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Several other companies have commenced the construction of their dredges. The starting of a modern up-to-date dredge to work the river below the Beaumont Bridge will be eagerly watched, and should it turn out a success it will be the means of opening up a large dredging-field. Waitahuna. The Imperial Dredging Company have been working steadily for the year, with very good returns. Two new dredges have been built here during the last six months, one by Messrs. McCormick and party and the other by Messrs. McKenzie and party. Another dredging-claim of about 50 acres has been taken up at Waitahuna Gully. The company has been floated and arrangements are being made to put on a dredge. All the sluieing-claims at the Waitahuna Gully have been working steadily during the year and getting fair returns. The German Flat Hydraulic Sluicing Company recently sold their claim and plant, situate at German Flat, to Messrs. Moses Girvan and party. Glenore. The following dredges are still working at Glenore, viz.: the Stirling, the Woolshed, and the Golden Bank, and are all doing well. The Eiverbank Dredge (situate between Glenore and Milton) is nearly completed. Waipori. There are now eight dredges working in this locality. All those that belong to public companies and publish their returns are doing very well indeed, and I have every reason to believe that those held by private parties are also doing well. The Golden Key Gold-mining Company's sluicing-claim, on account of the want of pressure in the water-supply and other difficulties in working the claim, has not turned out a success as yet. Mr. W. J. Farrell has been working on Mr. Cotton's freehold throughout the year, getting, I am informed, very fair returns. The Bakery Flat Sluicing Company get very good returns when their water-races (which are at a very high altitude) are not interfered with by a long spell of dry weather or continuous frosts. The Post-office Creek (Waipori) Gold-mining Company has not turned out a success so far, and the company is about to make arrangements to increase the capital and give the claim another trial. The O.P.Q. Gold-mines (Limited) employs a large number of men, and has done a great deal of work in opening-up the reef during the last twelve months. The company has also imported and erected a good deal of expensive machinery, and the mine is now yielding good returns; 851 oz. were won for the year. Messrs. W. E. S. Knight and W. E. Caudwell have opened up a sluicing-claim during the year, and named it " The Lammerlaw Flat Hydraulic-sluicing Company." They have a good water-supply, and the claim is, I understand, yielding very fair returns. I may add that mining generally in this locality is in a very healthy condition. WaiKaia. There has been considerable activity in mining in this locality during the year. No less than 250 applications for claims and other mining privileges were lodged at the Warden's Court, and the revenue collected by the Eeceiver of Gold fievenue amounted to £586. Several of the hydraulic-sluicing claims are yielding very good returns; the Argyle Company, for instance, obtained over 900 oz. of gold for the year. The Piano Flat Gold-mining Company have nearly completed a water-race from the Blue Lake, at a cost of about £2,000, to work their claim on Piano Flat. This field is now likely to be thoroughly tested for dredging-purposes. The Nugget Dredge, which has just been completed, has started to work on the Waikaia Eiver above Glenary, and the prospects are said to be good. Numerous other parties in different parts of the district are making arrangements for placing dredges on their properties. Gore. During the last twelve months much interest has been taken in dredging operations in this district, and a good deal has been done in the development of that industry, particularly in the Valley of the Waikaka, where five dredges are now at work, and six in course of construction. Those at work are said to be doing very well. Dredging operations at Waikaka would be much more advanced than they are had it not been for the opposition offered by some of the settlers and Messrs. Wallis Brothers, fellmongers, to the application which has been made to have the Waikaka Eiver declared a sludge-channel. A great many of the claim-holders are waiting till the result of that application is known. The Mataura Eiver, from the Mataura Township to Eiversdale, a distance of about thirty miles, has all been taken up under special dredging-claims or prospecting-licenses, but as yet only one dredge, owned by Messrs. Graham Brothers, has been put on the river, and it is now working about a mile from Gore. Being a private concern the returns are not made public, but it is supposed to be paying fairly well. The Charlton Creek Company's dredge is on a creek of the same name, about three miles to the south of Gore. It commenced work about three months ago, and up to the present the returns have been fairly satisfactory. 19—C. 3