280 Personal and SeientiiiG News. 
15,300,000 tons of marketable coal, and this refers only 
to lands owned by the state, being but l-126th part of the 
total area thus far found to contain coal of commercial value. 
Four-fifths of the state remain to be examined and mapped. 
The Committee recommend that the geological work be con- 
tinued by Prof. Branner, that work on botany and zoology be 
carried on, and that he be allowed four assistants with salaries 
not to exceed $2,000 each and that an appropriation of $10,000 
be made to meet the contingent expenses of the survey for the 
next two years. 
At a recent meeting; of the San Francisco Microscopical 
Society, Prof. Hanks submitted a newly discovered specimen 
of diatomaceous earth which attracted much attention and 
was considered of great scientific value. The scrapings of the 
earth examined were unwashed and the powers used were not 
sufficient to determine whether the specimen was a "Santa 
Monica" or not. 
Dr. M. E. Wadsworth of the Michigan Mining School, has 
been aj^pointed State Geologist of Michigan for two years from 
May 1st. He is now holding the position by appointment to 
fill out the vacancy caused b}'- the death of Mr. Charles E. 
Wright. It is reported that the Board has decided to pub- 
lish another volume of the report of the survey, covering the 
works of Rominger, Wright and Wadsworth. — Mining and 
Scientific Review. 
Mr. B. W. Thomas read a paper recently before the Chi- 
cago Academy of Sciences announcing the discovery of three 
new forms of the spore-cases of Protosalvinia, a marine plant 
of the Devonian. These and other forms named at first Spor- 
angites by Dr. J. W. Dawson in 1871, are found in great 
abundance in the drift materials excavated in the construc- 
tion of the subterranean aqueduct that supplies Chicago with 
the water of lake Michigan. In one case a large nest of them 
was pumped out along with a deposit of quicksand and thrown 
into the lake. They floated off in the form of a thick black 
scum and on examination their nature was ascertained. Mr. 
Thomas suggests that in the light of the researches of Prof. 
Orton in Ohio as to the origin of natural gas from these spores 
in the Devonian, these drift-contained nests which in this 
instance supplied tons which were pumped into the lake, may 
be the source of the small quantities of natural gas that from 
time to time have been observed by those who have made 
excavations in the drift in the vicinity of Chicago. 
The average of cassiterite in the tin ores of the Black 
Hills is estimated by Prof. Carpenter at two per cent, on a 
basis of treating all rock carrying ten pounds as recommended 
by Prof. W. P. Blake. 
