War of the Rebellion: a Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies

WAR DEPARTMENT,
Washington, December 21, 1860.

Major ANDERSON,
First Artillery, Commanding Fort Moultrie, S.C.:

SIR: In the verbal instructions communicated to you by Major Buell,  you are directed to hold possession of the forts in the harbor of Charleston, and, if attacked, to defend yourself to the last extremity. Under these instructions, you might infer that you are required to make a vain and useless sacrifice of your own life and the lives of the men under your command, upon a mere point of honor. This is far from the President’s intentions. You are to exercise a sound military discretion on this subject.

It is neither expected nor desired that you should expose your own life or that of your men in a hopeless conflict in defense of these forts. If they are invested or attacked by a force so superior that resistance would, in your judgment, be a useless waste of life, it will be your duty to yield to necessity, and make the best terms in your power.

This will be the conduct of an honorable, brave, and humane officer, and you will be fully justified in such action. These orders are strictly confidential, and not to be communicated even to the officers under your command, without close necessity.

Very respectfully,

JOHN B. FLOYD.

FORT MOULTRIE,  S. C., December 20, 1860.
(Received A. G. O., December 24.)

Col. S. COOPER,
Adjutant-General:

COLONEL: I had the honor to receive and to answer, at half past 1 o’clock this morning, a telegram from the honorable Secretary of War, dated the 19th instant. Captain Foster has, I presume, reported to the Department his compliance with his order.

The ordinance of secession passed the South Carolina Convention to-day.

We are making good progress in our defensive works on the ramparts. Captain Foster finished to-day mounting the guns in the caponiere (or bastionettes), and [will] commence the other caponiere to-morrow. In my letter (No. 6) of December 6, I had the honor of stating my objections to commencing that work, and suggested that I thought it ought to be replaced by some work which could be built in a shorter time. No reply has been made to that suggestion, and Captain Foster says that as the project was approved by the Engineer Department and by the Secretary of War he does not feel authorized to make a change of the plan.

I regret this very much, for if an attack is made whilst that work is going on, our fort can be very easily carried. As I have stated before, I do not feel authorized to interfere with the operations of the Engineer Department.

Captain Foster informs me that Lieutenant Snyder is mounting guns at Fort Sumter as rapidly as possible. I have already given my reasons why I thought that ought not to be done, and have seen no reason for changing that opinion.

Hoping that events may take such a turn as soon to relieve me from the dangerous position my little command is now in,

I have the honor to be, very respectfully, your obedient servant,

ROBERT ANDERSON,

Major, First Artillery, Commanding.

FORT MOULTRIE, S. C., December 19, 1860.

Col. R. E. DE RUSSY,
Commanding Corps of Engineers, U. S. Army, Washington, D.C.:

COLONEL: I have the honor to inform you that I had an interview to-day with General Schnierle (general of division in this vicinity) and several other prominent citizens of Charleston, in relation to the little excitement attending the issue of forty muskets to me at the arsenal on the 17th instant.

The main facts connected with this were communicated in my letter of yesterday.

The interview to-day was satisfactory to me, as I saw that the action of General Schnierle had arisen from his great desire to allay the temporary excitement among some of the citizens. Although I declined to return the muskets until I was directed by the Government so to do, yet I proposed at once to refer the matter to Washington, and accordingly telegraphed to Captain Maynadier, Ordnance Corps, to inquire whether the muskets should be returned to the arsenal or not. Up to this time I have received no answer. The reasons for my doing so are these: General Schnierle asserted that Colonel Huger had assured the governor of this State that no arms should be removed from the arsenal, and Captain Humphreys, military storekeeper, felt himself placed in a peculiar position from having acted contrary to the colonel’s assurance, while on the other hand neither Captain Humphreys or myself had been informed by Colonel Huger that he had made such assurance; neither had we any positive written testimony of the fact. To solve the question, the Ordnance Bureau must be appealed to for a decision, and I did this immediately, in order to allay, as soon as possible, any irritations that might have arisen. I was actuated in all I did by a sincere desire to remove all cause of irritation, so that if the extremists are disposed for violent measures they must force the issue themselves.

I am abating nothing of the activity of preparation in Fort Moultrie and Fort Sumter, and in fact am increasing it.

If the Department becomes aware of any change of policy in regard to this preparation in these forts, or in either of them, I beg that instructions may be given me at once, so that I may vary my operations accordingly, for my present expenses are very heavy. In Fort Sumter the mounting of the guns, laying a flagging of first and second tiers of casemates, forming embrasures of second tier, and finishing the barracks is progressing regularly, and as fast as separately-organized parties can work. The force will be to-morrow 150 men.

On Fort Moultrie 137 men are at work. The wet ditch is nearly completed. The foot-bridge connecting the second stories of the barracks and the guard-house, which is arranged for a citadel, is constructed. Doors are being cut through the partition walls of the barracks of the second floor, and trap-doors in the floors, and ladders made. A machicoulis gallery over the southeast angle is being made of palmetto logs for infantry. All the guns on the east front (facing the sand hills) are being placed in embrasure, by raising high and solid merlons, formed of cement barrels filled with sand, sods, and green hides.

Three high cavalier-like positions are also formed on this front for sharpshooters. The picket fence bordering the ditch is carried more than half around the fort, and is well protected from a destructive fire of cannon by a small glacis in front of it. The flanking howitzers are being mounted in the finished caponiere, and will be tried by firing to-morrow. Nearly all the projecting brick cordon is cut off smooth.

All of this work I have done and am doing myself, because it is necessary to be done, and the garrison is too weak to undertake any work beside the regular drills.

There is another thing which I propose to do, and of which I write to you in season, so that if you disapprove it you can have time to forbid it. I propose to connect a powerful Daniels battery with the magazine at Fort Sumter, by means of wires stretched across under water from Fort Sumter to Fort Moultrie, and to blow up Fort Sumter if it is taken by an armed force, and after Lieutenant Snyder and my men have time to escape from it.

I propose, also, to use the same battery to fire small mines around Fort Moultrie, and to explode a large mine placed in the sand hills. All of these last preparations may seem to be unnecessary, and I hope they may prove to be so in the end, but there are very strong probabilities that they may be required, and, at any rate, I regard a complete state of preparations as the surest safeguard against attack.

Very respectfully, your obedient servant,

J. G. FOSTER,

Captain, Engineers.

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DECEMBER 19, 1860.

Maj. ROBERT ANDERSON, &c., Charleston, S. C.:

I have just telegraphed Captain Foster to return any arms that he my have removed from Charleston Arsenal.

J. B. FLOYD.

CHARLESTON ARSENAL, S.C.,
December 18, 1860.

Capt. J. G. FOSTER,
U. S. Engineer Corps, Sullivan’s Island, S.C.:

DEAR CAPTAIN: The shipment of the forty muskets, &c., has caused intense excitement. General Schnierle called upon me this morning, and assures me that some violent demonstration is certain unless the excitement can be allayed, and says that Colonel Huger assured the governor that no arms should be removed from this arsenal. As the order under which I made the issue to you was dated prior to Colonel Huger’s visit here, I am placed in rather a delicate position. I have pledged my word that they (the forty muskets and accouterments) shall be returned by to-morrow night, and I beg that you will return them to me. I informed General Schnierle that you only desired two muskets, but that I could not issue them without the proper order, but that I had an old order covering the issue of the forty. In view of my pledge that the muskets shall be returned, and the position which Colonel Huger is placed by the issue, I feel satisfied that you will comply with my request. In haste.

Very truly, yours,

F. C. HUMPHREYS,

Military Storekeeper Ordnance, U. S. Army.

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FORT MOULTRIE, December 18, 1860

F. C. HUMPHREYS, Esq.,
Military Storekeeper, Charleston Arsenal:

DEAR SIR: I have received your note of this date, begging me to return to the arsenal the forty muskets which I obtained yesterday (in accordance with an order from the Ordnance Department, issued some time since), because of a threatened violent demonstration on the part of some persons of Charleston. You state that Colonel Huger, of the Ordnance (as General Schnierle asserts to you), assured the governor that no arms should be removed from the arsenal, and that as the above assurance of Colonel Huger was made subsequent to the receipt of the order for the issue of these muskets to me, you have pledged your word that they shall be returned to the arsenal to-morrow. If Colonel Huger made this pledge to the governor of this State, I presume he must have acted by the authority of the Government; but of this I have no direct knowledge. All I know is that an order was given to issue forty muskets to me, that I actually required them to protect the property of the Government against a mob, and that I have them in my possession. To give them back now, without proper authority, would subject me to blame if any loss should occur which might be prevented by keeping them. I am willing to refer the matter to Washington. I am sorry to be obliged to disappoint you, and will call to assure you so to-morrow at 12 o’clock, at which time I shall be happy to meet General Schnierle, if he is disposed to see me.

Very truly, yours,

J. G. FOSTER,

Captain of Engineers.

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FORT MOULTRIE, S.C.,
Friday, December 14, 1860.

Col. S. COOPER, Adjutant-General U. S. Army:

DEAR COLONEL: I inclose herewith a slip from the Charleston Mercury of 13th instant, mentioning from Washington correspondent Major Bell’s [Buell’s] mission to this place.

I told the major that it was likely they would get an inkling of it. I merely send this to show you the almost impossibility of keeping anything secret. Nothing here worthy of an “official”–a calm before the storm. Many think no attack will be made on me until after they are in position in Fort Sumter, and that they will drive me out with her guns. It is all conjecture. I shall, of course, prepare here for the worst.

All well and in fine spirits.

Yours, truly,

ROBERT ANDERSON.

[Inclosure.]

FROM WASHINGTON.

WASHINGTON, December 10.

Mr. EDITOR: A Caucus was held here a few nights since of Senators and Representatives from the cotton States. It numbered about twenty-six, and represented the States of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida,  and North Carolina, and upon the question of the necessity of the immediate secession of South Carolina there was not a dissenting voice.

Major Bell [Buell] and several other officers of the Army have been sent to Fort Moultrie to look after the forts and keep a sharp lookout upon them. They were sent for no good to us. See that they make no change in the distribution of soldiers, so as to put them all in Fort Sumter. That would be dangerous to us.

Yours,

CHARLES.

FORT MOULTRIE, S.C., December 11, 1860.

Memorandum of verbal instructions to Major Anderson, First Artillery, commanding at Fort Moultrie, S.C.

You are aware of the great anxiety of the Secretary of War that a collision-of the troops with the people of this State shall be avoided, and of his studied determination to pursue a course with reference to the military force and forts in this harbor which shall guard against such a collision. He has therefore carefully abstained from increasing the force at this point, or taking any measures which might add to the present excited state of the public mind, or which would throw any doubt on the confidence he feels that South Carolina will not attempt, by violence, to obtain possession of the public works or interfere with their occupancy. But as the counsel and acts of rash and impulsive persons may possibly disappoint those expectations of the Government, he deems it proper that you should be prepared with instructions to meet so unhappy a contingency. He has therefore directed me verbally to give you such instructions.

You are carefully to avoid every act which would needlessly tend to provoke aggression; and for that reason you are not, without evident and imminent necessity, to take up any position which could be construed into the assumption of a hostile attitude. But you are to hold possession of the forts in this harbor, and if attacked you are to defend yourself to the last extremity. The smallness of your force will not permit you, perhaps, to occupy more than one of the three forts, but an attack on or attempt to take possession of any one of them will be regarded as an act of hostility, and you may then put your command into either of them which you may deem most proper to increase its power of resistance. You are also authorized to take similar steps whenever you have tangible evidence of a design to proceed to a hostile act.

D.C. BUELL,

Assistant Adjutant-General.

.
.
.FORT MOULTRIE, S. C., December 9, 1860

(Received A. G. O., December 12.)

Col. S. COOPER Adjutant-General:

[SIR :] I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of the 6th instant, and to state that I have directed the A. A. Q. M. to hire men to perform police and fatigue duty at this post, and to send on a special estimate for funds to pay them.

I hear that the attention of the South Carolinians appears to be turned more toward Fort Sumter than it was, and it is deemed probable that their first act will be to take possession of that work.

The idea of attempting to take this place by a coup de main appears not to be so favorably regarded as it was, and they will perhaps determine to besiege us. To enable them to do this they must procure heavy guns, which they can get (if not from Fort Sumter and Castle Pinckney) from Pulaski or some other southern fort. Anything that can be done which will cause delay in their attack will give time for deliberation and negotiation, and may, by God’s blessing, save the shedding of blood. I would therefore respectfully suggest whether it might not be advisable and prudent to cause the ammunition, except what may be needed for the defense of this fort and the armament of Fort Sumter and Castle Pinckney, to be destroyed or rendered unserviceable before they are permitted to fall into their hands. The same may be advisable at those forts from whence supplies might be brought to Charleston. Fort Sumter is a tempting prize, the value of which is well known to the Charlestonians, and once in their possession, with its ammunition and armament and walls uninjured and garrisoned properly, it would set our Navy at defiance, compel me to abandon this work, and give them the perfect command of this harbor.

Captain Foster having received the pintle stones for his bastionette guns, will now finish the one he has been at work on. Our supply of provisions has not arrived. I hope that it will soon be in. If we do not hear of it in a few days, I shall have to direct the A. A. commissary to make some purchases in Charleston.

I am, colonel, very respectfully, your obedient servant,

ROBERT ANDERSON,

Major, First Artillery, Commanding.