Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1891-06-20
"RoUSSEAU OR A RABBIT"

Gen. Rosecrans' Story of the Origin OF n
Once Famous Remark.
Gen. William S. Rosecrans, the regis
ter of the treasury and brigadier-gen-
eral on the retired list of the regular
army, has fully recovered from his re-
cent severe wrestle with the grip and
has resumed his official labors. When
you want good story get hold of the
former commander of the Army of the
Cumberland when he is in reminis-
cent mood.
Every one has heard the story of a
commotion in camp as being either
Gen. Rousseau or rabbit" and most
readers who know of the story have
heard it charged to Gen. Rosecrans. He
was asked the other day how he came
to make the remark and he said:
THE fact is never made the remark,
but the saying came about one evening
at my headquarters.
'We were at Murfreesboro, in quar-
ters, and one evening a glee club Of
splendid singers came over from Sheri-
dams division and gave us a serenade.
l hustled my staff and servants around
and got up pretty nice lunch in the
big dining-room of the barracks and
most of my division and brigade COM
manders were there as my guests.
''All of my division commanders then
were very popular with their men-Mc-
Cook, Crittenden, Sheridan, Stanley
Rousseau, and Negley; but most of all
was Rousseau. Whenever Gen. Rous-
seau rode through the camps, whether
of his own or other divisions, he was
cheered to the skies by the men, and
would almost invariably make them a
happy speech that raised more cheers.
"That night of the serenade and
lunch, Gen. jeff. C. Davis-dead now
sat at my table almost opposite Rous-
seau-he is gone too Davis spoke up
and said: Rousseau, I've got devilish
good joke on you, but won't tell it un-
less you will promise beforehand not to
go off the handle; you know you are
apt to do that on short order.
"Amid the laughter of the sally, Da-
Wis went on: "A day or two ago 1 was
in my quarters busy on report, when
1 heard an awful row among the troops
camped near. 1t was so prolonged that
fancied a lot of prisoners had been
captured and brought in, and sent Capt.
Davis, my aid-de-camp, out to see what
the commotion was about.
Pretty soon he returned and report
ed that he couldn't find out what it was
all about The troops were wild over
something, and it must be either Gen.
Rousseau or rabbit
"Any old soldier who has ever wit.
messed the commotion in camp occa.
stoned by the discovery of a rabbit will
understand the situation and the joke
We all laughed heartily, and Rousseau
as well as the rest.
"That is the way the Rousseau and
rabbit story originated, but in some
strange fashion it has fastened to me as
its originator
Rousseau heard from that story af.
terward in way that became historic
al. There was representative in con.
| gress from Iowa named Grinnell, who
had conceived an intense dislike tc
Gen. Rousseau and who had heard the
Rousseau and rabbit story, without
understanding it.
''fhese two were in congress together
in 1866, and one day in bitter partisan
speech Grinnell, diminutive man ply
sically, contemptuously referred tc
Gen. Rousseau as the man that soldiers
In the field could never distinguish from
rabbit.
THAT was twisting things arounc