( 23 ) 
economic geology of Ceylon, which should serve 
as an index to the known geolo^'y of the Island, 
and a place where visitors and inquirei's could 
see at a glance what was known of the geology, 
and what were the mineral productions, of the 
■Island. Such a Museum would not only serve 
for the instruction and information of the general 
public, but would be tlie greatest service to the 
Geological Survey itself, as an index to the work 
done up to date in the Island. In some form 
or other a collection would have to be estab- 
lished, and at a very slight increase of labour this 
might be made available to the public. 
This Museum need not be a large one ; 2,000 
ft. of floor sjiace would be ample, and for a 
while less would be sufficient, but the museum 
should be diiectly under the charge of the Geo- 
logical Survey, and not made a department of the 
existing Museum in Colombo. 
(iii.) PUBLIC LABORATORY. 
If doubts may be entertained regarding the 
neces.sity of a public museum, none can be felt 
as to the desirability of a piiblic laboratory. A 
laboratory of some sort, i)roperiy equipped for 
analysis of rocks and minerals, will be required 
in any case and, by a small extra cost for accom- 
modation and establishment, its services could 
be made available to the general public, as a 
place where specimens collected by tliem could 
be identified and, if desired, analysed. Tliis would 
not only be desirable on pnlilic grounds, but 
would be an advantage to the Survey, as among 
the samples sent in a certain number would be 
of interest and would afford information, which 
the Survey unaided would be unable to acquire. 
The services of the laboratory should be free of 
charge so far as the deter urination of soecimens 
goes, but to prevent tlie time of the laboratory 
being uselessly taken up in compliance with frivol- 
ous demands a nioderale charge should be made 
for analyses or assays. 
AGRONOMIC SURVEY. 
A somewhat distinct branch, which I consider 
would with advantage be combine ! with the geo- 
logical survey, i-^ an agronomic survey of the 
Island. In vievi' of tlie great importaiice of the 
planting and agricultural interests of the island, 
this ought not to be neglected, and as a labora- 
tory will in any case have to be provided a slight 
extension of this and a small increase of the stali" 
will enable an agronomic to be carried on in con- 
junction with the geological survey. 
The work of the agronomist is, I may explain, 
somewhat akin to, though distinct from, that of 
an agricultural ciiemist The latter is principally 
concerned with soils as altered by culture, with 
their chemical composition, and with advising on 
the particular manures that the chemical com- 
position indicates as desirable for specified crops. 
The agronomist is, on the other hand, more con- 
cerned with the original characters of the soil 
and subsoil, with their relations to the underly- 
ing rocks, and with the physical constitution "of 
soils, on which their adaptability to cultivation 
depends to a- larger extent than on their chemical 
composition. The work of the two is consequently 
distinct, though overlaijping, and the Jact of 
an agronomic survey being in jirogress, or 
completed would not preclude the employnrent 
of an agricultural chemist proper, should that 
ever seem desirable, while the existence of an 
equipped laboratory would lessen the ex- 
pense. 
IKDEPENDENCE OF THE DEPARTMENT 
RECOMMENDED. 
These additional branches of the Survey are not 
essential, but it is essential that the Geolosrical 
Survey should be treated as a distinci Depart- 
ment of Government. The olKcer iucliargeof it 
should have the power of communicating directly 
with the Government, and not be put under the 
Public Woi ks or any other of the existing De- 
partments of Government, and this being so, the 
administration of the Department under him would 
make calls on his time wdiich would prevent him 
fiom taking a large part in the actual execution 
of the survey. These interru|jtions would be prac- 
tically the same if the additional branches of work 
were transferred to or taken up in addition to the 
geological survey proper. Consequently it is de- 
sirable to group the functions enumerated and to 
form a Department of Geology, Mines and Agro- 
nomy under the charge of a single head, who 
should be directly responsible to the Government, 
and wlio vrould find, in the administration of the 
Department, a task commensurate with the in- 
terruption to the actual execution of .=urvey work 
in the field, which is inevitable if he is burdened 
with the administration of even the snrallest De- 
partment. 
LOCAIION OF HEADQUARTERS. 
An important point to be considered is (he 
location of the headquarters of the Department. 
Practically there are only three places to be 
considered, as it is undesirable that its head- 
quarters should be established at a place where 
they would not come annually under the ken 
of heads of the Administration. Tliese places 
are Colombo, Kandy, or Nuwara Eliya. Of 
these, Colombo has the advantage of being the 
site of the headr^uarters of the Administration 
and the principal commercial town of the 
Island. On the other hand, its climate is relaxing 
to a degree, and seeing that the officers of the 
Survey will be exposed for six months in each year 
to hard work and exposure in a trying climate, 
often in malarious districts, it is eminently desir- 
able that they should be placed, during the recess 
and when'engaged in working up the results of 
their field season — that is, for from five to six 
mon'uhs in each year— in a climate which would 
enable them to lecruit their health and acquire 
fresh energy for the next season's work. 
COLOMBO INADMISSIBLE. 
This argument alone should be sufficient to 
prevent Colombo being selec!,ed as tlie headquarters 
of a new repartment, though it may not be 
considei-ed sufficient to necessitate the transfer of 
offices already established in Colombo. Apart from 
it, however, there are certain laboratoiy ijrocesses 
which cannot be carried on at the high temperature 
which prevails at Colombo ; this is so much felb 
in'thecaseof the Indian Geological Survey, where 
headquarters were established in Calcutta at a 
time when no other place was accessible, that the 
question of transferring the headquarters to a 
better climate is being considered, and I would 
most strongly deprecate the Ceylon Government 
committing itself to a mistake for which there la 
no reasonable justification. 
KANDY ADMISSIBLE BUT UNDESIRABLE. 
Kandy, centrally situated, is practically as 
accessible -as Colombo ^ the distance betiween 
the two is no bar to personal communica- 
tion between the officer in charge of tlie 
Geological Survey and the heach of 
