416 Report of the Curator. [No. 113. 



rise to a spirit of enquiry to this hitherto neglected branch 

 of the resources of India ; specimens of the lichens and a box of 

 the test liquors are on the table. I have embodied my 

 remarks in a paper for the Journal, of which spare copies are 

 also available, and now on the table. I beg to suggest its early 

 communication to the Agricultural Society, with a set of 

 specimens for their information. 



Museum of Economic Geology. — From not being able yet 

 to procure our cases from the native mistry we have not been 

 able to finish our arrangements. "We have obtained several 

 valuable additions to this department, which I notice in the 

 donation, amongst which are an excellent series, from the 

 iron ore of Burdwan to the forged metal, by Mr. Wm. Prinsep ; 

 American lead ores from Mr. Tregear, with ores and speci- 

 mens of various kinds from Ajmeer, by Captain Thoresby, and 

 the Nizam's territory from D. Walker (M.A.). A very valu- 

 able, though not a showy contribution, is one of a specimen of 

 fire-brick from Futtyghur ; presented by Dr. Angus on the 

 part of Dr. Hunter. 



We have been able to make a very interesting discovery in 

 this department. In some soils brought from Chedooba by 

 Captain Halstead of H.M.S. ' Childers,' and referred to me for 

 reporting upon, I recognised one resembling the curious Sea- 

 Island Cotton soil of Georgia, which looks like a mixture of sand 

 and charcoal (specimens of both are upon the table.) Upon a 

 careful analysis they prove to be identically the same, and a 

 special report has been made on the subject to Government. 

 It is highly satisfactory, that, almost at its very outset, the 

 Museum of Economic Geology should thus have given the 

 most practical proof possible of its utility, by doing full justice 

 to this valuable discovery of Captain Halstead's ; for I need 

 not remark that this soil was hitherto considered unique in the 

 world, and thus was supposed to give the Americans a natural 

 monopoly of the production of Sea-Island Cotton. We now 



