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Iwan
John Bertram is a friend of James’s, a Pennsylvania farmer, Quaker, and celebrated botanist whom Iwan visits in Letter XI. Bertram has little formal education but became a self-taught botanist after he began noticing beautiful plants on his farm. His knowledge and specimen collection have even gained him a reputation in Europe.
John Bertram Quotes in Letters from an American Farmer
The Letters from an American Farmer quotes below are all either spoken by John Bertram or refer to John Bertram. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Letter 11 Quotes
Then I began to botanize all over my farm; in a little time I became acquainted with every vegetable that grew in my neighbourhood and next ventured into Maryland, living among the Friends; in proportion as I thought myself more learned, I proceeded farther, and by a steady application of several years, I have acquired a pretty general knowledge of every plant and tree to be found in our continent.
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Letter XI is unique in the book because it’s not written from James’s perspective, but from the perspective of James’s friend Iwan, who is visiting America from Russia. Iwan pays a visit to America’s first famous botanist, John Bertram (an actual historical figure, though elsewhere known as John Bartram). Bertram is explaining to Iwan how he became a botanist. He did not learn his trade by attending a university or studying under a renowned European botanist like Linnaeus. Rather, he got started when he began to notice beautiful wildflowers around his own farm. After acquainting himself with some scientific basics, Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus volupt
“I am glad to see that thee hast so much compassion; are there any slaves in thy country?” “Yes, unfortunately, but they are more properly civil than domestic slaves; they are attached to the soil on which they live; it is the remains of ancient barbarous customs established in the days of the greatest ignorance and savageness of manners and preserved notwithstanding the repeated tears of humanity, the loud calls of policy, and the commands of religion. The pride of great men, with the avarice of landholders, make them look on this class as necessary tools of husbandry, as if freemen could not cultivate the ground.”
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This is a conversation between Iwan and John Bertram about the Russian practice of serfdom. Iwan has just finished telling Bertram that he can’t stand to see American slaves mistreated, and here, he goes on to explain that serfdom isn’t identical to slavery as it’s practiced in America, but it is plainly analogous. Serfs are bought and sold along with the land on which they live and work, a practice dating back centuries and now considered to be indispensable to Russian life. Crèvecoeur held strong antislavery views, so this quote should be read not merely as a critique of Russian Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accus
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John Bertram Character Timeline in Letters from an American Farmer
The timeline below shows where the character John Bertram appears in Letters from an American Farmer. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Letter 11
...author of this letter, a Russian gentleman named Iwan, recounts a visit to botanist John Bertram.
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Mr. Bertram lives in a modest house with a tower in the middle. Iwan finds the botanist...
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Iwan questions Mr. Bertram about the work he is doing. Bertram explains that the Schuylkill River created a lot...
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...through the strings of an Eolian harp, which he’s never seen before. Retiring into Mr. Bertram’s study, Iwan is surprised to see a coat of arms in a gilt frame. Bertram...
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When Bertram asks about husbandry in Russia, Iwan explains that few Russian farmers own their land, so...
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Mr. Bertram encourages Iwan to read a letter he received from Queen Ulrica of Sweden. Iwan is...
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One day, while taking a rest from ploughing, Bertram sat under a tree and began examining a daisy, thinking it a shame that he...
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Iwan spends several happy days on Bertram’s farm and is struck by the ease and mildness in all the relationships in the...
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Bertram criticizes other Christians who rule their enslaved people through fear, without teaching them any religious...
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Iwan’s happy visit with Bertram is punctuated by the Sunday service at the Quaker meeting in Chester, Pennsylvania. The meeting-house...
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