The proposal is certainly plucky but no one familiar with the progress of events in southern New Zealand can doubt but that it is an enterprise characteristic of the place. In pursuance of solicitations made by the localities more particularly interested the Mines Department of the colonial service has authorised its inspecting engineer to examine into and report upon the feasibility of constructing a system of look-gates, so as to dam up the Clutha at its sources, and thereby enable the channel to be worked. Whether it be a secret of the movement or not we cannot pretend to tell, but it is true that enterprise on the lines laid down by the writer are already contemplated.

Although weak in detail, the plot has a certain boldness and vigour in its conception, which merits attention at the hands of enterprise and energy.

So difficult is it assumed to be that the writer page 117 has relegated it amongst the achievements of future generations. ' Anno Domini 2000,' written by Sir Julius Vogel, is a work dealing with a correlative to the pursuit. The subscribed capital of companies employed in this particular branch of mining represents £322,585, of which £72,879 has been paid up. The latest constructed is worked by electro-motive force, generated about a mile and a half distant from the place where dredging operations are carried on, thus showing that our streams and rivers can be utilised as a power to generate this force, which can be transmitted long distances on a small copper-wire to the place where machinery requires to be erected. There are now a large number of centre-buckets dredging on the Clutha, Kawarau, and Shotover Rivers, and most of these are seen to be profitable ventures. Improvements are being however made in these, and before long we may reasonably hope that this system of gold-mining will be successfully carried on, and the ocean beaches and river-beds will be made to yield up their hidden treasures. The hulls, or pontoons, on which the dredging machinery is placed, are too small to admit of good separating-appliances and gold-saving tables being constructed. All these dredges are, however, defective in washing-appliances. Several descriptions of dredges have been so employed-namely, the centre-bucket, the Welman, Ball, and Von Schmidt dredges, as well as the Priestman grab but the centre-bucket dredge is the favourite one for working gravel-flats and river-beds. C.E., Inspecting Engineer for the colony, reports: A large number of dredges have been constructed to work the ocean beaches and river-beds, many of which have proved successful in their operations.

Defective dredging meaning