to be drawn up with great clearness and strength of judgment,
and therefore recommended it as well worthy of their closest and
most serious attention." The House, however, by the management
of a certain member, took it up when I happen'd to be absent,
which I thought not very fair, and reprobated it without paying
any attention to it at all, to my no small mortification.
In my journey to Boston this year, I met at New York with our
new governor, Mr. Morris, just arriv'd there from England, with whom
I had been before intimately acquainted. He brought a commission
to supersede Mr. Hamilton, who, tir'd with the disputes his proprietary
instructions subjected him to, had resign'd. Mr. Morris ask'd me
if I thought he must expect as uncomfortable an administration.
I said, "No; you may, on the contrary, have a very comfortable one,
if you will only take care not to enter into any dispute with
the Assembly." "My dear friend," says he, pleasantly, "how can
you advise my avoiding disputes? You know I love disputing;
it is one of my greatest pleasures; however, to show the regard
I have for your counsel, I promise you I will, if possible,
avoid them." He had some reason for loving to dispute, being eloquent,
an acute sophister, and, therefore, generally successful in
argumentative conversation. He had been brought up to it from a boy,
his father, as I have heard, accustoming his children to dispute with
one another for his diversion, while sitting at table after dinner;
but I think the practice was not wise; for, in the course of
my observation, these disputing, contradicting, and confuting people
are generally unfortunate in their affairs. They get victory sometimes,
but they never get good will, which would be of more use to them.
We parted, he going to Philadelphia, and I to Boston.
In returning, I met at New York with the votes of the Assembly,
by which it appear'd that, notwithstanding his promise to me,
he and the House were already in high contention; and it was a
continual battle between them as long as he retain'd the government.
I had my share of it; for, as soon as I got back to my seat in
the Assembly, I was put on every committee for answering his speeches
and messages, and by the committees always desired to make the drafts.
Our answers, as well as his messages, were often tart, and sometimes
indecently abusive; and, as he knew I wrote for the Assembly,
one might have imagined that, when we met, we could hardly avoid
cutting throats; but he was so good-natur'd a man that no personal
difference between him and me was occasion'd by the contest, and we
often din'd together.
One afternoon, in the height of this public quarrel, we met in
the street. "Franklin," says he, "you must go home with me and spend
the evening; I am to have some company that you will like;" and,
taking me by the arm, he led me to his house. In gay conversation
over our wine, after supper, he told us, jokingly, that he much
admir'd the idea of Sancho Panza, who, when it was proposed to give