de those whose concurrence you desire.
Pope[22] says, judiciously:

_"Men should be taught as if you taught them not,
And things unknown propos'd as things forgot;"_

farther recommending to us

"To speak, tho' sure, with seeming diffidence."

And he might have coupled with this line that
which he has coupled with another, I think,
less properly,

"For want of modesty is want of sense."

If you ask, Why less properly? I must repeat the lines,

"Immodest words admit of no defense,
For want of modesty is want of sense."

Now, is not _want of sense_ (where a man is so unfortunate as to want
it) some apology for his _want of modesty_? and would not the lines
stand more justly thus?

"Immodest words admit _but_ this defense,
That want of modesty is want of sense."

This, however, I should submit to better judgments.

[21] Socrates confuted his opponents in argument by
asking questions so skillfully devised that the answers
would confirm the questioner's position or show the
error of the opponent.

[22] Alexander Pope (1688-1744), the greatest English
poet of the first half of the eighteenth century.

My brother had, in 1720 or 1721, begun to print a newspaper. It was
the second that appeared in America,[23] and was called the New England
Courant. The only one before it was the Boston News-Letter. I remember
his being dissuaded by some of his friends from the undertaking, as
not likely to succeed, one newspaper being, in their judgment, enough
for America. At this time (1771) there are not less than
five-and-twenty. He went on, however, with the undertaking, and after
having worked in composing the types and printing off the sheets, I
was employed to carry the papers thro' the streets to the customers.

[23] Franklin's memory does not serve him correctly here.
The _Courant_ was really the fifth newspaper established
in America, although generally called the fourth,
because the first, _Public Occurrences_, published in
Boston in 1690, was suppressed after the first issue.
Following is the order in which the other four papers
were published: _Boston News Letter_, 1704; _Boston
Gazette_, December 21, 1719; _The American Weekly
Mercury_, Philadelphia, December 22, 1719; _The New
England Courant_, 1721.

[Illustration: First page of The New England Courant of Dec. 4-11,
1721. Reduced about one-third. From a copy in the Library