nearly all of them were, there has been a constant succession of changes at short intervals. The same difficulty was constantly recurring with reference to most of the clerks detailed for the very heavy clerical duty involved by the work of the post and the prison, and in addition to the changes and almost complete revolution in the administration of prison affairs under your orders. I have had enormous amounts of work to do in the way of policing, building, road-making, draining, and repairing, in order to carry out the plan authorized by you last winter and the subsequent orders and instructions received from you, and though I have scarcely lost a day from duty, I have none of the time been in perfect health, and much of the time been unfit to work to advantage, to do everything that ought to be done, and do it in proper time and manner was impossible. All I could do was to select out and carry forward those postponed matters previously and unavoidably deferred, among which were letters and reports to you. Deeming it but just to say this much and not wishing to occupy a moment of your time needlessly, I drop explanations, and am, colonel.

Very respectfully, your obedient servant,

CHAS. W. HILL,

Colonel, Commanding.

HDQRS. U. S. FORCES, JOHNSON'S ISLAND AND SANDUSKY,
Johnson's Island, Ohio, August 26, 1864.

Colonel WILLIAM HOFFMAN,

Commissary-General of Prisoners, Washington, D. C.:

COLONEL: Asking that my letter of explanations of this date may be taken as a prelude to this, I have the honor to report upon subjects specially alluded to for me to report upon in your letter of the 28th ultimo. The preparations to extend the prison by moving the rear fence were commenced by me in April, at the earliest opportunity, to carry out the plan of opening up the avenue along the rear fence, effect the proper drainage, and excavate for the sinks, as you directed, before the fences should be moved, and to carry out also the plan of a ditch cut the solid rock on all but the bay side of the prison yard, to prevent tunneling and at the same time facilitate drainage, involved a large to be done, and all had to be done by the troops. Six new sinks on the rear side were each blasted into the solid rock to the depth of from five to six feet, and with a measurement of about nine feet wide and fourteen feet long. The prison extension might have been made two or three weeks earlier than it was but for the delay in obtaining lumber. It was, however, entirely completed on the 12th day of July. The average width of extension was 95 feet, being 88 feet at the north and 102 feet at the northwesterly corner. The space gained is ample for all necessary purposes.

As to sub-sutlers, I did not know that there were any, and upon investigation I find that they were not in operation over two or three weeks. They were prisoners of war, who, to accommodate each other and Mr. Johnson, received from him vegetables and stationery, which, as he represents, and I think correctly, they received a small profit on, and they were discontinued as soon as your letter on that subject was received. Neither in that matter nor in any other do I think that Mr. Johnson intended to violate your orders. About his prices