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HYDRAULIC SLUICING AND ALLUVIAL MINING, INCLUDING GOLD-DREDGING Livingstone. Mr. John Christian's sluicing claim continues working steadily. A few other claims in this district are in operation as water-supply serves. Maerewhenua. The several sluicing claims continued in operation during the year. The limited water-supplies from the Mountain Hut and private water-races render work on this field somewhat intermittent. From twenty to thirty men, in private parties, continue in remunerative employment. Glenore. Eenewed attention has been given to the district lately, and the large alluvial flat known as Adam's Flat has been pegged off, with the intention of working it by some form of steam-pumping plant. The flat is rich, having derived its auriferous contents from the belt of breccia conglomerate which traverses the district. Some fossicking is still being done in the vicinity of Canada reef. The Gold Bank dredge, under private ownership, continued to work with indifferent results throughout the year. Manuka Creek. Manuka Gold-mining Company (Limited), Manuka Hill (Adam McCorkindale, manager ; R. Pilling, jun., secretary, Lawrence). —Many years ago very rich returns were obtained from a claim on this hill known as Coombe's. The material is a quartz grit, and requires quick treatment. Unfortunately, the water-supply is inadequate, but the present proprietors have effected much improvement. Four men are employed. Waitahuna. Frank Whelan's Sluicing Claim. —Reference has already been made to the possibility of working many hitherto unworked areas by a system of pumping. This area consists of 60 acres of ground, partly worked by hand-labour. The breccia-conglomerate deposit also appears in the claim. It is proposed to generate electrical power at the falls in the Waitahuna River, and transmit the power a distance of five miles to a pumping-station on the bank of the Waitahuna River. Centrifugal pumps in series, or any other suitable form of pump, will be installed to lift water at sufficient pressure to provide power to work the ground by the ordinary system of hydraulic sluicing and elevating. Waitahuna Flat. —This flat has been actively operated upon by hand-labour and by dredges. By these means, however, only the superficial gravels have been worked. There still remains the deep ground underlying the superficial gravels. Several attempts have been made to bottom this deep ground by shafts, but without success. The breccia-conglomerate deposit appears in the terraces rising from Whelan's claim. Systematic boring should be resorted to in order to prove the value of this large area of ground. CoghiWs Hill. —Several acres of a deposit of quartz gravel and grit about 20 ft. in thickness occur on the crown of this hill at an elevation of about 800 ft. above the level of the Waitahuna Flat. The deposit is payably gold-bearing if treated by a water-supply, but the area is too small to encourage the necessary outlay upon waterworks. A similar deposit exists on Sutherland's Hill, adjoining Cogliill's. Upper German Flat Hydraulic Sluicing Claim (Frank Bell, manager). —This claim is privately owned, and affords remunerative employment to the working shareholders. Dredging. —The Havelock and Imperial dredges still continue to operate on this flat, but to all appearances these claims will soon be worked out. At one time five dredges were in operation on the flat working the superficial gravels. Waitahuna Gully. There is little, if anything, fresh to report from this locality. The five hydraulic sluicing and elevating claims continued to work throughout the year with varying success. The successful operations of the Waitahuna Company's claim afford still further proof of the superiority of the hydraulic system over that of dredging upon hard, uneven bottom. Weather stone , s. During the latter part of the year the drought caused a decided shortage of the water-supply, which interfered with continuous operations. The Golden Crescent and Golden Rise claims continue to work with successful results. The only change was the erection of a plant in Paulin's Gully. The water-supply for this claim is inadequate. The deep-level cement-beds in this locality have attracted very little attention for many years. Tuapeka. Bluespur and Gabriel's Gully Consolidated Gold-mining Company, Bluespur (J. Howard Jackson, general manager ; J. Uren, mine-manager).—Sluicing operations during the season have been considerably hampered by shortage of water-supply, due to prevailing drought. As an indication of the amount of work done and material removed, it may be mentioned that the hill or spur whence the mine takes its name no longer exists, and the claim is now an immense open cut, the floor of which, at the eastern