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Lord Nelson and North Star. —This ground has for some time past been worked by James Middleton and party.. The work has been confined to trial crushings taken out of various leaders which were formerly "driven on at the surface levels. Eighty-six tons of quartz was treated for 26 oz. 18 dwt. of gold, valued at £72 4s. 7d. Four men were employed. Waiomo District. Waiomo Mine. —During the year work was confined to extending the No. 4 (or low) level which was driven a distance of 700 ft. on the large reef. A few hundred tons of low-grade ore has been saved but not yet crushed. Something like 500 ft. has yet to be driven to get under the rich shoot of ore worked in the upper levels. Rock-drills are being used in the drive, the work being pushed on with all possible speed. In one place in the drive fair assays were obtained from the quartz, and at some future time when better ventilation is secured this will be further tried. Seven men were employed. Tapd District. Mahara Royal. —Operations in this mine have been chiefly confined to the development of the Royal Reef, above and below,the bottom level, by sinking, driving, and stoping. The lode has varied from 2 ft. to 10 ft, in width. No rich ore has been met with ; that worked only produced an average of 7 dwt. of gold to the ton, yet, on the whole, it has about paid expenses. As the ore in.that part of the mine is exhausted, the work is now to be directed in extending the bottom level south to prospect that portion of the mine yet unexplored. , Also it is intended to drive a crosscut in the foot-wall of the Royal Reef to intersect the lodes that are known to exist in that part of the mine. 1,232 tons of ore was treated at the company's battery during the year for a return of 513 oz. 6 dwt. of gold, valued at £1,511 os. 7d. Eight men were employed. Sheridan Mine. —This mine has been worked by Plumer and party, the work being directed to trying various places on the lode above the low level but nothing of importance has been discovered. Three men were employed during the year. Kapowai Mine. —Operations in this mine have been directed to extending the low level to cut the main reef which proved to be very large. After cutting the reef, a level was driven on the foot-wall for about 100 ft. and a block over this level opened up.for stoping. The operations for the coming year will be confined to driving on the reef at the low level and stoping over this level. It is also the intention of the proprietor to erect a cyanide plant, preparations for which are now in hand. Four men have been employed during the year ; and during that period 1,240 tons of ore was crushed for a return of 974 oz. 7 dwt. of gold, valued at £2,469 12s. 3d. Big Beetle Mine. —During the early part of the year this mine was worked by a party of tributers. Later the mine and battery were put up for sale when Mr. M. O'Connor became the owner. At the present time the mine, together with the areas formerly known as the Golden Drop and Perseverance, is in the hands of a syndicate who have four men employed in prospecting the property. Should the results of the prospecting prove encouraging, development-work on a considerable scale will be. undertaken at once. Seventy-three tons of ore was treated during the year for 48 oz. 12 dwt, value £133 13s. COROMANDEL DISTRICT. Old Hauraki Mine. —The operations carried on in this mine during the year have been principally confined to tributing. The company have on some occasions paid half wages and half expenses, and joined the tributers to work some of the tribute sections. The tributers are all working in the surface blocks, as the mine below adit level is full of water. lam pleased to say there is a desire on both sides to amalgamate the Old Hauraki and the Bunker's Hill Mines, and such an arrangement is now likely to eventuate. When the water is pumped out and work in the low levels commenced, the benefits of amalgamation of interests will prove better both for the shareholders and for the Coromandel district generally, and be the means of giving employment to a number of men. 54| tons of ore was treated for 227 oz. 1 dwt. of gold, valued at £681 3s. An average of eighteen men were employed. Bunker's Hill Mine. —In the early part of the year the company's operations were directed to driving an adit level from the side of the hill above the sea-level with the object of intersecting some of the leaders worked at the low levels, but not finding anything of importance this work was stopped and the mine has been under protection for six months. Five men were employed in the mine for the first six months of the year. Hauraki Freeholds Mine. —Operations in the early part of the year were directed to working on the leaders in the Hauraki north section. A dispute arose about the drainage of the mines, and it was contended that the Old Hauraki pump did not drain the water from this company's mine, the company declaring that they were baling their own water. Eventually the Old Hauraki pump was stopped for a few months, the result being that the owners of the Hauraki Freeholds Mine were unable to contend with the water, which gradually rose until they were compelled to stop work. Six months' protection was then applied for and granted. Twenty-three tons of ore was treated for 75 oz. 2 dwt. of gold, valued at £206 10s. 6d. An average of three men were employed. Success Mine. —Very little work has been done in this mine during the year. The property was lately put up for sale, the purchaser being Mr. S. James, of Coromandel, a former owner of the mine, who worked on his own account and obtained several good payable returns from the ore broken out. Golden Pah Mine. —Work in this mine has been entirely carried on by the tributers, who directed their attention to working on small leaders from the side of the hill above the sea-level 5 tons 12 cwt. of quartz was treated for 44 oz. 11 dwt. of gold, valued at £122 10s. 3d. An average of six men employed. Golden Spark Mine.-. —There has been yery little work done in this mine during the year. ' .