St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1884-04-06
Il Heroine of the Var.
Inter ocean

Inter-Ocean.
I saw by the Philadelphia papers the other
day that the Grand Army posts had given a
reception to Mrs. R. NJ, Bonsal, and happen
ing to walk down street with Gen. Sheridan,
1 asked him if he knew her. edo know
her?" he replied, with a surprised look on
his face 'I should say did, That woman
was worth whole brigade of soldiers and
several batteries Of artillery down in the Win
chester campaign, and she was one of the
genuine heroines of the war;"
''Tell me about her."
s'Well, you see, I always believed in fight
ing on information. People said l was
reckless and daring, and all that, and when
1 happened to win fight they said it was
Sheridan's luck. But tell you there wasn't
any luck about it. / never went it blind. /
always knew what I was going to hit before
I made strike, and generally tried to strike
at the right time
"And down there in '64, continued the
General ''when lay before Winchester,
wanted information of what was going on in
the enemy's lines and [ wanted it awful bad.
1 must have it don't you see; but how 1 was
going to get 1t 1 didn't know. Crook was
pretty well acquainted in all that country,
and one day 1 asked him if he didn't know
some one in Winchester we could depend
on. He said there was little Quaker girl in
the town that he thought was all right and
concluded to try her.
''There was an old darby who had gar
den patch about fifteen miles from my head
quarters, and he had pass to go into Win
chester three or four times week with We
getables for the confederate office and town
people. had him brought into my head
quarters one night and asked him if he knew
the school ma'am. He said he did, and then
l sked him if he could get a note to her with
out giving her away. He said he could; and
then I wrote her letter on tissue paper APP
pealing to her loyalty, and requesting her to
give some information of what was going on
in the rebel camp.
II wrapped the note up in tin foil in a lit
tie wad, don't you know, and made the old
darkey carry it in his mouth. The next day
he went into town with load of vegetables
and gave it to her"
''What was her name?''
''Rebecca Wright was her name then, but
she is married now, and her husbands name
is Bonsal."
''Did you get an answered.
eyes, the darkey brought me back a reply,
in which she gave me some very important
inform alton, and provided to send me more
from time to time. We kept upa correspon-
dence after that, and | knew everything old
Early was doing. latter few weeks she sent
me word that Kershaw's division of 5000 or
10, 900 men had been detached and was 60
ing to join Lees army. AS soon as learned
that he was gone and was far enough off to
prevent his getting back, | made an attack
and captured Winchester"
''Did you find the girl when you got into
town?,
''mdeed I did, and my report of the battle
was written in her school ROOM"
| "Was she ever rewarded!'
s'Well, / got her place in the Treasury
| Department, and it was there she got &C
quainted with her husband; but, damn it, l
| think she is entitled to pension!"
| The President Turned the Tables.
| A good story on Senators Allison and Cam
eron has leaked out. Last year these two
were as thick as three in bed, and in the
natural course of events got to runnin o
around together pretty late at night. One
night they were out till an unusually late
ward Allison ruefully suggested that it might
be discreet idea for them to agree upon a
story to tell their wives explanatory Of their
tardy arrival at the domestic hearthstone.
| ooh. pshaW,n cried Cameron, ''that is easily
enough arranged: We'll tell 'em we've been
visiting the president; everybody knows you
know, that the president is one of the all
night boys" So it was agreed to spring this
| fib on the ladies. Mrs. Allison and Mrs.
Cameron accepted the story so amiably that
their husbands gave themselves no uneasi-
ness whatever, and even neglected to adj
wise the president of the part he would be
expected to play in the deception in case
there was any inquiry made about it, Lo
and behold the very next Friday evening,
while attending reception at the White
house with her husband, Mrs. Cameron re-
marked very naively and very sweetly to
Gen. Arthur: ''Mr. President, l feel as if /
ought to reproach you for having kept nv
husband out so late the other evening. .
'SOut so late? The other cveningP' cried the
astonished president.
Greatly madam, I do not understand you. y
IT refer to last Wednesday night, - replied
Mrs. Cameron; ''the senator and Senator Al
1 ison were here, you remember till nearly
3 O'Clock in the morning." President Arthur
was about to enter general denial, when he
observed Cameron standing beside his wife
engaged in the widest kind of dumb show,
which indicated that the senator wanted the
president to take tumble and help him out
in this particular racket. 1t being o cold