for the year 1864. lxxxix 



ject of careful examination. The " Cement Stones" or 

 Roman Cement nodules, from the Tertiary clays 

 at Schnapper. Point, in the Bay, the Antimony ores 

 of M'lvor, and the Silver ores of St. Arnaud, and various 

 iron ores, fire clays, gold-quartz, and auriferous pyrites, &c, 

 have also been analysed. 



Some minerals, collected by the officers of the Geological 

 Survey, having a more purely scientific interest, have also 

 been analysed. Of these, the most important have been the 

 Albite and Pholerite, collected by Mr. Ulrich, at Blacksmith's 

 Gully, in a quartz reef, and the Oligoclase and Chabasite 

 from the basalt of Ballan. The minerals, composing the 

 heavy sand accompanying the gold, have been also under 

 examination, which is not yet completed. 



In several cases the result of these examinations have 

 prevented the useless expenditure of capital by detecting 

 errors in the supposed nature of minerals ; thus Carbonate 

 of Magnesia was mistaken by the discoverer for Carbonate 

 of Zinc, Sulphide of Molybdenum for Graphite, and stranger 

 still, a mixture of fine quartz sand, oxide of iron and iron 

 pyrites, the product of a gold extracting process, has been 

 declared to be pure Emery of the best quality by persons 

 contemplating a mercantile use of it. 



In this colony, the importance of mining is so great, that 

 many of the functions performed in England by the 

 Government School of Mines and its Mining Hecord Office 

 in connection with the Geological Survey, are now under- 

 taken (together with various political duties) by a separate 

 "Mining Department" of the Government, presided over 

 by a Mining Minister, as political head, and having Mr, 

 H. B. Smyth, who has twice held the office of Honorary 

 Secretary to our Society, as the permanent head. 



This Department has now the entire control of the large 

 body of Mining Surveyors appointed by Government, not only 



