“Of course!”
“Well, his full name is Jan Bartholomeus Van Vlotens Couwenhorn Van der Helst Poffenburgh.”
“Then he is Dutch.”
32“Yes. He was the property of four officers, and each owner bestowed a portion of his name.”
“What do you call him for short?”
“Solomon.”
“Solomon!”
“At first we called him Jan, but the other three sponsors objected. They said it was favoritism. So we all agreed on Solomon for every day use.”
“And he never resented it?”
“No. He understood it as a tribute to his extraordinary wisdom.”