34 R. GREIG-SMITH. 



Kerosene. 



The manufacture of kerosene from a seam of shale near 

 Capertee and Newnes was started some years ago with 

 capital largely contributed by British subscribers. The 

 concern was a failure, not on account of the quality of the 

 shale, but because the management was defective and the 

 plant unsuitable. Just as shales differ in various parts of 

 the world, so must the plant and especially the retorts be 

 adapted for their economic utilisation. What may suit one 

 shale may not suit another. At Newnes the retorts were 

 unsuitable. The affairs of the old company were acquired 

 by Mr. John Fell of Sydney, who modified the retorts so 

 successfully, that while instead of getting approximately 

 10,000 gallons of oil daily from 64 of the old retorts, he was 

 able to get the same quantity from 12 to 16 of the modified 

 type. We have here an instance of the value of scientific 

 research. Although severely handicapped by the type of 

 railway, and by the locality in which the works are situated, 

 the industry promised to be a success. So much so, that 

 Mr. Fell cancelled his Borneo contracts and relied entirely 

 upon the Newnes supplies. The inhabitan ts were returning 

 to the deserted township of Newnes when the men suddenly 

 struck work, demanding a rise from 12/- to 15/- a day. The 

 industry could not pay this, and as an offer of sharing half 

 the profit was rejected by the men, the works were closed 

 down. The strike was settled by arrangement, and the 

 men who remained in or returned to the township, started 

 work three weeks later. 



Tannin Extracts. 



The preparation of tannin extracts is an industry that 

 might be developed in this State. We import a considerable 

 amount although we possess excellent barks. That of the 

 Black Cypress Pine, Callitris calcarata, grows extensively 

 on certain ironstone ridges west of the Dividing Range, 



