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with the importance and value of the Provincial and General Government records, which should be deposited in a strong-room. Departmental. —Since last June the following changes have been made in the staff: Mr. E. B. Trudgeon, the accountant, who was associated with this office for fourteen years, was transferred last November to Auckland, Mr. H. L. Welch, formerly of the Public Works Department, taking his place. You have already been furnished with a memorandum of salaries and general expenditure. I have to express my obligations to my fellow-officers here for the valuable information and assistance afforded me since I took charge. J. W. A. Marchant, Chief Surveyor.

OTAGO. The strength of the field and office staff remains the same as it was last year at the date of my annual report. There are five surveyors and one cadet on the permanent staff in the field, besides three temporary field surveyors. In the office there are eight draughtsmen and the accountant, and two cadets. Four additional draughtsmen were temporarily employed during July and part of August of last year, in order to assist in preparing the property-tax maps. Topographical Stirveys. —Mr. E. H. Wilmot has surveyed 22,000 acres for £30, which is only ■J-d. per acre. I have also included under this head the work done by Mr. H. Maitland on Euns 134, 300, and 301, in Maerewhenua, Domett, Kyeburn, and Kakanui Districts. He was engaged on this survey for about two months, when he was withdrawn, and sent to the Woodland District. The subdivision of these runs was afterwards completed by Mr. D. Barron. Minor Triangulation. —The area surveyed under this head is 20,640 acres, at a cost of 2Jd. per acre, by Mr. Wilmot, in the Tautuku Bush. Minor Triangulation with Topography. —Mr. Langmuir has surveyed 80,000 acres, chiefly in the Tautuku Bush, at a cost of a little less than 1-fd. per acre; while Mr. Wilmot has surveyed 40,000 acres into somewhat smaller triangles in the western part of the same bush, at a cost of 2£d. per acre. Topographical Survey for selection under " The Naval and Military Settlers Act, 1891." — Block IX., Woodland District, was set apart for this purpose, and 3,260 acres have been made ready for selection, the roads graded, and a map prepared showing about forty-five sections. The cost so far has been Is. 4d. per acre ; but when the land is selected the boundary-pegs will require to be put in, and some of the boundary-lines cut. Bural Section Surveys. —Under this heading 15,321 acres have been cut up into 123 sections, at an average cost of less than 2s. 3d. per acre. Nearly the whole of the land is dense bush. Small Grazing-runs. —l have thought it advisable to place these under a separate heading, as, although some of the sections are as small as ordinary rural sections, the majority of them are over 1,000 acres, the largest having an area of 13,540 acres. The whole area amounts to 65,111 acres, divided into thirty-nine sections, at an expense of 2Jd. per acre. Native Land Gourt Surveys. —The only survey under this item is one by Mr. G. M. Barr, being 453 acres of the Taieri Native Eeserve, at a cost of Is. lOfd. per acre. Gold-mining Surveys. —There has been a great falling-off in the area usually returned under this heading, only fourteen sections having been surveyed, comprising 449 acres, costing a trifle less than 6s. 10d. per acre. Boad Surveys. —These are all in heavy bush. The total length is five miles and seven-eighths, and the average cost £12 4s. Id. per mile. Other Work. —A large proportion of the expenditure, which amounts to £920, was incurred by the section surveyors in clearing trig, stations on the bush blocks under survey by them ; also, £96 10s. of the amount opposite Mr. Wilmot's name has been the cost of carrying on standard bearing from the geo. station in Mokoreta District to the blocks now being surveyed in the Taukupu Valley. Survey Inspections, dc. —During the period under consideration I have made nine inspections of surveys, roads, bridges, &c. Besides the before-mentioned, in company with the other Landclassification Commissioners, I was absent from Dunedin for twenty-four days inspecting and classifying runs falling in on the Ist March, 1893. District Officers. —The Lawrence office is in charge of Mr. McLean, who attends to the public, records new surveys, and makes copies of plans when necessary. The Queenstown office is attended to in a similar capacity by Mr. Mackenzie, the Crown Lands Eanger, when not engaged on Land Office work. Mr. Mackenzie has undertaken several surveys of an urgent nature in the absence of Mr. Wilmot. The Naseby office is under the control of Mr. D. Barron, District Surveyor, who, when time permits, keeps recording the surveys done in his district. Dunedin Office. —The following plans were prepared and recorded during the past nine months: 114 Crown grants, 348 certificates of title, 90 Native titles, 268 perpetual leases, 28 deferred-pay-ment leases, 12 prospecting licenses, 4 memorial licenses, 56 run licenses, and 4 agricultural leases; besides which the following plans were checked: From staff, 45 ; railway in triplicate, 34; Land Transfer, 54; road closing and opening, 3 ; special claims in triplicate, 39 ; license holdings in duplicate, 14. Six plans were reduced for photolithography, and seven reduced on transfer-paper, from which were printed 1,400 lithographs. Plans mounted, 260. (The correspondence is now Lands and Survey. The Survey, not being easily distinguishable from Lands, is kept out of report.) Land Transfer Work. —There were 28 applications, 380 mortgages, 107 transmissions, 179 leases, 37 caveats, and 777 transfers examined and checked. Proposed Operations for 1892-93. —The triangulation of the Tautuku Bush has been carried on vigorously, both by Mr. Langmuir and Mr. Wilmot. The latter expects to finish his part of the work about the end of May, but I expect Mr. Langmuir will require a few Weeks longer. In case

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