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Rural ami Suburban.- -14,062 acres of rural and .suburban surveys have been finished, at an avearge i osi of l-695. per acre. This, although very high, is slightly below last year's result ; but I hope to show far better results next year, when many of the blocks now unfinished will be completed. The whole of this class of work is heavy-bush-covered hill country, and the work has been much retarded by wet weather, and also by the difficult boundary-lines of (lie Forest Preservation Reserves, gazetted on paper lines running over all the ridges and streams. Road, Railway, &C, Surreys.- 19-9 miles of this class of survey have been completed at an average cost of £23-99 per mile. Much of this road-survey is in rough timber country, and includes exploration, grading, traverse, and rough engineering survey, to enable an estimate of cost of its construction to be made. Other Work.— Under this heading is included l<>[ miles of standard survey in the Town of Picton ; 13 miles of Standard Traverse in the Town of Blenheim and neighbourhood, and many other services Bel forth more fully in Table 17. The standard work at Picton has proved very costly, owing to the cc of any previous reliable data to go upon, and the rough nature of many of the streets. Survey of 2,820 acres of compass survey for milling areas and about 14| miles of boundaries of Slate forest has been completed. It is anticipated that the survey operations in this district, with our present staff, will result in bringing in between 35,000 and 40,000 acres of land for selection : this includes two or three small glazing-runs: some small pastoral runs; and the balance, renewable-lease lands, chiefly bush, hilly forest up the Pelorus River and its branches. • F. Stephenson Smith, Chief Surveyor.

WESTLAND. indard Revision Survey. A distance of 3 miles in the Town of Greymouth was surveyed by Mr. Robinson a 1 a total cos! of £100, or £33-33 per mile, in order to adjust pressing land transactions. Rural and Suburban Surveys. —The total work completed under this heading is 13,391 acres, subdivided into 145 sections, at a total cost of £2,054 3s. 10d., or an average of 3-07s. per acre for (lie above area. District Surveyor Wilson surveyed 979 acres into 14 sections at a total cost of £282 Os. led., or 5-7l)s. per acre, the work being in heavy bush country, with scattered areas involving much travelling and moving camp. District Surveyor Morison surveyed 2,600 acres, chiefly in Taramakau Valley, into 13 sections, at a total cost of £509 16s. Id., or 3-925. per acre, the work being surrounded by troublesome old surveys and prior claims, and often in dense bush. Assistant Surveyor Hairop surveyed 3,688 acres into 84 sections, at a total cost of £571 35., or 3-10s. per acre, being scattered surveys in dense bush, chiefly in Kanieri, Greymouth, and Cobden Survey Districts. Assistant Surveyor Cunningham surveyed altogether 4,340 acres into 20 sections, at a total cost of £425 95., or l-965. per acre. Most of these surveys, being in bush and swamp country, were executed under unfavourable conditions of weather and South Westland floods. Assistant Surveyor Robinson surveyed 1,784 acres into 14 sections, at a total cost of £265 14s. lid., or 2-98s. per acre, being principally scattered surveys amidst bush country in Taramakau Valley and Inchbonnie. Small scattered areas, heavy and rugged bush, broken weather, and uncertainty of connecting surveys militate very generally against expedition of work. Topographical for Selection. —Under this head is returned a total area of 36,200 acres, at a total cost of £381 14s. 2d., or 2-53 d. per acre, comprising various pastoral runs and prospective selections, timber locations, &c. Of the above area, Mr. Wilson contributed 2,000 acres, Mr. Morison 19,000 acres, Mr. Harrop 5,200 acres, and Mr. Cunningham 10,000 acres. Town Surveys. —One hundred and fifteen lots, of a total area of 4625 acres, have been surveyed, at a total cost of £151 18s. 9d., or an average of 26-425. per lot. Other Work. —The return under this head amounts to £322 7s. sd. Road Surveys. —A total length of 11| miles is returned under this head, at a total cost of £126 10s. 4d., or at the rate of £11 per mile. Proposed Opera/ions, 1910-11.—The above heading comprises (1) completion of work in progress, more especially Moana Block, near Lake Brunner. and sections at Wanganui, Poerua Block, and in Waiho Survey District, about 9,000 acres; (2) selections arising from time to time, including those at Seventeen-mile Beach, in Waiwhero Survey District, various areas in Waimea and Hohonu Survey Districts and in Grey Valley —area about 2,000 acres. The need is felt of extension of standard work in the Towns of Creymouth, Cobden, and Hokitika, in order to facilitate office and field check on Land Transfer plans. It is proposed to assign this work to Mr. Wilson. Office-work. — During the year 126 plans have been received, of which 33 were Land Transfer plans, 1 mining plans, 15 statutory plans, and 74 relating to land selection. Two 40-chain district maps and 13 application maps have been drawn. Sixteen tracings have been made for photo-litho-graphy. 1,055 tracings have been supplied for general returns, surveyors' data, and for information of settlers. 1,281 plans have been placed on titles as follows :Of Crown leases, &c, a total of 1,093 copies were prepared either in duplicate, triplicate, or quadruplicate; of Land Transfer titles, 184 copies of plans have been placed on deeds, and plans of 40 transfers under the Act have been examined ; 100 lithos and maps have been mounted. Numerous reference maps have been prepared, relating to special subjects. Of Land Transfer record maps 8 sheets have been prepared on 50-link scale of the Town of Greymouth, in order to deal with minute and pressing subdivisions. In August last the office moved into new buildings, thereby necessitating a complete rearrangement of all maps and records ; and, consequently thereon, a more thorough system of plan record, examination, and indexing has been instituted. Office-work in Progress. —This comprises the following : A photo-lithographic tracing of Jackson's Bay portion of the Westland County is well in hand. Further Land Transfer record plans of Greymouth and Hokitika are being continued. Forty-chain district maps of the busier portions of Grey County have been started. The work of indexing, cross-indexing, registering, labelling, thoroughly