THE MINERALS OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 161 



The average fineness of Victorian gold is about 23 carats, that 

 is to say, it contains about 96 per cent, gold and 3 J per cent, of 

 silver, with about \ per cent, of other metals. Further north, in 

 New South Wales, the average fineness is 22 carats \\ grains, or 

 93J per cent, gold and 6 per cent, silver. Still further north, in 

 Queensland, the average fineness is but little more than 21 carats, 

 or 87*25 per cent, gold, 12 per cent, silver. Maryborough gold 

 only contains 85 per cent, gold and as much as 14 per cent, silver. 

 (F. B. Miller, F.C.S. Trans. Boy. Soc, N.S.W., 1870.) 



The Palmer gold, from Northern Queensland, is much richer 

 than any of the specimens from Queensland referred to above. 



Vein gold. — The greater portion of the gold found in sitio in 

 New South Wales occurs in quartz veins running through the older 

 and metamorphic rocks. It is also said to occur under similar 

 circumstances in true igneous rocks. Calcite is occasionally the 

 vein-stuff. 



The rocks in which auriferous veins are most commonly met 

 with are the various argillaceous slates, and chloritic and talcose 

 schists ; also in granite, as at Braidwood and Bowenfells, porphyries, 

 and other similar metamorphic rocks ; in Eisenkiesel, at Carcoar. 

 The walls and " country" of such veins are also usually auriferous 

 to greater or less distances. 



As examples of the richness of portions of gold veins, the 

 following may be cited : — A telegram from Hill End, on February 

 1st, 1873, stated that at Beyers & Holtermann's mine 100 cwt. 

 of gold had been raised in 200 cwt. of stuff. From the same mine 

 a slab of vein-stuff and gold weighing 6 \ cwt. was exhibited which 

 was estimated to contain about 2 cwt. of gold. Many other 

 similarly rich blocks were also shown. 



The Mint returns for the gold from 415 tons of vein-stuff from 

 this mine were 16,279*63 ozs., value £63,234 12s. 



Krohmann's Company, also at Hill End, raised 436 tons 9 cwt. 

 of stuff, for which the mine returns were 24,079 ozs. 8 dwts. of 

 gold, value £93,616 lis. 9d. 



Gold reefs in New South Wales have not yet been worked to 

 any great depth. At Adelong they are getting good stone from a 

 depth of 530 feet. 



Associations. — The most common minerals which are found 

 with vein gold are iron pyrites, which is never quite free from, 

 and is sometimes exceedingly rich in gold ; iron oxide, which is for 

 the most part derived from the decomposition of various pyrites ; 

 mispickle, in calcite, as at Lucknow, where the mispickle contains in 

 parts over 200 ozs. of gold per ton ; with mispickle at Carcoar, and 

 at Moruya with silver sulphides also ; with pyrrhotine and calcite, 

 as at Hawkin's Hill ; with galena, zinc, blende, magnetite, 

 molybdenite, chlorite, talc, asbestos, steatite; cuprite, malachite, 



