C—9.

16

The south-eastern part of the block is probably occupied by part of the granite area surrounding the source of the Inangahua Eiver, but to the limit of the Maitai rocks in this direction, round the sources of the Big Eiver, there are prospects of a continuation of these thin but very rich leaders of quartz in the more arenaceous rocks of the Maitai series. Coal is developed over a considerable extent of this block, and will yet prove of great value in connection with the working of mines known and to be discovered ; as where wood only is dependant on for steam-raising purposes large areas are soon stripped of their forest growth. Block LXll. —This extends along the south-east side of the Little Grey Valley, from Slab-hut Creek to Big Eiver, a distance of fully seven miles. The greatest width of the block is three miles, and the area it contains is 10,000 acres. The block may be characterized as broken and hilly country, physically not suited to agriculture, and, as regards the quality of the soil, this, except along the banks of the more important streams, is of very poor quality. In the lower part of Slab-hut Creek a considerable amount of gold-working has been carried on, now principally by Chinamen. Beyond the gorge in the upper part of the watershed, the low grounds of the creek valley, and many of the tributary streams, have been worked. The fundamental rock is Maitai slate, overlain on the high lands by the gravels of the " Old man bottom." Quartz-reefs are likely to be found in the older rocks, and masses of reef-quartz are not infrequent in the wash of the various creeks. In the valley of Antonio's Flat and creek of that name the low grounds show shingle, partly derived from the destruction of the Maitai slates, which is the prevailing rock higher up than the forks of the creek, ac the upper end of Antonio's Flat; but from this point downwards to the junction of the stream with the Little Grey the material, carried into the main water-channel by the action of lesser contributory streams, is wholly derived from the Older Pliocene gravels, which are present on both sides of this part of the valley, to the exclusion of any other rock. Along the many lesser gullies cut back into the gravel-hills gold-working is being carried on almost to the water-partings leading into the adjacent watersheds to the north-east and south-west. In the upper part of the valley the main workings lie along the right branch of the creek, the bed of the creek and the lower slopes of the hills being slate-rock, while the tops of the hills are formed of the gravels of the " Old man bottom." Both of these rocks may, therefore, have been a source of gold to the gravels of the creek-bed. There appears to be an air of decadence in mining throughout the whole of the valley of Antonio's Flat, while the work done shows that it must at one time have been a prosperous and a flourishing place. This state of things, as shall immediately be shown, may shortly change when enterprise undertakes the prospecting of the deep ground on the middle and upper parts of Antonio's Flat, or prospectors have found out that large sluicing-claims can be worked to profit in the gravels of the " Old man bottom." At Adamstown the creek draining the valley joins the Little Grey a little below the Mawheraiti Eailway-station, where there were formerly workings of considerable extent which, like those in the valley of Antonio's Flat, were confined to the side gullies or those parts of the main valley where bottom could easily be reached. Lately, however, enterprising miners—Chinamen and Europeans alike —have attempted the deeper ground, and this, as regards both class of miners, with encouraging and satisfactory results. The Chinamen, in large parties, strip the ground from the underlying gold-bearing wash, which may be 16ft. to 20ft. below the surface. The European prefers to sink shafts and drive out as much of the wash as can be safely won. The consequences are that what was lately what might be claimed to be a worked-out and deserted gully is now on the fair road to a greater degree of prosperity than formerly the mining population in it enjoyed. The southern portion of the block terminating on Big Eiver is high-terrace lands or hills formed of " Old man bottom " intersected by gullies, all of which are liable to contain gold-bearing deposits, but of which the particulars have not been ascertained. The principal workings in this valley, the lower part of it, lie along the Blackwater, and, strictly speaking, these have to be considered when dealing with the next adjacent to the southward. Block LXIII. —This lies to the south-east of Block LXII. and is wholly rugged, hilly, or mountainous country. The block forms an irregular square, the greatest length of any of the sides of which is six miles. The block contains 10,000 acres. It comprises within it the upper portions of the valleys of Slab-hut Creek and Antonio's Flat Creek, and Big Eiver runs across its southwestern end. Along the north-west boundary, and for some distance into the block, the rocks on the spurs are Older Plicene gravels, underlain by Maitai slates, exposed at first along the beds and sides of the gullies, and finally on the crests of the ridges. The eastern and south-eastern parts include a plateau-like mountain-top, covered with stunted pine-trees, favouring a wet and boggy soil and subsoil. Little of this part of the block has been explored, but a road to the Big Eiver Mine is being so improved that explorations will in future be carried on with greater ease. The mining population within the block are chiefly in the valley of Antonio's Flat, and towards the source of Slab-hut Creek and around Merrijigs, Merrijigs Hill occupying the eastern corner of the block. Through this, from Block LIX., extends the belt of sandstone, with the small but rich leaders of auriferous quartz, that have been mentioned as occurring in the Golden Lead Mine. On the western slopes of Merrijigs Hill there are heavy deposits of gravel, which in working them for gold are being sluiced on a moderately extensive scale. Block LXV.— This lies between Big Eiver and the Big Grey, from the Greymouth-Eeefton road and railway-crossing to four miles up the Grey Valley. Snowy Creek and Blackwater (a tributary of Big Eiver) are the principal streams that intersect the block. The surface over the north-east part is hilly and broken to the Blackwater, and on the south-west side of Blackwater hilly country, formed of Older Pliocene gravels (" old man bottom ") continue, perhaps half the distance, towards Snowy Creek. This portion of the block, except in the Valley of Big Eiver and the lower part of the Blackwater, is without lands fit for settlement. Along Big Eiver the low-lying lands have been already acquired and held in freehold by private individuals, while the lower part of Blackwater is