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Collingwood to Takaka reaches Parapara Inlet. This lowering of the back line from Golden Gully to the sea is accounted for by the presence of the fault along this part, and the greater displacement of this towards the north-east. I have spoken of a plane of marine denudation tilted, so as to have a considerable slope descending from the south-east to the north-west, and of a line of auriferous drifts extending along its south-east margin, and it may already be inferred that these drifts are by me regarded as being of marine origin. Partly this is the meaning intended to be conveyed; but, before pronouncing definitely on this question, it is well that some further evidence bearing on the point raised should be adduced. It has been noted that the schistose rocks reach sea-level on the northern shore of Parapara Inlet. There they are immediately overlain by a comparatively inconsiderable thickness of quartzgrits, which, however, are not different from those being mined by the Parapara Hydraulic Sluicing Company, saving in certain particulars of secondary importance, which shall be mentioned in due course. These quartz-drifts on the north side of the inlet are directly overlain by limestone, which for the present may be regarded as of Cretaceo-tertiary age. The limestone can be followed, gradually rising in elevation as it is followed to the south-west, till at the north-east corner of Appo's Flat it has passed the water divide between the Parapara and Aorere Valleys, and entered on that of the latter. Here beneath the limestones the quartz-drifts have a greater development, and are probably auriferous, as, indeed, they are said to be on the shore of Parapara Inlet. At the north-west corner of Appo's Flat the limestones for a time terminate, being overlain by marly clays, and these in turn by the coarse gravel-beds of the seaward hills between the higher Aorere Terrace and the sea. But from beneath the limestones, the quartz-drifts extend north-west across and south-west along and into the deeper part of Appo's Flat, and stretch upwards to the south-east on the plane of denudation described, to a height of 430 ft. above the sea. Towards the south-west the quartz-drifts are washed away, denuded from the hill-slopes, and appear only on the lower slopes towards the eastern margin of the flat, and over the flat proper (West's freehold), they are completely covered up by the recent gravels brought down by the creek. Their presence, however, in the flat has been proved by mining, partly by open goldworking and dip-drives carried on by Mr. West, and partly by two deep shafts further to the northwest and near the middle of the flat. These deep shafts showed the presence of some 30ft. to 40ft. of superficial creek-gravel, below which they entered and were continued in quartz-gravel, yielding gold to a depth of 130 ft. from the surface. This deep pot-hole of quartz-gravel is bounded by schist-rock on all sides, but above the level of the flat a deposit of quartz-gravel runs through the spur by which the road leads up to Red Hill house and mine, and the hill-slopes facing the north, i.e., on the south side of Appo's Flat, are covered with a deposit of auriferous quartz-wash, rising to a height of 150 ft. above the flat. This deposit was in part very rich in gold, yielding, it is said, 1,0000z., and the greater part of the southern part of it has been worked out. Yet higher up the spur, on the road to Red Hill, a similar but smaller patch of auriferous quartz-wash, less than a chain square, has been worked, yielding, as reported, 30oz. of gold. These areas were shallow ground in both cases. The quartz-gravel extending through the spur at the lower level is continued to the opposing slope of the next gully, and is now being worked for gold. The ridge to the south-west separating this creek from Lightband's is without quartz-gravel, but shows schist highly charged with quartz-reefs and intersected by massive bands of quartz-rock. Lightband's Gully lies immediately beyond, and in its upper part has deposits of auriferous quartz-drift on both sides of the gully right to the saddle overlooking the Parapara at Richmond Hill, and descending the spurs to about two-thirds down its course to the junction with Appo's Creek. The quartz deposits on both sides of Lightband's Gully are original and in situ as at first deposited, and are in no sense " a spue from the main slide." They are clearly stratified, and in the upper part, except at the saddle, conform to the slope of the hill. Lower down the slope the drifts assume a more horizontal position, but the rising of a ridge of schist prevents their reaching to the Aorere River. Near the mouth of Stanton's Creek—that part of the watershed of Appo's and Lightband's Creek below the junction of the two streams—the limestone appears, and between it and the Slate River a claim is being worked, which in the past gave good results. On the spurs southwest of Lightband's, and thence to the middle and lower parts of Coles's Gully, there is a considerable development of quartz-gravels, and five or six sluicing-faces have been opened out and worked for many years in this part, but, as golden claims, they languish for lack of a sufficient supply of water. Round the rocky bush-clad hill east of the Mammoth Caves the gravels stretch to lower levels on to Druggan's Flat, and on the road to Bedstead Gully pass under the limestone, and at lower levels towards the river are intercepted by a slate ridge, or covered over by the gravels of the Aorere. Coles's Gully, the upper part of which is Golden Gully, I have not yet examined in the middle and lower parts. The upper part, Golden Gully, will be described under that heading. Here the auriferous gravels are partly involved along the line of fracture, and partly resting at low angles on the slate-rock. Dealing with this, the north-eastern part of the slope, on the south-east side of the Aorere Valley, which I have called a plane of marine denudation, it may have been noted that towards the low grounds the auriferous gravels at places pass under the limestones of supposed Cretaceo-tertiary date, while at the higher levels along the south-east margin of the quartz-drift area the limestones are absent. Further to the south-west the limestones appear at both the higher and the lower levels. The limestones are present in the low grounds of the valley from about opposite the mouth of Slate River to the ford above the foot-bridge over the Aorere, on the road to the Quartz Ranges, and are well seen at and for some distance above the bridge, where they rest on the schistose rock directly, and without the interposition of the quartz-drifts. But, while this is so, the limestone at