5 
Before leaving this subject it is iu bare justice but right to acknowledge the 
uniform readiness and urbanity, experienced through very many years from Mr. Ferres, 
the Government Printer, in passing my works through the press, so far as this could 
he done without any special vote from the Legislature ; likewise is it my pleasing duty 
to bestow every praise on the correct excellence of the print, the composition of which 
requiring classical knowledge. It is my intention, with your approval, to issue in 
1875 “a census of Australian plants ’’for easy reference to Museum collections, to 
technologic objects from native vegetable resources, to any Australian garden-plants, 
or indeed to any other native phytologic object requiring scientific classification. 
Proceeding next to a record of my industrial researches through the year, I 
wish respectfully to draw your attention to a chapter iu the new volume of our 
Acclimatization Society giving “ additions to the lists of the principal timber trees 
and other select plants readily eligible for Victorian industrial culture,” by which 
publication my previous notes on 300 species of the more important timber trees, 
and on 700 other plants of prominent value, became supplemented to the extent 
of about 370 species, while cursorily allusion is made to many more. It may be 
worthy of your consideration, whether it would be desirable to reissue these three 
lists in a connected form with such augmentations as already I can offer ; for 
although the Acclimatization Society distributed a large number of copies, besides 
several hundreds printed and distributed on my private expense — all done with a 
view of diffusing information on many rural industries- — yet the supply proved 
to fall far short of demand. It would, however, be desirable that, for all such prints 
of considerable extent, in just fairness to every branch of the Government service, 
special votes should be provided, as is already the case in several other departments. 
I can also place unreservedly at the disposal of the Government a translation, 
prepared in the course of the last few r years as a bye-work, of Dr. Wittstein’s 
meritorious volume on Chemical Analyses of Plants and their Products, the trans- 
lation into the English language having been granted to myself by the illustrious author. 
But the withdrawal of my laboratory and its apparatus and instruments from me, and 
the discontinuation of the modest former fund for employing an operator, and obtaining 
the necessary chemicals and other requisites, have brought all my active laboratory 
researches to a close. Their bearing on our yet largely latent resources and industries 
may, however, be demonstrated by the fact, that at the London Industrial Exhibition, 
during this year, one of the highest rewards was bestowed on the very last products 
and educts, sent from my laboratory. Entirely novel in this rather extensive series 
of exhibits were, on this occasion, the samples of tar-oils from Eucalyptus globulus, 
all distinct in their specific gravity, boiling-point, color, solvent power, odor and 
other physical properties. The percentage of tar (all of more or less distinct 
characters) obtainable from a series of various Victorian woods is given in a table 
annexed to this report, so also the proportionate yield of medicinal aloe from several 
species of Aloe ; saponin from the root and bark of Acacia lophautlia and A. 
decurrens ; caoutchouc from Ficus macrophylla ; potash from Eucalyptus and Fern- 
tree ashes ; tannic acid from the catechu of Acacia decurrens. These experiments, 
as arranged by me, were conducted by Mr. L. Rumtnel. 
An index of the articles sent from my laboratory to the London Exhibition, is 
appended to this document. Among the exhibits pure alcohol from the sawdust of 
Eucalyptus wood (from which also paper-paste and oxalic acid, together with other 
products, may be obtained) attracted much attention in the home-country. 
Many other experiments were carried on during the latter time of my 
possessing the means for some laboratory work. Thus, the acids of our Casuarinas 
(in this instance of C. quadrivalvis) were subjected to analysis, and the presence 
of citric acid, accompanied by two other organic acids, was shown in the foliage of 
these trees. As usual, numerous investigations of these kinds gave negative results. 
The percentage of the volatile oil in the foliage of Melaleuca hypericifolia, M. 
decussata, Callistemon rigidus, C. rngulosus, Agonis flexuosa, Eucalyptus cornuta, 
E. colossea, .E. populnea, E. calophylla, E. nutans, though known to be small, was 
also ascertained, while I was commencing to study the physical and technological 
properties of each. For all these purposes the control over the Botanic Garden at 
the time, and the utilization of its industrial plants, afforded then additional facilities 
for such kinds of researches. 
As further experiments on new substances may be adduced, those on the dye 
principles of three species of native Droseras or Sundew herbs ; also the results 
