566 president's address. 



it has allowed the great water-way of the world access to the rich 

 mineral portion of this territory ; and the coal in the remaining 

 half of the broken basin will more than suffice for the needs of 

 many generations. 



The Northern, Western, and Southern Coal Fields have 

 been so named from their position in reference to Sydney. The 

 Northern Coal Field includes the seams which are worked in 

 the Newcastle, Maitland. and Greta districts. In the two latter 

 districts the coal seams are in Glossopteris beds, the Lower Coal 

 Measures, which rest upon and are overlaid by strata containing 

 marine fauna of Carboniferous age. In the Newcastle district the 

 seams of coal occur in a higher series of plant-bearing strata, about 

 500 ft. thick and quite devoid of marine fossils. This series is 

 called the Upper Coal Measures, and has been provisionally 

 referred to the Permian period. It includes upwards of six seams 

 of coal, several of which have been worked ; but the lowest of them 

 is the principal seam which is from 8 to 1 5 ft. thick, and it is from 

 this that fully one-half of the coal raised in the colony is obtained. 

 The coal is of a bright bituminous character, quick-lighting and 

 suitable for steam, gas, smelting, and household purposes. The 

 same ' Coal Measures extend for a considerable distance in a 

 southerly direction, and some of the seams not only crop out at the 

 surface" on the shores of Lake Macquarie, but also inland they 

 have been proved at various depths by Diamond rock-drill borings. 



The Western Coal Field may be said to include the country 

 stretching from the eastern to the western margin of the Bine 

 Mountains. The formations of this elevated tract consist of the 

 Coal Measures overlaid originally by horizontal beds, about 1000ft. 

 thick, of Hawkesbury sandstone. Denudation has here and there 

 cut right through this great sandstone formation, and in places 

 into and through the underlying Coal Measures. In the sides of 

 some of the deep valleys thus formed coal seams crop out at 

 different levels. The principal Colliery Companies have been 

 working the lowest seam at Lithgow where it is 10ft. thick, and 

 near Wallerawang where it is of less thickness ; but recently one 

 of the upper seams containing coal of excellent quality has been 



