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518 levels towards the junction of the Inangahua and Buller Rivers. He also made a special report on an antimony lode at Reefton, showing that an outcrop had been found which was about eighteen inches thick, and the reef had been driven on for 150 feet from that point without antimony being found. Heavy lodes of antimony are, however, found in several of the auriferous claims from Rainy Creek to Boatman's, which, in all cases containing gold, are treated in the ordinary way for the extraction of this alone, all the antimony and probably much of the gold being thus sluiced away. An examination of the auriferous cements at the head of Lankey's Gully showed that tinstone undoubtedly occurred associated with these in small quantities, but bad weather prevented any attempt being made to trace this back to its parent rock. He visited Langdon's Reef, near Greymouth, and reports that the thickness of the reef, at present being worked, is about two feet nine inches, which, being less than it was at the outcrop, shows the lode to be of a bunchy character.

The outcrops of coal in Coal Creek, Greyrnouth, were also examined, and he reports that two seams of coal 6 feet and 10 feet in thickness respectively, occur in the lease, in which a considerable quantity can be worked level free. In the month of June Mr. McKay paid a visit to the Terawhiti reefs, and reports that the Albion claim possesses a reef of an average thickness of from 18 inches to 2 feet, which has been followed along its strike for a distance of 6 chains, and for a depth of 130 feet. Some assays of quartz from this claim have yielded over 3 ozs. of gold per ton, but the specimen brought by Mr. McKay gave nothing but traces of the precious metal.

The following publications have been issued during the year: (1.) Sixteenth Annual Report of the Colonial Museum and Laboratory, together with List of Additions, etc., and an Abstract of the Results of Analyses. 64 pp. 8vo. (2.) Manual of the Birds of New Zealand, illustrated with 39 lithographs and 22 woodcuts. 106 pp. 8vo. The Fifteenth Progress Report of the Geological Survey of New Zealand for 1880–81. By Dr. Hector. With maps and sections. Including Special Reports on the Chrome Deposits of New Zealand (Hector, Cox); on the Aniseed Valley Copper Mine (Cox); on the Richmond Hill Silver Mine (Cox); on the Wallsend Colliery, Collingwood (Cox); on the North Auckland District, including Thames and Coromandel Gold Fields, Island of Kawau, and Drury Coal Field (Cox); on the Aorere and Takaka Districts, Nelson (Cox); on the Waitaki Valley, Lindis, and Wanaka Lake District (McKay); on the Coal-bearing Deposits near Shakspeare Bay, Picton (McKay); on the Caswell Sound Marble (McKay). An Index to the Localities where Fossils