The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1861-02-23
THE NATIONAL CRISIS.
Can Fort Pickens be Taken !..Affajrs Mt
Fort Sumter-.EXaminina Ships Papers,
CAN FORT ptcKExs BE TAKEN,


Ben Lane Posey writes a letter to the Mo-
bile Advertiser, in which he disapproves of
the granting of the arinistce by the State au-
thorities, and defends Gen. Chase from the
attacks made upon him. On the possibility of
now taking the fortress he says:
But conceding that 1t was, or is strong and
terrible fortress pray let them tell US when il
will be less strong and terrible than now -
Shall we sit down before its walls and wait
for some horn from Jericho to blow them
down with it's blast? If the argument is
good for the present it is good for all coming
time. But Fort Pickens was not, at the time
either strong or terrible: 1t requires two
things to make strong fortress. First the
defences made by nature and art; and second
garrison sufficient to make them available
Gibraltar is rather q strong fortress, and vet
Gibraltar has twice been captured from the
force of numbers from an insufficient garri.
son. The Castle of San Juan de Ullao is
rather a strong fortress. but it has twice
changed flags for the same reason. l might
give other Illus ira tl0ns, but these are sut-
cient to demons tie that, without sufficient
garrison, no fortress is very strong OF terrible
This precisely the weakness OF Fort
Pickens. Its garrison was less than lG0 men,
1t is a fort of vast area and armament. Its
proper garrison is 1000. 1t mounts upwards
of 200 guns--I believe about 40. To express
the idea by a seeming paradox, its strength
was its weakness-or its wea kness consisted
in its strength. In short, it was too large in
area to be defended by loo men. Its area is
900 yards Its garrison, if depIoyed on its
walls, would make only one man to every so
feet. Would not this be a hopeful line OF bat
tie to back an avalanche of 800 brave fierce
men. launched upon them with the fury of
devils? Assailng dozen or fifteen points
simultaneously, how could n garrison of loo,
divided into squads of half a dozen, prevent
the entrance of the assailants?
There is another consideration. To load,
fire and trim cannon requires at least ten
men and n boy. That is the number assigned
tO n q
are most manageable No less than twelve
men efficiently man the guns on Fort
Pichens. The garrison, then, could man only
eight guns, if all were put to the same work
Ali the artilierists are exposed in appearing
at the guns, and a single discharge from the
assailants would silence half the guns. But
worse than this for the garrison. The tort
was in the poorest condition for defence. Sand
had nearly filled up the ditch which protects
the land side from assault. On the water
side there was no ditch, and sand hills twenty
feet high had formed near the fort, which
made the casemate guns on that side so use
less that all of them We're dismounted and
the classmates filled up. On the land side q
high blnff extending along the beach would
have protected the assaiiants until within a
hundred yards of the fort. These facts will
show how easily it might have been taken
But conceding that it could not easily have
been taken by a force of fifteen TO one, and
that 1t would cost a great sacrifice of life, and
probably end in failure, the question remains,
when VIII 1t become weaker, and when will
its capture become easier or cheaper? VIII
ii be aftera fleet of 800 guns have come to its
assistance, and when its garrison shall be in
creased TO 300 or LOCO? Was il wise or foolish
to delay attack when large reinforcements
We're on the way TO relieve the threatened gar
rison? Was it wise to defer an attack upon
an unprepared, weakly -garrsoned fort, and
to attack it when it has become vastly
stronger? Yet these the absurdities of
those who justify the delay upon military
grounds.
But the game is mp now. The golden mo-
ment is lost. The Brooklyn has arrived, and
the Gulf Squadron will arrive very soon. It's
delay this long is due TO the fact that ii was
not supplied with provisions, and had to come
by way OF Havana for Il supply. Fort Pick
ems Is now beyond our power. The mere pre-
sence of the fleet outside the harbor is vir-
tual reinforcement of it. In case OF an az
tack, it is there to defend; and it can, in one
hour, land reinforcempnts at Fort Pickens and
take its position of defence.
AFFAIRS AT FORT SUMTER
The Wing Press, OF Middietown. Orange
county, New \ ork, publishes interesting
letter written by an officer in Major Ander-
sons command to Il relative in that county
1t Is dated at Fort sum ter on February Ith,
and says that the soldiers are standing at their
guns, port fires lighted, daily expecting an
u.tack. From the batteries at Cummings
Point. six mOrtars bear directly upon Fort
Sumter, ana these are behind Notifications
which Will stand severe fire before they can
be made untenable. 1t probably will be Ma
jor Anderson's policy, in case of an attack,
first 10 batter down Fort Moultrie and all the
houses on Sullivans Island, and then to take
the other batteries sefidtim The officer seems
to have no fear of the floating ba tteres which
are SAID to be IN course of instruction. They
VIII De under Sum ter guns for the dis tance
of mile at least, before they can be made
available, and if they get under the walls,
internal maChines" viii be hurled into
them. The writer also details certain other
defensive preparations, and says that they
have abandoned all hope OF receiving aid
from the Government, but gives his word
that manly and vigorous defence will be
made.
| In the mean time, how is it with brave Ma
| jor Anderson and his devoted little band ? Ac-
| cident has enabled me to inform you. Every
word that l write is, as near as l can recol
| lect, from the lips of a recent eye witness.
| The garrison mostly Irishmen, have been
| working night and day completing the fortifi-
! cations, at the period of their occupation in
| such an imperfect state that they could not
! have resls ted an attack, had one been made by
the Charles tOnians. The main door way is
built up so that two men cannot walk abrea st
! through it. One armed with revolver or
! bowie might defend it against a hundred as
| sailantS, supposing he were not shot himself.
Just within, opposite the door, is a huge NOR
| tar. The stones on the wharf have been re-
moved TO strengthen the weak side of the fort
| There are piles of hand grenades ready for
use The lower casema tes have been closed
| fast, the guns shotted, piles of grape and ca
mister placed beside them. The Major looks
! harassed and wan, but perfectly resolute he
can talk OF nothing but the fort and his posi-
| tion he admits that he dreams of it by night
| when he sleeps. He deplores the res pOnsi-
| bility forced upon him. admits that his SYM
| pathies are with the South, but declares that,
| first of all, he is 4 United States officer He
| objects to his endorsement by Abolition Jour-
| mails, declares that they publish forged letters
| attributed to himself and his officers His
| men are all faithful and resolute, in perfect
| military disci ipline; they never grum bled or
| nlu utinled-all stories 10 that effect being m
mitigated lies. They look haggard and worn,
| and preserve strict silence when ques toned.
| They do not no0 expect TO be reinforced. Maj
| Anderson still hopes the business NAV be set
| tied without bioodshed. But he will defend
himself to the last, if attacked. Such, three
| nights ago, was the internal aspect at Fort
| Sumter
EXAMINING SHIPS PAPERS.
| We make the following extract from a letter
to the Macon (Ga.) Telegraph, of the 10Th,
| from member of the Jackson Artillery, sta
| toned at Fort Brown, Ga.
| On Tuesday morning schooner was dis
| covered OFT Jekyll Point, which soon showed
| a disposition to pass us without calling. Lit
Cummings was the officer of the day and in a
| few minutes he had the guns manned and a
| ball whistling across the bow of the craft
| This the schooner did not heed, but Il shell
| from one of our howitzers passing uncomfor-
| tabiy near her bow brought her to as quick as
possible. A boat was lowered and the Captain
| came ashore with the crown OF his hat full Of
| papers. To Lieut. Cummings inquiry why
he did not show q flag, he answered that he
| had none on board but a United States nag,
| which he supposed was not worth much -
| The Lieutenant answered, mot d." and
| after examining his papers invited him to the
officers quarters and then dismissed him. To-
| day we have overhauled two more schooners,
| but have found them all right and let them
| 60 on their way rejoicing
1 Arruuprrp SrIrynR DFRfya THE RuyAf ppa-