C—2

42

Tripp's Mine. —Driving to rise, whore seam reduced to 10 ft. thickness, sandstone formation having made in the roof. Timber set at regular intervals ; ventilation good. Harris Bros. Mine. —Prospecting by driving toward a coal-outcrop known to occur on the hill-face. Drive well timbered, chiefly through dry sand strata. Cavendish Mine (formerly Evandale). —The south level had been extended, and a drive to dip, where coal-seam found much harder than on the higher level. Air-shaft, 30 ft. in depth, provided good ventilation. Albury Mine. —The level had been stopped and a pillar left against the former workings for prevention of blackdamp entering the workings. Through ventilation from mine-mouth to air-shaft; ventilation good. Lambrook Mine. —An old drive had been cleaned out and timbered ; seam 10 ft. ; an air-shaft, 40 ft., was sunk for ventilation. Allanholme Mine. —The seam on eastern side of haulage dip having proved thin and of poor quality, a new dip, direction south-westerly, was to be laid off in the near future. Ventilation fair. Meadowbank Mine. —Air-shaft having been completed, ventilation good. McllwraittiB Mine. —A new opencast working ; seam 10 ft. A few tons had been mined for local use Wharekuri Mine. —Worked for supply of local requirements. Borton's Mine. —Working suspended during the year, the lignite being inferior and unsaleable. St. A ndrew's Mine. —The old workings finally closed and abandoned owing to the seam not living to dip continuously. Prospecting being conducted on the outcrop to rise of former workings. Prince Alfred Mine. —Pillars being carefully withdrawn in the dip workings ; timber set for security of workmen ; stoppings built prevented heating from the waste, which was not now troublesome. Ventilation fair. Ngapara Mine. —Ventilation excellent. Air conducted by brattice to working-faces, the position of the air-shaft facilitating direct ventilation through the mine. Diamond Hill Mine. —An attempt made to reopen this small seam was quickly abandoned, and the mine became closed again. Shag Point Mine. —After considerable expenditure by sinking and driving, a seam 5 ft. 6 in. in thickness was located and being developed on the old. Broad leaf section, near the fault. Shag Point Goal-mining Company. —Electrical power-house and, plant, 45 horse-power, erected for ventilating fan drive, pumping and dip haulage underground. An improved jig screening plant had also been built on the loading-bank at the branch railway terminus. Ventilation at return air-course, 19,800 cubic feet per minute. Ventilation good, and places well timbered to working-faces. Kyeburn Diggings Mine. —A small opencast pit worked for local supplies. Creighton's Mine. —An opencast pit; since abandoned. Gimmerburn Mine. —Opencast working for local requirements. Hough Ridge Mine. —Decreased supplies now being obtained from this opencast pit. [daburn Mine. —Opencast working vigorously conducted; 1,174 tons won during the year. Olarelnia Mine. —An opencast pit. Flood-water and drainage from Idaburn Stream troublesome. lewis's Mine. —Lignite from this opencast mined for private use. Dillon's Mine. —A small opencast pit worked for private use. Armilage' a Mine. —A small opencast pit worked for private use. St. Balhan-i Mine. —This pit continues being worked opencast although the stripping is so heavy, the lessee not having experience of underground mining. Cambrian Mine. —Working resumed by the Vinegar Hill Hydraulic Sluicing Company, and a full supply of water laid on for stripping the seam to advantage. Lauderlane Mint. —A level has been driven northward, where a fault was struck. Water from Woolshed Creek utilized for winch dip haulage and generation of electricity for pumping. Working became suspended toward the end of the year, sales having become unprofitable owing to distance from and difficulty of placing the coal on the market in competition with other sources of supply. Alexandra Mine. —Pillar-extraction continued to be safely conducted. The clay floor with sand on the dip haulage-road at the fault caused contraction, which required frequent attention for repairs. McPhersjn's Mine. —An opencast pit worked in benches. The fire in the old worked ground kept suppressed by water laid on as required. Cromwell Mine. —Seam improved to 13 ft. in thickness, of which 7 ft. was being worked. Seam steep, having an inclination of 45°. Shepherd's Creek Mine. —Pillar-extraction in dip workings continued with safety. Workings in good order, and ventilation good. Gardrona Mine. —The large proportion of stripping required to be sluiced away in order to recover the comparatively small quantity of saleable coal won militates against the financial success deserved by the persevering and optimistic lessee of this mountain pit. Gibbston Mine. —Toward the end of the year it became necessary to close the mine on account of the fire which had followed outward from the waste, pillars having been withdrawn to rise of the lower level back to the outcrop of the seam. Nevis Mine. —An opencast mine worked intermittently for supply of local requirements. Nevis Crossing Mine. —The adit level near Coal Creek had been extended to 300 ft. from the surface when operations became suspended. Graham's Prospecting License (for Coal and Shale at Nevis). —Five samples taken from bulk and treated by the Dominion Analyst yielded 13-2 gallons of oil per ton. Fernhill Mine. —Working continued in the lower seam. Places driven narrow were standing well. Freeman's Mine. —Pillar workings continued with safety, and ventilation good. Jubilee Mine. —A new entrance had been made convenient to the body of the workings, and steam-power adapted for fan ventilation, dip haulage, and pumping. Places driven narrow at first working. Ventilation good, and air free from powder-smoke. Saddle Hill No. 1 Mine (including Burnweil Mine). —A small ventilating-fan made on the premises, driven by oil-engine, was doing good work. Air underground good and clear. Some portion of the Burnweil Mine pillars, where a barrier pillar of coal left by agreement at first working, was being extracted. Stoppings in against the waste where blackdamp had accumulated. Saddle Hill No. 2 Mine. —A dip had been driven into old workings where roof and floor had met under pressure, and coal pillars were being recovered safoly. Walton Park Mine. —A pair of dip drives were being extended under the railway and district road for the purpose of prospecting the field and recovering pillars or coal left at first working many years ago. The drives had been taken narrow and low by consent of the local authorities. East Taieri Mine. —A now dip had been driven through old workings to recover a block of coal and pillars left at first working. The drive was well timbered, but floor inclined to heave, as it had done previously, causing contraction of roads and airways. Grade's Mine. —Prospecting on outcrop, and forming a tram-line to the Main South Road, 20 chains distant The drive was in 20 ft., and the coal-seam was 6 ft. in thickness. Brighton Mine. —Recently leased by two experienced miners, who were cleaning up the roads and airways underground. Buanui Mine. —A new opening on Duncan Settlement. A short drive to dip, with level northward to the air-shaft, sunk 42 ft. to the coal-seam.