The editor of a newspaper was always a printer and often composed his articles
as he set them in type; so "composing" came to mean typesetting, and
one who sets type is a compositor. Now James needed an apprentice. It happened
then that young Benjamin, at the age of thirteen, was bound over by law to serve
his brother.
James Franklin printed the "New England Courant", the fourth newspaper
to be established in the colonies. Benjamin soon began to write articles for
this newspaper. Then when his brother was put in jail, because he had printed
matter considered libelous, and forbidden to continue as the publisher, the
newspaper appeared in Benjamin's name.
The young apprentice felt that his brother was unduly severe and, after serving
for about two years, made up his mind to run away. Secretly he took passage
on a sloop and in three days reached New York, there to find that the one printer
in the town, William Bradford, could give him no work. Benjamin then set out
for Philadelphia. By boat
