the repair and reconstruction of bridges, railroads, and common roads; the supply of forage the Army, of horses for the cavalry and artillery, of harness, except for the cavalry and artillery, of wagons, ambulances, hospital transport carts, and all the vehicles of the trains, except artillery carriages and caissons; the supply of labor other than that of troops; the payment of soldiers on extra duty; the erection of barracks, hospitals, and stables; the supply of tents; the care of refugees and prisoners; and generally all the expenses attending the operations and movements of an army not specifically assigned to some other department, fall within the duties of the Quartermaster's Department. The extent of the issues of some of the most important materials of war are set forth in tables attached to the report. A full statement of the expenditures of the fiscal year is given, and it will be seen that, while the Army is reported to have been successfully and promptly furnished with all the supplies which it is the duty of the Quartermaster's Department to provide, the department has not had at its command facilities for completing, as promptly as the interest of the Government and of the officer requires, the examination of the voluminous accounts of its disbursing agents.

The magnitude of the operations for the supply of the Army are set forth in the report, with remarks upon the means of reducing expenditures, and providing for a more speedy settlement of accounts, and a more strict accountability for public money and property.

It will be seen that the Quartermaster's Department, upon which, under the law of 17th of July, providing for the employment of colored persons, the charge of such persons is chiefly imposed, has not found itself burdened with their care, but that it has, on the contrary, derived valuable aid from their labor, and, in a considerable portion of its field of operations, has thus far suffered from a scant rather than fromr. In Louisiana, where at one time there were apprehensions of embarrassment from the number of refugees, the reserve of a tract of rich land along the railroad to Berwick Bay opens up a territory in which many thousands can be profitably employed, if placed under proper regulation and control. At Port Royal such persons have been extensively employed in the work of the Quartermaster's Department, and in cultivating some thousands of acres of the sea islands of the coast, the products of which are used in the support of themselves and families. In the operations of the army on the James River and upon the Potomac, in the fortifications of Washington, and as laborers, teamsters, hostlers, in landing and shipping stores, they have been of great service, and the demand for their labor has exceeded the supply available.

The successful movement of the various expeditions by sea, the transportation of such large bodies of troops, and their regular supply at distant points of the coast, afford striking proofs of the greatness of the military resources of the nation. These movements have been upon a scale of great magnitude. The collection of the vast armies which have been raised, and their transport to the field of operations in so brief a period, would not have been possible but for the extent of our system of steam transport by railroad, river, and sea.

It has not been found necessary to exercise within the loyal States the power conferred upon the President by law, to take actual military possession of the railroads of the country. The various companies met in convention in this city, united in proposing a uniform tariff for Government transportation, which appears to be just and equitable, and they have performed all the services required of them by