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Southern Inspection District. Castle Hill Mine, Kaitangata. Birchwood Mine, Ohai. Kaitangata No. 1 Mine. Linton Mine, Ohai. Kaitangata No. 2 Mine. Black Diamond. Wairaki Mine, Ohai. Black Lion. (c) List of Mines required by Law to use Safety-lamps. The following is a list of the mines as at the 31st December, 1929, required by law to use safety lamps : — Northern Inspection District. Pukemiro Collieries, Pukemiro—Main north heading section (now abandoned). Rotowaro Colliery, Rotowaro—Throughout No. 1 and No. 3 Mines. Glen Afton Colliery, Glen Afton —No. 1 heading section. Renown Colliery, Rotowaro —Main north section. West Coast Inspection District. Westport Coal Co.'s (one section, Millerton Spark's, Rewanui. Mine). State Mine (Liverpool No. 2). Dobson, Brunnerton. Paparoa, Roa. Hunter's, Dunollie. Wallsend, Brunnerton. Southern Inspection District. Castle Hill Mine, Kaitangata. Birchwood Mine, Ohai. Kaitangata No. 1 Mine. Linton Mine, Ohai. Kaitangata No. 2 Mine. Black Diamond. Wairaki Mine, Ohai. Black Lion. (d) Dangerous Occurrences reported. (Regulation 82.) A full account of these is given in the District Inspectors' reports. The most serious was the flooding of the Hikurangi Shaft Colliery early in February. In the dip heading a fault was struck which gave off a large quantity of water —too much for the pumps to deal with—and consequently the pumps had to be withdrawn. The influx of water into the mine was accompanied by subsidences along the Hikurangi Swamp. The level of the water in the swamp was lowered by drains, and a more powerful pumping plant installed at the mine in October, with the result that the mine was unwatered in December and coal-production resumed. While the mine was idle the water rose up the shafts a height of 167 ft. Wilson's Colliery adjoins Hikurangi Shaft Colliery. There is a narrow coal barrier between them, but the barrier had been weakened by pillar-extraction on both sides. The rise of water in Hikurangi shafts increased the flow of water into Wilson's Colliery, and in June the influx of water into the latter was more than the pumps there could deal with and the dip portion of that mine was flooded out. The two companies came to an arrangement by which pumping was resumed at Hikurangi shafts with the old plant there and the water lowered and kept at a level which would prevent it flowing into Wilson's Colliery. This was successful, and the dip workings in Wilson's Colliery were gradually recovered. (e) Electricity at Collieries. (Regulation 243.) The following is a summary of the annual returns, in accordance with Regulation 243 (c), regarding electrical apparatus at collieries : — Number of collieries at which electrical apparatus is installed .. .. 38 Number of continuous-current installations .. .. .. .. 11 Number of alternating-current installations .. .. .. .. 30 Number of collieries electrically lighted .. .. .. .. 25 Number of collieries using electrical ventilating-machines .. .. 32 Number of collieries using electrical pumping plants .. .. .. 26 Number of collieries using electrical haulage plants .. . . .. 28 Number of collieries using electrical screening plants .. .. .. 11 Number of collieries using electrical miscellaneous plants .. .. 17 Number of collieries using electrical locomotives .. .. .. 1 Total horse-power employed from motors on surface .. .. .. 5,475 Total horse-power employed from motors below ground.. .. .. 4,217 (/*) Prosecutions. There were thirty informations laid by the Inspectors during the year for breaches of the Coalmines Act and Regulations. Two of these were withdrawn, one was dismissed, and in all twentyseven convictions were obtained. Accounts of these individual prosecutions are given in the reports of the District Inspectors (Annexure A),

6—e. 2,