364 NATURAL SCIENCE. j UN e, 



of Earthquakes," by Mr. C. Davison. The first great shock occurred 

 on April 14, at 11. 13 p.m. During the same night twenty-five shocks 

 were felt at Laibach, and within the next three days at least forty 

 more were observed, some of them strong, though not approaching 

 the first in severity. From April 19, if we may trust the newspaper 

 accounts, they became much less frequent, from two to four notice- 

 able ones, besides a few weak tremors, generally occurring every day 

 until the end of the month. After this, except for a severe shock on 

 May 19, they do not seem to have attracted much attention, probably 

 from their comparative slightness. Laibach forms the centre of one 

 of the most interesting and most promising earthquake districts in 

 Europe, and if some Austrian seismologist, with the energy of Pro- 

 fessor Milne, would take the matter up, we should be provided in 

 about as many years as it would require generations in England with 

 the materials we need for the study of the growth of faults. 



Artesian Water in Queensland. 



Last December we commented on the excellent labours of the 

 Geological Survey of Queensland, laying special emphasis on the 

 intimacy that should exist between practice and pure science. 

 Shortly afterwards an interesting address, enforcing the same moral, 

 was sent us by the Government geologist, Mr. R. L. Jack ; and now 

 we have received from him a substantial proof of the truth of our 

 remarks. 



In our previous comment we alluded to the inquiries concerning an 

 artesian or deep-seated water supply for the interior of Queensland. No 

 great acquaintance with Australian physiography is needed for us to 

 appreciate the enormous importance of such a supply. We have all 

 heard of the terrible droughts in the interior of the continent, we know 

 how the creeks dry up, and a glance at the map shows us how coloni- 

 sation has hitherto been restricted almost to the sea-board. The soil 

 in the western interior of Queensland is kindly, it supports grasses in- 

 finitely superior to those of the coast ; and yet settlement is meagre, or 

 impossible, because nearly all the rain falls on the belt of elevated 

 country near the east coast, and only a half or a third as much 

 reaches the western country. Though dams and tanks were con- 

 structed at a great cost, yet in 1885 cattle and sheep died by hundreds 

 of thousands, and some of the western towns were threatened with 

 extinction. Since then, on the recommendation of Mr. Jack, and Mr. 

 J. B. Henderson, hydraulic engineer, over 200 bore-holes have been 

 sunk along the western downs, which together have a daily yield of 

 125 million gallons. What this means may be understood by 

 comparison with the daily public supply of London from all sources, 

 which, as stated by the last Report of the Royal Commission, 

 is about 171 million gallons. Last year further surveys and 

 investigations were prosecuted by Messrs. Jack and A. G. Maitland, 



