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Deep-level Tunnel, Manaia, Coromandel. —About three years ago auriferous-quartz lodes were discovered in the Manaia District, and some of the stone crushed gave good returns. Lynch and party sunk down about 30ft. on the reef, and got very fair prospects, but the influx of water became so great that the workings had to be abandoned. A deep-level tunnel or adit-level was then constructed into the side of the range with the view of cutting across quartz lodes if any should exist. A subsidy of £250 on pound-for-pound principle was authorised for this work. Of this amount £225 12s. has been paid. Deep-level Tunnel, Oivharoa. —This is the continuation of an adit-level which was constructed several years ago to work out a quartz lode. The extension was to cut through a hard band of rock to see whether gold-bearing quartz could be found on the other side. The cost of this extension has been £300 Bs. Of this amount £200 ss. 4d. has been paid as subsidy. Deep-level Tunnel, Cedar Creek. —This low-level tunnel or adit was commenced about three years ago, to test whether the auriferous-quartz lode that was found cropping out in the bed of Cedar Creek, in the William Tell Company's ground, continued to go down. The adit-level is constructed for over I,oooft. In this distance several quartz loaders or segregated veins were cut through, and a prospect of gold was found in some of them. The cost of the work was £1,200. Of this amount £600 has been paid as a subsidy. Deep-level Tunnel, Bullion Mine, Tapit, Thames. —This was an extension of the deep-level adit which was constructed some twelve years ago. The object was to extend this adit-level in the direction of the Tapu Deep Level Tunnel, which was being constructed in this direction from the opposite side of the range. The cost of this extension was £300 ; of this amount £150 was paid as a subsidy. Deep Levels, Kapanga Company, Coromandel. —The Kapanga Mine has been worked for the last fifteen years with English capital, but some two years ago the company was wound up, and the plant sold. Steps were then taken to form a new company to sink the shaft to a greater depth and prospect the mine, and £1,000 was offered as a subsidy on the expenditure of £20,000 to further test the ground, payments to be made at the rate of 5 per cent, on the total expenditure for this purpose. This was the means of another English company taking up the mine, and after the expenditure 'of £6,740, on which a subsidy of £337 has been paid, the company has been successful in finding a payable lode, which is now being worked. AIDS TO PROSPECTING. Cardrona Prospecting Association. —An association was formed at Cardrona to prospect the Cardrona Flat, where it was believed by those in the district that the lead of gold which was worked in the early days went down the fiat, but after many attempts to prospect this flat the workings had to be abandoned, owing to the large body of water that was always met with. The association commenced operations about three years ago, and constructed a tail-race to carry away the water, but have not yet been successful in finding gold to pay for working. On prospecting works and for the construction of this tail-race £800 has been spent. Of this amount £400 has been paid as a subsidy. Cromwell Prospecting Association. —An association was formed to carry on prospecting operations in the Cromwell District, and a subsidy of £250 was granted on the principle of pound for pound on prospecting works. Royal Oak Prospecting Association. —This association was formed for the purpose of prospecting for auriferous-quartz lod.es in the Carrick Eange. A subsidy of £150 was authorised for this purpose on the pound-for-pound principle, the whole of which has been paid. Pullar, Shelmerdine, and Basan. —This party reported that they had found gold in a quartz reef at Harbour Cove, at Portobello. About thirteen years ago prospecting was carried on here, and gold was found in some of the country rock. Three trial crushings were at that time made of parcels of one ton of hard rock, which yielded Bdwt.; one ton of soft rock, yielding lldwt. ; and half a ton of hard rock, which yielded lldwt. of gold.. A subsidy of £200 was authorised on the pound-for-pound principle to further prospect this locality, and to get machinery on the ground, the whole of which has been paid. Fox and Party. —This was a prospecting party, one of which was paid regular wages, viz., 10s. per day, and another £1 per week, to prospect the southern portion of the West Coast. The money paid towards this party was £355 10s. Carey and Hyndman. —These persons belonged to the prospecting party that were employed two years ago by the Eed Hill Mineral Association, which was formed in Christ church. On their return the representations of those men were such that there was every reason to believe that gold existed in the Big Bay District. A large prospecting expedition was fitted out, and these men went with the expedition to show where Ihey thought gold would be found, and were paid £220 14s. Bd. towards getting provisions and outfits, and £1 each per week during the time they were away. Miscellaneous Aids to Prospecting. —Various subsidies for prospecting have been given through County and Borough Councils, in accordance with regulations made under the Mining Act. The subsidies paid through these bodies have amounted to £2,265 7s. 4d., and the subsidies for works of this description to other parties not enumerated amount to £3,611 Bs. sd. The whole of the subsidies paid for prospecting during the last five years amount to £9,357 os. 9d. AIDS TOWARDS THE TREATMENT OF ORES. Testing -plant, School of Mines, Thames. —Seeing the great disadvantages the miners are labouring under in not being able to extract anything like a fair percentage of the metals from the refractory ores which exist in the Thames, liarangahake, Te Aroha, and Waihi Districts, it was deemed desirable to have a small testing-plant, for treating small parcels of ores from the various mines, in order to ascertain their correct value. This testing-plant is now being erected in conjunc-