Art. VI. — Some JSfetu Localities for Minerals in Victoria, 

 By J. Cosmo Newbery. 



[Read 11th July, 1879.] 



A new locality of zeolites has been found by Mr. Norman 

 Taylor at the corporation quarries, Merri Creek. Mr. Taylor 

 found fine druses and crystals of phacolite and phillipsite, 

 many of the crystals being larger than any previously dis- 

 covered. Since then Mr. Rule has found very fine crystals 

 of aragonite, perfect hexagonal prisms and pyramids. Mr. 

 Taylor has given me the following note of the mode of occur- 

 rence: — "The basalt at the Merri Creek corporation quarries 

 has been erupted in different flows. The surface is vesicular 

 and partly decomposed,, passing downwards through largely 

 vesicular into dense rudely columnar basalt. The cavities in 

 the vesicular parts are coated with carbonate of lime. Below 

 this is a very vesicular decomposed basalt, the surface of an 

 older flow. In some places it is changed into soapy clays. 

 The cavities in many parts are coated with mammillated 

 ferrocalcite, and a soft white hydrous dolomite of about the 

 consistence of soft putty. It sometimes may be procured in 

 masses several inches in diameter." Some of the lumps are 

 covered by a thin crust of hydrous silica. The soft masses 

 seem gradually to part with water, and become converted 

 into a variety of dolomite. An analysis of a dried portion 

 gave : — Carbonate of magnesia, 71*34 ; carbonate of lime, 

 25*80; carbonate of iron, 1-30; water, 1*10; total, 99 - 54. In 

 some of the cavities this mineral is in the form of the so-called 

 "rock milk," but that mentioned by Dana is carbonate of 

 lime, not magnesia. The water, separated from the solid 

 mineral, contains lime, magnesia, and silica in solution. 

 The basalt becomes denser below this to the floor of the top 

 quarry, which seems to be the top of a still lower flow ; in 

 this top quarry are found rarely the fine crystals of aragonite 

 mentioned. The ordinary radiating masses of aragonite are 

 common. The zeolitic minerals begin to occur at the floor 

 of this quarry or ledge ; as yet onty phacolite and phillipsite 

 have been identified. The basalt they occur in is dense, and 

 contains cavities of all sizes, the bottoms of which are 

 covered with a deposit of greenish, greasy clay, usually 



