313 



Ordinary Meeting, July 7, 1903. 



Prof. E. H. Rennie, D.Sc. (President), in the chair. 



Exhibits.— J. G. O. Tepper, F.L.S., passed round a small phial 

 of dark liquid which exuded from certain rocks at Montacute. 

 When first taken it was clear and yellow in colour, and burns 

 with a smoky flame. Other exhibits by Mr. Tepper were a bag 

 of Thyridopterix huehneri from Mount Barker, a stick case of the 

 moth Entomita ignohilis — a rare neuropterous insect from 

 Umberatana, in the moth stage; the anterior wings are narrow, 



whilst the posterior ones are filiform and longer than the body 



and also a cotton boll-worm {Heliothis armiger). The moth of 

 this insect flies by day, whilst the caterpillar feeds at night, and 

 in the day buries itself in the ground. In America it does much 

 mischief in cotton and corn crops. Mr. Samuel Dixon showed a 

 specimen consisting of fine acicular crystals of sulphate of zinc, 

 gathered from rock surfaces in a mine in North Queensland, where 

 they were found some six inches in length. W. Howchin, F.G.S., 

 referring to a paper read by him in April last on the " Geology 

 of Kangaroo Island," exhibited some specimens of bitumen and 

 resin found on the coast by him during his late visit to the Island. 

 The bitumen was slightly the heavier, and each of less specific 

 gravity than seawater. In discussing the probable source of 

 these waifs, Mr. How^chin suggested that the antarctic current 

 which impinged on the Southern Coast of Australia — passing, as 

 it does in its course, Kerguelen and other oceanic islands — may 

 be the agent of their distribution. Seams of coal, as well as 

 Tertiary deposits, exist on Kerguelen Island, so that these pieces 

 of bitumen and resinous fragments so widely distributed along 

 the southern shores of Australia may possibly come from thence. 

 Mr. Howchin also exhibited gems obtained from Kangaroo 

 Island during his late visit, which residents had supposed to be 

 rutile, but were precious tourmaline of both green and pink 

 varieties, and strongly dichroic. The gems were of good com- 

 mercial value. The same gentleman showed a pebble from 

 Marino Beach carrjang organic remains, which Mr. Etheridge, of 

 the Australian Museum, Sydney, believes to be a coral of 

 ancient type — Archceocyathincs — not found above the lower 

 Cambrian system. The origin of the pebble is doubtful. Prof. 

 E. H. Rennie, D.Sc, in introducing the subject of Coorongite, 

 said he wished to bring under the notice of the meeting a paper 

 recently read before the Royal Society of Victoria by Mr. A. 

 Cumming, who had investigated the nature of Coorongite by 

 chemical analysis. Jackson had also made some observations on 

 this substance, which had been published in the Pharmaceutical 

 Journal for 1872. Mr. Cumming first treated the Coorongite 

 with bisulphide of carbon. Neglecting the ash, he found about 



