rocks ill other parts of the island. The 

 few localities in the worl:l where such 

 rocks occur are not noteworthy for their 

 mines. The rocks are altogether incon- 

 gruous with the notion of tin ore occurring 

 in them ; and though gold is not in- 

 trinsically an impossible meta', yet pay- 

 able gold is unrecorded from this family of 

 stone. 



Mr. W. A. McLeod, B.A., B.Sc, gave an 

 interesting account of a fossil wood found 

 in the tin deposits at Cox's Bight. Mr. 

 McLeod, at the conclusion of his paper, 

 was very highly complimented for the 

 very able paper he had submitted to the 

 society. 



" Notes on Coral Reefs, with special 

 reference to the Funafuti bore," by T. 

 Stephens, M.A., F.G.S. It was decided to 

 postpone Mr. Stephens's paper till next 

 meeting. 



DISCUSSION. 



The Chairman spoke in very compli- 

 mentary terms on the excellent work 

 Ijeing done by Messrs. Tvvelvetrees and 

 Petterd. 



Mr. R. M. Johnston said he quite agreed 

 with the remarks of the Chairman as to 

 the excellent work done and being done 

 by Messrs. Tvvelvetrees and Petterd in the 

 geological work of Tasmania. The recent 

 issue of papers by these authors which 

 had been printed, illustrated with sections 

 of the rocks, reflected the highest credit 

 on the Government Printer (Mr. J. Vail). 

 He (Mr. Johnston) could say that the 

 plates now laid on the table were better 

 than had ever appeared in the society's 

 journals. 



The Secretary said he could endorse 

 what had fallen from the Chairman and 

 Mr. .Johnston, and would add his high 



appreciation of the kindly interest Mr. 

 Vail, the Government Printer, was taking 

 in assisting the society to get such ex- 

 cellent plates reproduced. 



lightning flashes. 



The Secretary said he had been fur- 

 nished with some interesting photographs 

 of lightning sketches that had been taken 

 at West Devon port by Mr. Aikenhead, 

 M.H.A. Mr. Aikenhead very kindly fur- 

 nished the following interesting notes : — 



"Malunnah, "West Devonport, Tasmania, 

 June 19, 1SS)9. Alex. Morton, Esq., Secre- 

 tary Royal Society, Tasmania, Hobart. 

 My Dear Sir,— The photographs of the 

 lightning flashes which I gave you last 

 Thursday are prints from negatives taken 

 by myself on the night of Friday, the 19th 

 November, 1897, with a Vanneck hand 

 camera from the balcony of my residence 

 (Malunnah), West Devonport, which, 

 being situate at the Mersey Heads, com- 

 mands a clear and almost uninterrupted 

 view of the sea, into which you will ob- 

 serve some of the vertical flashes des- 

 cended. The thunderstorm was an un- 

 usually severe one, and the atmosphere 

 surcharged with electricity, as evidenced 

 by the frequency and extraordinai'y vivid- 

 ness of the lightning flashes, whose bril- 

 liancy momentarily rendered objects, even 

 at a distance, as clearly discernible as in 

 daylight. The intensity of the "triple" 

 flash — of which I was so fortunate as to 

 secure a counterfeit — was so great that for 

 some moments I was completely dazzled. 

 I may mention that tlie thunderstorm 

 lasted fully an hour, and was at its height 

 about 9 o'clock ; and it was at this period 

 the exposures were made with mj^ camera. 

 — Yours faithfully, Wm. Aikenhead." 



