March 1, 1865.] THE TECHNOLOGIST. 



THE TECHNOLOGIST. 



THE GOLD-FIELDS OF IRELAND. 



A paper by Dr. W. Lauder Lindsay, " On the Geology of the New 

 Zealand Gold-Fields," was read at a meeting of the Royal Geological 

 Society of Ireland on the 11th January, after which the following 

 interesting statements were made relative to the Irish " diggins." 



Mr. Gilbert Sanders said he thought it not out of place on that 

 occasion to offer a few words in reference to the gold-valleys of the 

 county of Wicklow. They had much more interest in them than in 

 those of New Zealand, although he was sorry to say that the former 

 fields were as yet not quite so productive as those which had just been 

 described. He had not prepared a formal paper, but would simply de- 

 scribe the proceedings of the Carysfort Mining Company, who had at 

 present the working of the Wicklow gold-fields. The geology and the 

 mineralogy of that entire district, and more especially of the gold- 

 valleys, had been so fully described by many geologists, that it was 

 unnecessary to speak of them ; but the fact was, that he might adopt 

 the geological descriptions contained in the papers just read as appli- 

 cable to the gold-fields of the co'unty of Wicklow. The parallel between 

 the two districts was so complete, that he could almost fancy that the 

 gentleman who described the New Zealand districts had never stirred 

 beyond the valley of Croghankinsella. It was a singular thing that at 

 the antipodes of the world there should exist two gold-fields agreeing so 

 closely in their geological relations. The object of the Mining Company 

 in their explorations was to discover if there were in existence at 

 or near the ' surface a vein of quartz or other mineral from which 

 the gold that was now distributed over the surface of the land originally 

 emanated. They had examined the rock wherever it was laid bare by 

 Nature, and had inspected numerous veins of quartz ; they had blasted 

 portions of rocks, and had crushed the quartz. Some of the more 

 promising lodes of quartz had been pierced by shafts of a couple of 

 fathoms deep. As yet, however, no stone containing gold had been 

 vol. v. p p 



