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position in the No. 1 underlie shaft, and thus replace the Tangye pumps now in use. This plant will be capable of dealing with any water that may be met with in the lower workings for some time to come. A considerable improvement has been made in the tramway between the mine and the battery. At a point opposite the Talisman cyanide plant a deviation has been made, and an easy grade made to the company's mill, a horse now being able to take eight trucks to the mill instead of one, and three horses doing as much as seven formerly. The tramway terminates on a level with the ground-floor of the battery, and the trucks of quartz are hoisted up an incline tramway on the outside of the crushing plant up to the rock-breaker with an engine erected near the bottom of the incline. The returns for the year ending the 31st March were 33,171 tons crushed for 37,455 oz. 15 dwt., valued at £71,185 12s. 9d. An average of 230 men were employed. Imperial Mine. —The company has continuously worked the mine during the year, employing from five to nine men. The reef is 2 ft. in thickness at the low level, and has been driven on 246 ft. through very hard country. Assays made from time to time of the stone have given as much as £5 per ton, but most of the ore is low grade. There have also been a considerable amount of surface driving and prospecting done, amounting to 462 ft. of driving, 45 ft. of sinking, and 38 ft. of rising on the reef, also 336 ft. of crosscutting. No returns. Prospecting operations are also carried on in the Shotover Claim, which is situated on the south side of the trig, station, where several rubbly formations have been discovered, from which good prospects of loose gold were obtained ; but nothing properly defined has yet been opened up. An average of four men have been employed. No returns. Ohinemuri Syndicate. —This company found it necessary to stop all work at No. 1 level of the pump-shaft for a time for the want of funds, and partly on account of no payable ore being discovered at that level; but, as rich ore was obtained on the surface-levels, the shareholders are still confident that payable ore will be found at depth, and contemplate sinking the pump-shaft another 200 ft. The work is now confined to extending the Elliot tunnel, which is in 1,700 ft., and another 800 ft. will yet have to be driven to reach the supposed line of reefs, no reefs having yet been cut in this tunnel. An average of fifteen men have been employed. Bising Sun Mine. —Prospecting operations are also carried on in this mine with two men, who are employed in extending the No. 2 level for the purpose of intersecting the reef which has been opened up in the higher levels (and on which a winze has been sunk to a depth of 48ft.). It is expected to intersect the reef at this lower level in about another 90ft. of driving. Average width of reef, 3 ft. No returns have been made during the year. Waitekauri District. Waitekauri Mine. —The following development - works have been carried out in the various sections of this company's property :At the Golden Cross section there are two shafts. The work of sinking both these has been continued, No. 1 shaft being down 510 ft. below the level of the sill of No. 2 shaft. From No. 1 shaft the work of opening up the Nos. 2 and 5 levels on the reef has also been continued, while at No. 4 level the reef has been cut, and driven on for a distance of over 600 ft., and a branch reef has been met with and is being exploited. At No. 2 shaft crosscutting is in hand at No. 4 level, 352 ft. below surface. The both shafts are fitted with efficient pumping and winding machinery and all the necessary plant. Work at the Golden Cross low-level tunnel is being pushed on by rock-drills. This will connect with the No. 1 shaft at 420 ft. below the surface, and will prove a good adit-level, besides prospecting the country between its mouth and the No. 1 shaft, a distance of 6,200 ft. At the Komata section a shaft is being sunk, and is down 323 ft. below surface, and crosscutting to the reef at No. 3 level, 300 ft. below surface, will be undertaken. Work in opening up No. 2 level on the reef system has also been done, and efficient winding machinery is being erected. The driving of the low-level tunnel from the Grace Darling Creek right under the hill to connect with this Te Ao-Marama property is being pushed ahead, and the total length of the tunnel when completed will be 4,275 ft. This will prospect the whole of the properties between the Grace Darling side of the range and the Komata side, and will also afford an outlet to the battery for the quartz from the Te Ao-Marama reef system. The tunnel is being driven by rock-drills, and good progress is being made. At the old Waitekauri Mine work on the reefs has been done at the Queen, Smithy, and other levels, and some good-grade stone disclosed. From the outline of operations of work done on this company's properties it will be seen that they are of an extensive character, there being no less than five distinct points of the property in which work is being vigorously carried on, and as these advance they will lay open and prospect a large tract of country. The battery has been converted from dry to wet crushing, and, as will be manifest from the returns sent monthly, the ore won and treated is fully up to average value. During the year 27,402 tons of ore was crushed for 74,531 oz. of gold, valued at £80,468 14s. 7d., an average of 345 men having been employed during the year. Jubilee Mine. —During the past year this mine has been worked on tribute by Mr. R. Worth and party, who took over the mine and battery for a period of twelve months, and had a good deal of work to do in repairing the No. 1 and No. 2 levels (from which their operations were carried on) before stoping could be proceeded with on the reef, which was opened up to a fair extent in these levels, and varied from 6 in. to 2 ft. in thickness. Their operations were principally confined to stoping. During the year 1,081 tons of quartz was treated at the battery for a return of 681 oz. of gold, valued at £1,644 18s. Id. An average of fifteen men were employed during the year. Waitekauri Gross Gold-mining Company (Limited). — Operations in this company's mine were suspended for a short time, pending the arrival from Home of some duplicate parts of the triplex-action electric pump, used for pumping the water out of the shaft, from which operations are carried on to open up and prove the value of the large ore-body at a greater depth than can be obtained by adit-levels. Through these parts of the pump going amiss, and