82 lEON OEE AND COAL DEPOSITS AT WALLEEAWANG. 



very close resemblance to the diamoiid-beariiig drift of Bingera 

 and other places ; and, like the diamond drift, it contains 

 nodules of conglomerate, composed of rounded and sub-angular 

 fragments of white and coloured quartz, and various other 

 minerals, agglutinated together into a compact mass by a fer- 

 ruginous cement. 



It also contains a small quantity of gold, but apparently not 

 in sufficient quantity to pay for working at the present time. 



This drift can be traced for some distance — as far, I am informed, 

 at Bathurst. Grood sections of it are seen at the Wallerawang 

 Eailway Station, and along the Mudgee and other roads near 

 the town, where several small cuttings show its structure very well. 



The deposits of iron ore at present opened out are situated 

 some six miles from Wallerawang, and near the junction of the 

 coal measures with the Upper Silurian or Devonian beds, which 

 there crop out to the surface. These deposits contain two 

 varieties of iron ore, viz. — magnetite or the magnetic oxide of 

 iron, and brown hematite or goethite — the hydrated oxide ; 

 then in addition to these there are deposits of the so called " clay 

 band," which are interstratified with the coal measures. These 

 clay bands are not what are usully known as clay iron ores in 

 England. They are brown hematites, var. limonite, while the 

 English clay iron ores are impure carbonates of iron, which seldom 

 cantaia much more than 30 per cent, metallic iron, against some 

 50 per cent, contained by the hematites. 



A highly ferruginous variety of garnet accompanies the veins 

 of magnetite ; this garnet is very rich in iron and it will probably 

 be found ad\antageous to smelt it with the other ores, not only on 

 account of the large percentage of metal which it contains, but 

 also on account of the increased fluidity which it would impart 

 to the slag. 



Ieon Oeb Deposits. 



1. Magnetite. — The vein of magnetic iron ore runs apparently 

 N.E. by S. W. This can only be stated approximately, for, owing 

 to the action exercised by it on the needle, the compass was found 

 to be perfectly useless in the vicinity of the lode. 



The ore is scattered over the ground in blocks and nodules 

 along its outcrop ; but at a little depth it is in a solid and compact 

 body, merely broken across here and there into large masses by 

 joints and fissures. 



In one part the vein has a width of thirteen (13) feet ; but at 

 another spot, where a trench was cut across, it was there found 

 to be not less than 24 feet in width. 



Two shafts have been sunk on this vein — one to a depth of 10 

 and the other to a depth of 23 feet. At these depths the quality 

 of the ore is about the same as that at the surface. 



