Chinaman

[James A. Landau]

In a message dated Sun, 6 Jun 2004 14:39:40 EDT,   Bapopik at AOL.COM quotes

>  CHILE TODAY AND HOT TAMALE
>
>  (PROQUEST HISTORICAL NEWSPAPERS)
>   Comic 4 -- No Title
>  Los Angeles Times (1886-Current File). Los Angeles, Calif.: Mar 10, 1928.
p.
>  11 (1 page) :
>     _The Shanghai Jester_
>     "How do you like the climate?" we asked John Chinaman, as he handed him
>  our laundry check.
>     "Chile today and hot tamale," he replied, as he blew an opium ring over
>  the clothespin.

The OED2 has "John Chinaman" from 1826, with an ambiguous "John" from 1818.
Oddly, the first citation under "Chinaman" is 1854.  MWCD10 and MWCD11 both
have 1789 for "Chinaman".  I can do better than that.

Washington University facsimile reprint (Jackson I. Cope and Harold Whitmore
Jones, ed., St. Louis: Washington University Press, 1958) of Thomas Sprat
_History of the Royal Society_ London 1667. page 161.  (I do not have the exact
quote available at the moment).

        - James A. Landau