and patrols out all the time, with instructions to arrest all stragglers, who are punished at once by a field officer of their regiment, under authority of General Orders, Numbers 91, from the War Department.

The police duty of the camp is especially assigned to the regimental officer of the day, commanding the camp guard. He is responsible for the order and discipline and the cleanliness within the camp, whilst commanders of regiments, brigades, and divisions lay out and arrange the camp and exercise the general superintendence in regard to order and discipline.

Inspections of companies are held Sundays, and ordinarily a written report of every company commander has to be sent in by regimental commander directly to these headquarters, to ascertain that the inspection was really made.

I have the honor to remain, your obedient servant,

F. SIGEL,

Major-General, Commanding Grand Reserve Division.

WASHINGTON, February 2, 1863.

Honorable E. M. STANTON, Secretary of War:

SIR: On the 30th of December, 1862, I addressed you a letter* to accompany the report of the commission ordered by yourself "to examine and report upon the plan of the present forts, and sufficiency of the present system of defenses for the city."

The Commission was composed as follows:

Bvt. Brigadier General J. G. Totten, Chief Engineer U. S. Army.

Brigadier General M. C. Meigs, Quartermaster-General.

Brigadier General W. F. Barry (major Fifth Artillery), U. S. Volunteers.

Brigadier General J. G. Barnard (major of Engineers), U. S. Volunteers.

Brigadier General G. W. Cullum (major of Engineers), U. S. Volunteers.

The letter was intended as a report of my own operations as chief engineer of the defenses of Washington, as a synopsis of the results arrived at by the Commission, and a statement of the amount necessary, as estimated by me, to execute all the additional work recommended by the Commission, and which Congress should be called on to appropriate. As it would be improper to make public the report of the Commission, I deem it proper to make here one or two extracts, which will enable Congress to understand the opinion entertained by the eminent officers whom you associated with me on this occasion.

* * * *

The Commission do not deem it necessary to enter into the history of the construction of these works, though fully to appreciate their merits or demerits that history should be known (as it is presumed to be by those immediately interested), and it is fully given in the engineer's report to the Chief Engineer U. S. Army, dated December 10, 1861.

* * * *

The Commission conclude their by expressing their convictions of the great importance of this system of defenses to Washington, and by urging upon the War Department and Congress to take steps and provide means for a fully and early completion of the work.

* * * *

The position of Washington, on the very borders of the insurgent territory, exposes it to great danger in cases of serious reverse to our armies in Virginia.

* * * *

I would add that in asking for an appropriation of $200,000, far the largest part of this sum is required to carry out the recommendations

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*See Series I, Vol. XXI, p. 902.

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