H.—l7

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them are making from £2 to £4 per week. lam still confident that a payable gold field will be opened up in this locality, but it may take a considerable time owing to the nature of the country and the absence of capital among the miners to allow them to prospect on a large scale. There have been some fine samples of gold obtained near the Paringa River and Abbey Rocks, and I think it very probable that the road now being male from the Paringa to Haast will open up a large extent of auriferous country A number of miners are working and prospecting up the Wataroha and Waiho Rivers with various results, but I believe on the whole satisfactory There are also about 40 men working on the various sea-beaches, but they have generally to be contented with small wages, except an occasional patch of surfacing, which at times fully repays them for the loss of time spent in working very poor ground. I think the future prospects of the district are favourable, and look forward to a steady increase of population and revenue, which though small is steadily improving. I have, &c, Frank Bird, The Under-Secretary for Gold Fields, Wellington. Warden.

OTAGO GOLD EIELDS. No. 13. Mr. Warden Robinson to the Undee-Seceetaby for Gold Fields. Sir,— Warden's Office, Naseby, March 31st, 1881. I have the honor, in accordance with instructions, to present my annual report on the district under my charge for the past year. Owing to some official changes the district was in September last considerably increased in extent, by the addition of the .Black's division, which includes the important mining localities of Drybread and Tinker's, and which had previously formed part of the Dtinstan District. The year that is past has not been signalized by any important discoveries, but on the whole it has been a fairly good one for the mining interest. The winter was mild and open, and there was nothing like the usual interruption of mining operations by frost. Water also has been generally in fair supply although there have been some periods of drought, during which all but the most permanent sources of supply gave out for a while. In the immediate neighbourhood of Naseby the fine supply of water brought in from the Manuherikia River by the Mount Ida Water-Race has been the means of keeping a number of miners almost constantly employed, who, if depending upon the smaller local supplies, would have been liable to frequent stoppages. Though there have been no positively new discoveries, I am glad to be able to mention that there has been a considerable extension of mining over ground in the vicinity of older workings. This has especially been the case along the course of Enterprise and Coalpit Gullies, near Naseby, in ground commanded by the Government water. The same remark applies to the vicinity of St. Bathans, where the workings known as the Tw ro Mile and Vinegar Hill are the principal attractions. In the Hyde division the most important item of interest in mining has been the enterprise of McKay and party, who have been engaged for some time in the work of turning the Taieri River, at a bend about seven miles below the Hyde Bridge, with the object of working the bed of the stream. It is a heavy undertaking, and is the first attempt of the kind that has been made in this part of the gold field. I hope in my next report to be able to chronicle a success of what is certainly a bold enterprise. The rich ground opened by Holverson at the Fillyburn, as mentioned in a former report, has not been found to extend so far as was anticipated. The sold seems to have been confined to a mere patch of ground, w-here it was exceedingly rich, but the efforts made to trace it further have been unavailing. Some of the claims about Vinegar Hill and the Two Mile have been giving very good returns to their fortunate owners, and in consequence a considerable amount of ground has been taken up in the neighbourhood, principally on mining leases. There can bo no doubt that a permanent field of great promise has now been opened. In the St. Bathans basin a large area of ground, which has for a long time been lying waste and apparently worked out, has recently been granted as a special claim to a minor who intends to work it thoroughly and on a large scale of hydraulic mining, for which he has special facilities. This ground was originally held in a great number of claims and worked by sinking shafts. It was then mostly worked over by sluicing, unlil the work came to a stand for want of fall; but many of the claimholders, being satisfied there was more gold to be got, held on to their ground, keeping it protected in the hope that some day they might be able to work it. The rights of these men were at last all bought up by the miner now referred to (Mr. Evving),and he has every confidence that he will find it pay him handsomely to work the ground for the third time. At Maerewhenua there has been a slight improvement in mining affairs, and rather more gold is understood to have been obtained than in some former seasons, but no important change is to be noted. Quartz-mining has never attained any great importance in this district. For some years the only mine continuously and systematically worked has been that at Rough Ridge, known as Withers' There has, however, been some activity in prospecting about the Rough Ridge, and it is understood that one or two small parties have been getting out some payable stone. At Serpentine the Serpentine Company have stopped work for many months. Other miners, however, have not been disheartened by their failure, but have been searching diligently for and testing new reefs, with the result that some more mining leases have been applied for. In one instance it is understood that some Dunedin capitalists are concerned in the vwnture, but nothing definite is known as to the prospects. Iu the Black's division the principal workings are at Tinker's and Drybread, where sluicing on a large scale is carried on by strong companies with marked success. No new discoveries are to be reported from this quarter.