Wellington Philosophical Society. 1 
used for steam coasting purposes. There were also thin seams of a true 
black coal, associated with sandstone, abounding in mesozoie fossils. The 
mineral waters from the geysers in the Bay of Plenty had also been analyzed. 
Dr. Hector stated that there was now sufücient evidence to prove that the 
hot springs at Rotorua were produced by the contact of fresh water with 
hot rocks; while the springs at White Island were entirely different, owing 
to their being dependent upon the access of salt water. Dr. Hector also 
explained that the source of heat at these different loealities, some sixty 
miles apart, might be in some way connected, and that the character of the 
salts contained in thermal waters depends on local circumstances. These 
chemical investigations had been made in continuation of a paper communi- 
cated to the Auckland Society. A few metallic ores had been added to 
those previously known. Further, that Mr. Skey in the course of some 
recent investigations had discovered a new process for desilvering argen- 
tiferous gold, such as that found at the Thames Gold Fields. The processes 
at present in use for separating the silver from the gold are costly and 
tedious, but Mr. Skey had found that an addition of bichromate of potass 
(in the proportion of five parts to every three of silver contained in the 
argentiferous gold) to the ordinary melting pot will remove the silver, 
along with all traces of iron and copper contained in the gold. The process 
is being tried on a larger scale on the Thames, by the assayers to the Banks ; 
and Mr. Henry Severn, the chief assayer to the Union Bank, who is at 
present inspecting the Thames Gold Field, has undertaken to report as to 
the practical utility of the process, the great advantages of which will be 
obvious to all metallurgists. The pressure of business for the evening 
prevented the reading of Mr. Skey’s paper on the subject. 
1. “On the Measurement of Dinornis Bones,” by Dr. J. Haast, F.R.S. 
(Transactions, p. 21.) 
In the absence of Dr. Haast, the principal portions of the paper were 
read by Dr. Hector, matters of detail being omitted. 
Mr. Mantell wished to know how it was possible to determine, otherwise 
than by means of the crania, whether the number of bones taken out of a 
confused heap belonged to Dinornis or Palapteryz. — : 
Dr. Hector said that Dr. Haast must have had great difficulty in deter- 
mining the different varieties from the data at his command. It was hard 
to see how Professor Owen himself could assign a single bone to a different 
variety or even to a different genus. Dr. Haast appeared to have been 
guided almost entirely by proportional dimensions, and in that respect he 
had followed the example of Professor Owen. Disregarding mere difference 
of size, without accompanying differences in proportion, there appeared to 
be five different kinds; but the specimens of bones on the table would show 
56 
