Also, look at what the people of Charleston were experiencing; forts in their harbor, for years neglected, Fort Sumter very slowly and methodically being built in spurts, as federal funding would allow; and then in a flury-- a wave of foreign workers descends on the forts, Fort Moultrie's moat is cleaned out, its walls cleared of sand and turf, guns loaded and primed; Fort Sumter's guns are finally being mounted and its cisterns put into operation, workers, engineers, officers from Washington come and go, inspectors, adjutants, ect., constaintly coming to visit in the first weeks of fall, around the time of the election. It's veteran and respected commanding officer of the Fort Moultrie garrison is replaced by a stranger, Major Anderson....
I can almost feel the aggitation and distrust they were experiencing.
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David Upton