24 



REPORT 1839. 



Brought forward 



Fire stone 



Plate 



yds. ft. in. 



.68 2 

 .11 

 .800 

 2 

 1 







1 



Hazle 3 



Plate 4 



Hazle 2 



Plate 4 



Hazle, called Pattinson's 



sill 4 



Plate 6 



Little limestone 3 



Plate 6 



Sulphureous coal 



Hazle, called High Coal Sill 4 



Plate 2 



Sulphureous coal 



Hazle, called Low Coal Sill 3 



Plate 6 



Carried forward 158 2 



yds. ft. in. 



Brought forward 158 2 



Hazle, called the Tuft 3 



Plate 7 00 



Limestone 1 6 



Quarry hazle 10 



Plate 11 



Harder Plate, called Till 



Bed 2 1 6 



Four fathom limestone. ... 800 



Nattrap Gill hazle 6 



Plate ,110 



Three yards limestone .... 300 



Six fathoms hazle 12 



Plate 3 1 G 



Five yards limestone 2 1 G 



Slaty hazle 4 00 



Plate 6 00 



Scar limestone 10 



Plate 10 



259 2 



In considering these numerous alternations it is easy to 

 imagine that they in some measure resemble a voltaic pile, and 

 the conjecture not unnaturally arises, that possibly some gal- 

 vanic action may be exerted among them. It is easy to speculate 

 further, that the veins traversing these strata perpendicularly, 

 may possibly act as electrodes, and that their metallic and other 

 contents differing so much from the rocks in which they occur, 

 may be drawn together and collected by galvanic currents ex- 

 cited by the strata and circulating in the veins. These views 

 and suppositions are not at all new ; they have been put forth 

 on different occasions in various publications of the day, but as 

 far as I know, up to the present time, have never been sub- 

 mitted to the test of experiment. I mean the galvanic action of 

 stratified rocks has not been before tested by experiment, for 

 Mr. Fox has undoubtedly shown that galvanic currents do exist 

 in some veins. 



I have briefly to lay before the Association an account of the 

 experiments performed by my colleague and myself on this sub- 

 ject, which, if they have not cleared up the matter, have at least 

 drawn the uncertainty within smaller bounds. 



Our first experiment was to determine if any difference ex- 

 isted in the electrical condition of the limestone stratum, called 

 the Great Limestone in Forster's section, and a soft sandstone, 

 called the Tuft, lying immediately under it, the under surface 

 of the limestone and the upper surface of the sandstone being 



