Observers' Field Reports 165 



At the beginning of the year I was engaged on magnetic work in Tasmania. Mr. 

 F. Brown, who had just completed his campaign in Cape York Peninsula, reported at 

 Hobart on January 6, and between us 13 stations in all were occupied in Tasmania, 

 King Island, and Flinders Island. Six of these 13 were reoccupations of stations estab- 

 lished by McAulay and Hogg in the magnetic survey of Tasmania, another was a reoccu- 

 pation of the site of Kays Observatory at Hobart, the magnetic field of which is now 

 slightly disturbed by the proximity of buildings. Observations were made at 3 widely 

 separated stations located within the region about Southport, which was found by 

 McAulay and Hogg to be so greatly disturbed magnetically. The disturbance occurs 

 near the junction of a sandstone formation with a relatively highly magnetic diabase, 

 the prevailing rock in the district, and appears to decrease on proceeding from this 

 junction further on to the diabase. After completing the work in Tasmania, Mr. Brown 

 and I were on leave of absence to February 28, when duties were resumed at Melbourne. 



Mr. W. C. Parkinson, detailed to the Australian work, having arrived from Wash- 

 ington, the whole party proceeded March 5 to Adelaide, and received the remainder 

 of the outfit returned by the Australasian Antarctic Expedition. Magnetometer No. 9 

 of this outfit was compared with magnetometer-inductor No. 24 and universal magnet- 

 ometer No. 14 at Blackwood, near Adelaide. A reoccupation was made of our 1911 

 station at South Park, Adelaide. At the close of the intercomparisons, Mr. Brown 

 was detailed to work in the Northern Territory, and accordingly left Adelaide March 

 16 (see Mr. Brown's report), and Mr. A. L. Kennedy of Adelaide, recently magnetic 

 observer at the second base of the Australasian Antarctic Expedition, was assigned to 

 the party. 



During the latter end of March our 1911 stations at Murray Bridge, Port Victor, 

 and Border Town were reoccupied, and a new station was established at Beachport by 

 Messrs. Parkinson, Kennedy, and myself. Messrs. Parkinson and Kennedy received 

 practical instruction in field work on this trip preparatory to undertaking their respec- 

 tive expeditions. Mr. Parkinson left Adelaide March 28, and made preparations at 

 Perth for his campaign in the interior of Western Australia (see Mr. Parkinson's report). 



Before leaving Adelaide for Perth on April 3, I gave Mr. Kennedy instruction in 

 general duties, and superintended preparations for his journey from Adelaide to Farina 

 (South Australia), Birdsville (Queensland), and back via Hergott Springs to Adelaide. 

 This expedition was completed July 7, when Mr. Kennedy returned to Adelaide. His 

 next expedition was to have been by camel from Port Augusta to Kalgoorlie along the 

 proposed route of the transcontinental railway, and the journey was actually commenced 

 in the latter part of August. Unfortunately, however, a very severe drought was expe- 

 rienced over the greater part of Australia during 1914, so that Mr. Kennedy was com- 

 pelled by scarcity of feed and lack of water along the transcontinental route to make for 

 the coast at White Well and thence to follow it to Eucla. From Eucla he had intended 

 to go northward again and follow the railway route to Kalgoorlie. As feed was likely 

 to be very scarce and the supply of water was at best problematical, I considered it 

 unsafe for the party to proceed, and Mr. Kennedy was instructed to abandon the trip, 

 return his camels to their base at Hergott Springs by the best route available, and report 

 as soon as possible to me at Perth. After a long wait at Eucla, he took passage by the 

 quarterly steamer, and arrived at Perth November 15. Mr. Kennedy's expeditions 

 are described in his reports. 



Having left Adelaide April 3, I arrived at Perth on April 7. While planning Mr. 

 Parkinson's work, I made preparations at Perth for a journey across the interior of 

 Western Australia from Wiluna to Hall's Creek by the Canning Stock-Route and thence 

 to Wyndham. The necessary camels for this trip were hired from the Water Supply 

 Department of Western Australia. These camels being at Kalgoorlie, the start had to 



