and considerable progress has been 

 made. During the. coming summer 

 Professors McAulay and Hogg propose 

 to begin a magnetic survey of Tas- 

 mania, a set of instruments of the latest 

 pattern having been placed at their dis- 

 posal by the University of Sydney 

 through. th.e kind offices of Professor 

 Pollock. They intend to limi-^ their 

 work this summer to the absolute de- 

 termination of the magnetic elements at 

 the following selected stations : — Ho- 

 bart, Port Esperance, Port Davey, Stra- 

 han, Mt. Lyell, Wynyard, Longford, 

 Scottsdale, St. Helen's, Spring Bay, 

 and possibly Oatlands. From the ob- 

 servations made at these widely distri- 

 buted stations they hope to be able to 

 construct a rough magnetic map of 

 Tasmania, showing the approximate 

 positions of the lines of equal magnetic 

 declination, dip, and horizontal in- 

 tensity. To ascertain the annual rate 

 of variation of the magnetic elements it 

 will be necessary to re-determine their 

 values after the lapse of a few years. 

 In order that their work may be easily 

 available to future observers, and may 

 also be of assistance to surveyors. Profes- 

 sors McAulay and Hogg have applied to 

 the Groverument for a grant of £150 to 

 enable them to erect suitable perman- 

 ent marks en the sites of observation, 

 and to defray other expenses incidental 

 to the survey. If this grant of pub- 

 lic money is made it is proposed that 

 the work of tie survey shall be carried 

 out in co-operation with the Surveyor- 

 General's Department. In addition to 

 the magnetic observations at the select- 

 ed stations, it is intended to lay out at 

 each place the true geographical meri- 

 dian, and to determine the bearings re- 

 lative to the site of observation, of any 

 prominent lajidmarks, etc. A detail- 

 ed description of each site of observa- 

 tion will be lodged with, the Surveyor- 

 General. 



The paper dwells briefly with the im- 

 portance to navigation and surveying of 

 a correct knowledge of the magnetic de- 

 •clination. It points out that if the rate 

 of variation of the magnetic elements 

 of Tasmania were once determined it 

 might be possible, by examination of 

 the magnetic records of Victoria and 

 New South Wales, to learn approxi- 

 mately the value of the elements in 

 Tasmania in tiie recent past, and by 



connecting the present observations 

 with those made in the past form a 

 fairly accurate conception of the mag- 

 netic history of Tasmania during the 

 last 60 years. 



A letter was received from Mr. Coun- 

 sel, Surveyor-General, indicating that 

 he supports Professor Hogg's views. 



The Treasurer (Hon. B. S. Bird) said he 

 felt that the work proposed to be under- 

 taken was very important, and Ministers 

 had placed ^150 on the estimates towards 

 the cost of this magnetic survey, so im- 

 portant in connection with navigation 

 and scientific surveying. (Applause.) He 

 moved a vote of thanks to Professor Hogg, 

 which was very heartilv accorded. 



Mr. Stephens, in reference to Professor 

 Hogg's mention of the record which he 

 had sent him of the magnetic variation 

 in 1839, said that he had received the re- 

 cord from the late Mr. Molesworth 

 Jeffrey, who was with Sir John Franklin 

 when he took the observation at Lachlan, 

 near New Norfolk. This was in 1881, 

 when he (Mr. Stephens), being engaged 

 on the revision of the old map of Tas- 

 mania, had reported to the Government 

 that, if there were much longer delay in 

 reconciling the survey system ot the 

 colony, which was based on magnetic 

 lines, with the true bearings established 

 by the trigonometrical suivey, inextric- 

 able confusion would be the result. The 

 matter was taken iip bj^ Sir Henry Le- 

 froj% and a reform of the survey system 

 initiated by the Government, wnich, 

 though interrupted by a change of Minis- 

 try, is noAv progressing as satisfactorily 

 as is possible under existing circum- 

 stances. In connection with Professor 

 Hogg's mention of causes of local varia- 

 lou Mr. Stephens ciced a remarkable 

 instance of the deflection of the compass 

 needle, which he had uo^e^> on the sum- 

 mit of a peak in the Midland district, and 

 recommended Eocky Cape, Badger Head, 

 and a point between Bridport and Cape 

 Portland as being, with Port Davey, the 

 best sites for magnetic observations in 

 Tasmania, so far as freedom from ele- 

 ments of local disturbance is concerned. 



MUSEUMS AND ABOBIGINALB. 



The Bishop of Tasmania read a paper 

 eniitled. Notes on a Visit to the Museums 

 at Perth and Adelaide, with special refer- 

 ence to the Blacks of West Australia, as 

 follows : — 



"During a recent visit to West Austra- 

 lia and South Australia, I found time to 

 visit the Museums, and to discourse with 

 the curators. I think a few observations 

 will be of interest. 



"I was struck here by the immense 



