CHAPTER XVII 



YANKEE-DOODLE 



I HOPE that the heading of this chapter will give none 

 offence. It ought not to, for " Yankee-Doodle " is the 

 national air — the " Marseillaise " of America, the " God save 

 the Stars and Stripes " of this land of liberty and equality. 

 Every schoolboy knows — no he does not. I beg pardon. 

 A certain select few know that the air of " Yankee-Doodle " 

 was originally known as " Moll Rowe in the Morning." 

 A naughty military saw-bones set the words of " Yankee- 

 Doodle " to the air of this excessively vulgar song in 

 ridicule of the poor Yankee militia ; but need I go on ? 

 Surely everybody knows that the intended ridicule 

 turned to honour, or was turned to honour. 



Now I have a great, but not an unqualified, respect 

 for cousin Jonathan. He is a brave, hospitable fellow, 

 full of good qualities, and with plenty of (perhaps a little 

 too much) go in him. But he has his faults. He thinks 

 a great deal too much of his Stars and Stripes, for one 

 thing, and is too irritable under criticism for another. 

 Nor do I think much of his liberty and equality — not 

 enough to become a citizen of his country, in spite of the 

 fact that I have spent nearly two- thirds of my days 

 there. In fact, in my opinion, an Englishman has double 

 the personal liberty of a Yankee at home — though 

 abroad, I admit, he takes liberty enough. But it is not 

 the institutions of the country so much as the people 

 that are to blame for this. While pretending to despise 

 the pride, exclusiveness, and snobbery of the Old World, 

 there is no country in that Old World where there is 



