On Education and Public Schools

Hiram was Francis Hoskins, which we know beyond a doubt from handwriting comparison. Hoskins was working as a clerk at the Philadelphia Rolls Office (which recorded deeds) in 1797, but by 1802 was listed in the city directory as an accountant. A prolific and eclectic writer whose ambitions outweighed his abilities, Hoskins entered and lost APS contests twice: in 1797 for education (which was ridiculed by the review committee), and in 1800 for navigation. In 1801 Hoskins mailed President Thomas Jefferson a handwritten table that calculated the value of the planet earth if it were made of solid gold, including a separate table that calculated the compound interest on one dollar at 5 percent per annum from 10 to 1,325 years. He did not get a reply.1 Hoskins published at least two books: an undated math textbook he refers to in his essay, entitled An Introduction to Merchandise. Arithmetick. In whole and broken numbers, designed for the use of Academies…, and The Beauties and Super-excellency of Freemasonry Attempted (1801). The latter book reflected the probable origins of his pseudonym: Hiram Abiff was a key figure in Masonic Lore.