John Bull

Might I beg to ask, through your columns, the origin of the name "*John Bull*," as applied to Englishmen? I have frequently heard the question asked; but I never heard it satisfactorily answered. An antiquary once told me that it was so applied from the number of *Johns* among our countrymen, and the profusion of *bles* in our language; an explanation which I placed to the credit of my friend's ingenuity.