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Pretty Bridge Valley. —This work was also in the hands of the Waimea Boad Board, and the final payment made of £43 10s. The length is 2 miles, and a dray-road has been formed and metalled at a cost of £200, giving access to 1,370 acres leasehold and 600 acres freehold. Grey Valley, via Clarke Biver, to Manna. —The final payments for exploring and opening up a horse-track for 11 miles have been made. The total cost is £200. This track has been made to avoid a precipitous gorge, and the amount entrusted to the Grey County Council subject to supervision. Matakitahi Dray-road. —Final payments of £279 6s. 3d. have been made, and 6 miles of dray-road has been completed, at a total cost of £1,123 6s. 3d., of which the Government contributed one-half, and the Inangahua County the other. Karamea to MoMhinui. —One progress payment has been made on 21st December, 1887, of £300, for forming and metalling a dray-road, and the work is in hand by the Buller County Council under supervision. When complete this road will open up about 2,000 acres for a special settlement, and forms part of the main road between Karamea and Westport. Ahaura (Mason's) to Ilaupiri. —Contracts Nos. 32 and 33 have been completed, widening the horse-track to a dray-road, a distance of 5 miles, at a total cost of £1,461 55., being heavy sidling throughout. Contracts and specifications for a further 12 miles are ready for letting when funds are available. These works have been all under supervision by the department. John S. Bkowning, Chief Surveyor.

Teremakau-Bell Hill Road. —Two miles were constructed at the Lake Brunner or Teremakau end of the road—viz., from the 7-mile peg to 9-mile peg. The country passed over by road is flat and easy for construction. The Crooked Eiver, which is a good sized stream not crossable during floods, is crossed by a ford near the middle of this length. One mile was constructed at the Bell Hill end of road-—viz., from the 2-mile peg to the 3-mile peg. The country passed over is rougher than at the other end of road, but was not very difficult. The bush was felled 20ft. wide; the formation is 6ft. wide, and the metal 3ft. wide on both these pieces of road. They were constructed under the immediate supervision of the Grey County, and cost £600 17s. 3d., the amount of Government subsidy being £600. F. W. Maetin, District Engineer.

WESTLAND. Pounamu to Teremakau. —Making accessible about 1,200 acres of good agricultural lands (vote £500). The work was carried out by the Grey County Council under my supervision. Three contracts for half a mile each were let at the beginning of the year, and these were completed in December last. The vote has been expended, and there remains another 3J miles to be constructed before the whole of that road The work consisted of clearing 33ft., formation 14ft., and metalling 10ft. wide. Gillespie's to Cook's Biver Flat.- -Giving access to 7,500 acres of superior agricultural lands (vote £1,450). Length, 8 miles ; clearing 16ft., formation width sft., metal 3ft. wide. This roadconstruction was commenced in 1886, and completed in December, 1887. The payment of balance of vote made during the year amounted to £445 Us. Mahitahi to Paring a Boad. —Making accessible about 4,000 acres of land suitable for settlement (vote, £1,400). Length, 6 miles ; clearing 33ft., formation 7ft., and metal 4ft. wide. About 4ijr miles have been completed, and progress payments to the amount of £711 were made during the year. The whole of the work will be completed in a month or two. 1 had also the supervision of the following goldfields tracks, which were constructed by the Westland County Council under Government subsidy : Cedar Creek dray-road, Okarito Forks to Teal Creek horse-track. Geehaed Mueller, Chief Surveyor.

CANTBEBUEY. Loburn-Kowai Boad. —The 2 miles 64 chains of this road noted in last year's report as in progress has been completed, at a cost, including additions and supervision, of £376 12s. 4d., of which only £350 has yet been passed for payment. A further tender has been called for to complete the formation of about a mile in length, the cost of which will probably come within the amount originally sanctioned to be spent on this road, and will open the whole distance for wheeltraffic. It is a useful stock-road, saving about 7 miles in distance between the Loburn and Amberley Districts, but it will not, I think, ever be much used for wheel-traffic; it opens up 5,000 to 6,000 acres of pastoral country, giving access to a small amount of inferior bush. The land is all included within the area set apart for the Midland Eailway Company. Kuku Pass Boad. —This road laid out over the Kuku Pass into the Valley of the South Waipara and over Lee's Pass into the Okuku Valley, and thence by the low saiidle into the back Ashley country, has been in hand for several years. The road over the Kuku Pass was engineered by Mr. Dobson, C.8., under the directions of the Ashley Eoad Board, who contributed to the cost thereof, and is a most excellent road, 20ft. wide, on good grades, fit for coach-traffic, but, as the expense of continuing this would have been largely in excess of the amount likely to be available for the work, and the probable traffic from the back country not warranting such an expensive road, the extension of it up the Waipara Valley and over Lee's Pass was only made 12ft. to 15ft. wide, fording-places being substituted for bridges over the creeks; the sum of £2,992 was expended on the road, as noted in Mr. Kitson's report last year. A further grant of £500 having been sanctioned, two contracts were let for 1-J- miles of further formation between Lee's Pass and the Duck Creek ; this has been completed. I inspected and passed the work in January last, and a progress payment, amounting to £262 Is. 3d., has been paid to the Ashley Eoad Board on account of this work. The