Sorry I took so long to get back, I've been reading...

Good points, very good points. The fact his move was not discovered until the next day, and large black plume of smoke hanging over Fort Moultrie had to have been a shock to the people too.

Here's my idea and it's just a thought, but Anderson knew that a three man commission left on the 24th of December to negotiate for the forts (note the 's' on the end) with the President of the United States. He may have also known the day of the meeting was scheduled for the 27th of December. Well the news from Charleston on that day disrupted any peaceful negotiations in Washington. Was the intent to disrupt the meetings and kill the process?

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David Upton