The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1871-12-14
Personal Recollection. Of Rousel.

Personal RecOIlectiOns or Rossel.
The London Daily Neaos publish es some personal
recollections Of Rossel written by correspondent
who became acquainted with the deceased when
he was Chief or the STAFF to Cluseret The writer
says
Soon after the Instruction OF the 18th OF March
broke out went 10 the Ministry OF War In order 70
obtain laisses passer. When arrived at the sump
tuous hotel In FauoOurg ST. German, which answers
70 our dlngy War ONCE was at once shown into
the room IN which Colonel Rosse was engaged In
people The room was fIied with oiicers OF the Ma.
uonal Guard belaced and bedzened with glitteriug
only man In authority who wore plain clothes was
Rossel himself, who was then acting as chief OF the
the young Colonel Of Engineers for ali nis plain
clothes, ana perhaps not without reason. Tor they
knew that he was as well ACQUAINTED with every de-
first rudiments. When preferred my request for
aissez -pGsse, he declined very politely, but also
passport ought to De suf1clent. l LETT rather
unhappy at not having obtained my pass"
decided, sefpOssessed manner OF the youthful chief
OF the STAFF There was no French fanfaronde about
him ct ALL and remember well saying 70 friend
who had been much with me among the Germans,
"Rosse Is more Ike one OF Won Moltke's stan
Colonel Rossel was at sitting OF the cour y,say.1e
or court martial, OF which he was President. One
Of the charges brought against the ommunalist
court martial with extraordinary severity. l can
only say tnat In the cases ! saw him try he
only condemned men 70 terms OF imprison-
ment who mad sought aud obtained rank and pay
under the Commune and had then refused to 20
out ana 6gnt the Versailles troops. / believe Ros-
sci sentenced man to death for cowardice under
decree OF the Commune as Rossel probably well knew
| 1t would be when he passedit When Cluseret fell,
stead fI again saw him at Inc war Once and
this time ne at once gave me tdfssez- pdssey,
to me, who was half countryman. "My mother
was Campbell. you Know and one OF my uncles Is
Rossel took me into side bureau-"Let us see L
there Is aay news from the outposts" ne said. OPEN
ing and ss ~ nan over
| pected-that the news IN the Journal OWctei was
well as false as French official news generally Is
could not help expressing my disgust at this system
OF falsehood to Rosse. n dislike It as much as YOU
can possibly do" he replied 'but what am to do
doi the others insist on doctoring dispatches,
Inc truth'i-and he stopped Once we got on the
ana although it was evident that he nated them
most bitterly, should remark that he never said a
sheer AGAINST me nation which a has Crushed dows
his own so cruelly. He remembered what but TOO
ETe Sn,1 oeT seem nov to that
with his tongue, but to 90 his best to beat them
with blood and ron" One remark about the men
| under his command struck me mucn. "Our men
are porn disobedient just as the Germans born
obedienL" He never concealed from himself the
the RAJ ranks Of the National Guard. Ho so can IN
you do anything with such men and such
Of stupid incompetency came under his eyes. '.Ani
II had only known" he added. with Sigh. But In
the War Once In fact ne could not yet out a Of the
place-for plots against him were rife, and II was
only by the utmost vi9or and strctness that he kept
ned from the maniacs in the Commune VINO did
not-some OF tnem-scrrpie to accuse 80 loyal q
with the enemy What that UNDERSTANDING
was the bloody scene Of Monday morning at satory
has Sufficiently shown Us. He hid In hotel ia
the Quarter Latin and even then carried on mis-
favorite studies In military history and In strategy
arrested, aud he tell the clutches OF NJ Thiers'
n.ouchards I did not see my poor friend again
was not easy to see him In prisonNand them was
only able to speak 10 him for few minutes during
suspension OF the slttings OF the court martial
"Why did you not come to me or 60 to my friend
Is house when the Communists were In search
e W. w0ua nsxf st you s
could a'a not WIN asn Hnsfs
treTo chivalry OF disposition was afraid OF CON-
promising friends and preferred to take his chance
Sentenced to DEATH be saa and on de wno o. oe
prefer It, Pernaps, after all, they win not shoot
m he s as be me osE ne
cheerIuy OF some relatives OF his at Brighton and
Of his "Art OF War" which was then IN the press.
won't your" he SAID; ''send the papers to N. Jolly
lhis eloquent. and able defenderJ; he viii give
reader a. sny
man, and, even when Delegate for war. and with
no rest by night or day, he continued to snatch
few moments at his meals 10 commune with his
beloved books. DON'T think he cared any hing
for politics or even understood much about them,
although remember his reading with interest
during his brief reign at the Ministry OF War an
article OF Mr. Frederic Harrlson's on the Commune
In the FOrt'lf0htp Reufe,o Colonel OWENS work
on artillery was also lent him by some English
friend during the same period, and remember his
telling me, apropos OF this latter book that he had
paid visit to Wool witch and visited the arsenal In
detail, with some English officer OF artillery.
Rossel was OF middle height, slight but well made
IN frame, for soldier stooping slightly the effect
no doubt, OF too much reading; he had wonderfully
Intelligent gray eye, and face wuich MAD ooncen.
trated energy and capacity for hard work written
In every line OF IT,