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Protective Works, Totara River, Ross. —Expenditure, £26 -9s. lid. Three chains of substantial wire crate and stone protection were constructed for a settler on the banks of the Totara River. The river threatened to cut into the land and do considerable damage, but the danger has now been averted. The settler interested provided half the cost in labour. Protection Works, Kokatahi Settlement. —Expenditure, £12 10s. An amount of £25 on a subsidy basis was granted to a settler on the Kokatahi Settlement who has' done a considerable amount of work in. protecting his land. A sum of £12 10s. has yet to be paid. As the work is only just completed, it is difficult to say what the result will be in flood-time. River Protective Works, Wanganui River, South Westland. —Expenditure, £127 3s. 7d. These works, consisting of a barricade of posts and barbed wire, were constructed to prevent the overflow of the Wanganui River through the Wanganui Flat. Half of the money was found by the settlers, partly in cash fnd partly in labour. It yet remains to be seen what value the work possesses, as there have been no large floods since it was completed. The amount was inadequate to provide for an efficient safeguard, but, as the work was well and substantially built, it is to be hoped that it will be at least partially successful. Roa Township (Westland). —Felling bush prior to disposal of sections, £30 17s. Expenditure, £30 17s. A co-operative contract was let for the above work, which covered about 11 acres. The felled bush has since been burnt. Roads and Other Works in Runanga Township. —Expenditure, £2,442 15s. 4d. During the past twelve months the work of forming and metalling streets through this thriving toyvnship has been proceeding apace, and endeavours have been made to meet the demands of the residents where they proved reasonable. The Railway Department being unable to continue the loading of the necessary supply of gravel at Stillwater, we finally had to send a gang of men there to load the trucks. By employing the remainder of the men at drainage-works in the intervals of the gravelsupply we were enabled to keep them all fully employed. By utilizing the waste from the mine (kindly donated by Mr. Bishop, mine-manager) to cover the formation in places we have also economized a considerable amount of gravel. During the year the Railway Department delivered 6,059 tons of gravel. The centres of the streets in the township are now all formed, and the principal ones metalled. Side-drains have been dug where necessary, and creek-bends straightened. It will not be possible to carry out a comprehensive scheme for drainage until the construction of the proposed outfall drain through the adjoining section to the Seven-mile Creek. In addition to the completion of the formation and the metalling of the principal streets, numerous other small improvements have been undertaken, such as keeping the streets in repair for traffic, repairs and relaying of tramways for distributing metal, clearing stumps, fee, in front of public buildings, and generally carrying out the functions of a Town Board. . As soon as one of the staff is available, the surveys for a water-supply and drainage Scheme will be taken in hand. .',._„ : , . . ■ . : ... ~, . n., .. I beg to express my appreciation of the skill and tact displayed .by the Overseer in carrying out the. various constructive works in the township during the year. ... jj / G. J. Roberts, ; Chief Surveyor.

CANTERBURY. Lands opened for Selection. Exclusive of lands offered under the Land for Settlements Act, which are dealt with separately, the bulk of the lands placed on the market during the year were offered under the optional system and for pastoral license. Under the-optional system twenty-three allotments, containing an area of 7,245 acres, were offered; ten of these, comprising 466 acres, were small scattered areas previously offered but not taken up; eight allotments, comprising 2,727 acres, near Hanmer Springs, and two blocks, comprising 3,739J acres, near Hurunui, had previously. been held on pastoral license, and were now made available'for settlement occupation; the remainder of the lands offered under this system were small areas in various localities. Out of the 6,863 acres selected during the year under the optional system, ten allotments, comprising 6,000 acres, were taken up under renewable lease; one allotment, of 564 acres, under occupation-with-right-of-purchase license, and seven allotments, totalling 299 acres, were purchased for cash. Under pastoral-license tenure, fifteen runs, representing an area of 249,801 acres, were offered for disposal at auction. Fourteen of these were put up, as required by the Land Act, a year before the expiration of the existing licenses, and, with one exception, the new term of license was fixed at twenty-one years, in order to encourage the tenants by fixity of tenure to improve the Crown pastoral -property. Representations were made that some of these runs should be subdivided and made available for settlement occupation in limited areas by men of small means, but the Classification Commissioners, after inspecting the runs, and giving, the subject most careful consideration, were unable to recommend any further subdivision, as the character of the country, with its difficulties of access and risks of heavy loss of stock by snowfalls, rendered it unsuitable for occupation in smaller areas or by men whose financial position would be unable to stand the heavy losses liable to occur periodically in such country. Out of the fourteen runs offered twelve were sold, and two small runs, comprising 3,824 acres, are to be reoffered on slightly modified terms. The other lands offered during the year included one rural" allotment of 140 acres and two village allotments of 7 acres, offered for cash sale at public auction; two allotments, comprising 748 acres, offered for lease for terms of seven and forty-two years; and eleven allotments under the Workers' Dwellings Act. Two allotments, comprising• 2J acres in the Township of Anbury* South Canterbury, were offered for sale on behalf of the School Commissioners.

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