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1884. NEW ZEALAND.

SURVEYS OF NEW ZEALAND. (REPORT FOR 1883-84.)

Presented io both Houses of the General Assembly by Command of His Excellency.

The Surveyor-General to the Hon. the Minister of Lands. Sir,— General Survey Office, Wellington, Bth August, 1884. I have the honour to report the survey operations for the twelve months ended the 30th June, 1884. The various classes and processes of the New Zealand survey have been so fully treated in former annual reports that it will be unnecessary to describe them again at present. It will be of more interest to review, shortly, the principal surveys executed or in progress during the year, the full particulars of which are given in the reports of the Chief Surveyors and in the tables of the Appendix. Before doing so, the following summary shows in a succinct form the general field-work of the twelve months :— a,.,, Rate per Acre. Cost. Alea- s, s. a. & s. d. Major triangulation ... ... ... 1,481,700 acres 0 0 0-68 4,229 10 4 Minor triangulation ... ... ... 631,806 „ 0 0 1-09 2,878 4 10 Topographical and trigoinetrical ... ... 2,251,125 „ 0 0 1-13 10,573 2 5 Eural and suburban ... ... ... 439,400 „ 0 1 9-56 39,495 16 2 Town survey ... ... ... 716 allots 1° 19 4' 2 per lot 692 13 4 Native Land Court surveys... ... ... 556,628 acres 0 0 3-7 6,424 3 7 Native Land Court purchase surveys ... 72,583 „ 0 0 4-69 1,420 13 5 Gold-mining surveys ... ... ... 2,753 „ 012 9-7 1,763 1 6 Eoads, railways, and water-races, 790-9 miles, £12 ss. 7'4d. per mile ... ... 9,712 18 10 Miscellaneous work, detention by Native opposition, &c. ... ... ... 12,710 5 4 Triangulation. The areas of country brought under trigonometrical and topographical survey during the year aggregate 4,500 square miles. The more important of these surveys in the North Island are those of Mr. L. Cussen in that part of the Auckland District known as the King country, and of Mr. C. A. Baker, contract surveyor, who completed the maps of about one thousand square miles of the wild bush Native territory to the east of Opotiki, in the Urewera country, thereby giving a very good start to the topographical survey of the extensive East Cape District —an important work, long delayed through Native opposition, but now arranged to be gone on with by a member of the staff, with reasonable hope of meeting no serious obstruction from the Natives; many of whom, on the contrary, are eager for the survey to proceed, so that they may have their titles investigated by the Native Land Court. Mr. Cussen's major triangulations of the King country will cover an area of nearly five' thousand square miles. The net work of triangles is already over one-half, and the remainder should be completed during the ensuing season. He has, in laying eiit the work, reconnoitred the country and furnished a very interesting report on its natural resources (see Appendix No. 2). The area is about three million acres, lying principally between the Puniu, Lake Taupo, and I—C. 1.