488 president's address. 



be worth while to mention an Interesting fact which the examination 

 of the Bo-wen coal-field has brought out ; the deposition of the coal 

 in that locality, has been followed by an extensive outpouring of 

 volcanic rocks, and the beds of lava lying above the seams have 

 burnt away all the carbonaceous matters, and entirely destroyed 

 them. Mr. Jack is now away on a six months' prospecting tour 

 between the Normandy River and Cape York. This is an entirely 

 unexplored tract, and no doubt his investigations will result in 

 the discovery of new fields of industry and resources for the 

 colony of Queensland. Having just returned from a lengthened 

 examination of the coast line and part of the interior from Trinity 

 Bay to near Princess Charlotte's Ba}^, I hope to place some of my 

 observations before the Society during the ensuing year, and 

 some of them will, I think, be found of considerable interest. In 

 New South Wales the geology of the colony is receiving very 

 careful development at the hands of Mr. C. S. Wilkinson. Having 

 had the advantage and pleasure of some excursions in company 

 with this gentlemen, I can express in the most emphatic manner 

 my appreciation of the accuracy with which he is determining the 

 nature, extent, position, and history of our rock formations. Since 

 the lamented decease of the Rev. W. B. Clarke, we have no 

 gentleman so thoroughly acquainted with the sedimentary deposits 

 of New South Wales as the director of our Geological Survey. 

 In Victoria, the progress reports of the geological survey still 

 continue to give valuable knowledge of that Colony, whose 

 geology is now probably better known than any other part of 

 Australia. The discoveries made there of late years are replete 

 with interest, amongst which I should specify a mineral field 

 which is partly auriferous, at Bethanga, but which is in all respects 

 similar to the peculiar and valuable mineral deposits at Ravens wood 

 in tropical Queensland. Mr. Cosmo Newberry has discovered a 

 way of separating gold from poor sulphurets of antimony, which is 

 of great importance to fields where the ore is poor, and it reflects 

 the greatest credit on his industry and genius. It is found that 



