ON THE NICKEL-IRON ALLOY AWARUITE OF NEW ZEALAND. 61 9 



38. On the Discoveet, Mode op Occureence, and Disteibftion of 

 the Nickel-Ieon Allot Awaeuite, on the West Coast of the 

 South Island of xTew Zealand. By Professor G. H. P. 

 Uleich, P.G.S. (Eead June 4th, 1890.) 



[Platk XXIV.] 



Contents. 



1 . Introductory. 619 



2. Geology and Description of the Eocks 62"^ 



3. Mode of Occurrence and Distribution of the Awar uite 629 



4. Explanation of the Plate 630 



Introductory. 



In October 1885 Mr. W. Skey, Government Analyst, read a paper 

 before the New Zealand Philosophical Society, AVellington, an- 

 nouncing the discovery of a Nickel-Iron Alloy, which he recognized 

 as a new mineral species and named " Awaruite." The discovery was 

 made in a collection of minerals sent to the Government Laboratory 

 by Mr. Macfarlane, the Warden of the Jackson's Bay District, which 

 includes Big Bay (Maori name," Awarua "), Barn Bay, and other Bays 

 in that part of the West Coast of the South Island. Mr. Skey found 

 the new mineral as small grains or scales in a sample of heavy black 

 sand, reported as saved by alluvial miners in Barn Bay ; and he gave 

 in his paper, besides descriptions of the physical character of the alloy 

 and its mineral associates, interesting particulars concerning its 

 behaviour towards a solution of cuprous sulphate acidulated with 

 hydrochloric acid, and its quantitative chemical composition as : — 

 M = 67-63, Co = 0-70, Pe=31-02, S=0-22, SiO, = 0-43; Formula 

 = 2Ni-l-Fe; Sp. Gr. = 8-1 ; Hardness about 5. He considered the 

 alloy as the second of its kind, of terrestrial origin, so far discovered, 

 under the impression that the known Nickel- Iron " Oktibbehite " 

 (Ni-[-Pe), which is a meteorite found in Oktibbeha City, North 

 America*, was the j^?'s^ alloy of this kind of terrestrial origin ; and 

 he also suggested that the mineral would be found in some basic 

 rock in the vicinity of Barn Bay. Mr. Skey's paper appeared in the 

 Transactions of the New Zealand Institute for 1885, and was 

 reprinted with some additions in the Annual E,eport, for 1885-86, 

 of the Colonial Museum and Laboratory, Wellington. The additions 

 concerned the results of Mr. Skey's examination of other three 

 samples of heavy black sand : namely, no. 1, from Barn Bay, con- 

 tained no Awaruite ; no. 2, from Callery's Creek, contained 4°/^; 

 and no. 3, from the Gorge River, 45-36 %. Amongst other minerals 

 sent with the samples of black sand Mr. Skey mentions a hydrous 

 ferruginous serpentine ; and in a footnote he states "this serpentine 

 proves to be the matrix of the nickel-mineral Awaruite, in which 



* Wadsworth's ' Lithological Studies,' Table II, p. xiv. 



a J. G. S. No. 184. 2 Y 



