Works of the late Doctor Benjamin Franklin/An economical Project
AN ŒCONOMICAL PROJECT.
TO THE AUTHORS OF THE JOURNAL.
MESSIEURS,
YOU often entertain us with accounts of new diſcoveries. Permit me to communicate to the public, through your paper, one that has lately been made by myſelf, and which I conceive may be of great utility.
I was the other evening in a grand company, where the new lamp of Meſſrs. Quinquet and Lange was introduced, and much admired for its ſplendor; but a general enquiry was made, whether the oil it conſumed was not in proportion to the light it afforded, in which caſe there would be no ſaving in the uſe of it. No one preſent could ſatisfy us in that point, which all agreed ought to be known, it being a very deſirable thing to leſſen, if poſſible, the expence of lighting our apartments, when every other article of family expence was ſo much augmented.
I was pleaſed to ſee this general concern for œconomy; for I love œconomyexceedingly.
I went home, and to bed, three or four hours after midnight, with my head full of the ſubject. An accidental ſudden noiſe waked me about, ſix in the morning, when I was ſurprized to find my room filled with light; and I imagined at firſt, that a number of thoſe lamps had been brought into it: but, rubbing my eyes, I perceived the light came in at the windows. I got up and looked out to ſee what might be the occaſion of it, when I ſaw the ſun juſt riling above the horizon, from whence he poured his rays plentifully into my chamber, my domeſtic having negligently omitted the preceding evening to cloſe the ſhutters.
I looked at my watch, which goes very well, and found that it was but ſix o'clock; and ſtill thinking it ſomething extraordinary that the ſun ſhould rife ſo early, I looked into the almanack, where I found it to be the hour given for his riſing on that day. I looked forward too, and found he was to riſe ſtill earlier every day till towards the end of June; and that at no time in the year he retarded his riſing ſo long as till eight o'clock. Your readers, who with me have never ſeen any ſigns of ſunſhine before noon, and ſeldom regard the aſtronomical part of the almanack, will be as much aſtoniſhed as I was, when they hear of his riſing ſo early; and eſpecially when I allure them, that he gives light as ſoon as he riſes. I am convinced of this. I am certain of my fact. One cannot be more certain of any fact. I ſaw it with my own eyes. And having repeated this obſervation the three following mornings, I found always preciſely the ſame reſult.
Yet ſo it happens, that when I ſpeak of this diſcovery to others, I can eaſily perceive by their countenances, though they forbear expreſſing it in words, that they do not quite believe me. One, indeed, who is a learned natural philoſopher, has aſſured me, that I muſt certainly be miſtaken as to the circumſtance of the light coming into my room; for it being well known, as he ſays, that there could be no light abroad at that hour, it follows that none could enter from without; and that of conſequence, my windows being accidentally left open, inſtead of letting in the light, had only ſerved to let out the darkneſs: and he uſed many ingenious arguments to ſhew me how I might, by that means, have been deceived. I own that he puzzled me a little, but he did not ſatisfy me; and the ſubſequent obſervations I made, as above mentioned, confirmed me in my firſt opinion.
This event has given riſe, in my mind, to ſeveral ſerious and important reflections. I conſidered that, if I had not been awakened ſo early in the morning, I ſhould have ſlept fix hours longer by the light of the ſun, and in exchange have lived ſix hours the following night by candle-light; and the latter being a much more expenſive light than the former, my love of œconomy induced me to muſter up what little arithmetic I was maſter of, and to make ſome calculations, which I ſhall give you, after obſerving, that utility is, in my opinion, the teſt of value in matters of invention, and that a diſcovery which can be applied to no uſe, or is not good for ſomething, is good for nothing.
I took for the baſis of my calculation the ſuppoſition that there are 100,000 families in Paris, and that theſe families conſume in the night half a pound of bougies, or candles, per hour. I think this is a moderate allowance, taking one family with another; for though I believe ſome conſume leſs, I know that many conſume a great deal more. Then eſtimating ſeven hours per day, as the medium quantity between the time of the ſun's riſing and ours, he riſing during the ſix following months from ſix to eight hours before noon, and there being ſeven hours of courſe per night in which we burn candles, the account will ſtand thus—
In the ſix months between the twentieth of March and the twentieth of September, there are
| Nights | 183 |
| Hours of each night in which we burn candles | 7 |
| Multiplication gives for the total number of hours | 1,281 |
| Theſe 1,281 hours multiplied by 100,000, the number of inhabitants, give | 128,100,000 |
| One hundred twenty-eight millions and one hundred thouſand hours, ſpent at Paris by candle-light, which, at half a pound of wax and tallow per hour, gives the weight of | 64,050,000 |
| Sixty-four millions and fifty thouſand of pounds, which, eſtimating the whole at the medium price of thirty ſols the pound, makes the ſum of ninety-ſix millions and ſeventy-five thouſand livres tournois | 96,075,000 |
An immenſe ſum! that the city of Paris might ſave every year, by the œconomy of uſing ſun-ſhine inſtead of candles.
If it ſhould be ſaid, that people are apt to be obſtinately attached to old cuſtoms, and that it will be difficult to induce them to riſe before noon, conſequently my diſcovery can be of little uſe; I anſwer, Nil deſperandum. I believe all who have common ſenſe, as ſoon as they have learnt from this paper that it is day-light when the ſun riſes, will contrive to riſe with him; and, to compel the reſt, I would propoſe the following regulations.
Firſt. Let a tax be laid of a louis per window, on every window that is provided with ſhutters to keep out the light of the ſun.
Second. Let the ſame ſalutary operation of police be made uſe of to prevent our burning candles, that inclined us laſt winter to be more œconomical in burning wood; that is, let guards be placed in the ſhops of the wax and tallow-chandlers, and no family be permitted to be ſupplied with more than one pound of candles per week. Third. Let guards alſo be poſted to ſtop all the coaches, &c. that would paſs the ſtreets after ſunſet, except thoſe of phyſicians, ſurgeons, and mid wives.
Fourth. Every morning, as ſoon as the ſun riſes, let all the bells in every church be ſet ringing: and if that is not ſufficient, let cannon be fired in every ſtreet, to wake the ſluggards effectually, and make them open their eyes to ſee their true intereſt.
All the difficulty will be in the firſt two or three days; after which the reformation will be as natural and eaſy as the preſent irregularity: for, ce n'eſt que le premier pas qui coute. Oblige a man to riſe at four in the morning, and it is more than probable he ſhall go willingly to bed at eight in the evening; and, having had eight hours ſleep, he will riſe more willingly at four the morning following. But this ſum of ninety-fix millions and ſeventy-five thouſand livres is not the whole of what may be ſaved by my œconomical project. You may obſerve, that I have calculated upon only one half of the year, and much may be ſaved in the other, though the days are ſhorter. Beſides, the immenſe ſtock of wax and tallow left unconſumed during the ſummer, will probably make candles much cheaper for the enſuing winter, and continue cheaper as long as the propoſed reformation ſhall be ſupported. For the great benefit of this diſcovery, thus freely communicated and beſtowed by me on the public, I demand neither place, penſion, excluſive privilege, or any other reward whatever. I expect only to have the honour of it. And yet I know there are little envious minds who will, as uſual, deny me this, and ſay that my invention was known to the ancients, and perhaps they may bring paſſages out of the old books in proof of it. I will not diſpute with theſe people that the ancients knew not the ſun would riſe at certain hours; they poſſibly had, as we have, almanacks that predicted it: but it does not follow from thence that they knew he gave light as ſoon as he roſe. This is what I claim as my diſcovery. If the ancient knew it, it muſt have been long ſince forgotten, for it certainly was unknown to the moderns, at leaſt to the Pariſians; which to prove, I need uſe but one plain ſimple argument. They are as well inſtructed, judicious, and prudent a people as exiſt any where in the world, all profeſing, like myſelf, to be lovers of ceconomy; and, from the many heavy taxes required from them by the neceſſities of the ſtate, have ſurely reaſon to be ceconomical. I ſay it is impoſſible that ſo ſenſible a people, under ſuch circumſtances, ſhould have lived ſo long by the ſmoky, unwholſome, and enormouſly expenſive light of candles, if they had really known that they might have had as much pure light of the ſun for nothing.
I am, &c.