February i, 1882.] 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
Area to be determined by Government as occasion 
arises but no lot is to exceed 50 acres, nor will more 
than 50 acres in all in one or more blocks be leased to 
one applicant. The minimum breadth of any lot to be 70 
yards. 
Period — a term not exceeding 20 years, at expiration 
of which the lease shall be renewable at the lessee's option 
on such terms as the then Governor and Executive Council 
may fix. 
Price. — Prepayment by the applicant of survey fees and 
an annual rent of K5 for each acre or portion of an 
acre payable in advance by two half-yearly instalments on 
1st January and 1st July in each year, the first payment 
to be made on the date of the execution of the lease for 
the then current half-year and payment thereafter to be 
made on or before tho first day of the next calendar 
half-year. 
General. — Government will reserve the right to resume 
and enter upon possession of any part of such land as 
may be deemed necessary for the construction of rail- 
roads, roads, bridges, or canals for public purposes, or for 
the benefit of the proprietors of other lands purchased 
from the Grown, and also the right for persons, acting 
under Government, to search, dig for, and take away in- 
digenous Limber, si \s, enbook and (.flier mat erials, the 
produce of such lands necessary or requisite for the 
making and keeping of the said roads and bridges and 
canals in repair or for any other public works whatsoever. 
The lease to become forfeited by non-payment of rent 
with power thereupon to Government to re-enter upon the 
land summarily without process of law and to remove all 
plant, buildings, &c, which may be thereon and lease or 
sell tho land to others. 
Departmental Rules. 
14. — Applications for permission under the preceding 
rules should in the first instance be addressed to the 
Revenue Officer of the district in which the land is 
situated and should specify distinctly the situation of the 
laud within which it is proposed to dig ; its boundaries as 
accurately as can lie stated and its estimated an a. Kvory 
application should be accompanied by a rough sketch 
of the tract applied for. 
15. — Applications will be dealt with in the order in which 
they are received. 
lii. (iiime.liately on receiving the application tin lh - 
districts, and has been good enough to furnish me 
with a summary of the results of his researches. A 
small nugget taken near Wakwella (<Jalle) and weigh- 
ing over 6 grains was tested and found to be genuine 
alluvial gold, which had been rolled some distance 
and deposited by an old stream. Careful search at 
the place revealed no further traces of gold. In the 
SaBaragamuwa district, Mr. Dixon visited Kakwana, 
North and Central Kukulu Korales and Kolonna Morale. 
In this district, there are several valuable deposits of 
gems still un worked, but no evidence of gold was 
found. In the stream which flows past the Assistant 
Government Agent's bungalow at Eatnapura further 
evidence has been found of the existence of gold in 
considerable quantities. Mr. Dixon has, however, not 
yet been able to explore this stream. At our meeting 
in April, Mr. Dixon alluded to his first visit to 
Ramboda and exhibited a specimen of gold from the 
district. On a subsequent visit several well-defined 
reefs were found, samples of which were sent bo 
London and assayed, yielding 16 grs. to the ton. In 
r>ol<isb(i(/e two or three good reefs were found, but 
the yield here was only 4 grs. to the ton though 
one sample of surface quartz from the same reef 
gave 14 grains. In the lower end of Maekeliya 
valley (Theberton) two good reefs were found. From 
these gold has been obtained, but not in paying quanti- 
ties as yet, though the prospect of this district as regards 
paying gold is considered good. From Rwngala surface 
quartz has been tested with a yield of 1 dwt 1J grs. per 
ton. From Hewaheta quartz has been examined yield- 
ing 10 grs. to the ton. Traces of alluvial gold and 
platinum were found in the Deduru-oya. Mr. Dixon has 
found the reported Mahara gold to he pyrites. Speci- 
mens from a quartz reef in Kandanutcaru contained 3 
per cent of copper and the element telurium which 
is always found in company with gold. 
Tin 
17.— The Revenue Oificer shall report these matters to 
the Government Agent who shall thereupon determine in 
each case whether permission should he granted, and if so 
upon what conditions. 
IS. — The Government Agent must refer for final decisi- 
on of Government all applications for mining leases 
ami must in such cases procure the necessary survey of 
the property and forward it to Government, with a draft 
lease which will be executed in triplicate, one copy for 
the grantee, one to be on record in the Government 
Agent's Office, and one in Colombo. 
1!>. Application for licenses will bo dealt with by tho 
Co\ eminent Agent without reference to Government, 
except in ease where he requires instructions. 
20. — Registers of applications for mining leases and for 
licenses w ill he kept in the ( loveniment Agent's Ollice in 
forms prescribed by llnvi i-innrut, 
S'lKXCK IN (T.YI.ON. 
{From the address of the President C. Branch /:. A. So i'i ly.) 
KKOLOCY ANl> MISKK.U.ooY. 
Mr. A. C. Dixou, who ii tho most activo member 
of our Society in the department of Geology and 
Mineralogy, has continued his visits to different dis- 
tricts for the study of their geological formations. 
The recent activity of gold-mining operations in 
Southern India naturally drew attention to the known 
existence of gold in several parts of this, island, and 
Mr Dixon read a short paper on the subject at out- 
April meeting, Uo has sinco " prospected " several 
nalee, are tele- 
signal service. 
>bservations and 
rainfall for the number of years in which observations have 
been taken, tire 'sent to London, Paris, Brussels, Now 
York, Canada, Calcutta, Patavia and Algiers, and aro 
noticed in the Administration Report of the Meteorological 
Department of the Government of India for 187'J-bO as 
follow s (p. 37):— 
"The Island of Ceylon in which a system of Meteorological 
Observations bus been carried on for some years under tho 
direction of Col. Fyers R. E. communicates a monthly 
abstract of observations from which a selection is made for 
the tabular abstract given in the annual report, and 1 have 
lately included an abstract ol the rainfall registers communic- 
ated to us from Singapore. Thus the cxtromo jreograph. 
ical range of the region for which Met oro'ogicul data 
are collected lor di-cussion iluib g the past years, comprises 
53 degrees oi longitude and 88 decrees ol latitude." 
Tho period over which systematic observations extend has 
been us yet mo short for reliable deductions to be made 
from tho statistic* colloelod. 
Mr Moddiirt is at present investigating the subject of 
the very partial ranges of tho rainfall in Ceylon, the pre- 
valence ol high winds over partial areas uud the iullueuco 
ot the mi usoon-gales in the Hay of Ben -al, and ? tonus mi tho 
Bombay coast, und on the coast of Ceylon lu conjunction 
with Captain I'onnan, t 1 e al-o taking observations to show 
the due. In n. I. ree and altitude ol tin' www* m tho Colombo 
harbor, when the wind is iu tho North, aud North Btfh 
