tage to us on the southeastern coast than even that of the great staple of the sea islands. Probably the people who remained upon these islands, within protection of our armies, could, under wise control, have supplied all the forage needed this year by the forces in the Department of the South. The full ration for a horse weighs twenty-six pounds; that of a soldier three pounds. An army well organized and equipped for active operations, with a due proportion of cavalry, artillery, and baggage trains, will have not less than one horse or mule to every four soldiers; so that the weight of food for the animals is more than double that of the rations of the men. How important an aid, how great an economy, in a long contest, therefore, would there be in raising, by this cheap labor, the greater part of the forage alone for the Southern department - thus, for a great portion of our wants, transferring the base of supplies, now at New York, to Hilton Head or New Orleans.

The Department has found it difficult to transfer this labor from one part of the seat of war to another. Local and family ties seem to be very strong with these people, and, with all their faith in the power and good will of our military commanders, it was found difficult to get volunteer laborers to leave Port Royal for other depots.

A population of 4,000,000, true to the interests of the Union, with slight assistance from the Army, will, under proper regulation and government, be of the greatest assistance in holding the territory, once recovered. The principal staples of the South are the product exclusively of their labor. If protected upon the lands they have heretofore cultivated, with some organization, and with support from small detachments of loyal troops, they would not only produce much of what is needed to feed our armies and their trains, but they would forever cut off from the rebellion the resources of a country thus occupied.

The rebel armies move with ease through portions of the border States, living upon the country in which our commanders find no supplies. The people bring forth their hoards and offer them to the rebels for sale or gift. Protect the laboring population, who are the majority in the greater part of the South, in the possession of the land and its products, and this great advantage will, for whatever portion of the country we occupy, be transferred to us. As soon as the coast is thoroughly occupied and the people organized trade will revive. Cotton, rice, sugar, and other products will be exchanged by the producer for what he needs. Their wants will be supplied direct from the Northern factories, and the cultivation of the great staples will enable them to pay for what they use. A perfectly free trade may thus again grow up between the North and the South, and, with greater or less rapidity, it will spread over the whole country as our spersing the rebel armies.

The greater part of the whole country which formerly produced the sea-island cotton is now thoroughly restored to the Union. The laborers are there - the soil and climate. It needs only assurance of protection to revive the cultivation of the staple, as well as to produce vast quantities of corn and forage for our troops. Since this war must be conducted by marches and battles and sieges, why neglect the best means to make them successful and their results permanent? It is worthy of notice that thus far the portions of territory which, once recovered, we have most firmly held, are precisely those in which the greatest proportion of colored men are found.