67

only at low water, you are either climbing, creeping,
or jumping over rocks of every imaginable degree of
slipperiness or of jaggedness, forcing your way in
places through an imperfectly cut line in bush and
scrub of the very worst description, and growing on
hills of every angle of steepness; wading wearily
through soft sand, gravel, or loose shingle, and fording
rivers, or walking in the sea round rough rocky
points, the number of which it seems impossible to
reckon.

On arriving at the Grey, I devoted some time to
the examination of the harbor, and then set out over-
land up the north bank of the river to inspect the
coal.

This is displayed in a seam, of which I measured
a depth of 13 1/2 feet of pure coal, the whole of the
seam not being visible.

The face of it is about one chain back from the
river, and is exposed for a length of about two chains,
rising at an inclination of about one in six from the
water level; at the upper end it becomes hidden in
the hill behind, which is covered with bush.

The hill rises behind it to a height of about 300 ft.,
being backed by the higher hills of the main range.

There appears to be no difficulty in the way of
working this coal, as a level could be chosen above
the reach of floods, on which to commence opera-
tions; and the mine could be kept dry, apparently
by natural drainage.

To determine the area over which this coal extends
is, of course, an important point, but it has every
appearance of being a portion of a very extensive
seam, and one that has not been affected injuriously
by local disturbance.

It is in such a position, that a line of road could
be formed nearly on a level, or with a slight descent,
from it to the port.

This line would follow the extension of the coal
range towards the coast to where it breaks off; then
across some level land to the foot of the coast range
through which the Grey has found a passage and
now runs, forming a short gorge;—the foot of this
range and the gorge would be traversed by side-
cutting, to the level land beyond the gorge and
extending from it to the sea beach, upwards of a mile.
I reckon the distance altogether between seven and
eight miles, of which about the half would be side-
cutting, partly in rock; and the rest on level land,
the whole or nearly so being in bush. The heaviest
work would be in the gorge above-mentioned, the
remainder would be of ordinary character.

I shall now make a few general remarks on the
comparative merits of the harbors of the Buller and
Grey.

In the report on this subject by Mr. Clouston,
which accompanies Mr. Burnett's report on the coal-
fields, preference is given to the Buller. With the
reasons for that preference I fully agree, and believe
that the Buller is the best harbor of the two, as re-
gards their natural advantages.

But as that report had reference more particularly
to the use of sailing vessels, I have no doubt it would
have been considerably modified had the question of
the employment of steam-power then been enter-
tained; either in the way of tug-boats, or in that of
screw-colliers, one of the latest improvements in the
coal-carrying trade.

In the event of an extensive trade in coal, arising
at either port, there is no doubt that steam-power in
one of the above forms must be used, and this will
put the harbors more on a par, as regards facility for
entrance and departure; but the Buller will still have
the advantage of greater size and better internal
accommodation.

In both harbors is a lagoon, where vessels may lie
in safety out of the reach of floods, that at the Buller,
however, is the largest and has the deepest water;
whilst that at the Grey is only available for vessels
of a small size, and would require some expenditure
to make it useful for larger vessels.

These remarks are intended to show that, should
coal be worked at the Grey, the harbor is one that
could be made available for vessels of moderate ton-
nage by the use of steam-power, and that steam-
power must be used, either there or at the Buller, to
carry on successfully an extensive trade in coal.

On our return journey from the Grey, and beyond
the first rocky point north of that river, (about five
miles,) we crossed a stream, in the bed of which we
found pieces of coal apparently of good quality, and
on looking inland through a break in the range,
perceived a sloping table-land similar to that at
Mount Rochfort, suggesting the probable existence
of a coal field at no great distance from the beach.
At this point there is a sort of natural open harbor,
or bay, formed by a rocky point, running out in a
curve from the shore, and which might be improved
and found useful for shipping at some future time.
From this point to the Grey, there is a strip of level
bush land between the beach and coast range, whilst
behind that range, inland, for the same distance is an
extensive stretch of land, level and apparently of
excellent quality, and which will some day make an
excellent site for a settlement.

A very good township could be laid out on the flat
adjoining the Grey river and the bench, the survey
of which has, indeed, been commenced.

I have the highest opinion of the Grey, generally,
as a place for settlement, it is not so striking at first
sight as the Buller, as you do not at once see the
extent of available land, but that it will at no distant
day, be the site of a thriving and prosperous settle-
ment, there can be no doubt whatever.

Leaving these general observations, we have now
to consider the comparative costs of the necessary
works, at the Buller and the Grey, and also the cost
at which coal could be put on board at either port.

Whilst on this part of the subject, it will be well
to take also into consideration the other localities,
from which it is expected that coal may be procured,
and place them side by side, in order that their
relative advantages may be more distinctly appre-
ciated.

To begin with the Wangapeka, I calculate that
this coal cannot be reached by a shorter distance than
65 miles (possibly 70 or 75,) nor the Batten by a
shorter distance than 50 miles; these distances may
not be quite correct, but they will be found to be not
far from the truth, and sufficiently accurate for our
present purpose. Following the same mode of calcu-
lation as that adopted by Mr. Burnett, in his report
on the Buller coal, that is, assuming an annual yield
of 150,000 tons, we have the results as below, that is
the net cost of producing one ton of coal.

The costs in the following table, I need hardly say,
are only approximate, and most probably all too low,
as only the principal items of expenditure are en-
tered, and no addition is made for profit.