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No. 14. Mr. Warden Poynton to the Under-Secretary for Mines, Wellington. Sir,— Invercargill, 24th April, 1896. I have the honour to forward herewith annual returns and to submit the following report on mining matters in the sub-districts under my charge, for the year ending the 31st March, 1896 : — Oeepuki. There is nothing fresh to report from this sub-district, but I think there is a slight increase in the number of miners employed since last year, and the yield of gold has been better, principally on account of the abundance of water during winter and spring of last year. Number of miners employed : Europeans, 120; Chinese, 20. Round Hill. The Round Hill Mining Company have been steadily at work during the greater part of the year, and the gold returns are said to be very satisfactory. They have now a special claim of 60 acres, and have gone to considerable expense in enlarging and repairing their water-races. One of the races will bring in about twenty-four Government heads. Additional elevators are to be used, and are now being erected. When this claim is being fully worked, as it will be during the coming year, a very large number of men will be employed in connection with it. The Ourawera Gold-mining Company have a special claim of 20 acres further up the stream than the Round Hill Mining Company's claim. They have made a start at hydraulic sluicing, and are well satisfied with their prospects. The approximate yield of gold from the Orepuki and Round Hill districts for the year past is 6,8820z. The mining population is for Round Hill: Europeans, 60; Chinese, 120. LONGWOOD. The Riverton Mining Association sent out two parties of prospectors into this district in February last, and within a month two reefs were reported to be discovered. Two claims have been applied for, but the reefs have not yet been tested. Preservation Inlet District. There has been a considerable falling-off m the number of claims applied for in this district during the last twelve months, and several of those previously granted have been abandoned. The yield from the two principal quartz-claims on the field for the past year was—from the Morning Star, 7280z., from 1,335 tons ; and from the Golden Site, llloz. 9dwt. 12gr., from 454 tons. There can be no doubt as to the great mineral wealth of this district, but owing to a number of causes —principally the rugged nature of the country, the dense bush, and inhospitable climate— the greater part of it is still unexplored. Number of miners employed on the field : Alluvial, 50 ; quartz, 40 ; all Europeans. Wyndham. The total number of miners at work in this district is forty-two—thirty-six Europeans and six Chinese. The old beach-dredging claims have been abandoned. Dredging-claims were applied for which included parts of the bed of the Mataura River outside the Mining District. The applicants were advised to take steps to have that part of the river-bed proclaimed, if they were satisfied it would pay for dredging, but I have heard nothing about it for some months past. While writing this report, I have received from the Clerk of the Court at Wyndham two applications for special claims of 50 acres and 30 acres on the Six-mile and Waipapa beaches respectively. They are made by the agents of a wealthy South African syndicate, who state in the applications that they are going to spend £25,000 in testing the beaches by the cyanide process. As the applications came to me only to-day, I have had no time to make inquiries. It has long been the opinion of some chemists that gold exists in the interiors of the crystals of the magnetic and other iron ores found on our auriferous beaches, and that the renewal of gold on the workedout beaches is partly due to the liberation of gold particles from those ores. If this view be correct, the cyanide process would certainly enable the miner to extract the gold from the pulverised ores. As vast quantities of these ores are found at different places in the colony, it is important to make an exhaustive trial of them, and I hope this will now be done. I have, &c, The Under-Secretary for Mines, Wellington. J. W. Poynton, Warden.

No. 15. Mr. N. D. Cochrane, Inspector of Mines, to the Under-Secretary for Mines, Wellington. Sir,— Inspector of Mines' Office, Westport, 30th May, 1896. I have the honour to report as follows on the mines worked under the provisions of " The Mining Act, 1891," in the Marlborough, Nelson, and Westland districts, during the year ended the 31st March last :— Marlborough. When in this district in December last there was only alluvial mining being done, reference to which will be made later on. Neither the Ravenscliff at Waikakaho, nor the Empire City quartzmines at Wakamarina, had resumed work. Collingwood. Johnston's United Quartz-mine was not inspected during the year, owing to my being fully occupied with other work. At date of writing the manager informs me only three men are employed at prospecting work.