"we having no militia. Near 1000 of the citizens accordingly took arms"

"...The occasion of its production had been before noticed by Dr. Wm. Smith, in his eulogium pronounced before the Philosophical Society of Philadelphia in these words: "In 1744, a Spanish privateer, having entered the Delaware, ascended as far as Newcastle, to the great terror of the citizens of Philadelphia. On this occasion, Franklin wrote his first political pamphlet, called Plain Truth, exhorting his fellow-citizens to the bearing of arms; which laid the foundation of those military associations which have ever since followed for the defence of the country." The effect of this pamphlet was prodigious. A public meeting was held in the meeting-house, where Whitfield had preached, and Franklin being called upon for his plan, produced it; twelve hundred signatures were at once obtained, and the author was requested to take the appointment of colonel, which he modestly declined, recommending Mr. Lawrence as better qualified, and the recommendation was adopted." [Pg. XVI - A Postliminous Preface.]

   "With respect to defence, Spain having been several years at war against Great Britain, and being at length joined by France, which brought us into great danger; and the laboured and long continued endeavour of our governor, Thomas, to prevail with our Quaker assembly to pass a militia law, and make other provisions for the security of the province, having proved abortive; I proposed to try what might be done by a voluntary subscription of the people: to promote this, I first wrote and published a pamphlet intitled Plain Truth, in which I stated our helpless situation in strong lights, with the necessity of union and discipline for our defence, and promised to propose in a few days, an association, to be generally signed for that purpose. The pamphlet had a sudden and surprising effect. I was called upon for the instrument of association; having settled the draught of it with a few friends, I appointed a meeting of the citizens in the large building before mentioned. The house was pretty full; I had prepared a number of printed copies, and provided pens and
ink dispersed all over the room. I harangued them a little on the subject, read the paper, explained it, and then distributed the copies, which were eagerly signed, not the least objection being made. When the company separated, and the papers were collected, we found above twelve hundred signatures; and other copies being dispersed in the country, the subscribers amounted at length to upwards of ten thousand. These all furnished themselves as soon as they could with arms, formed themselves into companies, and regiments, chose their own officers, and met every week to be instructed in the manual exercise, and other parts of military discipline. The women, by subscriptions among themselves, provided silk colours, which they presented to the companies, painted with different devices and mottos, which I supplied." [Pg. 44 - (approx. year - 1744)]

   "And then in December, we had two insurrections of the back inhabitants of our province, by whom twenty poor Indians were murdered, that had, from the first settlement of this province, lived among us, under the protection of our government. This gave me a good deal of employment; for as the rioters threatened further mischief, and their actions seemed to be approved by an ever-acting party; I wrote a pamphlet entitled "A Narrative, &c." (which I think I sent you) to strengthen the hands of our weak government, by rendering the proceedings of the rioters unpopular and odious. This had a good effect: and afterwards, when a great body of them with arms marched towards the capital, in defiance of the government, with an avowed resolution to put to death one hundred and forty Indian converts then under its protection, I formed an association at the governor's request, for his and their defence, we having no militia. Near 1000 of the citizens accordingly took arms; governor Penn made my house for some time his head-quarters, and did every thing by my advice; so that for about forty-eight hours, I was a very great man; as I had been once some years before, in a time of public danger. But the fighting-face we put on, and the reasonings we used with the insurgents,(for I went at the request of the governor and council, with three others, to meet and discourse them) having turned them back and restored quiet to the city, I became a less man than ever: for I had by this transaction made myself many enemies among the populace; and the governor (with whose family our public disputes had long placed me in an unfriendly light, and the services I had lately rendered him not being of the kind that make a man acceptable) thinking it a favourable opportunity, joined the whole weight of the proprietary interest to get me out of the assembly; which was accordingly effected at the last election, by a majority of about twenty-five in 4000 voters." [Pg. 252]

[MEMOIRS OF BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. WRITTEN BY HIMSELF, AND CONTINUED BY HIS GRANDSON AND OTHERS. HIS SOCIAL EPISTOLARY CORRESPONDENCE, PHILOSOPHICAL, POLITICAL, AND MORAL LETTERS AND ESSAYS, AND HIS DIPLOMATIC TRANSACTIONS AS AGENT AT LONDON AND MINISTER PLENIPOTENTIARY AT VERSAILLES. AUGMENTED BY MUCH MATTER NOT CONTAINED IN ANY FORMER EDITION. WITH A POSTLIMINIOUS PREFACE. BY WILLIAM DUANE. IN TWO VOLUMES. VOL. I. NEW YORK: DERBY & JACKSON, 119 NASSAU STREET. 1859.]