on his line to meet those of the enemy, he has sunk three shafts himself, but is making slow progress, as he cannot procure the instruments for boring. The casualties for July 30 will be forwarded in the morning.

The following casualties for the past twenty-four hours are respectfully submitted: Wise's brigade, wounded, 1; Gracie's brigade, wounded, 6; total 7 wounded.

Respectfully, your obedient servant,

B. R. JOHNSON,

Major-General.

Colonel G. W. BRENT,

Assistant Adjutant-General.

HEADQUARTERS JOHNSON'S DIVISION,
Petersburg, Va. August 3, 1864

COLONEL: Brigade commanders report the usual picket-firing along the line during the last twenty-four hours. General Gracie requests the presence of an engineer officer on his line, if only to instruct the officer in charge of fatigue party. A private named Thomas Fowler, Company I, Forty-first Alabama Regiment, has invented a boring instrument to feel for the enemy's mine. It bores ten feet in fifteen minutes. The following is a description of the Fowler border as given by General Gracie:

A simple cylinder of iron, about eight to ten inches long and three inches in diameter, slightly flared at the end, fastened to a pole ten feet long, to which a rope of twenty to twenty-five feet is attached. There should be a slit about a half inch wide on the side to push out the dirt, in case of it caking inside. Three to four holes should be made toward the upper end for the border to allow water and air to escape through. I believe it would be well to cup the border on the inside as illustrated in Figure III, when working in loose wet soil, although I have not yet tried it. Any one can work the tool simply by commencing a hole with a pick, and then forcing the tool down the hole. Every time it is drawn up earth or sand will be found in the cavity, which, if sand, can be easily knocked out, or, if clay, may have to be forced out,by a stick or a bayonet as used by the men, through the slit. The great objection to the border is the noise it makes. There is a man in the brigade who says he can make an auger that will work rapidly. I will order him to make one.

The following casualties are respectfully submitted: Gracie's brigade, wounded, 5. Wise's brigade, wounded, 3 (1 carelessly); Ransom's brigade, wounded, 1; Elliott's brigade, killed, 2; total, 2 killed, 9 wounded.

Total following ordnance stores have been collected during the past twenty-four hours: 4,315 minie-balls, 20 round shot, 41 grape-shot, 16 fuses, 16 pounds lead, and 45 shells.

Respectfully, your obedient servant,

B. R. JOHNSON,

Major-General.

Colonel G. W. BRENT,

Assistant Adjutant-General.

HEADQUARTERS JOHNSON'S DIVISION,
August 4, 1864.

COLONEL: I have nothing of interest to report during the past twenty-four hours. Fatigue parties are constantly at work on the covered ways, &c., that have been ordered. I see from Northern accounts that our mortar and picket-fire is very destructive to the enemy, as they