y knew that
the moment had arrived in which the problem of the capacity
of the resistant power of earth and sand to the forces to
which science so far developed in war could subject them was
to be solved and that Battery Wagner was to be that day the
subject of the crucial test. The small armament of the fort
was really inappreciable in the contest about to be
inaugurated. There was but one gun which could be expected
to be of much avail against the formidable naval power which
would assail it and on the land side few which could reach
the enemy's batteries. When these guns were knocked to
pieces and silenced there was nothing left but passive
resistance, but the Confederates, from the preliminary tests
which had been applied, had considerable faith in the
capacity of sand and earth for passive resistance.

"The fort was in good condition, having been materially
strengthened since the former assault by the indefatigable
exertions of Colonel David Harris, chief engineer, and his
valuable assistant, Captain Barnwell. Colonel Harris was a
Virginian, ex-officer of the army of the United States and a
graduate of West Point, who had some years before retired
from the service to prosecute the profession of civil
engineering. Under a tempest of shells he landed during the
fiercest period of the bombardment at Cummings' Point, and
made his way through the field of fire to the beleaguered
fort to inspect its condition and to inspire the garrison by
his heroic courage and his confidence in its strength.
Escaping all the dangers of war, he fell a victim to yellow
fever in Charleston, beloved and honored by all who had
ever known him. The heavy work imposed upon the garrison in
repairs and construction, as well as the strain upon the
system by constant exposure to the enemy's fire, had induced
General Beauregard to adopt the plan of relieving the
garrison every few days by fresh troops. The objection to
this was that the new men had to be instructed and
familiarized with their duties; but still it was wise and
necessary, for the same set of officers and men, if retained
any length of time, would have been broken down by the
arduous service required of them. The relief was sent by
regiments and detachments, so there was never an entirely