a-ia

2

REPOET. The demands on the Department for the, year ended 31st March, 1924, have again been heavy, the total acreage surveyed having increased by 289,792 acres as compared with last year's returns. Of the fifty-four surveyors employed, thirty-five were staff and nineteen contract ; while apart from these, a number of cadets and assistants were employed. The Poverty Bay Land District, containing 1,580,000 acres, and portion of the Auckland Land District containing 942 acres, embracing the Opotiki County and portions of Whakata.no and Wairoa Counties, has been declared a separate land district, and appears in the, appended tables as the " Gisborne, Land District." The attached Tables A, B, and 1 to 5 inclusive, give a concise summary of the amount of work completed during the year under review. Full details are contained in the reports supplied by the Chief. Surveyor, which are filed as departmental records. Under the heading of " Rural Surveys," in Table B, an area of 266,308 acres is shown as completed work, as compared with 344,635 acres for last year, a decrease of 78,327 acres ; and under the heading of " Native Land Surveys " the area of completed work is shown as 345,500 acres, an increase of 101,457 acres as compared with last year's return. The average cost per acre of both rural and. Native-land surveys shows an advance of Id. per acre on the last year's rates, which were Is. 6d. and Is. Bd. respectively, the, figures for the year under report being Is. 7d. and Is. 9d. The work, however, is being done at a reasonable price.

Table A.

Table B.

I Class ot : Work. Area, &c. Average Cost. Total (lost. Topographical, by staff surveyors Triangulation, by staff surveyors „ by licensed surveyors . . Rural, by staff surveyors ,, by licensed surveyors Village and suburban, by staff surveyors Town, by staff surveyors ,, by licensed surveyors Native Land Court, by staff surveyors ,, by licensed surveyors Roads by staff surveyors ,, by licensed surveyors 71,516 acres 128,443 99,750 264,437 1,871 723 „ 155 sections 11 „ 91,364 acres 254,136 „ 181-3 miles 109 ,, 3-3d. 1-Od. L-5d. l-6s. 2-6s. 15-6s. £3-33 £3-63 l-24s. l-82s. £37-5 £25-1 £ s. d. 979 14 9 553 2 4 623 8 9 21,426 0 9 244 13 9 562 10 8 516 11 6 39 19 0 5,693 11 7 23,166 9 0 6,796 7 4 273 11 4

Land District. Land District. Rural Surveys. Native-land Surveys. L.ana wisinci. North Auckland Auckland Gisborne Hawke's Bay Taranaki Wellington . . Marlborough.. Nelson Westland Canterbury . . Otago . .. Southland Acres. 31,169 131,763 15,052 1,156 1,399 70,000 620 9,341 726 2,365 2,717 Acres. 9,400 164,827 17,699 101,934 5,734 42,448 2,709 248 50.1. Totals 266,308 345,500