128 THE I'SVCIIIC LIFE OF THE TilOSGA TRIBE. 



TRANSACTIONS OF SOCIETIES. 



Chemical, ^Iet.-\llurgicai. anmi Mixinc; Society of South Africa.— 

 Saturday. August i6tli : A. Richardson, AI.I.M.]\I„ President, in the chair. — 

 Presidential address: A. Richardson. The training and work of the 

 mine surveyor were shortly reviewed, and a syllabus of subjects requiring 

 closer attention on the part of students of surveying and assistants on the 

 mines suggested. — " Mining copper ores at Messina " : J. A. "Woodburn. 

 Ancient copper workings, extending over a considerable area, exist at 

 Messina, near the Limpopo, in the Northern Transvaal. Of these three 

 distinct lodes are at present l)eing worked. These lodes and their develop- 

 ment were described and illustrated, and the methods of stoping, stope- 

 filling. sinking and ventilating the shafts, sorting the ore and milling shortly 

 explained. 



Saturday. September 20th: A. Richardson, M.I.]\r.M., President, in the 

 cliair. — " The determination of the acidity or alkalinity of waters " : Dr. J. 

 Moir. Tables of 54 indicators and the effects produced on them were sub- 

 mitted in connection with whicli the author called attention to the mislead- 

 ing conclusions as to acidity of mine water or alkalinity of town water that 

 mav be drawn if filtrations are performed witli indicators of a wrong class. 

 —"The Sand-filling of mines"; Dr. W. A. Caldecott and O.P. Powell. 

 The general considerations relating to sand -filling were discussed; tlie 

 methods in actual employment on certain mines at the present time were 

 described, and details given of their cost. — " A system of keeping mine and 

 mill accounts, costs and metallurgical records " : ]\T. W. Maclachlan. 

 An outline of a system of centralisation of work in preparing mine operat- 

 ing costs, records and general accounts, as personally installed and super- 

 vised at a group of mines in .Mexico.— " Ventilation of the mines of the 

 Rand : The problem of obtaining healthier conditions " : G. H. Blenkinsop. 

 The author discussed shortly the underground conditions on tlie Rand, 

 with the enquiry why a system of ventilation, which fulfils practically all 

 needs in Europe, fails to attain the desired result on the Rand. In reply 

 to this enquiry, the much higher daily mean temperature, and susceptibility 

 to pulmonary complaints owing ito high altitude, are placed foremost. The 

 author proposes to substitute a blower method for fan ventilation in the 

 mines, maintaining that the blowers would introduce constant supplies of 

 fresh air, whereas fans neither lower the temperature of the mine air nor 

 dimini.sh, its impurity. 



Saturday. October i<Sth: A. Richardson, MT.M.M., President, in the 

 chair. — " Electric blasting "' : W. Cullen, T. Donaldson, and W. 

 "Waters. The endeavour of the authors was to show that the beneficial 

 effects of electric blasting are not so mucli along the line of olitaining 

 better Hasting results as in l)ringing about improved liealth conditions for 

 all underground workers. It diminishes the dust and smoke inseparable 

 from the safety fuse ; it removes the danger of premature explosions, and 

 it is more economical than the safety fuse to the extent of £2 per 1,000 

 shots. The authors proceeded to describe a series of underground experi- 

 ments carried on at the ]\Ieyer and Charlton mine, and concluded with 

 details of the appliances required for electric blasting. 



Saturday, November i6th : A. Richardson, M'.I.M.M., President, in the 

 chair.^" The natural soda deposits of .Africa ; with some notes on the 

 alkali trade " : J. Watson. Short descriptions were given of the soda lakes 

 of Egypt. German East Africa, and Magadi, British East Africa. The 

 author then proceeded to a more detailed account of the soda-pan at Zout- 

 pan, 25 miles north of Pretoria, in connection with the working of which 

 the South African Alkali Limited Liability Company has recently been 

 formed. In this connection the establishment of a new South African 

 industry was advocated and lines of operation suggested. — " Explosives in 

 hand and machine labour stopes " : T. D. Delpart. The author pointed 

 out that notwithstanding the advantages which machine-holes for blasting 

 have over hand-labour holes, a greater quantity of explosives is required in 

 order in break a 'ton of reef in machine stopes than in liand-labour stopes. 



