REPORT ON THE MARINE DEPARTMENT.

3

E.—No. C

-arrangement could probably be made for its regular exhibition. I should, however greatly prefer to reported m an, way, bo that I believe > total of skty ea.ualtie. may be cZ'dered decided vuSfc ratter thau o»er tie true number. Th», however, includes tie loss of the ■' (fei &it» on fk Auckland Hand, m 1866, and tie foundering of the " B,»erald»" off Op.ra i'lil 1867 Talks JuLT A fH" ™' J [see APPendil °J.if ™" •» ob.ISS.SuI- occurred i? a^rnfSet'Xv^ts.s.tei^ro 4- ss™tit°: s £ri l™s ing a total of 2,050 tons or very nearly one-half of all the tonnage lost during the year on these coasts. 11. Ihe number of lives lost, as recorded in the Wreck Eegister, is ninety-nine but of these seventy-three perished m the « General Grant;" twenty- S ix being the number lost onThe cpast of New Zealand during the past unusually tempestuous year. P 12. ■ Owing to the recent casualties on the Auckland Isles, I understand that steps are beino- tnker, m conjunction with other Colonies, to establish a regular depot of provisions SotLr store for shin' wrecked mariners upon them, and to provide for their periodical visitation. ffihSse^lSfe is^^ssisSs KSS Sri s utmost WfifV ii g Tl 101P, r°P ecryly.be au Intercolonial undertaking, as it would be of the West laCots Ct crtr m A SUW hTD^ beeil autllorized to, he upended on Marino Surveys, principally on the West Ooast G. A Woods, Esq., was entrusted with the preparation of the "St Kilda" for tint purpose, and was afterwards appointed Chief Marine Surveyor. 1 The greatest posible economy has been observed from first to last; indeed I believe it would have been in tL end m^re eeano"had a WheTthe Tyr''6ene^ d? don -^ sUrchaSe5 UrchaSe °f inst™mellta of tlie testde rprnatfct When the St. Xi da was fitted, I considered it advisable to employ her for a time on the East Coast to see how her equipments answered, and to accustom the men to the work. The resu t proved the moTS °j^j™*f™ ■ * was found necessary to condemn some of the boats, and procurlo hers more suited for the work ■ some of the instruments were also found unserviceable or at least unsuS for the peculiar work they were required to do, and required to be altered or replaced by others md sj^ffa&^^ja^ 1^before ac yessei couid w be- L^s £s wit ' S^aSJSKK Tr depTf oU\ me ofthe'stengaged on the JiastCoast, and during that time the progress ofthe work was of necessity conm-irativelv \7' r# aSJ he s.ern7r ™u™a"y tempestuous ; indeed the whole v^tj^/ZJTdttZ - rir-n 'M- thf gllt °f th 6 3rd °f Februa^y, and narrowly escaped wth their live After the constsuty rtTHi'-ti c PT' eSS oftl—k became more rapid! untifshe was again detachedt Ta ry M.ft.iV I} okltll™- J n consequence of all these circumstances, it was not till the beginning of May tha the work on the West Coast was commenced, and the progress between that timea dtiie 2xl IS P FT r CC'i? f?' there Wlll Certainls r be a Sreat irom its adoption ■if not the ifaS reing Or»e P dlaonl\tneo eut y ' S' S I have the honor to forward herewith the Chief Marine Surveyor's Eeport, which shows in detail expedient until such time as engraved copies may be issued by the Hydrographical Department P" 14 I also forward herewith a small sketch chart of « Port Curtis," being the bay formed by Point Ehzabeth a few miles to the north of Greymouth ; Mr. Woods was instructed to procure a few sound