THE VICTORIAN NATURALIST. 109 



tunnel into the hill for 800 feet along the pipeclay " bottom," 

 and have sunk two shafts, one of which was " bottomed " at 95 

 feet. No opportunity was afforded to get down either shaft, but 

 it appears that in sinking they passed through a surface covering 

 of several feet of red clay, then from 50 to 80 feet of quartz 

 gravels and bands of clay. Some of these gravels are loose, 

 while others consist of a ferruginous conglomerate difficult to 

 work in. Both are stated to be auriferous, and differ from those 

 on the other side by containing gem stones also, such as 

 sapphires, zircons, and topazes. The mining appliances are very 

 simple. All the hauling is done by the windlass, and most of 

 the washing by the dish, though there is a public puddler erected 

 on the creek, which will no doubt be utilized should the tunnel 

 mine be opened up and " blocking out" commenced. The 

 drawback on these workings is the scarcity of water, as the creek 

 is only a small one. The ground is dry, and on the south slope 

 easily worked till approaching the present level of the creek, 

 when it naturally becomes more or less wet. The striking feature 

 of this gully is the remarkable contrast between the deposits on 

 each side of the creek. It is very probable that the miners on 

 the south side are working on a "false bottom," and deeper 

 sinking may disclose the existence of underlying gravels similar 

 to those on the north. This would explain the apparently 

 peculiar geological features of the gully. 



Three miles from here, in a direct line east, lie the Webb's 

 Creek workings. They differ greatly from those at Puzzle Gully. 

 The lead is single and well defined, following approximately the 

 course of the present stream, and consequently, owing to the 

 water, mining operations are carried on at a greater disadvantage. 

 Altogether the "lead" has been worked for a distance of about 

 a quarter of a mile. It is from 2 inches to 2 feet thick, con- 

 sisting principally of pebbles of quartz, granite, quartz porphyry, 

 and schorl rock, overlain by from 5 to 10 feet of stiff bluish 

 white and grey clay, with numerous rounded and sub-angular 

 pieces of these rocks distributed through it. Many of these 

 pebbles are very interesting. At first sight they appear much 

 like a conglomerate, but on close examination are seen to consist 

 almost exclusively of schorl and quartz. The pebbly appearance 

 is due to patches of silica, either absolutely pure or mixed with 

 small crystals of schorl, which impart to it a grey colour. The 

 silica occurs in various states — sometimes as a white powder ; 

 again, in the usual hexagonal prisms with pyramids ; but more 

 frequently semi-crystallized. The schorl is in hexagonal prisms, 

 chiefly single, but sometimes arranged in radiating clusters. 

 They are thin, and range up to three-quarter inch in length. 

 Other pebbles, again, are almost wholly composed of powdery 

 quartz, with cavities lined with perfectly sharp-edged and colour- 



