In 1736 he sought entrance into public life, the better to further his favoring fortunes, and he was chosen clerk of the General Assembly in October of that year,[1] "for which office he petitioned the House in succession to Joseph Growden." Governor Gordon had died in the summer, and James Logan as President of the Council became the head of the Provincial government until the arrival of Governor Thomas two years later. This doubtless was the influence that secured what Franklin terms "my first promotion." He, as usual, makes no secret of the reasons for his wishing the office:
besides the pay for the immediate service as clerk, the place gave me a better opportunity of keeping up an interest among the members, which secured to me the business of printing the votes, laws, paper money, and other occasional jobbs for the public, that, on the whole were very profitable.
He was annually chosen to this office for fourteen years, and herein he trained himself for his later political life. It was but at thirty years of age this native of a northern province attained to this important position, and without contradiction; but his second term was not reached without opposition, which arose
from a new member in order to favor some other candidate. * * * He was a gentleman of fortune and education, with talents that were likely to give him in time great influence in the House which indeed afterwards happened.
But Franklin won in the contest and later placated this member by one of those clever strokes of ingenuity which he often exercised successfully to divert enmities; and when recording the story concludes by saying this "shows how much more profitable it is prudently to remove, than to resent, return, and continue inimical proceedings: he ever after manifested a readiness to serve me on all occasions, so that we became great friends, and our friendship continued to his death."[2]
In October of the following year, 1737, he was appointed
