C.—2.

53

Glenlee Mine.—No further work has been done in the dip, and all the output has been won from the two levels to the north-west. Ramsay''s Pit.—The stripping is kept well ahead at this opencast pit. Argyle Pity.—Early in the year the output was obtained from 3 ft. of coal left on the floor of the pit during former workings. For many weeks water was in short supply, and a good deal of overburden requires to be sluiced away before any further coal is available. Melver's Pit.—Worked for local supplies, and only a few tons produced. Terraee Mine, Kingston Crossing.—-A stenton was driven to the south-west off the main north-west level, and a back level commenced from this stention. As only an 8-yard pillar was being formed between the levels the owner was instructed to increase the thickness of this pillar to 12 yards. A new air-shaft has been sunk from the surface to near the face of the main level. Princhester Creek Pit. —An opencast pit, worked for local requirements. Lynwood Pit, Te Anau. —An opencast pit, the output being principally used on the steamer plying on Lake Te Anau. Boghead Mine.—Only the levels to the north of the No. 2 dip are now being worked. This dip, going north-west, is now down 4-} chains. Stone stoppings are being built between the main haulage-road and the return airway. A plan of the mine-workings has been made by a licensed surveyor. Mataura Lignite-mine.—All the northern places having reached the boundary, the production is now solely from the places to the south. As some very narrow pillars were being formed, the manager was notified that in future pillars must be not less than 12 yards square. It is proposed to sink a shaft from the surface to near the face of the main dip. When completed the ventilating-fan will be removed from its present position to there. Larking''s Pit.—This is an old opencast pit reopened during the year. Three men are now working there. The seam is 14 ft. thick, of which the top 10 ft. has been worked. A ditch is being cut to enable the bottom 4 ft. to be got. There is an overburden of 10 ft. of stiff clay. The seam dips to the north and pinches out on the east side. They intend continuing the stripping up the gully, but I recommended a drive to the full dip of the seam. Ota Creek Pit. —The customary small output has been maintained during the past year. The lignite became too thin on the east side of the pit, so the owner recommenced working on the west side. There is about 6 ft. of stripping with 5 ft. of lignite beneath. Clarke's (Wyndham) Pit. —The stripping of this pit, close to the town of Wyndham, was kept well ahead of the coal-getting. No work has been done at this pit since September. Diamond Lignite-pit.—This pit has been made about 15 ft. deeper, and a second lift, of about three-years' supply, is now being worked. Broomhill Mine, Nightcaps.—The two miners continued extracting the few remaining pillars alongside the dip until October, when heavy rains flooded the mine. The pump at the dip-bottom was lost, and the mine was abandoned. Black Diamond Mine.—No work has been done beyond the large downthrow fault met in the south workings, and all the production for the year was obtained from the northern levels, several of which are now stopped, having reached within a chain of the boundary of the lease. A little coal was found about 3 ft. below the floor near the bottom of the dip, so, to prove if it is workable, prospecting will soon be done there. The bottom east level has reached troubled ground, apparently a washout, and a couple of places above have also reached this washout, which appears to be the same trouble as that which cut off the dip, so it has circled from the east side to the west. The places going south have not yet met this trouble, but are expected to do so soon. To keep the miners in constant employment a large quantity of surplus coal was stacked on the surface last summer. This was disposed of towards the end of the year. Owing to labour troubles only eight miners were employed during the second half of the year instead of about twenty. The concrete bathhouse is now in daily use. Wairio Mine. —A small area of coal was stripped on the hillside west of the Nightcaps-Ohai traffic-road. Later, three drives were put in. The coal in the middle one was at first 8 ft. in thickness, but thinner in the other levels. It became very dirty, and the few pillars which had been formed were extracted. A further outcrop has been found lower down the hillside. Mossbank No. 1 Mine.—-About the middle of the year the main winning-places in the lower seam entered land sublet from the Wairaki Coal Co., and to the east of the 20-acre lease held by the Mossbank Coal Co. South of the main drive very little work has been done, the coal becoming very dirty, and only two prospecting - places are now being driven in that direction. On the north side many of the places have reached a large washout running south-west, and these also are stopped. The main dip drive is now in 28 chains and within 7 chains of the Ohai School site. The cover being very shallow, most of the places are damp. No sign of inflammable gas has been found in this mine. Wairaki No. 1 Mine.—The main dip is stopped about a chain from the boundary of the Ohai Township. A large upthrow fault was met, presumably the same as that met in the No. 4 east level, where prospecting proved it to have a displacement of 38 ft. A pair of levels will shortly be driven on the east side through this fault. In the No. 2 east places the coal is rather stony, but varies quickly in quality. In Nos. 1, 3, and 5 west level sections development is proceeding in coal of good quality. Preparations are well in hand for building a brick and steel overcast on the main haulage-road a few chains down from the surface. When completed the Sirocco ventilating-fan purchased from the New Brighton Coal Co. will be installed. A commencement will then be made to extract the upper east pillars. Brick stoppings have been built between the main intake and main return airways, and wooden stoppings have replaced most of the temporary cloth ones, so the ventilation is considerably improved thereby. A water-gauge and automatic indicator have been connected to the fan now used. These instruments are in the deputies' cabin and handy for reference. Several of the trucking-roads have been treated with incombustible dust. An eight-cubicle bathhouse was built near the No. 1 mine -entrance, and since its opening it has been much used by the underground employees. Wairaki No. 2 Mine.—A few miners are still employed at pillar-extraction both on the east and west sides. Linton Mine. —No. 4 dip section : The places in the upper workings of No. 1 level south are being driven immediately over the lower workings. A band of stone 12 in. in thickness came in the lower workings of No. 2 level south. The solid workings of this panel were completed in August, but pillaring has not yet commenced there. Development is proceeding in No. 3 south workings. The seam continues thick, but the lower places have already reached the faulted country near the Morley Stream. North of the large downthrow fault which cuts off No. 4 dip workings four bores have been put down, and the fifth is now being drilled. In three of the holes a thick seam was proven, and the downthrow fault was shown to be of 140 ft. displacement. One hole was abandoned at 438 ft. from, surface, the seam not being reached. In the main seam area a dip was commenced west of the pillar workings, and after crossing the fault proved a thick seam of good clean coal. This dip is now down 5 chains. Owing to an ignition which occurred in the dip area in April, whereby two miners were injured, only safety-lamps are now used in the main seam workings as well as in the No. 4 dip section. Brick and concrete stoppings have been built completely around the fire area, and there is now no smell of fire-stink. Pillaring has been recommenced, after leaving suitable barriers between the stoppings and the new workings. The concrete stoppings were built of blocks 8 in. by 8 in. by 16 in., made in a cast-iron machine. A bathhouse of ten cubicles was constructed near the Morley Stream, and it. has been much used since its completion. A safety-lamp room has been built of poilite near the mine entrance. A Tungar battery-charger or rectifier is in use at this lamp-room. It is connected to the 230-volt A.C. current from the main lead?, and supplies the charging-board for the safety-lamp accumulators with D.C. current up to 75 volts. Birchwood Mine.—A large downthrow fault was met in the No. 2 west section, and the No 3 west section entered stony and unprofitable coal. The solid work was completed in September, and the pillars in the bottom east section and in Nos. 2 and 3 west sections are now being extracted. All stoppings between main intake and return airways were rebuilt of stone faced with cement. Instead of coursing the air around the whole mine, the ventilating-current was divided into two splits, thus considerably improving the ventilation.