ninety
subscribers, he offered it to me for a trifle; and I, having been
ready some time to go on with it, took it in hand directly; and it
prov'd in a few years extremely profitable to me.

I perceive that I am apt to speak in the singular number, though our
partnership still continu'd; the reason may be that, in fact, the
whole management of the business lay upon me. Meredith was no
compositor, a poor pressman, and seldom sober. My friends lamented my
connection with him, but I was to make the best of it.

[Illustration: "I see him still at work when I go home from club"]

Our first papers made a quite different appearance from any before in
the province; a better type, and better printed; but some spirited
remarks of my writing, on the dispute then going on between Governor
Burnet and the Massachusetts Assembly, struck the principal people,
occasioned the paper and the manager of it to be much talk'd of, and
in a few weeks brought them all to be our subscribers.

Their example was follow'd by many, and our number went on growing
continually.