Good Morning Lowcountry

Summer reading

Readers had some interesting takes on Tuesday's column about beach books.

"Tell whoever is reading 'When You Are Engulfed in Flames' to SKIP pages 236-240," Christine Bosworth wrote. "They are really, really yucky! The next few chapters aren't that great, either. Other than that, the book is really good. I'm about to finish it."

Wait, there's more literary advice ...

"Don't bother with 'Silas Marner', either," she added. "I decided to reread it after being forced to read it in an English lit class over 40 years ago. Life is too short! Have a Bloody Mary and read trash instead!"

Dennis Biby wrote: "Your summer reading list reminded me to thank you for your suggestions about Charleston's history. I read 'A Short History of Charleston' and found it very informative. It could use an update — what? has history changed? Well, it barely mentions Mayor Joe. I've met some 30-somethings who have never known another mayor."

"Have you tried out Amazon's Kindle e-book reader?" Biby added

Meanwhile, a straggler in the newsroom recommends "The Teapot Dome Scandal: How Big Oil Bought the Harding White House and Tried to Steal the Country" by Laton McCartney:

"The good old days when Big Oil — and lots of other big shots — really were guilty of greed-driven corruption. ... The book zips along through sex, violence, intrigue and plenty of laughs. Thoroughly researched, with some new dirt, and written well. Albert Fall, once a U.S. senator and later Secretary of the Interior, became the first former Cabinet member to serve time in jail for crimes committed in that office. The plot even thickens with murder."

Eating fish

South Carolinians who like to fish can go online for updated information to find out if the fish on their line is safe to eat or should be released because of possible contamination.

The S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control's Web site, www.scdhec.gov/fish, has a state map with the latest advisories, information, a booklet and other materials, said David Wilson, chief of DHEC's Bureau of Water.

"This information will help our citizens determine whether to keep and eat the fish they catch in South Carolina waters or release them," Wilson said.

Wilson said fish consumption advisories exist on 60 state water bodies and the Atlantic Ocean because of mercury contamination. A Post and Courier series last year examined the impact of mercury contamination in humans who eat fish out of some of these rivers.

DHEC warns that pregnant women, women planning to become pregnant, infants and children should not eat any fish containing mercury. Mercury is a neurotoxin. Infants and children are particularly sensitive to the effects of mercury, since their nervous systems are still forming.

Earlier this year, DHEC posted signs at public boat landings on waters where advisories are issued. The signs show all species of fish that have restrictions on consumption. There is also advice posted for women of childbearing age and children under 14 years of age.

Major General Robert Smalls

Speaking of history, Robert Smalls was a 23-year-old slave in 1862 when he commandeered Planter, a Confederate transport steamer, loaded his wife and a dozen other slaves aboard, sailed out of Charleston Harbor and surrendered to the nearest Union blockader. That was 146 years ago, and it's a well-known and often-told part of Charleston history.

Monday, another ship will sail past Charleston's Southern Wharf where Smalls made his heroic bid for freedom. It's the $25 million Army logistics support vessel USAV MG Robert Smalls that was commissioned last September in Baltimore. It is the first Army ship to be named for an African-American and the first ship to be named for a Civil War hero.

Smalls piloted the ironclad Keokuk in a Union attack on Fort Sumter, became a South Carolina legislator, helped draft the South Carolina constitution, became a major general in the state militia, served five terms in Congress and was a U.S. Customs collector in Beaufort for almost 20 years.

Salute the ship named for him about 1 p.m. Monday. It will be berthed at the Cruise Ship Passenger Terminal (196 Concord St.) and open to the public at 10 a.m. Tuesday for tours until 3 p.m.

Look for photos from the exhibition "Robert Smalls — Slave, Soldier, Statesman" by Washington, D.C., photographer and historian Kitt Haley Alexander, who campaigned for seven years to have a ship named for Smalls.

The Smalls will leave port about 6 p.m. Tuesday.

GMLc

Call 937-5564. Write gmlc@postandcourier.com. Comment at www.charleston.net/news/gmlc.