t to withdraw us, or surrender Fort
Sumter without an effort to hold and re-enforce it. Indeed, there came
up an indignant roar from the great North-west, and many parts of the
North, that could not be disregarded with impunity. To have done so
would almost have created a revolution.

I was struck by one modest question which Hartstein put to me on this
occasion. He asked if I thought Anderson would object to his anchoring
the iron-plated floating-battery within a hundred yards of our main
gates. Upon my expressing my surprise at such an audacious proposal, he
replied, "Anderson has allowed these batteries to be built around him,
and has permitted so many things to be done, that I don't see why he
should not go a step farther and allow this."

On the 22d, we learned that Beauregard had assumed command of the forces
opposite to us. As he had just left our army, where he had been highly
trusted and honored, it is said he displayed a good deal of feeling at
finding himself opposed to the flag under which he had served so long.
He expressed much sympathy for his old friend, Anderson, who, he stated,
was merely fulfilling his duty as a soldier in fighting for his own
Government, and asserted that he would not attack us, even if we
withdrew all our sentinels, but would force us to surrender by cutting
off our supplies.

On the 23d, we had but two days' regular fuel left, but we had contrived
to secure and utilize a number of floating logs as they passed the fort,
and these increased the amount on hand to some extent.

Anderson now had no doubt that we would be withdrawn, and the papers all
gave out the same idea. Under these circumstances, as we were out of
fuel, and had a large number of surplus gun-carriages on hand which we
could not possibly use, and which would inevitably fall into the hands
of the enemy when we left, I suggested that it would be good policy to
use them for fire-wood, especially as many of them were decayed and
worthless. He would not, however, consent to this. Perhaps he thought
fuel at six hundred dollars a cord was rather dear. The result was that
they were finally all turned over to the Confederacy, with the other
public property on hand.

On the 25th, Colonel Ward C. Lamon, the former law-partner of Mr.
Lincoln, came over to visit us under charge of Colonel Duryea, of
Charleston. It was given out that he was sent as an agent of the General
Government to see Governor Pickens in relation to post-