January i8, 1894J 



NA TURE 



279 



recorded observations have the merit of discoveries which have 

 stood the test of critical investigation. The escarpment of the 

 table-land of Arnheim Land .is desciibed as constituted of 

 horizontally-bedded sandstone overlying slaty rock ; a some- 

 what similar arrangement is noticed at Talc Head and Fort 

 Hill, Poit Darwin ; the covering, fine-grained sandstone, the 

 stratigraphical position of which was first observed by Stokes, 

 has lately acquired considerable importance by the discovery of 

 Radiolarians within its mass. 



Strzelecki (Count). — To this highly accomplished man of 

 science we are greatly indebted for arduous and gratuitous 

 researches and labours in the field of Australian geology, the 

 outcome of five years' travel, commencing from his traverse of 

 Gippsland in 1840, and embracing the survey of 7,000 miles. 

 The rocks of New South Wales he arranges in an ascending 

 successional series, and in this first attempt to construct a table 

 of the stratified deposits of New South Wales he laid the 

 foundation of stratigraphical geology in Australia. Strzelecki's 

 volume is accompanied by a map in which the areas occupied 

 by each epoch are indicated by colours, and is the first attempt 

 at geological mapping in Australia. 



Leichardt (Dr. Ludwig). — In 1844 this lamented traveller 

 started on his adven'urous journey from Moreton Bay to Port 

 Essington, a distance of 3000 miles. The narrative of Dr. 

 Leichardt contains as much botany as geology. The accom- 

 panying maps and illustrations supply important information 

 respecting the physiographic and geologic features. Necessity 

 compelled him to abandon one portion after another of his col- 

 lections, so that the opportunity of determining the age of the 

 various deposits encountered, from the nature of their fossil con- 

 tents, was lost. This is much to be regretted, because for long 

 years this line of country was geologically known only through 

 Leichardt's memoranda, which still contain for some portions 

 the only information extant. 



Dana (Prof. James D. ) was naturalist to the United States 

 exploring expedition during the years 1838-42, under the 

 command of Charles Wilkes. Sydney was visited in 1839-40, 

 but as the geol gy of the expedition was not published till 1849, 

 Dana's observations w re to some ex'ent anticipated. Never- 

 theless, the credit must remain to Dana of having laid the 

 foundation of the classification of the great carboniferous de- 

 velopment in New South Wales, both in respect of its 

 palaeontology and stratigraphy. 



Sturt (Captain Chailes), in 1844, under the authority of the 

 Imperial Government, pushed into the central parts of Aus- 

 tralia. From the River Darling, at what is now Menindie, he 

 reached the Barrier and Grey Ranges, and became entangled in 

 the delta-like ramifications of the River Cooper ; thence he 

 penetrated in a north-west direction into the sand-dune country 

 to the north-east of Lake Eyre, and thus missed the object of 

 his ardent search. Sturt describes the general structure of the 

 Barrier Range as of slate', gneiss, and other metamorphic 

 rocks, and notes the prevalence of iron ores. In or.e case he 

 describes what is evidently the ironstone outcrop of a massive 

 mineral lode, and though I cannot identify the locality, yet it is 

 not at all improbable that one of the silver lodes of the Barrier 

 (if not Broken Hill itself) is here referred to ; in the same con- 

 nection that prominent landmark, Piesse's Knob, is indicated. 

 The most noteworthy observations recorded by Sturt are those 

 relating to the physical character of the interior of Australia, 

 which will be considered hereafter. A tribute is due to Sturt's 

 scientific merit and sagacity, and I would add my mite to the 

 general testimony of admiration for that learned traveller ; he 

 stands pre-eminent among land explorers for the accuracy of his 

 observat'ons — evincing the most patient and thoughtful investi- 

 gation — for the great power of generalisation which throws a 

 charm over all his narratives, and for his highly philosophical 

 deductions. Sturt never received that honour in his lifetime 

 which was his due ; and much of his geological work and specu- 

 lations have either been overlooked or ignored, because it was 

 thought, by reason that geology then was not in a very advanced 

 state, he was not a very experienced geologist. In his work, " A 

 Sketch of the Physical Structure of Australia" (1850), the author 

 gives a connected outline of the geology of Australia, so far 

 as it was known to him. The great merit of this attempt to 

 exhibit approximately the principal features of this continent is 

 that of piecing together the isolated observations of previous 

 authors into a connected outline, which, because of his personal 

 knowledge of considerable portions of the coastline of Aus- 

 tralia, he was, of all others, the best able to do successfully, 



NO. 1264, VOL. 49] 



The result is a general but distinct notion of the geological 

 structure of Australia, which is further illustrated by a geolo- 

 gically-coloured map, the first on so broad a survey. The 

 author aided nothing to our previous knowledge, but 

 systematised what was known, and the speculations and general- 

 isations which he ventured have, for the most part, proved 

 correct. Some of the most valuable contributi )ns of later 

 authors will be found to have been foresha lowed, or even clearly 

 noted, by Jukes, whilst some actual discoveries were anticipated 

 by him. 



The last of the maritime surveys under Imperial direction 

 which concerned Australia was that conducted by Captain 

 Owen Stanley, of H. M.S. Rattlesnake; it is also noteworthy 

 from the high scientific attainments of its officers. The com- 

 mander, who was the only son of Dean Stanley, an eminent 

 ornithologist, took a keen interest in natural history ; he died 

 soon after the final return of the ship to Sydney, from a severe 

 illness, contracted during the last cruise, but after the successful 

 accomplishment of the chief object of his mission. The assis- 

 tant-surgeon was Thomas H. Huxley, a name familiar to all, 

 who achieved fame at this early period of his career by the zoo- 

 logical researches made during the voyage. 



A. C. Gregory. — The discouraging character of the interior 

 of Australia, as made known by Sturt, and the utter disappear- 

 ance of Leichardt's expediti )n of 1848, checked the progress of 

 exploration for a few years ; but in 1855 a successful effort was 

 made to penetrate the interior from the north-west by the North 

 Australian expedition, which was fitted out by the Imperial 

 Government, and was the last of the series. The expedition 

 was placed under the leadership of Mr. A. C. Gregory, who 

 was accompanied by Dr. (now Baron Sir F. von) Mueller as 

 botanist. The Victoria River was ascended to its source, and 

 the country to the south of the Dividing Range was explored 

 beyond the northern limits of the great interior desert. The 

 physiographic features of the Lower Victoria had been made 

 known by the descriptions of Stokes ; the region about the Upper 

 Victoria was found to consist chiefiy of extensive valleys of good 

 soil, well grassed, and of more arid sandstone table-land, vaieil 

 with outcrops of basalt, constituting rich grassy downs. The 

 table-land rises abruptly from the coastal tracts. By removal 

 of the upper strata deep gorges 600 feet in height are formed, 

 which open out into large valleys or plains. Mr. Gregory 

 struck across from the Lower Victoria to the head of Roper 

 River, and thence followed the base of the table-land from which 

 he had descended, passing near the sources of the rivers dis- 

 charging into the Gulf of Carpentaria. From the xVlbert River 

 to Brisbane he followed Leichardt's route of 1844. This extra- 

 ordinary achievement is second to none in point of interest of 

 unknown country traversed, and of the scientific results gained, 

 a vast void in the geological map was filled in. Since Gregory's 

 expedition the interior of Australia has been traversed in various 

 directions ; and with such efforts are honourably associated the 

 names of Stuart, Burke and Wills, Warburton, Giles, J. Forrest, 

 &c. , but the geological gain has been of a purely local import- 

 ance. I may therefore be pardoned if I make exception by the 

 mention of the expedition recently fitted out by Sir Thomas Elder. 

 The object — to fill up the blank spaces in the topographical and 

 geological maps of Australia — was ambitious, and the scientific 

 equipment of the expedition gave hope that permanent results 

 would be gained, but its premature disbandment has indefinitely 

 protracted the realisation of this cherished consummation. So 

 far as the area traversed is concerned, a very great deal was ac- 

 complished. It was a failure simply by reason of the limitation 

 of the original scheme. In geology nothing new has been 

 brought to light, though certainty has replaced previous guess- 

 work or speculation. Nevertheless, such problems as the exact 

 relation of the fossiliferous Silurian to those of older date, the 

 stratigraphy and fossils of the marine Cretaceous, and its relation 

 to the supra-cretaceous rocks, still await solution. Thegeologi-t 

 to the expedition has done his work so conscientiously and 

 thoroughly, that the poverty of his report is to be ascribed to 

 nature's deficiency. In other departments of natural history 

 our expectations have been satisfactorily realised. May we hope 

 that the Australian Macrenas of our time will crown his efforts 

 to unfold some of the mysteries of our dry interior by directing 

 a systematic exploration of some well-defined area, such as the 

 oasis of the MacDonnell Range. 



The year of 1851 marks an epoch in the history of Australia, 

 because in that year the rich goldfield of Ophir was discovered. 

 Gold was scientifically discovered by Strzelecki, in 1839, and by 



