ON THE DISCOVERY OF AWARUITE. 65 



Eiver (about 22 miles S. of the junction of Barrier Creek and Pyke 

 Kiver) there occurs in massive outcrops a dark-green serpentine, closely- 

 resembling that of the Red Hill and enclosing veins and bunches of 

 compact talc (steatite). 



With regard to the geological relations of the peridotite and 

 serpentine rocks to the enclosing crystalline schists, there can be no 

 doubt, according to Messrs. Henderson's and Butement's observations 

 that the former are intrusive through the latter ; several places having 

 been observed by them where the strike of the schists was right against 

 the peridotite and serpentine outcrops. 



Among the specimens- from the Cascade River at the foot of the 

 Olivine Range ai*e pieces of a hard nephrite like serpentine (bowenite 1), 

 containing small specks of Awaruite embedded in it. The specimens 

 are evidently portions of rolled pebbles. 



The first sample of the Awaruite-bearing black sand examined by 

 Mr. Skey was supposed to have come from Barn Bay ; but it was 

 subsequently proved to have been washed from the drift of the Gorge 

 River. The valley of this river has since generally been considered to 

 be the only place of occurrence of the mineral, and is, indeed, the one 

 in which it has so far been proved to exist in largest quantity. Mr. G. 

 Mueller, the Chief Surveyor, in answer to my enquiries on this point, 

 states : — "The mineral is found in the bed and the banks of the Gorge 

 River, and the ground covered by the mineral-leases applied for with 

 the view of working the nickel is marked in red on the lithograph-plan 

 enclosed. These deposits have evidently been brought across the 

 saddle into the Gorge River from the Olivine Range at the back 

 of it." 



As, in considei'ation of the large extent of the peridotite or serpen- 

 tine rocks, it seemed to me very unlikely that the occurrence of the 

 mineral should be confined to the Gorge River only, I specially 

 requested Mr. R. Paulin, before he set out on his exploring and pros- 

 pecting trip, to look OTit for the alloy in the olivine and serpentine 

 rocks and the drift of the rivers and creeks he prospected. In his 

 explanatory letter to me he states as follows : — " I have found small 

 specks of nickel in the rocks of various localities, most conspicuous at 

 Silver Creek (a tributary of the Jerry River rising in the Red Hill 

 Range), and I think that it occurs throughout the whole formation. 

 The tree nickel found in different river-beds is much coarser than any 

 T have seen in the stone. On the Red Hill itself I found nickel 2,400 

 feet above the sea-level." The area of distribution of the Awaruite is 

 thus by Mr. Paulin's observations proved to be far more extensive than 

 first imagined, and it may be larger still, for I see nothing um-easonable 

 in his belief that the mineral occurs impregnated in the matrix thi'ough- 

 out the whole extent of the peridotite and serpentine rocks ; and, 

 inferentially, in the liberated state in the drifts derived therefrom. 

 The gradual gathering of practical proof of this, however, will, I fear, 

 take a long time, owing to the great hardships and dangers connected 

 with prospecting in that wild, inhospitable district. The supposed 

 recognition of Awaruite distributed through the rock will also, in many 



