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Re: Star of the West troops
In Response To: Star of the West troops ()

What difference would a Revenue flag have done?

Wouldn't they have been issued after a proper inspection by the Revenue Cutter? On January 9th 1861 were Revenue Cutter still operating off of the mouth of Charleston Harbor? If so who would have been operating them the United States or South Carolina?

So if a ship appears in the dead of night flying a Revenue Flag whose Revenue Flag would it have been? And how would that have granted the Star of the West any protection? Granted that the security was pretty loose and that it was pretty much by accident that supposedly a young cadet was the first to alert the sentries of the "Star of the West" approach and supposedly fired the first shot, but what difference would a Revenue Flag being flown on a ship flying the United States Flag entering Charleston Harbor have done?

Captain McGowan probably did the wisest thing by turning back once his element of surprise was lost. Which was probably his best hope to complete his mission, in the first place, but what is all the flap over the lack of a Revenue Flag?

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