The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1897-10-27
CHARLESTON FROM THE SEA.
"A Sudden Il:nSition to a Southern Scene.
Local Characteristics.


never been known to forcgo, notwith.
standing all The many and various
kinds Of craft that come into her har-
Dor. She knows that ushc is fair tc
look upon with that tender light en-
folding her, aud that she renders her,
self far more interesting by not dis
playing all her charms at once. Lit
tic by little she rises bodily from the
/ water, and this judicious reserve cx-
cites deep interest in the bcholdcr.
il the adventurous voyagcr got over
the Bar after nightfall he would be
guided up the harbor by the range
light in st. Philips stccple, one of
the few, if not the only harbor light
on the coast that is located in a
Church stccplc and kept trimmed and
burning by Church sexton, the
identical sexton that ushcrs strang-
crs up the aisle on Sundays and rcr-
forms other digniiicd duties connected
with his office. When the officer in
charge OF the government works in
Charleston harbor first broached the
matter of making the stccplc light
house the vcstry dcmurrcd. 1t was a
benevolent, a kindly purpose, but it
was secular withal; might it'not be
putting their rcvcrcd tabernacle to
undignficd use? The proposition
was without precedent. Thccgovern-
mcnt's representative urged on their
consideration the fact that the steeple
was just in the exact spot where q
range light was needed; the sexton
should tend the light. Everything
should be done to preserve the digni-
ty and placidity of the ancient struc-
ture, and, indeed, to improve or re
pair it should occasion require. With
these stipulations vouched for, the
consent Of the parishioners was gained.
Honorcd old St. Philips! She had
been "just in range line before,
when hostile vessels picked her out
for target. During the lombard
mcnt the beseigers always avowcd that
they aimed at her spire, and when this
government light was being arranged
for, three years ago, shell. uncx-
plodcd, was found in part of the
woodwork.
It :s, perhaps, these unexplodetl
shells that Charleston still harbors in
her bosom, all against her will though
it be, that makes old Sumter look so
glum and retrospective, 80 almost
tragic, even on sunny day, despite
the air Of domesticity impaired by the
newly painted cottage Of the keeper,
and the tufts of grass that grow above
her wslled-in parade ground. Fort
Moultrie, opposite. pillowed on the
white sands Of Sullivan's Island, looks
benign, almost cheerful. Street cars
jingle past it's door. the 1ound of chill
dren's voices reaches it from the
beach below, and nearby houses shell
ter families long since reconstructed.
Sumter has mono of these soothing,
everyday influences. Apart, out
there in the harbor, self-centered on
her single isle, that affords no inch of
foothold to friend or foe, she looks
impregnable still and in no mood to be
trifled with, in reality, though, she is
not so formidable as she looks, for
| nearly all Of tho ordnance that played
such q significant part three decades
ago has been removed, and the new
magazines and other appliances Of war
that have been placed there since are
only half completed
'There is nothing at Fcrt Sumter
now," says the government official
who is in charge Of the harbor. Gas
far as is possible, all traces of the
fight in the early sixties have been
taken away or covered up, and the
work Of renovation and outftting, be-
gun twenty years ago, at the time Of
the Virginius war scare, was left in a
very crude condition :.
The government does not say so,
because work on the coast lefenses
just now must be carried on with se-
crccy, but rumor has it that in the
near future Fort Sumter will be fitted
out in no equiyocal fashion, and that
hundreds Of thousands of dollars will
be devoted to the work. Situated
just as she is. she is important, and
as much pains will be taken with her
as are expended on the new mortar
and rifle batteries ON Sullivan's Is-
land.
If tradition may be trusted, (and
surely tradition that comes straight
down from father 60 son is rs much to
be counted on as history, even though
H. ia never sat down IN nr;pN Eort