il PROCEEDINGS, APRIL. 



Prodromus of the Zoology of Victoria, Decade XVII. By Prof. F. 

 McCoy, C.M.G. — From the Department. 



Proceedings of the Royal Society of Queensland, 18S7, vol. IV.; 

 1888, vols. III. IV. v.— From the Society. 



Psyche, a journal of Entomology, vol. 5, Nos. 149 to 153.— From the 

 Society. 



Report of the Mount Morgan gold deposits, Queensland, 1889. By 

 R. L. Jack, Government Geologist. — From the Author. 



Scottish Geographical Magazine. Current Numbers. — From the 

 Department. 



Select Extra-Tropical Plants, readily eligible for Industrial Culture or 

 Naturalisation, vi^ith indications of their native countries, and some of 

 their uses. By Baron F. Von Mlieller. From the Author. 



Systematic Account of the Geology of Tasmania. By R. M. Johnston, 

 F.L.S. — From the Government. 



Tabular list of all the Australian birds at present known to the 

 author, showing the distribution of the species over the continent of 

 Australia and adjacent islands. By E. P. Ramsay, LL.D., etc. — From 

 the Trustees Australian Museum. 



Transactions of the Asiatic Society of Japan. Vol. X.V.I., Part 

 IL— From the Society. 



Transactions and Proceedings of the Royal Geographical Society of 

 Australasia (Victorian Branch). Part II., Vol. VI. — From the tiociety. 



Verhandlungen des naturhistorischen, Vereines des preussischen 

 Rheinlande, Westfalens und des Reg. Bezirks Osnabiiick. — From the 

 Society. 



Verhanalungen der Gesellschaft Fur, ErdkundeBand, XV., Nos. 7, 8, 

 10. From the Society, Berlin. 



Victorian Year Book for 1SS7-8. — From the Government Statist. 



His Exckllency stated that there were two interesting papers to be 

 read, and a number of equally interesting ones were promised during 

 the session. Many of the subjects brought forward did not lend 

 themselves readily to discussion, but he would like to see the Fellows 

 of the Society intimate with any subject laid before them to give them 

 the benefit of their opinions. This would make their meetings more 

 lively and interesting, and also gave an opportunity to those who had 

 read papers to correct any misunderstandings or wrong impressions 

 that may have arisen from the reading of those papers. He trusted, 

 therefore, that they would have freer and fuller discussions than they 

 had had during previous sessions. 



PAPERS. 



THE "iron blow" AT THE LINDA GOLDFIELD, 



Mr. Alex. Mobton, F.L.S. , read a paper by Mr. Gustav Thureau, 

 F.G.S., on " The ' Iron Blow ' at the Linda Goldfield." In it the writer 

 gave his opinion that this unique gold formation was due to volcanic 

 agency, and not as Mr. R. M. Johnston contended, to local decom- 

 position, especially as far as the dark-coloured and pulverulent masses 

 are concerned. Decomposition, he believed, was a chemical process by 

 which the destruction of one or more substances leads to the substitution 

 and depositing of quite different matters, thereby bringing about the 

 re-arrangement of the former original substances in quite different forms. 

 The analyses of Mr. Ward conclusively proved the almost total absence 

 of gold in the pyrites veins or beds, which are very dense and 

 excessively solid, and which have undoubtedly resisted both decom- 

 position and dissolution for ages, therefore he asked how it was possible 

 that these almost non-auriferous vein bi-sulphides produced on their 

 supposed (inert) decomposition that peculiar purple mineral, assaying, 



