David my only comment about the "mob" was to illustrate that a land force would have been able to attack Fort Moultrie and that Fort Moultrie would have to be taken by such a land force in order for the Union navy to reasonably reenforce and resupply Fort Sumter. It is my understanding that any ship that docked at Fort Sumter would either be under the direct fire of either Fort Moultrie or the Johnson Island battery. Either Moultrie or Johnson Island would have been within close enough range to do serious damage to any stationary wooden vessel large enough to carry the necessary amount of soldiers and supplies.