C—7.

1890. NEW ZEALAND.

RESOLUTIONS PASSED AT MINING CONFERENCE HELD IN DUNEDIN IN FEBRUARY, 1890.

Return to an Order of the House of Representatives dated the 4th July, 1890. Ordered, " That thero be laid before this House a copy of the resolutions passed at, or other business transacted by, a meeting of the delegates of the Mining Association of Otago, hold in Dunedin in February last." —(Mr. M. J. S. Mackenzie.)

M. J. S. Mackenzie, Esq., to the Hon. the Minister of Mines. Sib,— Dunedin, 20th March, 1890. Herewith I beg to enclose you a series of resolutions passed at a meeting of delegates from the various mining associations of Otago, of which meeting I had the honour to be chairman. It was held at Dunedin on the 24th February, and is the second annual gathering of the kind. The delegates are in hopes that you will give your earnest attention to the resolutions, and endeavour to induce the Government to give effect to them in so far as it may be possible or desirable to do so. I have, &c, The Hon. the Minister of Mines, Wellington. M. J. Scobie Mackenzie.

Besolutions passed at Second Annual Meeting of the Delegates of the Mining Association of Otago. 1. That in the opinion of the delegates present it is of the greatest importance that resolutions re abolition of the gold duty, and other proposals assented to and passed by the Mining Conference held at Clyde, on the 17th and 18th April, 1889, should be given effect to, and that therefore the members of the House of Representatives should be respectfully requested to use their influence with the Government to deal with the question in the manner indicated in the said resolutions. 2. That the chairman be invited to draw the attention of the Government to the fact that the mining law, previous to 1887, has been held to be faulty in so far as it provided for the construction of water-races without giving the right to divert or lift the water, and that in the opinion of this Conference the position of persons owning water-races constructed up to that period should be secured by a validating Act. 3. That in the opinion of this Conference it is desirable that the District Judge should be instructed to hold Courts periodically at Queenstown, Cromwell, and Naseby. 4. That in the opinion of this Conference no land should for the future be offered for pastoral or agricultural settlement within three miles of a known gold-working, except under such conditions as admit, upon six months' notice to the owner or occupier, of free entry for mining purposes. 5. That the Government surveyor should not for the future be authorised to charge mileagefees in connection with the survey of mining claims. 6. That in the opinion of this Conference it should be made more imperative upon the Wardens to grant occupation licenses to bond fide applicants. 7. That, whereas at present clause 61 of " The Counties Act, 1886," is in many cases prohibitive to miners (who may be large contributors to the county revenue) exercising votes at the county elections through not residing in the riding in which their miners' rights were taken out, or through shifting their place of abode, it is desirable the clause should be so altered as to permit a miner to vote in any riding within the county in which his miner's right is granted, upon declaration that he is a bond fide miner, and that he has not previously voted at the same election. 8. That, with a view q£ preventing the undue locking-up of auriferous lands by unworked ■dredging or other claims, it is, in the opinion of this Conference, desirable that" the Government should take steps to increase the stringency or otherwise render more operative clauses of the Mining Act, and that for that purpose the onus" of seeing the law carried out in this respect should rest with the Inspector of Mines or his deputy. 9. That, whereas at present certain riparian rights exist upon the Marewhenua Goldfields detrimental to the prosecution of the gold-mining industry at such-field by deterring the employment of