be done is accomplished, in my own mind, at least, and is now submitted to your review. Permit me to premise that what I have so far found done on these outer lines I count as just simply worse than nothing. The labor has been wasted, in any aspect, either whether we mean merely to picket these outer lines or mean to make a stand upon them before we fall back. Every work I have seen too plainly indicated that it was never meant to be held a moment by an inferior against a superior force. If so, it ought never to have been constructed, for it is no better than the field of defense itself, and if not so, I have yet to see the first work at all tenable. I count all the old works from the Edisto to Church Flats, then, as but a nucleus for new works now to be begun, and there are no works on John's Island. To these localities alone my attention as yet has been directed, and to these my present observations are meant to be applied. I observe, first, then, that the lines from Aberpoolie Creek, on the Stono, to Willstown, on the Edisto, are tenable, and ought to be held stubbornly, and ought to be speedily constructed to that end. If strengthened properly and promptly they will greatly magnify the strength of a comparatively small number of any well-appointed troops. How? They must be taken in connection with the works on James Island and with the works at the overflow.

First. I would begin on the Stono at Saxby or J. A. Fripp's, and locate there a heavy battery, another at J. Grimball's Point, another at Sol. Legare's, and another at the junction of Little and Big Aberpoolie, on the north side. These four heavy batteries should be strong.

Second. I would construct strong field-works at the head of the Aberpoolie Creek, near Dr. Roper's; thence run a line of field-works northwest across to the Bohicket road at Dr. J. L. Stevens', covering and crossing Bugbee Bridge; thence running on the north side of the eastern branch of Bohicket to J. R. Wilson's, jr., at the forks of Bohicket Creek, and there would construct another causeway and bridge; thence up the western branch of Bohicket, on the east side, nearly north, to the old causeway at Burrell's; thence across Church Creek, bridging it well, to Mary Ann's Point, and thence down that creek, on the north side, to J. J. Chisolm's or bridge at Jenkins' Bluff, repairing that bridge; thence to the mouth of Church Creek, and crossing the New Cut to J. Seabrook's, at which two points I would put heavy batteries, making the whole line to correspond with works to Church Flats one way and with works to Meggett's the other way.

Third. Thence the line north of the Wadmalaw and Edisto from Meggett's to Young's Island; thence to Torgoodoo Neck; thence to forks of Torgoodoo; thence to Ashe's; thence to Little Brittain, to Tom's Point, to Slann's Island Creek defile, to Pineberry, at the house point and in the marshes, and thence to Willstown, where I would recommend strong combined field and heavy works.

The distance on John's Island would be about 13 miles from Saxby, on the Stono, to Wadmalaw Sound, and from J. Seabrook's, opposite the mouth of Church Creek, to Willstown, about 15miles, say the whole distance 30 miles, with seven heavy batteries and a line of field-works, not exceeding 12 miles. This would complete a continuous line from Sullivan's Island to the Edisto, and would make that river defensible up to Jacksonborough.