The Hydraulic Engineer's report dated 11th September, 1890, supplies evidence of the importance of the discoveries made up to that date of artesian water in Queensland. The striking of a supply of 3,000,000 gallons a day of "water clear, colourless, soft, and potable" in the Charleville bore is noted with satisfaction. In the text of the report this was said to be, so far as the writer knew, the "best well in Australia," but a footnote added that soon afterwards a bore in the Cunnamulla district was reported to have been tapped with a daily supply of 31/2 million gallons. The depth of the Charleville bore was only 1,370 ft., and its cost L2,389. The striking of a supply of 1,095,000,000 gallons per annum at so small a cost was naturally a subject for both official and general congratulation. INFORMATION SOUGHT AS TO PRIVATE BORES. In the same year is reported the striking of water in the Muckadilla bore, which yielded about 10,000 gallons a day from a depth of over 3,000 ft., and was then believed to be the deepest bore in Australia. The cost was L2,673. A somewhat better supply was afterwards struck at 3,262 ft. In this report the Hydraulic Engineer expresses regret that through the absence of barometrical measurements, owing to scarcity of money, the height above sea level of proposed sites for bores was not known, but sites were selected from surface indications and the results achieved by sinking in the neighbourhood. The wells sunk by the Government had been of much use in assisting private enterprise to select likely sites, but it would have been more satisfactory had better information been obtained by the use of the spirit level. Acknowledgments were made to those who had responded to the circular invitation sent out for information, and regret was expressed that in some cases there had been no response. The effort made, however, had enabled several new features to be embodied in the report, among which was a table containing a list of both public and private bores, and a large map locating, so far as possible, the position of each. Another map showed the rainfall in different parts of the colony, while a handsome diagram of the Brisbane rainfall was furnished for the first time. Both of these remained features of the Hydraulic Engineer's annual reports until 1901, when revenue considerations compelled their suspension. HINDRANCES FROM FLOODS.