1.—6.

north and east of Mount Cameron, and this would be too difficult to follow. I propose therefore to keep the line on the south-west side, and, crossing the Tuhukuri at a favourable site near 16 miles, at a height of about 60Ct., to rise on to the terrace on the north bank, making use of the channel of a small creek which has worn down the terrace; and then, alter grading up through home slopes of from 2J- to 1 to 2 to 1, to tunnel through some of the precipitous spur?, oi Mount Oauieron, a limestone hill, and, crossing in one 120 ft. span a deep chasm with perpendicular pupa sides, above the Ardlussa Station, to come out on tin; \rdlnssa T)owns and strike Iho Waii.an at about 21 miles on section. Then, following Sip the Waihan, as before described, to its source, the line would cut through the low saddle, where a road has been formed, on the watershed of the Mangatutu, and cross that stream at the site indicated on plans at ;5(1) miles. Thou, skirting round behind Groom's old station and through another small waddle, the line follows up the, ilaiigit.tiil.ii Si ream, principally on its western side, as far as the Puketitiri Bush. As the grade has to be kept high from 31 miles to 33 miles, the bridges i'.t the crossings would have to be excessively large, to that it is better to keep on the one side if po-sdjle in limestone-rock cutting. From 34 miles to the summit the work will be of a lighter character. The level of the saddle in the bush is 2,070 ft. There is another way of reaching the Pukctitiri 13ush shown on plans, viz., by reerosshrg the Mangahitu at 31J miles, and following up the Manama Creek to its head, from winch a fairly good line could be got by skirting round some downs and through the I'uketitiri Bush. The lUanaroa is mucli easier to follow than the Mangauitu. being nearly straight, and hawng sloping aides of 20r3t0 1; but the gradient would be even worse, and the deviation would make an extra, length of 2f miles of line. After leaving the bush (which is mostly on a flat, and contains some fine trees of black and white pine, rimu, and a little totara) the hue descends on the right bank of the Anawlienua, through fairly good ground for beiicliii.g. to tl>e saddle at ii'J-.1-miles, where a tunnel 2-5 chains long is required. As mentioned before. :lil-> crock is bloc-Led in, and escapes through an impracticable gorge. lYom the tunnel (.here will be some very difficult grading or sideling of from l|to Ito3to 1, in order to drop down to the Mohaka Bridge site at 43 milos 10 chains. Tliia is one of the worst portions ol the line : it must In; kept well up on the hill-side, on the 1011, hank at about the height above the creek indicated mi section. The slope* of the railway hanks will require, rubble-pitching (o diminish their length. The Mohaka linage site is the same as described m Mr. Ellman's report, ami is about 20 chains above some old Maori whares. The banks ate about 80ft. apart, and the line for rail level would be at about 40ft. above the river. Also, a better grade is got by going to this site am I back agiiin down the river, with an ascending gra-de on the north side reaching the lle.pin by a cutting through a high terrace and some more sideling work. lit the liepia the line soon enters a deep gorge, ami for at least eight miles—viz., from 46 miles to 54 miles—it is necessary to cross and recross the stream at an average of five tunes to the mile. The outer edge of each bend is usually perpendicular rook for perhaps a hundred feet, then there is a slope of about | to 1 for another hundred feet or two, and above that again from 1 to 1 to 3 to 1 for a total height of say a thousand feet, sometimes much higher. On the inner edge of the bends, which the water does not wear into, the slopes are about 1 to 1, terminating usually at the loot in a flatter spur of from 2 to 1 to 3to 1. By keeping the line at an average of 40ft. or 50ft. above the stream these spurs may be cut tlirouJli or tunnelled. Small stretches of flat may occasionally be utilized, but heavy rockcuttings will be the rule. The bush consists chiefly of l'agus, (he so-called black and red birch. The line emerges from it at S3 miles and follows the creek to 54 miles, when it begin:, to rise up to a terrace fiat, which it reaches at 57 miles and eon dimes along on the south-west side of the creek, the work being easier as the volume of the stream diminishes, until the summit-level of for about 2,000 ft. for formation-level) i, reached at 01 miles 10 chains. This point is on the watershed between Hawke's .Hay and the Bay of I'lenty, and is a conveniently low saddle above Lake Pouarua, whence the Eangitaiki River issues. The line skirts round and through some low pumice downs, and drops down on to the open pumice plains at ttlii- miles, following near the liaiigihnki to the Taupo lioad, and then in the general direction of the road over the watershed of the Bangitaiki and the Wiiikato Rivers, at a height of 2,■-145ft,, until the small ■, illn.ge of Opepe is reached ; then, skirting round Mount Tauhara, a continuous grade of 1 in 50 will enable the line to drop down to the Waikato, crossing near the Huka Palls. To obtain sutlicient length of line to get a uniform grade, it may be necessary, in surveying the line, to skirt round with a wider sweep and with more curves than I have indicated on plans, hut the country is sufficiently open to admit of this. Instead of following iuj the Repia it was proposed to take the, line up the Mohaka to where the Taharua runs into it, and then to follow up the Taharua to its head on the open pumice plains, as shown in Drawing No. 4. Ido not think that any advantage would be gained by this route, for the following reasons: The banks of the Mohaka are, on the whole, quite as difficult for a line as in the Eepia, on account of the abrupt spurs from the Kaweka on the v>est and from Te Matai and Big Ben on the north-east side, which rise precipitously above the river. The length of the line up the Moh.ika, from the proposed bridge-site to the. junctionoi the Taharua, would be about sixteen miles of very difficult work; but in the liepia a distance of tiftsen miles from the same point is sufficient to take the line out of any difficulties, excepting the cuttings at the head, at (>■! nnles. On the other hand, alter traversing equall} diiKcnl! Lfinind in the Mohaka mr -,i\l.>eu miles, there are two miles oi bad^vnind at thelowrrend of the Taharua. The bridge in the Mohaka would be sit least as numerous as in the Kepia, but larger and much more expensive: on account of the big boulders; there would be a difficulty in constructing pier,, by driving piles, so that a single span of" 120 ft. would often be necessary Jaitead ofone of 60ft. ordOl't., asm t,he liepia. On account of its larger drainage area the floods in the Mohaka are much worse than those in ihe Kepin, and piers would iutei fere with the passage of trees in flood-time. The level of the junction uf the Taltarua wdh the Mohaka is 1,935 ft., and the open watershed at its head 2,470 ft., or 20l)ft. lower than that of the Eopia, so that the Taharua gradients would be somewhat better. The total length of the two routes would be about the same.

96