Proceedings. 177 



The Secretary submitted a note from Alexander Mac Naughtan, Esq., drawing 

 attention to the evidence given by Professors Ansted, Brande, Anderson, and other 

 eminent chemists and mineralogists, upon a trial reported in the Witness news- 

 paper of 3rd August, 1853, in which the physical characters and chemical com- 

 position of a mineral deposit, which he supposes to be similar to the combustible 

 schist from the Mersey River, used instead of coal, for the purpose of producing 

 illumuiating gas, are folly detaUed. Various extracts were read. 



A paper was then read by Thomas Moore, Esq., on the experiments which he 

 has lately conducted with the view of testing the comparative value of the Mersey 

 schist, and of the coals from Schouten Island and the Douglas Eiver, for gas- 

 making pui'poses, and the printed details were laid on the table; from which 

 it appeared that a quantity equal to 21bs. weight of each left of residuum as 

 follows : — 



Mersey combustible schist 25 ozs. 



Schouten Island coal 26 ozs. 



Douglas River coal 22 ozs. 



Specimens of each were placed before the meeting and carefully examined — the 

 first consisted of fragments of brownish shale and a soft, sooty, fine, pulverulent 

 matter ; the second consisted of hard, greyish-black angular fragments, such as 

 had been introduced into the retort apparently little altered by heat ; the third 

 had frised into a compact and nearly solid mass of coke. The amoimt by weight, 

 therefore, of gases actually yielded dm'ing the distillation must have been as 

 follows : — ■ 



From the Mersey schist 21-9 per cent. 



Schouten coal 19'06 „ 



Douglas Eiver coal 31'25 „ 



Results not in accordance vnth the volumes observed to have entered the gaso- 

 meter in the three cases respectively, 



Mr. Moore observed that his apparatus, having been constructed for producing 

 gas by the decomposition of refuse, fatty and oUy matters, slowly entering a retort 

 which ought certainly not to rise above a dull red heat, is not calculated fuUy to 

 elicit the capacity of coal for gas-making, but he had considered that even approxi- 

 mate results might be of some use, and that he hoped soon to see the day when 

 Hobart Town would be lighted with gas fi-om Tasmanian coal, of which he could 

 aver from his own observation there is great abundance, and of a quahty calculated 

 alike for steam purposes or for gas-making. 



A long and animated discussion on tliis subject followed, in which His Excellency 

 the President, Dr. Agnew, Captain Hawkins, the Secretary, and several other 

 members bore a part. 



Sir William Denison was of opinion that more precise experiments and an exact 

 analysis was stUl a desideratum as respected these fuels, more especially the 

 Mersey Schist. 



Mr. Milligan reminded the meeting, that as the inflammable basis of this mineral, 

 when examined by Mr, W. Archer and himself, with the aid of a microscope, had 



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