[Ads-l] When America sneezes

[Ben Zimmer]

The "M. de Humboldt" in Garson's 1851 cite appears to be Alexander von
Humboldt (1769-1859), younger brother of philosopher / linguist / diplomat
Wilhelm.

---
https://books.google.com/books?id=MnFPAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA150
"The Present European Crisis" (review of Michel Chevalier's "La Guerre et
la Crisis Européenne"), London Quarterly Review, Vol. 27, Oct. 1866/Jan.
1867, p. 150
Time was when it could be said, with Napoleon III at Bordeaux, "when France
is satisfied Europe is quiet," or, to borrow Alexander Humboldt's way of
putting the matter, "when France has a cold in her head all Europe sneezes."
---

(Wikipedia says "between 1830 and 1848 [Alexander von] Humboldt was
frequently employed in diplomatic missions to the court of King Louis
Philippe of France, with whom he always maintained the most cordial
personal relations.")

Looking at French sources, I see Metternich features in a slightly earlier
version, in an 1851 journal.

---
https://books.google.com/books?id=oug-AQAAMAAJ&pg=PA248
_Mémoires de l'Académie des sciences, belles-lettres et arts de Lyon:
Classe des lettres, Vol. 1_, 1851, p. 248
M. de Metternich a dit : « Quand la France est enrhumée, toute l'Europe
éternue. »
[translation: "M. de Metternich said: 'When France has a cold, all of
Europe sneezes.'"]
---

Here's Humboldt getting the attribution in 1858 (Google Books misdates this
elsewhere as 1851):

Jean-Pierre Gallavardin, _L'enseignement clinique en Allemagne,
particulièrement à Vienne_, 1858, p. 137
https://books.google.com/books?id=8Ep4s0i84o4C&pg=RA1-PA137
M. de Humboldt exprimait ce fait d'une manière piquante, quand il disait à
un Français, prenant congé de lui, quelques années après 1848 : « Faites
donc en sorte de bien vous porter dans votre pays. » Pourquoi donc ? --
C'est que, lorsque la France est enrhumée, toute l'Europe éternue. »
[translation: "M. de Humboldt expressed this fact in a piquant way, when he
said to a Frenchman, taking leave of him, a few years after 1848: 'Take
care, therefore, that you are well in your country.' 'Why is that?' 'It's
because when France has a cold, all of Europe sneezes.'"

Interesting that these early versions have France catching a cold and
Europe sneezing rather than vice versa.

--bgz

On Tue, Jul 26, 2022 at 2:20 AM ADSGarson O'Toole <adsgarsonotoole at gmail.com>
wrote:

> Excellent topic, Benjamin and Ben. You performed great work locating
> intriguing citations and attributions,
>
> The mention of France, Metternich, and Talleyrand indicate that a
> thorough search would require generating and using multiple
> translations into French, German, and perhaps other languages.
>
> Instead, I performed a preliminary search restricted to English. Here
> is a fun instance in 1852 attributed to “M. de Humboldt”. Talleyrand
> died in 1838. Metternich died in 1859. So earlier instances are
> certainly possible.
>
> Date: April 1852
> Periodical: Brownson's Quarterly Review
> Article 3: Austria and Hungary: Review of Les Saints Lieux. Pèlerinage
> à Jérusalem, en passant par l'Autriche, la Hongrie, la Slavonie, les
> Provinces Danubiennes, Constantinople, l'Archipel, le Liban, la Syrie,
> Alexandrie, Malte, la Sicile, et Marseille
> Start Page 195, Quote Page 201
> Publisher: Benjamin H. Greene, Boston, Massachusetts
> Database: Google Books Full View
>
> https://books.google.com/books?id=GeN9NyyJr9kC&q=%22to+sneeze%22#v=snippet&
>
> [Begin excerpt - double-check for errors]
> It is the servility with which all that is done in France is copied in
> Germany, that led M. de Humboldt to say to a French gentleman who was
> taking his leave of him to return to Paris, ‘See to it that your
> country keeps herself well, for when France gets a cold in her head
> all Europe is obliged to sneeze.’ I do not know whether this is a
> great honor for France or not, but surely it is very little for the
> rest of Europe.
> [End excerpt]
>
> Garson
>
> On Fri, Jul 22, 2022 at 1:12 PM Ben Zimmer <bgzimmer at gmail.com> wrote:
> >
> > Looks like a job for Quote Investigator. There are various versions of
> > "When France sneezes, (the rest of / all of) Europe catches a cold /
> blows
> > its nose / holds its breath," attributed to Metternich, Talleyrand, and
> no
> > doubt others.
> >
> >
> > On Fri, Jul 22, 2022 at 11:20 AM Barretts Mail <mail.barretts at gmail.com>
> > wrote:
> >
> > > John Spain (
> > > https://www.irishcentral.com/when-america-sneezes-col2619-41051922 <
> > > https://www.irishcentral.com/when-america-sneezes-col2619-41051922>)
> says
> > > “When America sneezes, the rest of the world catches the cold”
> originated
> > > in 1929 due to the Wall Street stock market crash.
> > >
> > > I learned it around 1990 as Japan catching a cold. Misako Onoda (
> > >
> https://japanintercultural.com/about-us/news/president-obamas-bow-to-the-emperor/
> > > <
> > >
> https://japanintercultural.com/about-us/news/president-obamas-bow-to-the-emperor/
> >)
> > > has an article that includes this.
> > >
> > > On July 21, Argentine President Alberto Fernández said (
> > >
> https://es-us.finanzas.yahoo.com/noticias/video-alberto-fern%C3%A1ndez-alguien-estornuda-175600794.html
> > > <
> > >
> https://es-us.finanzas.yahoo.com/noticias/video-alberto-fern%C3%A1ndez-alguien-estornuda-175600794.html
> >)
> > > "Cuando alguien estornuda en Moscú un argentino se resfría”.”
> > >
> > >
>

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