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now making a dray-road. The outcrop of coal is at a convenient elevation to make a road to. There is very little earth-cutting to get fully into the face of the seam, which is probably sft. thick, but not very solid near the surface. About an ordinary dray-load has as yet been taken out. 42. Conical Hills Mine, Waipahi. —(3o/10/95): The working-face is now fully four chains long, and is worked northward. The coal is 21ft. thick at the east end, and 14ft. at the west end, all clean coal. The dip of the seam is slightly to the eastward, at which end of the open face the pumping engine and plant is fixed. The drainage, apart from the rain-fall in the worked-out ground, is very little, and can be pumped out in one hour in the twenty-four. The water is lifted about 28ft. by a small centrifugal pump having direction. The stripping will average about sft., three of which is clay of good quality, which is being used in making bricks and drainage pipes at the factory, which is worked in conjunction with the pit on the spot. The stripping is 30ft. in advance of the coal-face. 43. Shennan's Conical Hills Mine. —(3o/10/95): I was not aware till lately that there was a second pit on Mr. Shennan's land, and not far from his homestead on the east side of his property. This pit, lam told, has been worked for some years past for the use of the homestead only. Quite lately the mouth of the tunnel was completely covered by a large landslip from the hillside in which it is driven. Mr. Shennan intends at an early date to clear a portion of the slip away in order to get into the mine again, I am promised a notification when the mine is opened and fit to be examined. 44. Valley Road Mine, Pukerau. —(l4/10/95) : The open paddock is now about a chain square and is much below the surrounding surface At the time of my visit, the open-cast was filled with water to near the top of the coal, which is nearly 20ft. thick. The windmill that used to do the pumping had lately been carried away by a whirlwind, and I learned that Mr. Orchard was then in town with a view of procuring a new mill. The floor of the seam rises to the south, but not so rapidly as the surface does, consequently the stripping will be deeper as the work proceeds. Centbal Otago. 45. Colecreek Mine, Roxburgh. —(l 6/2/95) :—There is very little alteration in the face of coal since my previous visit. There is about 40ft. of an open-face coal, which is obtained by sluicing off 50ft. of clay and large stones. No attempt appears to have been made lately to test the depth of coal under foot. An additional area of land supposed to contain coal has been applied for and granted to Jones. 46. McPherson s Pit, Roxburgh. —(l 6/2/95) : Since my previous visit, a considerable opening has been made in the coal at the head of the drain-tunnel. The depth of coal now being taken out from the old floor to the level of the tunnel is about 20ft., so there will be no stripping in this pit for many years. The total thickness of coal is about 40ft. The tunnel is said to be crushing in very much, near where it reaches the coal. 47. Perseverance Mine, Roxburgh. —(l 6/2/95): Craig is now mining out his coal by putting in bords across the seam from side to side, which he says measures 130 ft. thick. This is cut into blocks first, and later on the pillars are removed in working from the back of the pit. The present workings are about 12ft. just below the bed of the creek. The next level will be about 16ft. deeper, which will enable Craig to go over a considerable extent of ground, and probably require some years to work out if no faults are met with. The quality of the coal is the best in the locality. 48. Lett's McQueenville Mine, Alexandra. —The new shaft is 60ft. deep, and several workingplaces are being extended some distance from the bottom. I found two men working in the mine, who were taking out about 6ft. of coal. The air is very sluggish in all the working-places, but the work is being carried out with a view to improve the air-current. The ladders are not fixed in the shaft as directed by me on the 16th May, 1895, and as required by the Act. 49. Welshman's Gully Mine, Cambrian's. — (21/2/95): The open-cast workings are being gradually carried to the westward, where the stripping is not so deep. The depth of coal taken out is about 16ft., which does not touch the floor of the seam, in consequence of the water standing at that level in the pit. 50. Cambrian s Mine, Cambrian's. —(22/1/95): The stripping continues from 9ft. to 10ft., all hard gravel, which has to be carted away a short distance. The coal is from sft. to 9ft., with a tendency to thin as the work proceeds to the east. The quality is still good. 51. Blackstone Hill Mine. —(22/2/95) : This pit is still being worked in the same way, and with a similar output as last year. 52. Rough Ridge, Idaburn, Beck and McLean. —(23/2/95): The face of coal looks much the same as it did last year. The stripping is now being removed by casting from the surface. The bad band is carted away from the floor of the pit. The deep face is being worked with safety to the workmen. 53. L. McLean's, Idaburn. —(23/2/95): This old pit has not been worked for some time past, but is bound to be re-opened sooner or later, on account of the kerosene shale it is said to contain. 54. Idaburn Mine, Idaburn. —(23/2/95): The open face is being carried to the east, in which direction the coal-seam appears to be thinning a little, or else the coal is not being taken out to the floor of the seam. The open vertical partings in the coal make the work of hewing down the coal very easy work. The stripping is getting shallower as the work proceeds to the east. The mine is in good order. 55. Gimmerburn Mine, Gimmerburn. —(23/2/95) : There is hardly any noticeable difference in the appearance of the open-cast since my previous visit. The work is at present confined to the south end of the pit, in which direction there is a drain that is thought may be utilised at the cost of a little labour to carry away the drainage from the pit at a lower level than the one now pumped into. The pit is in good order. 56. Commercial Mine, Kyeburn. —(2s/2/95): The coal is being brought out of the same dipdrive as it was last year; after working to the south fault on the same level that part of the pit was