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accumulations, except in Wellington, where the greatest accumulation, £19,798, has occurred. The result of inquiries proves that there is no undue delay in expenditure, except in two instances where the Beceiver of Land Bevenue has not been relieved of the sum of £8,583; the explanation being that the Government is still undertaking the construction and maintenance of many of the roads, and consequently the local bodies, with the approval of the settlers, have refrained from expending the " thirds." Consideration is now being given to the advisableness of securing the expenditure of the large amounts available, in view of the necessity of affording the settlers immediate benefit in improved access. Final. I trust that you will be pleased to excuse any shortcomings in this report, as I only took charge of the Department on the Ist January last, and have not had time to inspect the offices and districts.

SUEVEYS. The surveys of the colony are carried out in each of the land districts under the immediate direction and control of the Chief Surveyor. The surveyors who actually perform the work are the twenty-four District Surveyors and twenty-three assistant staff surveyors, supplemented by the services of licensed or contract surveyors. Of the latter, eighty took part in the year's operations. The output of work and its cost is set forth in the usual form as follows :— Average m . , n . Acres. Cost per Total Gost ' Acre. £ s. d. Minor triangulation with topography ... ... ... 3,040,679 0-48 d. 6,157 6 8 Topographical survey only ... ... ..'. 326,658 lT4d. 1,55118 3 Bural and suburban section survey (1,969 sections) ... 596,828-8 l-2ls. 36,215 19 1 Town section survey (1,082 sections), cost per section ... 1,375-65 25-05s. 1,355 10 7 Native Land Court surveys (113 divisions) ... ... 317,418 3-12 d. 4,132 19 1 Mining surveys (127 sections) ... ... ... 9,473 5-13s. 2,429 14 5 Boad surveys (432-484 miles) per mile ... ... ... £14-41 6,23117 7 Miscellaneous surveys, inspection, &c. ... ... ... ... 11,795 11 8 Total cost of field work finished during the year ... ... £69,870 17 4 This exceeded the cost of the previous year's work by £3,400 19s. sd. Trigonometrical and Topographical. Of the total of 3,367,337 acres returned, 605,570 acres is credited to the Auckland Land District, of which 347,670 acres represent the survey of the Urewera Country for the Commission which is engaged in determining the ownership of the Native lands in that district. In Hawke's Bay 198,858 acres was surveyed for the same Commission, besides 36,980 acres of minor triangulation, based upon the original major series, required to control land for settlements subdivisional surveys. In Taranaki 60,400 acres was executed to govern ordinary sectional surveys. In Wellington 1,767,517 acres of minor triangulation surveys w ; as executed. The work of this class completed in the Nelson District consisted of 22,412 acres, as a check upon settlement surveys in the Motupiko and Buller Valleys. Marlborough returns 547,800 acres, principally in the coastal country about the Clarence. A topographical survey was made of 79,800 acres in Westland. 48,000 acres was carried out in Otago as a basis for the topographical map required by the Defence Department. Bural and Suburban. The output under this head is an index of the extent of settlement in each land district. Auckland returns 144,525 acres, principally in the Kawhia District; five estates were subdivided for workmen's homes. The 52,969 acres in Hawke's Bay is made up mainly of the Hatuma Estate and other land-for-settlements estates. On the other hand, Taranaki returns 76,705 acres of hilly forest Crown lands for future disposal under settlement conditions. The Wellington contribution of 128,411 acres embraces both ordinary Crown lands and repurchased estates. The Nelson surveys of this class comprised 52,485 acres, and were undertaken chiefly to enable selectors in the Midland authorised area to obtain a more permanent tenure. The subdivision of the Waipapa country into small grazing-runs accounts for most of the 75,873 acres returned for Marlborough. Under this head Westland's out-turn is 10,109 acres, in scattered lots in rough forest country. As might be expected the areas surveyed for settlement in Canterbury are almost wholly made up of repurchases by the Crown from private owners : 18,582 acres, out of 19,871 acres returned, were so acquired. Only 3,631 acres of Native and other subdivisions was surveyed in Otago. The cuttingup of Bingway and Glenham Estates, sawmill areas, allotments for landless Natives and other miscellaneous areas account for the 32,249 acres appearing in this class for Southland. Town Sections. Most of the centres of settlement having already been established, there is little scope for surveys under this head; the areas returned include two townships and a part of another in Auckland, one in Hawke's Bay, three in Wellington, one in Canterbury, and extensions of old townships in most of the other districts,

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