repairing the ramparts. He gives this description of the defence: "The batteries of the bastions which were in barbette had not yet been finished. They were built of casks and filled with earth. He had since his arrival constructed some pieces of blindage of oak, fourteen inches square and fifteen feet long, which extended behind the great house on the lake shore, the place most sheltered for a hospital. Along the faces of the powder magazine, to cover the wall and serve as casemates, he had built a large storehouse with the pieces secured at the top by a ridge. Here the guns and gunsmiths were placed. We may remark that this kind of work is excellent for field-forts in wooded countries, and they serve very well for barracks and magazines; a bullet could only fall upon an oblique surface and could do little harm, because this structure is very solid." Pouchot says that the garrison of the fort at this time consisted of 149 regulars, 183 men of colonial companies, 133 militia and 21 cannoniers. A total of 486 soldiers and 39 employees, of whom 5 were women or children. These served in the infirmary, as did also two ladies, and sewed cartridge bags and made bags for earth. There were also some Indians in the fort, and the officers may not have been included in this number. The fort was capable of accommodating 1000 men. [Illustration: A Drawing of Fort Niagara and Environs Showing Plan of English Attack under Johnson.]