Welsh rarebit considered to be a supper or tavern dish, based on the fine cheddar-type cheeses and the wheat bread [...] . Surprisingly, it seems there was not only a Welsh Rabbit, but also an English Rabbit, an Irish and a Scotch Rabbit, but nary a rarebit." Michael Quinion writes: "Welsh rabbit is basically cheese on toast (the word is not 'rarebit' by the way, that's the result of false etymology; 'rabbit' is here being used in the same way as 'turtle' in 'mock-turtle soup', which has never been near a turtle, or 'duck' in 'Bombay duck', which was actually a dried
Dream of the Rarebit Fiend voices. The Edison Military Band performed a piece called "Dream of the Rarebit Fiend" on an Edison cylinder (Edison 9585) in 1907, written by Thomas W. Thurban. The music was likely inspired by Porter's 1906 film, and may have been intended to accompany it. The piece was written for an 18–20-piece band, and has been recorded numerous times. "Rarebit Fiend" set up a formula which McCay was to use in the better-known "Little Nemo". A large number of the Nemo strips used ideas recycled from "Rarebit Fiend", such as the October 31, 1907, "walking bed" episode, which was used in