Merriam = 1886 / OED = c1880 It was not pleasant for that illustrious Kami to be slapped upon the back and called a "high old Jap" by an unshaven Al-der-man, yet he bore the indignity, and drank Jersey cider from the hands of his enemy. "The Japanese. Another Intercepted Letter." The New York Times, June 21, 1860, p 2