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constructed, yet the large expenditure of public and private money on both tramway and battery appears to have been justified by the result, and will, I believe, as time passes on and the reefs are better developed, be fully so. With the usual uncertainty attached to mining the claims most highly thought of before crushing, viz., Premier, Waitoki, and Werahiko, have not proved payable as yet. On the other hand the New-Find and Colonist have proved to be most valuable properties. The result of the crushing from these claims proves beyond doubt the main line of reef from which the stone was taken to be more than payable. The New-Find have already divided £2,000 and the Colonist £500 amongst the shareholders, as the result of the first three months' crushing, after paying some very large sums away for work and plant in opening the mines. The stone crushed from tho Premier and other mines that did not prove payable was taken from cross-lodes; but, as the large expenditure in this district was incurred in the belief that the immense body of stone contained in the main line of reef, traced through so many claims, would prove to be both payable and permanent, it is more than satisfactory to find that, whilst the crushings have proved the payable nature of the reef, the permanency of the lode itself is daily more assured as the workings on the lower levels of the New-Find and Colonist progress, and so far gold has been carried to the lowest level as yet touched, with gold showing freely in the stone underfoot. A recent find (in March) of some very rich stone in the Waiorongomai and Wellington Claims, coupled with the yield from the crushing of some small parcels of stone from claims in tho same locality—viz., Inverness, 5 tons 21oz. 15dwt. ; Welcome, 2 tons 113oz. —leads to the hope and belief that rich leaders leading into or from the main reef will yet be discovered as the ground gets more systematically worked and the lower levels opened up. So far specimen stone has only been found on or close to the surface throughout the district. The Mining Inspector's report herewith will show more in detail the work being done in the various claims. But sufficient has been done to show that payable stone is not confined to the two claims who at present practically keep the battery employed, and that the progress of the district may be said to depend upon the two wants, cheap carriage and cheap crushing, being soon supplied. In any event that progress will certainly be steady, though possibly slow, both from the nature of the reefs and the consequent large expenditure required in the erection of machinery to develop them; but events so far justify me in repeating the opinion I have always expressed, that in the Aroha a payable and permanent gold field has been opened valuable in itself, still more valuable from its position in the centre of a large agricultural district, to which in the future it must be the market —a district that will furnish, I believe, remunerative employment for a large amount of both capital and labour. During the year, in the Warden's Court, 75 cases, and in tho Eesident Magistrate's Court, 276 civil cases and 62 criminal cases, have been disposed of. Two hundred and thirty-one miners' rights have been issued, 102 fresh claims marked out; 43 licensed holdings (leases), 66 business sites, 77 residence sites, 1 water-race, and 1 machine site granted; and 619 general registrations effected. Total amount of quartz crushed, and yield of gold, for year ending the 31st March, 1884: 4,316 tons, yielding 4,5460z. lldwt. 12gr. of gold. (Eeturn furnished by Mining Inspector.) I have, &c, Haeey Keneick, The Under-Secretary for Gold Fields, Wellington. Warden.

Sib,— Warden's Office, Te Aroha, Bth April, 1884. I beg to forward the following particulars respecting mining matters, and the works which are in progress in this district: — In the early part of the year there was a great deal of want of energy in mining, chiefly on account of the slow progress in the formation of the tramway. This was not completed until the Ist November. About the month of June a demand for claims at Te Aroha began to set in, and about forty licensed holdings were applied for before the close of 1883, but, as the greater number of those claims were occupied for speculative purposes, very little prospecting has been done, and there is no fresh find to report outside of the claims previously proved. A large reef was opened up on the western slope of the mountain, and a considerable amount of prospecting carried on in that part, but so far the result has been that nothing payable has been found. The following particulars of work done and returns of quartz crushed from several of the mines at Waiorongomai will show that the estimates formed of the value of the claims will be fully borne out by the results :— New-Find. —This mine is well opened up : the reef at the low level, under where gold was first discovered in the claim, is driven on for 90ft. on a strong body of quartz from 4ft. to 6ft. in thickness, and, as there are nearly 100 ft. of backs, a large block of payable ground is ready for stoping. Another reef or branch near the southern boundary has also turned out well: about 100 ft. has been driven on the lode at a depth of 50ft. from the outcrop, and a winze sunk in the floor to a depth of 25ft: a low-level crosscut has been commenced which will cut the reef under where the winze is being sunk. When this connection is made another extensive block of payable quartz will be opened. Eighty fathoms of reef have been stoped out on this reef, which is known as No. 2 reef, forty fathoms have been stoped out on No. 1 reef ; and the total quantity of quartz sent to the mill is 1,501 tons, which has yielded 2,2960z. 12dwt. of gold. The reefs appear to be as rich or even better on the floor of the drives than where worked on near the surface. A ground tramway 800 ft. and an iron shoot 380 ft. in length are used for conveying the quartz from the mine to