Tuesday, May 23

Back to the Retro-Future: A Message From Benjamin Franklin, Steampunk




London, April 1773.

To Jacques Dubourg.

Your observations on the causes of death, and the experiments which you propose for recalling to life those who appear to be killed by lightning, demonstrate equally your sagacity and your humanity. It appears that the doctrine of life and death in general is yet but little understood...

I wish it were possible... to invent a method of embalming drowned persons, in such a manner that they might be recalled to life at any period, however distant; for having a very ardent desire to see and observe the state of America a hundred years hence, I should prefer to an ordinary death, being immersed with a few friends in a cask of Madeira, until that time, then to be recalled to life by the solar warmth of my dear country! But... in all probability, we live in a century too little advanced, and too near the infancy of science, to see such an art brought in our time to its perfection...

I am, etc.

- B. FRANKLIN.

3 Comments:

At 1:35 PM, Blogger Nathan Shafer said...

I found it on the internet.

 
At 12:42 PM, Blogger Unknown said...

hello! I've been trying to find the complete letter, but can't find it; I would appreciate if you could link it to me

 
At 10:16 AM, Blogger Unknown said...

found it! https://goo.gl/93FxVz

 

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