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Houses and land for use as police-stations were purchased at National Park, Khandallah, and Northland, while sites for police-stations were acquired at Whangarei, Mission Bay, St. Heliers Bay, Waiheke Island, Hamilton, Clive, New Plymouth, Levin, Paekakariki, and Mount Cook (Wellington). Plans are in course of preparation for a number of police buildings which are urgently required to replace structures that have outlived their usefulness. In this connection the necessary provision is being made on the estimates for the current year. Post and Telegraph Buildings and Land. During the last financial year the following post-office buildings were completed : Avondale, Devonport, Grey Lynn, Linwood, Little River, Milton, St. Albans, Sumner, and Tauranga. In addition, residences for Postmasters were erected at Cambridge, Kaipara Flats, Mangaweka, Poolburn, Waiau, and Wairoa, and a residence for the staff was provided at Te Teko. Other buildings completed were a line-depot and store building at Huntly ; a line-depot, store, and garage building at Geraldine ; a line-depot, store, garage, and workshop building at Gisborne ; a line-depot and battery building at Clyde ; line-depot, store, and garage buildings at Amberley and Milton ; and garage buildings at Devonport and Motueka. Major additions and alterations were made to post-office buildings at Newmarket, Parnell, Te Awamutu, Waimauku, Waitangi (Chatham Islands), Wakefield, and Wellesley Street (Auckland), and alterations and additions providing for improved accommodation were made to the departmental buildings at Ashliurst, Balfour, Christchurch (garage), Geraldine, Gore, Lyttelton, Mount Albert, Paekakariki, Takaka, Taradale, Te Akau, and Warkworth. Several buildings and sites no longer required were disposed of during the year. Post-office buildings at Linwood, Milton, and St. Albans were demolished to make room for new buildings. Sites and additional land for departmental purposes were acquired at twenty-four places. At the end of the financial year, the following buildings were in course of erection: Christchurch (chief post-office, first block) ; Dunedin (store and workshops) ; Gisborne (automatic telephone exchange) ; Hamilton (chief postoffice) ; Invercargill (chief post-office) ; Mount Pleasant (automatic telephone exchange) ; New Brighton (automatic telephone exchange) ; Okaihau (Postmaster's residence) ; Otorohanga (post-office and residence) ; Wanganui (chief post-office) ; Wellington (Office building and line-depot) ; Whakatane (line-depot, store, and garage). Also in progress were large additions to the chief post-office buildings at Auckland, Oamaru, and Palmerston North ; additions to the post-office buildings at Ellerslie, Huntly, Kaipara Flats, Okaihau, Opotiki, Rangiwahia, and Waiau ; and additions to the automatic-telephone-exchange building at Mount Eden and the store and garage building at Kaitaia. MENTAL HOSPITALS. The work of development and extension to Kingseat Mental Hospital has again occupied a major portion of the programme. The hospital block, boiler-house, laundry and workshops block have been completed. A Nurses' Home and two villas for male patients are at present under construction. The water-supply at Tokanui has been improved, and kitchens have been added to many wards to provide improved service. The erection of the new boiler-house at Porirua has been completed and much of the machinery has been installed. A residence for an Assistant Medical Officer has been erected, a new bakehouse and butcher's shop is in course of erection, and considerable improvements to the general roading at Porirua have been carried out. The new Nurses' Home at Ngawhatu is nearing completion and the erection of a new laundry at Templeton completed. Extensive alterations have been carried out in the main kitchen block at Sunnyside, and a new workshop block is being erected to replace the old building which was destroyed by fire.

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