The Washington bee., 1895-08-24
BROTHER JONATHAN.
The Name of iona han Does Not Seem to
be Very Popular Among Us.


The Englishman is John Bull, the
Irishman is Pat or Paddy, the Scotch
man is Sandy or Sawney, the Welshman
is David, the Frenchman is Jean era
paud or Micaire, the German is Cousin
Michael, the Swiss is Colin Tampon, the
Hebrew is the Sheeny, and the
American is Brother Jonathan.
There is nickname for the
people Of almost every country on earth.
1t is a singular circumstance that
while John is a popular prenomen in
England, and Patrick in Ireland, and
David in Wales, and Jean in France,
and Michael in Germany, the name Of
Jonathan has never become popular in
the United States. All that is necessary
to give any one evidence Of this state
ment is that he shall examine the direc-
tory Of the city Of New York from be-
ginning to end or shall look through the
directories printed in Philadelphia, Bos-
ton. New Orleans, Chicago, Brooklyn,
Jersey City, San Francisco, or any other
American city. He may see Jonathan
once in while, as he turns over the
leaves Of the book; but he may g.
through ten or twenty pages without:
seeing it even once. Patrick is on every
page OF a Dublin directory, as John /;
on every page of an English directory
but As for the name Of Jonathan, it is
seen about as often in an English as l..
an American directory. 1t is possibls
that one reason for the unporularity OF
the name with fathers and mothers lies
n the fact that Brother Jonathan is al.
ways pictured as a very grotesque and
unattractive parsonage, costumed in
ridiculous fashion, and calculated &c
raise laughter rather than command re-
spect. John Bull is always depicted as
a solid business personage; Brother
Jonathan is depicted as circus clown.
II is wonder that no American arts:
has ever drawn a worthy figure Of the
great and mighty and majestic Brother
Jonathan, one that would be character
istic, significant and impressive, withou;
too marked a violation Of the traditions
that are associated with the name II
cannot be said tina. the Uncle Sam OF
the picture makers is any better than
the Brother Jonathan.
OF the few eminent Americans who
have borne the name Of Jonathan, the
most eminent was Jonathan Trumbull,
Governor Of Connecticut in revolution
airy times, from whom, as ordinarily sup
posed, came Brother Jonathan. The his
:orian Sparks says that Washington re-
garded Governor Trumbull as "one Of
his main pillars Of support" and he was
accustomed to consult him in emergen-
cies: thus, according to an old story in
a biography of Trumbull, the words,
eve must ask Brother Jonathan" were
SO often spoken by the Father Of His
Country that Brother Jonathan became
synonymous with the good genius of The
young American republic. Certainly the
nickname has been in vogue since an
early period in the country's history As
ordinarily personif1ed, however, Brother
Jonathan bears no resemblance at all
to Trumbull or to any other man of the
days Of the war of independence The
personificat ton is both humorous and un-
happy.
If the nickname grew out of Washing
tons remark, it had a far more distin-
guished origin than John Bull, the chol-
eric, quarrelsome and vain old humbug.
New York Sun.