In order to clarify the mechanism of the hydration of supersulphated slag cement, the experiments of suspension hydration were performed in the mixtures of slag+CaSO4+water or NaOH solutions with a liquid/solid ratio of 10. The liquid and solid phase of the suspension was chemically analysed and discussed. In the slag-$CaSO_4$--NaOH system, $Al_2O_3$ was dissolved under high pH condition, and the ettringite was formed by a reaction of $CaSO_4$ and $Al_2O_3$ released in the solution. As hydration progressed, ettringite coated the surface of unhydrated slag grains and inhibited the hydration reaction of slag. $CaSO_4$ was not only an activator for slag hydration, but a reactant in the hydration.