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offered for selection last month has been taken up. I anticipate that all this still remaining, besides the 1,005 acres'lately surveyed as a village settlement, will be taken up within the next six months. Miscellaneous.— Unrutaorpa Block : A balance of £13 155., which had been held over from the last contract, has been authorised to be expended by the Danevirke Eoad Board on the satisfactory completion of the work. An outstanding balance of £12 has also been paid on roadworks in the Maharahara Block. There has been £10 15s. Bd. paid for extras to bridges on the Gisborne-Wairoa Boad. G. W. Williams, Chief Surveyor.

WELLINGTON. Tokomaru Block. —In fulfilment of engagements £650 has been advanced to the Waitotara County Council, who have let contracts amounting to £704 for the construction of two miles and a quarter of dray-road on a branch of the Brunswick line through Mr. Corry's property, to give access to West Tokomaru, recently taken up under the small-run system. The works are under the able control of Mr. Eoland Garrett, C.E., and are about half finished. This road is the commencement of an important line of future communication following the summit of the watershed between the Waitotara' and Wanganui Eivers. The Crown lands affected comprise 5,000 acres, but they are still very remote and inaccessible, besides being of a very hilly and broken character. Otairi Block. —Two contracts, comprising respectively 80-|- chains and 82 chains, were let and completed on a length of the Eidge Eoad on the South-eastern Otairi Block. The work consisted of bush-felling 1 chain wide and stumping 16ft. wide ; cost, £109 35.-one of the contracts being at the rate of only 11s. lid. per chain. Mr. Alexander Dundas, District Surveyor, laid off the roads, and prepared specifications and plans; and Mr. District Surveyor John Annabel! inspected, and reported the work as faithfully done. The area of Crown lands benefited is 3,000 acres. The Eangitikei County Council obtained £300, and expended it in metalling the Marton to Murimotu Eoad from near Hunterville, and this completes the road to within one mile of the Otairi boundary. This benefits the whole of the Crown lands in Otairi, comprising 15,000 acres. Maungakaretu Block.— -The Eangitikei County Council also were intrusted with £200 to widen and complete the Ongo line .as far as Turakina Eiver. The final payment on account of the contract was made last December. This line leads in the direction of the Crown lands on the Upper Turakina, the area of which is 10,000 acres, although far distant from the terminus. The Upper W 7 angaehu Eoad Board were authorised to expend £150 in extending the dray-road along Hale's Wanganui-Murimotu track as far as Mangamahu. The works wore well advanced towards completion last January, when £100 was paid on account. No report has since been received at this office. Mr. A. D. Wilson laid off or surveyed twenty-two miles and three-quarters of roads outside and upon Maungakaretu Block, and his road party felled 150 chains of the Hale's Eoad north of Matawhitia Block southern boundary, 1 chain wide, stumped it about 16ft. wide, and formed a horse-road 4ft. wide, besides felling and stumping 40 chains more. The whole 190 chains cost £279. These works benefit the Maungakaretu Crown lands, which amount to 20,000 acres on that side. Waitapu Block.— -Mr. District Surveyor Alexander Dundas located and surveyed seven miles of roads, and prepared plans, sections, and specifications for proposed roadworks of five miles of the same. The area of Crown lands in the locality is 10,000 acres. Otamakapua Block.— The Kiwitea Eoad Board have not completed the proposed metalling of the Kimbolton Eoad extension authorised as far back as March, 1886. Mr. Charles Field during the year executed the following works : Kimbolton Eoad extension : Bushwork and formation for horse traffic, 546 chains; bridges, 15 chains; culverts, 27 chains. Oroua Branch Eoad: Bushwork, &c, as on above, 28 chains. In addition he maintained fourteen miles of road, felled thirty acres of bush on reserve at Peep-o'-day, cut three miles of pack-track, sowed 100 acres along roads and the reserve with grass-seed, graded seven miles of roads, inspected five contracts. The total cost, including tools, was £987 17s. sd. On the Middle and Bluff Eoads branches to the Kiwitea from the Kimbolton Eoad extension at about twenty-three miles from Feilding, three contracts were let for bush-felling 1 chain wide and stumping 16ft. wide, the lengths and figures respectively being 140 chains for £150 10s., 132 chains for £110 65., and 162 chains for £170 Is. Mr. C. A. Mountfort laid off these roads, and Mr. Charles Field supervised the works to their completion last June. About thirty thousand acres of Otamakapua are benefited by these works, including the Pemberton Special-settlement Association Block. Mr. Alexander Dundas prepared plans and specifications for a horse-road along the Oroua branch line from the Kimbolton Eoad extension. A length comprising 307J chains of bush-felling 1 chain wide, stumping 16ft. wide, and formation 4ft. wide in solid, was let for £410. Mr. Charles Field reports the work as almost completed. This line will be of great service to those settlers on the eastern side of the Birmingham Block and the Fielding Special-settlement Association whose selection lies on the eastern side of the Oroua Eiver. The line will give an approach to about ten thousand acres of Crown lands adjacent to those settlements. South Pahiatua, Bangitumau, and Mangatainoka Blocks. —Eighteen miles of road-lines were located, and engineering surveys were made of twenty-two miles, eighteen miles of which were mapped. About forty-one miles of roadworks have been commenced, carried on, or completed daring the year, to the value of £5,593, in seventeen contracts, the particulars of which are as follow: — £ s. a. Pahiatua-Mangahao Eoad: Contracts Nos. 1 and 2, comprising three miles and three-quarters of bushwork and formation, &c. ... ... ... 1,262 9 8 Pahiatua Village Settlement roads : Contract No. 1, comprising one mile and three-quarters of bushwork ... ..■. ... ••• •■• 120 2 3