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coal, no further extensions will be made, so that instructions to keep the bords narrow in future are unnecessary. The ventilation of the mine appears good; and, although the air is not directed to the faces, at the time of our visit there appeared to be a sufficient quantity of air at all the ends. The roof of the mine is protected by 4 feet 6 inches, or more, of coal being left in, above which the formation to the surface consists of clay. Some prospecting shafts which had been sunk on the property were not covered in, but before we left the manager had made preparations to have them filled in. The plan of the mine was in Auckland, at the office of the company, and there was no copy in the possession of the manager, as was also the case when Mr. M'Laren visited the mine before. Taupiri IKine. —The plan of this mine was also in Auckland so that we were unable to see it, but when Mr. M'Laren visited the mine before it was in the possession of the manager. Throughout this mine the thickness of coal taken out has been too great, considering the running nature of the roof, and this renders itself especially apparent in the bords from Nos. 5, 3, and 1 headings, where, at many places the roof has been struck, and at others the thickness of coal left is only a few inches. Wherever the roof has been struck close timbering has been rendered necessary, and this has not always been sufficient to prevent falls, besides which, in many cases the timbering is imperfectly put in and is at places giving to the superincumbent pressure. When the work of drawing the pillars is commenced, a great loss of coal will probably ensue from this mode of working, and considerable care will have to be exercised in carrying on the work. The ventilation of the mine is very imperfect, and, although along the main airway the current is often sufficient to nearly blow out the candle, the air in the bords to the rise of the old workings is very bad, and were it not that at present but few men are employed in these old workings it would b« absolutely necessary to take steps to guide the air round the faces. Bridgewater (Ifiranda) Colliery. —At this mine the wire rope which is used for winding the mineral has been very imperfectly spliced within half a turn of the winding barrel when the cage is at the bottom of the shaft, and at this point half the strands of the rope have gone. The barrel on which the wire rops (1J inches) is coiled is too small, thus causing unnecessary wear on the rope, but as the manager objects to alter this no steps can be taken. The brake band attached to the winding gear is in a very unsafe condition, one side of the coupling being broken off at the fixed end, and the band itself being cracked half through at the lever end. There is no cover to the cage, but this shaft is not used for raising or lowering men. In the air shaft ladders have been fixed ; the upper one stands on a platform from which a second ladder starts, the lower end of it resting on a narrow ledge of coal in the side of the shaft, the lowest ladder starting abruptly from the same point. It will be necessary to fix staples at the top of the two upper ladders, and at the foot of the second ladder either a platform should be erected, or & chamber cut in the face of the coal to ensure the safety of the miners. The seam of coal which is being worked at this mine is S3 feet thick, and until recently the upper 30 feet only of this was worked, and nearly all the coal which has been raised has been taken from close to the shaft, two headings put in towards the hill, cutting the roof of the coal at a short distance, and showing that the seam was crushed in that direction. Timber has been employed in these drives, and the manager informed us that they were unsafe to enter. Immediately around the shaft chambers, sometimes as much as 30 feet in height have been excavated, of course utterly precluding the employment of timber should it be found necessary, and also with the position of the two shafts rendering the future guiding of the air a matter of the greatest difficulty. Latterly, the workings have been carried on from a lower level in this seam, immediately below the old workings, leaving in some places only 6 feet of coal between the two levels to form the roof of the one and the floor of the other. The workings in this lower level are also in the immediate vicinity of the shaft which is accordingly weakened. To all appearance this mine is being worked on no principle ; no plan of the workings exists, and without this it is impossible to say what extent of this 6 feet belt of coal has been left standing. As, however, the workings are still being carried on in the lower level, there is little doubt that before long a fall will occur !in this .mine if proper precautions ara not taken. When such a large body of coal has to be worked, a well devised scheme for working it should be first arranged, for the result of such operations as have hitherto been carried on will, before long, be to close the mine and necessitate sinking at a fresh place. There are a number of prospecting shafts on the property, which are neither fenced nor covered in, and a horse fell into one of them the other day. General Itemarlcs. —Mr. McLaren has written to the managers of the above collieries requesting that they will take steps to remedy such points as canjae altered, and to take all reasonable precautions when the evil cannot be removed. At the Bridgewater colliery, we were informed, that no copies of the special rules had ever been forwarded to them, and we left a copy with the manager, but as they have to be circulated amongst the miners, and also posted, some fresh copies will be required. At the Taupiri mine, the code of rules was posted, and at the Waikato (Kupa Kupa) special rules were posted, but not the complete code printed by the Government. We have, &0., The Under Secretary of Mines, S. Herbert Cox, Inspector of Mines. Wellington. James M. M'Laren, Inspector of Mines.

No. 2. INTERIM REPORT UPON INSPECTION OF COAL MINES, NORTH ISLAND. Mr. Inspector Cox and Mr. Inspector M'Laren to the Under Secretary for Mines. Sir, — Wangarei, 4th February, 1880. We have the honor to inform you that we have visited the Kamo, Whau-Whau, and Kawa-Kawa mines, and enclose herewith our report on the same. Kamo Mine. —The nature of the coal in this mine Is very tender, and the greatest care is required to prevent small falls while the men are at work, in consequence of the cross cleat of the coal. The manager appears to be fully alive to the danger, and to be using every precaution to prevent accidents.