120 Revieics — Geology of Western Australia. 



of the countr5\ The first, by Mr. Gibb Maitland, deals with the 

 occurrence of artesian water ; the second, by Mr. H. P. Woodward, 

 refers to the same subject in connection with the Gascoj'ne area. 

 The phosphatic deposits near Dandaraga are described by Mr. W. D. 

 Campbell. A small meteorite (siderite) from the Nuleri district is 

 described by Mr. E. S. Simpson, whose account of it is well illustrated 

 from photographs. " The geologj^ of Princess Royal Harbour, with 

 reference to the occurrence of oil," and "Recent advances in the 

 knowledge of the geology of "Western Australia" form the subjects 

 of two papers by Mr. Gibb Maitland. The second of these was 

 Mr. Maitland's presidential address before the Section of Geology of 

 the Australian Association for the Advancement of Science in 1907. 

 This is of much interest as a comprehensive summary of the geology 

 of the country. The writer devotes particular attention to the older 

 rocks of the State, consisting of crystalline, schistose, and metaraorphic 

 rocks, considered to be possibly of Archaean age, though the term pre- 

 Cambrian is used in preference to designate them. These rocks 

 occupy about two-thirds of the total superficial area of the State, 

 which comes to about 975,920 square miles. They consist of rocks of 

 various tj-pes, many of them in a crystalline condition, forming coarse 

 crystalline schists and gneiss, differing but little from granite and rocks 

 of similar origin, as well as basic rocks which have been more or less 

 crushed, foliated, and completely converted into greenstone schists. 

 The sedimentary rocks are representative of the Cambrian, Devonian, 

 Carboniferous, Jurassic, and Tertiary periods, and are all recognizable 

 by their fossil contents. Finally, volcanic rocks occupied an important 

 place in the geological history of Western Australia. They are to be 

 found in the shape of lava-flows, ash beds, breccias, dykes, etc. 

 Igneous activity took place, it appears, in three distinct periods, viz., 

 in pre-Cambrian time prior to the deposition of beds holding an 

 Olenellus fauna ; early in Devonian time, but ceasing before the 

 Carboniferous ; after the deposition of the Jurassic beds, and finally 

 in rocks believed to be of Tertiary age. 



Two other papers are included in this report, viz., " Notes upon the 

 geological map of the Greenough River District," by W. D. Campbell, 

 and " Prevention of external corrosion of Goldfields water supply 

 Pipes," by E. S. Simpson. 



Bulletin No. 30 contains a report by E. S. Simpson and Charles G. 

 Gibson on "The Distribution and Occurrence of the Baser Metals." 

 In a prefatory note Mr. Harry P. Woodward explains the object of 

 this bulletin to be for the purpose of aiding prospectors and persons 

 interested in the search for metals other than gold. The metals dealt 

 with are copper, tin, lead, zinc, antimony, bismuth, iron, nickel, 

 cobalt, manganese, aluminium, tantalum, tungsten, and molybdenum. 

 Particulars relating to the mining, yield, and value of these metals 

 are set down in the report, to which a full index is appended. 



A. H. F. 



