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Primary sourceBook1784

Two Tracts: Information to Those Who Would Remove to America, and Remarks Concerning the Savages of North America

Benjamin Franklin · 1784

A 1784 combined edition of two essays by Benjamin Franklin, one advising Europeans about emigrating to America and the other describing Native American customs.

Franklin wrote both tracts himself, showing his efforts to inform Europeans about America and its peoples.

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Two Tracts: Information to Those Who Would Remove to America, and Remarks Concerning the Savages of North AmericaPDF · 52 pages
Benjamin Franklin, Two Tracts: Information to Those Who Would Remove to America, and Remarks Concerning the Savages of North America, 1784. Scanned book, Internet Archive.

About this source

What it is

This is a scanned copy of an 39-page book printed in 1784, combining two short essays written by Benjamin Franklin: one offering practical advice to Europeans thinking of moving to America, and the other describing the customs and councils of Native American peoples.

Why it matters

Franklin wrote both to correct what he saw as false ideas Europeans held about America and its Indigenous inhabitants. The texts show Franklin as a writer trying to shape opinion abroad, though his view of Native Americans reflects the outside perspective of his era rather than their own voices.

Look closer

  • Why might Franklin have wanted to correct Europeans' expectations about emigrating?
  • What does the title tell you about who Franklin imagined his readers to be?
  • Whose perspective on Native Americans is missing from this text?

This book is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Benjamin Franklin on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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