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The Theological Works of Thomas Paine (1879)
The Theological Works of Thomas Paine - 1879 Author:Thomas Paine Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: Life Of Thomas Paine. PEEIOD FIRST. 1737—1774. From Mb. Padjb's Bieth To His Arbival In America. Thomas Paine was born in Thetford, Norfolk county, Eng... more »land, on the 29th of January, 1737. His father was a member of the society of Friends, and a stay maker by trade; his mother professed the faith of the Church of England. At the age of about thirteen years, he left the common school, in which, in addition to the branches of education usually taught therein, he had learned the rudiments of Latin, and went to work with his father. But his school teacher, who had been chaplain on board a man-of-war, had infused into his young and ardent mind such an enthusiasm for the naval service, that after reluctantly toiling about thrw years at his not very lucrative or promising calling, hf left. home, evidently resolved to "seek the bubble reputation even in the cannon's mouth," and to pursue his fortune through sucli chances as the war then imminent between his country and France, might offer. Dreadful must have been the conflict between his compassionate nature and his necessities and ambition. Arrived in London, without friends or money, he, nevertheless, strove by every means in his power to settle himself honorabl f in the world, without embracing- the dreadful profession he had been .both constituted and educated to look upon with horror: he even hesitated so far as to return to his old occupation. After working a few weeks for Mr. Morris, in Hanover street, Long Acre, he went to Dover, where he also worked a short time for a Mr. Grace. shorter intervals, forces him to seek relief in one of those saturnalias of carnage and devastation which throws progress aback, menaces civilization even, and yet but partially and temporarily mitigates human ills ? Is this the wh...« less