Source identified
Read & copy the quotation
“Beware of little expences; A small leak will sink a great ship.”
- Source
- The Way to Wealth
- Date
- 1758
- Local voice
- Authorial persona / framed maxim · Poor Richard maxim, repeated through Father Abraham
Meaning of “Beware of little expences; A small leak will…”
Small recurring expenses can become significant when repeated, so minor purchases deserve attention when they steadily erode a limited budget.
Where does it come from?
The Way to Wealth, frugality section; Project Gutenberg #43855 preserves the historical spelling “expences.” The ship image is one of the Poor Richard maxims quoted by Father Abraham.
Why the local voice matters
The Way to Wealth is framed as Father Abraham’s address compiling maxims Franklin had published through the Poor Richard / Richard Saunders persona. This record therefore preserves the framed authorial-persona layer instead of treating the maxim as unmediated Franklin narration.
