O.—S

84

Special Claims cancelled and surrendered. Number. Greymouth ... ... ... .. ... ... ... 36 Ahaura ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 12 Beefton ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 34 Westport ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 12 Charleston ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 4 Lyell ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 14 Total ... ... ... ... ... ... 112 At the end of April last I sent out, by permission of the Minister, a circular to 102 dredging Companies, which were all that I could then ascertain to have been floated, of claims within my district. Only fifty-eight of these companies have sent replies. The result of this circular is given in the Table A appended ; in Table B the returns are supplemented as to the remaining fourty-four companies by recourse to the " Press Investor's Guide," a well-compiled and valuable little book. I must observe that the returns made were to some extent disappointing for the purpose of comparison, different companies having adopted different measures of certain units, and the return to other columns were so loose that I have thought it better to omit them altogether. If the Minister should be of opinion that such returns have a sufficient value, a wellconsidered form of return should be issued in future to all companies on the 31st March in every year. It is not one which imposes any great trouble on secretaries. If the course which I suggested in my last year's report had been adopted, much of what I have asked for could have been tabulated by the Clerks of my own Courts. It will be observed that out of 102 companies registered fifty-three only, as far as my information goes, had dredges at work or ordered, and out of this number, as appears by a report kindly made to me by a broker and mining agent in Greymouth, seventeen only are working. The return of gold obtained during the year is 7,608 oz., but of this 5,461 oz. was produced by one dredge from December, 1894, up to 31st March, 1901, and I have no return as to the proportion produced in the last year. Averaging the return of this dredge for, say six years, it would give 910 oz. a year. Assuming that it is reasonable to adopt such an average, the entire dredging output in the district for the year ending March, 1901, would be 3057 oz. It must, however, be borne in mind that few of the dredges had got to work before January, 1901, and that some are already indicating substantial and steady returns. The following return, which I take from the Greymouth Evening Star of the 4th June, will indicate the progress, made since the 31st March last: " For the month of May—or, to be more accurate, for the five weeks ended Saturday last—the gold yield from twelve dredges was 1,008 oz. 6 dwt., made up as follows: Nelson Creek (five weeks), 275 oz. 16 dwt.; Pactolus (five weeks), 129 oz. 18 dwt.; Grey Biver (four weeks), 77 oz.; Beeves's Proprietary (four weeks), 75 oz. 19 dwt.; Leviathan (four weeks), 74 oz. 5 dwt.; Maori Queen (five weeks), 76 oz. 6 dwt.; Bulier Junction (five weeks), 88 oz. 16 dwt. ; New Biver (three weeks), 47 oz. 12 dwt. ; Ford's Creek (two weeks), 16 oz. 6 dwt.; Waipuna (four weeks), 25 oz. 19 dwt. ; Greenstone Creek (two weeks), 16 oz; Greenstone Junction (five weeks), 43 oz. 19 dwt. : total (forty-eight weeks), 1,008 oz. 6 dwt." I do not think it within my province to express opinions on particular dredges, and I have purposely excised from the reports of the Clerks and agents all such expressions of opinion Nor do I think that at present the industry has been tested sufficiently to enable any one to arrive at any definite conclusion as to them. What I think can be said is that it is now proved that dredging can be worked to profit both on the Buller and Grey sides. There was too much haste at first, and it is not to be regretted that the state of the market effectually stopped many " wild-cat " schemes which would unquestionably have been otherwise floated. Shareholders and directors have had time for consideration, and the result is evident in increasing prudence. I have thought it my duty to some extent to try and discourage the entering into contracts for dredges until the ground has been better proved, both for its auriferous value and for the depth and character of the stuff to be raised, and obstacles which the dredge would have to deal with, and to meet which it should be designed. I announced at my Courts that, if I was satisfied that a company was diligently carrying on operations for the above purposes, I should gladly extend them time for commencing actual dredge-building operations to the full two years rather than see them hurried into imprudent contracts. The dredges now at work have furnished experience of great value to other companies, and I am sure that no better words could be put up as a warning in every dredging company's office than Shakespeare's, " Wisely and slow : they stumble that run fast." Some dredging companies have gone or are going into liquidation—some happily at no greater cost to their shareholders than that of the preliminary expenses, and a year's expenses of general management; others will have to face the loss of all their capital beyond what they may be able to recover by sale of their dredges. But all this tends to a survival of the fittest, and to warn the investing public against rash and hasty enterprise. There remains the solid basis of a valuable industry when the conditions of success have been better studied and complied with. I have now to deal with a matter of considerable importance to subscribing shareholders and to promoters and holders of paid-up shares. In the term "promoter" I must, to avoid prolix repetition, include the original licensee of a prospecting license or special claim ; the vendor of the claim to a promoter or the company, and the promoter or promoters who float the company, and if he acts in the matter whether directly as promoter or not; and the broker who places the shares— the singular " promoter" to include the plural " promoters." Parliament made last session, in " The Companies Act Amendment Act, 1900," an effort to control the power of "the promoter" which he exercised under his fully-paid-up shares, but by