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Library of the Museum
OF
COMPARATIVE ZOOLOGY,
AT HARVARD COLLEGE, CAMBRIDGE, MASS.
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Souths JTUS Moalvos
No. 7256. |
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TRANSACTIONS AND PROCEEDINGS
AND
Reb ePe@ KR ef
OF THE
ROYAL SOCIETY of SOUTH AUSTRALIA.
a
at ie OD Lied I Ss pes
(FOR 1882-83.)
PFESUED DECEMBER, 1882.
Ye
Adelaide :
G. ROBERTSON, ie KING WILLIAM STREET.
1883.
Parcels for transmission to the Royal Society of South Aus-
tralia, from Europe and America, should be addressed ‘‘ per
W. C. Rigby: care Messrs. Thos. Meadows & Co., 35, Milk
Street, ci ar London.”’
Aopal Society of South Australia.
Patron:
HER MAJESTY THE QUEEN.
Gite-Patrow:
HIS EXCELLENCY SIR WILLIAM ROBINSON, K.C.M.G., C.B., &c.
O FE We Ta. S.
[ELECTED OCTOBER 2, 1883.1]
aresivent :
H. T. WHITTELL, ESQ., M.D.
Gice-Dresidvents:
PROF. H. LAMB, M.A. | E. C. STIRLING, ESQ., M.D., F.B.C.S.
How. Secretary: Hon. CGreaswrer,
W. L. CLELAND, ESQ., M.B. THOS. D. SMEATON, ESQ.
Other Members of Council:
D. B. ADAMSON, ESQ. PROF. TATE, F.G.S., F.L.S., &e.
WALTER RUTT, ESQ. (National Science Director)
Cc. TODD, C.M.G., F.R.A.8. (Re-
presentative Governor)
Assistant Secretary:
MR. A. MOLINEUX.
CON TEN ES.
SES KRe
Dr. J. Davies Thomas: Hydatid Disease in Australia .. = ae
D. B. Adamson: Improvements in the construction of Curre’s Di-
electric Machine .. ee a oe Se as de Se
F. W. Andrews: Notes on the Night-Parrot (Geopsittacus occidentalis)
Baron Sir F. von Mueller: Diagnoses of a new genus and two species of
Composite from South Australia a a ae ne ef
Baron Sir F. von Mueller: tea of a New Genus of Verbenacex
from Arnheim Land ae AF ee > as Sts
James Stirling: The Proteacex of the Victorian Alps .. ie
Dr. H. T. Whittell: Notes of the Dissection of a Pee eas Ascidian
found in St. Vincent Gulf (plate i.) .. . ae oe
Professor R. Tate: Descriptions of some of New Species of Squilla
from South Australia (plate ii.).. ae =e He ar ee
John Haslam: House Sanitation .. ae s a 4 =~
J.G. O. Tepper: Botanical Notes relating to South Australia .. oe
YW. Andrews: Notes on some Rare Birds inhabiting South Australia
T. C. Cloud: A Catalogue of South Australian Minerals .. ue a
Professor R. Tate: List of Plants unrecorded for Southern ee Penin-
sula . ae ae ae Hic oe a i “ =.
Professor R. Tate: A list of unrecorded Plants and of New Localities
for Rare Plants in the South-East zn as ms fe a
Professor R. Tate: List of some Plants Baers: the North-Eastern
part of the Lake Torrens Basin ae oe Le ae
Baron Mueller and Professor Tate: Diagnoses of some New Piants from
South Australia .. ats oa ~: us ae
Professor R. Tate: Additions to the Flora of South Australia .. ee
Professor R. Tate: The Botany of Kangaroo Island, with Historical
Sketch of its eee and Settlement, and Notes on its Geology
(plate iii.) aH : Ae - ac =<
116
lv.
Miscellaneous Contributions to the Natural History of South Australia—
ZooLoey.
Note on the Occurrence of Psalidura in South Australia oa eee
Notes on three South Australian Coleopters destructive to
Vegetation ae : a. = “e by ‘ia es
List of Marine Mollusea, Rottnest, Freemantle.. iz oankae
Botany.
Bibliographical Notes refuting the alleged alien nature of
Orebanche australiana and Verbena officinalis .. pee
Notes on Microstemma tuberosum .. ae 50 oe ie a
Note onthe presence of Tannin in Muehlenbeckia Cunninghamii 175
HYDATID DISEASE IN AUSTRALIA.
By J. Davies THomas, M.D., London.
(Read October 3, and November 7, 1882.]
[ ABRIDGED. |
The Royal Society has on several occasions shown an interest
in questions respecting the common weal and health, and has,
I feel sure, contributed to no small degree in educating the
public on some matters closely connected with general hygiene.
I therefore venture to think that any communication which has
for its object the prevention of disease, pain, and death will
meet with lenient criticism and friendly reception from the
members of this Society.
Apart from the importance of the hydatid as a cause of
disease in man and stock, its study is of great interest from a
purely scientific point of view ; so that any hesitancy | may
feel is not because the subject is bald of interest, but rather
lest the writer may prove unequal to his theme.
In dealing with hydatids, there are two points of view from
which the subject may be regarded. Thus we may consider it
merely from a biological standpoint, and study the parasite
itself, its mode of origin, growth, and death, in the various
phases of its hfe-history; or we may consider it from a medical
aspect, as causing a disease often great in its painfulness and
terrible in its danger to man and beast.
In connection with this latter view we might further discuss
(1) the mode of its prevention, and (2) the best mode of treat-
ment when it is present. The subject will, however, be pre-
sented to your notice only asa brief summary of what I have
been able to learn about the prevalence of hydatid disease in
man, and chiefly as concerns the Southern Hemisphere; and I
shall also endeavour to point out how the risk of infection may
be .reduced to more moderate limits. On our way we shall
see that there are many points upon which more information is
needed, and in the investigation of which some members of
this Society may do good service to science and to public
health.
Dr. Thomas then gave an exhaustive account of the natural
history of Echinococcus, as far as present knowledge of the
2
subject permits, and briefly summarised the matter as fol-
lows:—
What is known as the hydatid cyst is really the cystie or
bladder-worm phase of development of a minute tapeworm
which inhahits the upper part of the small intestine of the dog.
Three varieties of the hydatid have been described, viz., the
Acephalocystic form, where no scolices or daughter-cysts are
found; the variety called Echinococcus Scolicipariens, where
brood-capsules and scolices are present; and finally, Echino-
coccus Altricipariens, where daughter-cysts are developed.
There are good reasons, however, for the opinion that these
forms do not mark distinct species, but merely variations of one
species. I may remind you also of the remarkable transmuta-
tions and transmigrations undergone during the complete life-
cycle of this parasite; how the adult tapeworm inhabits in great
numbers the small intestine of the dog, but in which animal the
hydatid cyst has never been found; that the last joint filled
with ripe ova passes from the intestine of the dog into the
outer world, and that the eggs are conveyed by the various ex-
ternal forces of nature into drinking water, and that they are
scattered on grass and herbage; that the egg becomes swal-
lowed by some herbivorous animal or by man, and that then
the egg-shell becomes digested in the stomach, thus releasing
the six-hooked boring embryo formerly enclosed within it.
That the embryo begins at once to bore its way into the coats of
the stomach until it reaches the inside of a small blood vessel,
where it is caught in the current of blood, and conveyed to the
capillaries of the portal system within the liver; here the
majority rest and develope into hydatids. Some of them, how-
ever, pass through the capillaries of the liver and enter the
general and pulmonary circulation. In this way it follows that
any organ of the body may become the resting place of an embryo,
which proceeds to continue its development into a hydatid.
We shall find from the statistics of the disease that the
lungs, heart, brain, spleen, kidney, muscles, and bones are all
liable to be attacked, although by no means in a like propor-
tion. The six-hooked embryo then proceeds to change into a
hydatid cyst. This in turn produces by a process of “budding
the Echinococci. The Echinococci when transplanted into the
small intestine of the dog develope into the Scolices. These now
form joints, two or three in number, and the last one of these
contains the ripe eggs. To such curious series of .changes
Steenstrup gave the name of the ‘alternation of generations.”
in sheep and oxen the cystic form of the parasite exists in
the liver, lung, and other organs; but they never have the
little tapeworm in the bowel. The hydatid lives, not on
chyme, as the tapeworm does in the intestine of the dog,
3
but on fluids secreted by itself from the blood of its host.
It is extremely important to remember that sheep and oxen
get the hydatid, and the dog the tapeworm. No one has ever
seen this rule reversed in the case of Echinococcus. Man, in
his relation to Echinococcus, resembles the sheep and ox, and
not the dog, for he gets the hydatid cyst, but not the little
tapeworm. The great practical fact is this:—That if there
were no dogs we should not get hydatid disease. Eating
underdone mutton or beef can never give us hydatids, though
it might give us certain kinds of tapeworms. The dog, how-
ever, would not get Tenia Echinococcus if it did not swallow
living scolices from hydatid cysts. Now, if all this be correct,
we can see that the existence of a great many dogs, sheep,
oxen, pigs, &c., in a country produce favourable conditions
for the propagation of hydatid disease in man, for the
ereater the number of dogs the greater the number of
hosts for the tapeworm form, and in like manner the greater
the number of sheep, &c., the greater the number of hosts for
the cystic form. There are four chief factors which determine
the spread of hydatid disease in any country :—1l. The number
of dogs inthe country. 2. The opportunities that exist for
enabling the eggs, bred in the dog, to be swallowed by the
sheep. 3. The number of sheep, oxen, pigs, &c. 4. The fre-
quency with which dogs eat the organs of infected sheep con-
taining living hydatids. Take a country with many sheep, the
organs of which are often eaten raw by dogs, let the water
supply be scanty and procured from bogs, swamps, waterholes,
and dams, on the banks of which dogs may deposit the eggs,
to be blown in by the winds, and washed in by the rain ; let
there be dogs in abundance, and we then have all the condi-
tions necessary to the spread of the disease.
Tue GrocrapuicaLt Distrreurion or Hyparip DisEasz.
This disease is known to occur with greater or less frequency
in all countries inhabited by Europeans or their immediate
descendants. From Great Britain to America, from Denmark
to Bengal, from Iceland in the north to New Zealand in the
south, may this ubiquitous parasite be found. It would be safe,
I think, to assert that wherever man and his faithful com-
panion and servant, the dog, are found together, there will be
found, with greater or less frequency, hydatid disease in the
former. But the frequency of the disease varies greatly in
different countries, and I shall give you as briefly as I can, the
facts bearing upon this point, at least as far as I have been
able to ascertain them. More particularly, I shall bring
before your notice, figures illustrating the frequency of the
4,
disease in Australia. As British subjects, we naturally ask,
in the first place, how often this disease occurs in our ancestral
home.
Hypatrp DisrasE In Great Brirarn.—When I entered
upon the investigation of this question it seemed to me that
there were two sources from which some reliable information
might be gleaned, viz.:—l1st, the Annual Mortality Returns
of the Registrar-General of Births, Deaths, and Marriages ;
and 2nd, the annual records of the various hospitals. From
the former source we might expect to learn how many persons
die every year in Great Britain from hydatid disease, and from
the latter how many patients come under treatment from this
cause in the various hospitals. I regret to state that the
amount of information from either source that I have as yet
succeeded in acquiring is by no means so extensive as I could
wish, for I have had at my disposal a few only of the Annual
Reports of the Registrar-General of Births, Deaths, and Mar-
riages for England and Wales, and I have been unable to learn
anything about Scotland and Ireland.
Through the kindness of Mr. Cleland, the obliging Registrar-
General for South Australia, I have been able to examine the
annual reports of the Registrar-General for England and
Wales for the decade 1871 to 1881. During these ten years
there died in England and Wales—Males, 2,679,416 ; females,
2,498,895 ; total, 5,178,311. Of these 436 persons were re-
ported to have died of hydatid disease, being at the rate of one
out of every 11,876 deaths. Now, I think with Dr. Cobbold,
that this return is very far below the true one, for many cases
of hydatid disease, fatal and otherwise, are no doubt not re-
cognised as such. However, we must for the present accept
the figures as they stand. In round numbers, then, we must
assume that about one death out of every 12,000 in England
and Wales for the decade 1871 to 1881 was due to hydatid
disease.
And now what do the hospital records teach us? About
three years ago I forwarded to the authorities of a large
number of London and provincial hospitals printed forms
seeking mformation upon this point. Out of several dozens of
such appeals, only two received any attention, for replies
reached me only from the London Hospital and the Bristol
Royal Infirmary. However, I have attained access in another
way to the statistics of St. Bartholomew’s Hospital for the
decade 1869 to 1879, and to those of St. Thomas’ Hospital for
the four years 1876 to 1880. The return of the London Hos-
pital extends over the five years, 1876 to 1881; that for the
Bristol Royal Infirmary includes only the year 1880. However,
5
by throwing together the returns of those four hospitals we
get an idea of twenty years of hospital work in Great Britain,
and they show that in all 110 cases of hydatids were under
treatment. During the same period there were about 99,000
in-patients, medical and surgical, treated, so that about one case
out of every 900 treated in these institutions during the periods
in question was one of hydatids. As far, then, as the data at
our disposal extend, we may conclude that about one death out
of every 12,000 in England and Wales during the decade 1871-
81 was due to hydatids, and that about one out of every 900 in-
patients of the four hospitals mentioned was a case of
hydatids.
GERMANY, France, Iraty, Austria, AND Russra.—As far as
I have been able to ascertain no data exist to show the
prevalence of hydatids in these countries. However, the
occurrence of the parasite in France, Germany, and Italy is
certain.
Hypatip Disease In Iceranp.—This country holds the
unenviable position of being the one most highly infested
with Echinococcus disease, and it may be instructive to
devote some attention to the matter. It appears certain that
hydatid disease has been just as prevalent in Iceland for cen-
turies past as it is at the present time, for the earliest medical
records of the country contain references to the prevalence of
an affection of the liver, which could have been nothing
other than this parasitic disease. Up to the present time
an exact estimate of the frequency of the disease cannot
be given, for the medical men resident in the country
do not agree as to the proportion of the population at-
tacked. Then, a great many persons have hydatids, and
yet die of some other complaint; moreover, post-mortem ex-
aminations are made comparatively rarely ; and, lastly, many
of the victims of the disease recover by the efforts of unaided
nature. However, many good authorities believe that from
one-fifth to one-seventh of the entire population of Iceland
suffers from hydatid disease. Other medical observers regard
this estimate as too high, and consider that from one-fiftieth to
one-sixtieth would be a more correct calculation. On the
whole it seems to me that the balance of evidence points in the
direction of the higher rather than of the lower figures. The
Danish Government was so impressed with the gravity and
extent of the evil that in 1863 it deputed a distinguished hel-
minthologist, M. Krabbe, to investigate and report upon this
question, and the result of his inquiries appeared in a treatise
published in 1866, written, fortunately for us, in French, and
not in Danish. He points out that the prevalence of hydatids
6
in man is in correlation to the frequency with which sheep and
oxen suffer from the same disease, and, above all, in correspon-
dence with the very common presence of the adult tapeworm
in the dogs of Iceland. In Iceland, at the time of Krabbe’s
report, there were for every 100 inhabitants 488 sheep and 36
horned cattle ; pigs, however, were scarce. Now, the propor-
tion of sheep and cattle per 100 inhabitants in Great Britain,
according to Mulhall’s balance-sheet of the world, 1870 to 1880,
is—sheep 93, cows 29. So that if we include under the com-
mon title of ‘domestic herbivora” sheep and horned cattle, we
shall see that in Great Britain, per 100 persons, there were of
domestic herbivora 122; in Iceland, 524. Tersely, then, in
Iceland there are per head of human population more than
four times as many possible hosts for hydatids as there are in
Great Britain. Now, as regards the possible hosts of the
tapeworm, 7e., the dogs. According to Krabbe there was in
Great Britain in 1855 about one dog to every 50 inhabitants.
In Iceland, at the time of his investigation, about one dog to
every three to five inhabitants, z.e., there were, at his lowest
computation, ten times as many dogs per head of population
in Iceland as in Great Britain. From this it follows, other
things being equal, that an Icelander was threatened with
hydatid infection from the dogs ten times more than an Eng-
lishman, and, besides that, every Icelandic dog had four times
as many chances of eating the host of an hydatid as an English
dog. But there are two other very important points to con-
sider, viz., the opportunities that the dogs have of eating
hydatids, and the chances of a man swallowing the eggs of the
tapeworm. Of course the number of domestic herbivora and
of dogs form only two elements in the chain of causation of
hydatid disease. The most important elements by far are the
numbers of these animals infested with the parasite, and the
chances of mutual infection of the dogs and domestic herbivora.
And, first, how many sheep, for example, are there affected
with hydatids in the two countries? As regards Great Britain
I have no data, but as concerns Iceland we have some facts,
and in this connection I cannot do better than quote the fol-
lowing statement by Dr. J. Wjaltelin, who for many
years was the chief medical officer for Iceland. He writes :—
“J have for many years been investigating how frequent
this disease is in the Icelandic sheep, and I have come
to the conclusion that traces of it are found in more than
every fifth sheep ; nearly all the peasants have ascertained that
this parasite may be found in every third sheep that is more
than three years old. In a district called Skaptar-Syssel, with
about 3,000 inhabitants and 22,000 sheep, the Echinococci are
said to be found in every adult sheep, and it is worth attention
7
that just in this district every third adult person is said to
have hydatids. Whether this is exact or not i cannot tell, but
thus it was stated to me by a physician who has been serving
there for more than thirty years.” So much for the preva-
lence of hydatids in the chief domestic herbivora of that
country; and now let us turn our attention to the dogs of Ice-
land. Krabbe examined 100 Icelandic dogs, and found that in
28 of these Tenia Echinococcus was present, often in vast
numbers. In Copenhagen he examined 500 dogs, but found
this worm present in only two instances. Thus Tenia Echino-
coccus is seventy times as common in Icelandic dogs as in those
of Copenhagen. According to Cobbold, who is the first
authority on helminthology in Great Britain, Tenia Echino-
coccus has never been found present in any English dogs which
had not previously been fed experimentally upon hydatids.
This quite corresponds with the comparatively rare occurrence
of hydatid disease in England. Then it must be remembered
that in a country where sheep are so numerous, the dogs enjoy
innumerable opportunities of eating the livers and lungs of
sheep affected with Echinococcus, and thus they come to harbour
vast numbers of the little tapeworms. And now as regards
the last link in the chain of causation of hydatids, viz., the
swallowing by man of the eggs of the tapeworms. All travellers
whose works on Iceland I have read draw special and fre-
quent attention to the gross uncleanliness of the people.
Sheep, cows, and dogs live under the same roof as the family
during the long weary months of Iceland’s bitter winter. The
houses are devoid of ventilation, and almost entirely of light.
The configuration of the country is such that extensive bogs
and swamps alternate with lofty mountains, large rivers, and
numerous lakes of all dimensions. The bogs and swamps are
just the most suitable receptacles for the eggs of the tapeworm,
deposited in myriads on the long matted grass, or more solid
hummocks that often stud the area of the swamps. Then,
owing to the diet of the people being largely composed of
stock-fish, scurvy is common, and raw vegetables are a delicacy
and greedily consumed, thus giving another agent for the con-
veyance of the ova into the body. No doubt the three chief
media are the bog and swamp-water used for drinking pur-
poses; the consumption of raw vegetables, upon which the
eggs have been deposited; and the habit of allowing dogs
to cleanse the plates by hcking them. Even the stock-fish that
constitutes the staple article of diet is heedlessly piled on
the filthy floor of the dwelling-house, ready to become befouled
by the dogs. The prevalence of the disease among the sheep is
explicable in like manner by the swamp-water drunk, and the
grass eaten by them. ‘The only land cultivated in Iceland is
8
the tun, which is a meadow surrounding the house, varying in
extent according to the number of cows kept on the farm.
This field is dressed with their dung, and produces the hay
which constitutes the food of the cattle during the winter”
(Baring Gould, p. 45). It is evident how easily the grass and
hay of this small meadow may become infested with the minute
ova of the innumerable Tenia harboured by the numerous
dogs of an Icelandic homestead.
Hypatip DISEASE IN THE AUSTRALASIAN COLONIES.
I think that most of the intelligent public of Australia have
known or heard that hydatid disease is a common one in this
Southern Britain, but hitherto no extensive investigation into
the prevalence and causes of this disease has been undertaken
in Australia. Now, as this malady is, theoretically at least,
pertectly preventible, and as moreover it may, I believe, be
practically reduced in extent, I think that the entire subject is
worthy of careful study and close investigation. Of course the
first step in any such inquiry is to ascertain as far as possible
the extent and local distribution of the disease; and in the
case of Australia, as in that of Great Britain, we may hope to
get reliable data from—Ist. The mortality returns of the
various colonies; and, 2nd. The records of the hospital in each
province. I mentioned my desire to the Hon. W. Morgan,
who was Chief Secretary of South Australia at the time I com-
menced this work, and he most kindly offered to use his influ-
ence with the Governments of the other colonies to further my
inquiry. I beg to offer my most cordial thanks, not only to
Mr. Morgan, but also to the Hon. J. C. Bray, who has also
greatly aided me. Through the kind influence of our two Chief
Secretaries, I have also received the greatest assistance from
Mr. Graham Berry and Sir Bryan O’Loughlen in Victoria, and
from Sir Henry Parkes in New South Wales. Equally ready
and courteous help has been given by the Governments of
Queensland, New Zealand, and Tasmania. Not only have the
Governments of all the colonies given their powerful and in-
deed indispensable aid, but the hospital officials and public
registrars have ungrudgingly and carefully taken infinite
pains to supply the facts required. I cannot too gratefully
acknowledge my obligations to my fellow-workers in this
cause, and can only earnestly hope that great public good will
result from the publication of the facts supplied by them. I
shall first draw your attention to the hydatid statistics of the
various colonies, and then I shall endeavour to point out the
causes of the striking prevalence of the disease in some of
them. From all the colonies of Australasia replies to my
questions have been received, but as might have been expected,
9
the amount of information obtained is not equal in all cases.
Thus I may dismiss Western Australia very briefly. In March,
1878, the Colonial Secretary wrote that he regretted his in-
ability to supply information as to deaths from hydatid
disease, because “under the Registration Act of this colony, it
is not compulsory on individuals registering deaths to produce
the certificate of a professional man; consequently, causes of
death in most instances are recorded in general terms, and it
would be impossible to render any return of the kind required,
there being no reliable data at command.” As regards Vic-
toria, New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, New
Zealand, and Tasmania the case is different.
Vicroria.— Before giving you the statistics of the province,
J cannot refrain from expressing my admiration of the exhaus-
tive character of the returns, and of the promptitude with
which they were supphed. The details of official records in Vie-
toria must be as near perfection as possible. In the first place,
let me remind you that by the census taken in 1881 the popu-
lation of Victoria amounted in round numbers to 862,000 souls,
of whom rather more than one half were males. The mean
annual mortality of the colony has lately been 13°5 per 1,000
inhabitants. And now as regards the number of deaths attri-
buted to hydatid disease. From the Registrar-General’s
returns, it appears that during the twenty years, from the
commencement of 1862 to the close of 1881, 584 persons died
from hydatids. Of these there were of males, 388 ; of females,
246; total, 584; and during the fourteen years, 1868 to 1881,
it appears that 2°98 per thousand of all the deaths in the
province were caused by hydatids. I will not inflict upon you
the details of the annual figures, but I wish to mention that
upon the whole there has been during these twenty years a
constant but somewhat irregular increase in the mortality from
hydatids with advancing time. This is particularly conspicuous
when we compare the four quinquennial periods embraced
within the twenty years. Thus :—First quinquennium, 1862 to
1867, 59 cases ; second do., 1867 to 1872, 112 cases; third do.,
1872 to 1877, 182 cases; fourth do., 1877 to 1882, 281 cases ;
total, 584 cases. This steady and gradual increase is evidently
due to one or both of two causes, viz., either hydatid disease is
becoming more prevalent in Victoria, or the Registrar-General
is being more accurately informed as to the true causes of
death. But of course it must be borne in mind that the popu-
lation of Victoria has increased greatly during these twenty
years. Thus :—Population of Victoria, 1862, 554,358 souls; do.,
1882, 862,346 souls. But then, in the last quinquennium
there were nearly four times as many deaths from hydatids
as in the first quinquennium, whilst the population was
7
10
not nearly twice as great—probably only about half as
much again. As regards the ages of the victims, no age
was exempt—the child, the adult, the old, all succumbed
to this parasite. Thus:—Under 10 years of age there were
36 deaths; from 10 to 20, 57 do.; from 20 to 30, 89 do.;
from 30 to 40, 100 do.; from 40 to 50, 109 do.; from 50 to 60,
73 do.; over 60 years of age, 32 do.; ages not stated, 4 do.;
total, 500 deaths. These numbers include the deaths in the
fourteen years, 1868 to 1882. I have not the data as regards
age prior to 1868. From these figures it will be seen that the
number of deaths increases steadily with advancing age up to
50. Afterwards the numbers diminish. This is not because
people are less liable to hydatids after fifty, but because the
greater proportion of people die before reaching that age.
Now as regards the data supplied by the hospital records of
Victoria, I have received returns from the following hospitals:—
Alexandra, Alfred, Ballarat, Beechworth, Belfast, Castlemaine,
Clunes, Creswick, Daylesford, Dunolly, Geelong, Heathcote,
Horsham, Inglewood, Kilmore, Kyneton, Maldon, Mansfield,
Maryborough, Melbourne, Pleasant Creek, Portland, St. Arnaud,
Sale, Sandhurst, Swan Hill, Wangaratta, Warrnambool, Woods
Point. I need not trouble you with the details of these returns,
but I shall pick out those facts only which are of general
interest. In some of these institutions no cases of this disease
were recorded in the books. This was the case at the Belfast,
Maldon, Mansfield, Swan Hill, and Warrnambool Hospitals.
In the remaining hospitals, however, no fewer than 1,001
cases had been treated. Of these, the result was unknown in
373. In 206 instances death was known to have resulted, so
that we can reckon the mortality of hydatid disease even under
the best available treatment as at least 20 per cent., and per-
sonally I am convinced that this is much below the real figure,
for many cases are discharged from hospitals, and leave the
care of their medical advisers, which are apparently cured, and
yet come back in a few months or years worse than ever. Now
taking the lowest estimate—7.e.,20 per cent.—as fatal, and
remembering that the Registrar-General’s report for 20 years
gave 584 deaths from this disease, it follows that in Victoria
there were about 3,000 cases of hydatids during the 20 years
1861 to 1882. I think that this estimate of preventible
disease is sufficiently startling, and not only justifies, but
urgently invites, inquiry. And yet one case of smallpox
would receive more attention than these 3,000 sufferers have
done—at any rate, at the hands of the official guardians of the
public health. As regards the proportion in which the two
sexes were attacked, some information may be given :—Sex
not stated, 171 cases; males, 493; females, 337; total, 1,001.
11
There was thus a preponderance of cases in males, but as there
has been a considerably larger number of males than females
in Victoria until quite lately, there cannot be much import-
ance attached to the disparity of sexes attacked by hydatids.
The proportion in which the different organs of the body were
attacked was very interesting, but as I shall consider this point
in connection with the total number of cases occurring in all.
the colonies, I need not discuss it here. It is important to no-
tice that if we take the hospitals of Victoria as a whole, there
was about one case out of every 175 of the total indoor patients
treated suffering from hydatid disease. I may remind you that
in the four English hospitals the proportion was one hydatid
out of about every 900 patients, so that it appears that hydatid
disease is more than five times as common in Victorian as in
the four English hospitals. But the different hospitals of
Victoria itself did not show a like proportion of cases. Thus
no cases at all, as I have already stated, were recorded in the
Belfast, Maldon, Mansfield, Portland, Swan Hill, and Warr-
nambool Hospitals, and yet between them they had 5,639 in-
patients during the periods over which their returns extended.
Sourn AvusTRALia.—According to the census taken in April,
1881, the total population amounted to 279,865 — males,
149,530; females, 130,335. The death-rate in 1881 was 13°90
per 1,000. The Registrar-General’s returns of hydatid deaths,
for which I am indebted to the kindness of J. F. Cleland, Esq.,
extend over the 16 years from 1866 to 1881. In six of these
years, viz., 1866-70 and 72, no deaths were returned as due
to hydatids. In 1871 there was returned 1 death; in 1873
there were 3 deaths; 1874, 1; 1875, 2; 1876 and 1877, to-
gether, 11; 1878-79, 3; 1880-81, 13; total, 34. So that for
all the 16 years in question there were only 34 deaths attri-
buted to this parasite. Now, if we take the last ten years, z.e.,
from 1872 to 1881 inclusive, we find that there were 33 deaths
from hydatids out of a total of 34,431 deaths (Statistical
Register for 1881, page 25) occuring during the same period ;
so that hydatid disease is credited with having caused about
one death out of every 1,043 during the last ten years. I am
inclined to think that this is considerably below the number of
deaths that actually occurred from this parasite. And now as
regards the data supplied by the records of the various
hospitals in the province. Of such institutions there are nine,
viz., the Adelaide, Mount Gambier, Port Adelaide, Port Augusta,
Port Lincoln, Wallaroo, Kapunda, Blinman, and Burra
Hospitals. Of these the only ones which are large enough to
supply any information on this subject are the two first named.
I am indebted to Mr. E. H. Hallack for the very exhaustive
returns of the Adelaide Hospital, which extend over a period
12
of 30 years, viz., 1852 to 1882. During this time 158 cases of
hydatids were recognised and treated. There were in all under
treatment as in-patients 36,556 persons, so that about. one case
of every 245—exactly 24468— in-patients was hydatids. As
regards the results of the treatment, we find that in 18 cases
the results were not given; of the remaining 145, 20 died
whilst in hospital, being at the rate of 12°66 per cent.
The Mount Gambier Hospital.—t have to thank Dr. Jackson,
lately Assistant Colonial Surgeon, for the statistics of this
hospital during the seven years 1873 to 1880, and they are very
significant. During these seven years 36 cases of hydatid
disease were under treatment. During the same period there
were of in-patients 1,905. So that no less than one case out of
every 52°9 was hydatid disease. I am convinced that out of
Iceland no place in the known world is so badly infested with
this parasite as the South-Eastern district of this colony, which
supplies the majority of the inmates of the Mount Gambier
hospital. As I shall revert to this point afterwards, I need
not discuss it here. In order to strike an average for the
hospitals of South Australia we must add together the results
of the Adelaide and Mount Gambier Hospitals. This will
show us that about one case out of 198 in-patients suffered
from hydatids.
QUEENSLAND.— According to Hayter, the populatian of
Queensland on December 31st, 1880, was 226,077 persons.
The average death-rate for the decade 1869-79 was 17°27 per
1,000. It appears that the published statistics of this colony
did not contain any particulars respecting deaths from hydatid
disease prior to the year 1878, so that the only data at my
disposal have extended over the four years 1878 to 1882, and
during this time only five deaths from this cause were
registered; so that only about one death out of 6,000 arose
from hydatid disease in Queensland.
The Hospital Statistics of Queensland.—Returns were sent
from the hospitals at Bowen, Ipswich, Springsure, Stanthorpe,
Charters Towers, Towoomba, George Town, and Maryborough.
In five of these no cases of hydatids had been met with, viz.,
Bowen, Charters Towers, George Town, Maryborough, and
Springsure. As regards the Ipswich Hospital, the return com-
prises the 20 years 1860 to 1880. During this long period only
two cases of hydatid disease were treated. The average number
of in-patients is stated to be 300 per annum. The Stanthorpe
Hospital’s record extends over the five years 1875 to 1880.
Four cases only were observed, and one of these was not a
hospital case. In the Toowoomba Hospital books only one
case of hydatids appears. Thus it will be seen that the data
13
supplied from Queensland are too scanty to permit any
numerical estimate to be made, but they show conclusively that
the disease is comparatively rare in that colony.
Tasmanta.—The population on December 31st, 1880, was
114,762. The mean death-rate for the decade 1869-79 was
15°59 per 1,000. First, as regards the deaths registered as
due to hydatid disease :—In March, 1878, the Colonial Secretary
wrote that during the ten years immediately antecedent to 1878
“no deaths from this disease were registered.” However, in
1878 there were two deaths, in 1879 two deaths, in 1880 one
death, in 1881 one death; total, six deaths. So that in the last
four years there have been six deaths from that cause. This
was at the rate of ‘871 per 1,000 deaths.
Hospitals of Tasmania——Returns were received from the
Hobart, Launceston, and Campbelltown Hospitals. There was
no record of any case of this disease in either the Launceston
or the Campbelltown Hospital. The returns of the Hobart
Hospitai comprise the four years 1878 to 1881 inclusive. There
were thirteen cases treated suffering from hydatids. During
the same period there were 4,223 in-patients, so that in the
four years under our notice about one case out of 528 total in-
patients was hydatid. As by some misunderstanding J have
not been able to learn the total number of in- patients treated
at the Campbelltown Hospital, I am unable to give the general
hospital hydatid-rate for the colony, but I have reason to
believe that not more than one out of every thousand cases
treated is of this nature.
New Zwaranp.—Population on December 31st, 1880, 484,864
souls. Mean death-rate from 1869 to 1879, 12°17 per 1,000.
The Acting Colonial Secretary, in a letter dated March 7th,
1878, states that the causes of death were not compiled by the
Registrar- General’s department prior to the year 1873. A
statistical return that should have accompanied this letter has
not reached my hands, so that the only returns in my posses-
sion are those for the four years 1878, 1879, 1880, and 1881,
and they show that in the year 1878 the deaths from hydatids
were six, equal to 1°29 per 1,000; in 1879, seven, equal to 1°25
per 1,000; in 1880, nine, equal to 1°65 per 1,000; in 1881,
three, equal to 0°55 per 1,000; total, 25. So that 1185 per
1,000 of the deaths that took place i in these four years resulted
from hydatid disease. In hospital returns for New Zealand
reples were received from Auckland, Charlestown, Christchurch,
Dunedin, Gisborne, Hokitika, Lawrence, Napier, Naseby,
Nelson, New Plymouth, Oamar u, Picton, Reefton, Southland,
Thames, Timaru, Wakatipa, Wellington, and Westport. In
eleven of these no hydatids had been treated, viz., Charlestown,
14
Gisborne, Lawrence, Napier, Naseby, Oamaru, Picton, Reefton,
Southland, Thames, and Timaru. In the nine remaining hos-
pitals there had been in all 57 cases of hydatids under treat-
ment, and the proportion of cases of this disease to the total
in-patients, as far as I could ascertain, was one out of every
745°7. I think that this estimate is rather too high, but it is
based upon the statistics at my disposal. From both the
Registrar-General’s and the hospital returns it will be seen
that hydatid disease is not very prevalent in New Zealand.
New Sourn Wates.—According to Hayter’s Year Book, the
population of this province on December 31st, 1880, was
739,385 persons. No separate classification of hydatid disease
was made by the Registrar-General’s department prior to the
year 1875. Since that date, however, I have, through the
favour of the Government, been supplied with the annual
returns of deaths due to this cause. I need not now enter into
details, but merely give you the gross result for the seven years,
1875 to 1882. During this period 56 persons died from
hydatids, viz., 29 males and 27 females. During the same
period 75,563 persons died in this province, so that one death
out of every 1,349°3 was caused by hydatid disease, being at
the rate of ‘741 per 1,000. From the hospital returns there
appear to have been 103 cases of hydatids in all. From these
we have to omit nine cases, as there are no corresponding
returns of in-door patients. This will leave 94 cases out of a
total of 35,760 in-door patients, being at the rate of one out of
every 380 cases.
SUMMARY.
From the returns of the departments of the various Registrars-
General, we find that there died of hydatid disease :—
Period over .
i : Rate of Mortality due to
Name of Country. sap on Hydatid Disease.
England and Wales..; 1871 to 1881 1 out of about 12,000
Tasmania .. --| 1878 to 1882 ‘871 per 1,000
New Zealand... .-| 1878 to 1882 1:185 per 1,000
Queensland .. al
| New South Wales ..| 1875 to 1882 ‘741 per 1,000
South Australia ..; 1866 to 1881 *94 (nearly) per 1,000
Victoria + --| 1868 to 1882 2°98 per 1,000
15
The following shows the proportion of the hospital in-
patients suffering from hydatids:—Four English hospitals,
about one out of 900; Victorian do., about one out of 175;
New South Wales do., about one out of 380; South Australia,
do., about one out of 245; Queensland do., returns inadequate ;
New Zealand do., about one out of 746; Tasmanian do., about
one out of 325.
TaBLE showing the number of domestic herbivora (including
-sheep and horned cattle) per 100 inhabitants in the fol-
lowing countries :—
Domestic
Country. Sheep. Horned Cattle. radon:
Great Britain 2% 93 | 29 122
France .. = 64 30 94
Germany .. “A 55 35 90
Iceland .. ye 488 36 524
Europe... en vi ee | 30 96
Victoria .. ey 1,204 | 149 1,353
New South Wales.. 4,381 | 348 4,729
Queensland a 3,067 1,398 4,465
South Australia .. 2,415 114 2,029
New Zealand am 2,695 119 2,814
Tasmania .. st 1,554 | 110 1,664
The numbers for Great Britain, France, Germany, and
Europe as a whole are from “ The Balance-sheet of the World,
1870-80,” by Michael G. Mulhall, F.S.S.; London, Edward
Stanford, 1881 (table 27, page 40). Those for Iceland are
from Krabbe, “ Recherches Helminthologiques en Danemark et
en Islande,” page 59. Those for the colonies of Australia are
from Hayter’s “ Victorian Year-Book, 1880-81” (folding-sheet
No. 3). When we come to consider the number of domestic
herbivora in each colony, we find that in Victoria, where,
according to our statistics, hydatid disease in man is most pre-
valent, the number of domestic herbivora per 100 inhabitants
is the iowest. So that it is quite plain that other important
elements must co-operate to cause hydatids in man; and this
bears out my assertion that domestic herbivora do not directly
infest man with Echinococcus disease, but merely suffer in com-
mon with him.
16
TaBLE showing proportion of registered dogs in Victoria to
population :—
Veh Population, ac- Number of Proportion of Dogs to
1 cording to Hayter. Dogs. Population.
1872 32,504
1873 772,039 33,284 | 1 to every 23
1874 783,274 34,191 it oc oe
1875 791,399 36,917 1 oe: Sara
1876 801,717 36,532 el an
1877 815,494 37,097 1 ah
1878 827,439 37,251 | 1 #- Be
1879 840,620 37,248 1 «224
1880 860,067 37,495 1 6 ae
Discusston.
Professor Tare said there was something incompatible in
the existence of the disease in the South-East, with the
large quantities of water there, and he would rather have
expected that 1t would be found most frequently in the North,
where the people for the most part got their water from dams,
and towards the Wimmera District. He was also disposed to
doubt the localization of the disease by the statistics which
had been given, and was rather disposed to think that the
reputation of Dr. Jackson, formerly of Mount Gambier Hos-
pital, had something to do with the disproportionate number of
cases that had been attributed to the South-East. In fact, he
thought the Mount Gambier Hospital had drained large dis-
tricts of Victoria of hydatid cases. Those acquainted with
Mount Gambier knew that the water was always running under-
ground and near the surface, so that it could not be permanently
contaminated by dogs, and the water used for domestic purposes
was for the most part obtained from wells, the swamp water
being rarely used. Then the statistics showed that women and
children died from this disease in about the same proportion as
the men, who might be supposed 10 run greater danger on
account of their vocations, clearly indicating that the disease
was generated near the homes. For his own part he was dis-
posed to think that the disease was largely communicated by
means of the uncooked vegetables so generally used in salads.
More evidence should be obtained on the point whether water
was the chief means of conveying the Tenia Echinococcus into
17
the intestines of the human subject, as the statistics available
had so far failed to prove it. We wanted to know how the
disease was contracted, and under what circumstances; how
long the eggs would endure submergence in water, and whether
they would float or sink ; and what temperatures they would
stand without losing their vitality? It was also desirable
to ascertain if eggs deposited in a swamp, and subsequently
blown about with the dust, when the swamp had dried up,
would retain their vitality. These important inquiries
into the secondary causes of hydatids could not be carried
out effectually by private persons. It was a work that
should be undertaken by Government, and it would not be out
of place for the Society to suggest to the Government the
advisableness of having such investigations undertaken, as
these statistics showed that the disease was a growing one.
Another question was— Could we deal with this difficulty
from the dog point of view? Could we cure the dogs? If
not, then all the dogs should be killed and cremated. The
disease should be stamped out at all events, for it in a measure
involved the life of the nation. Under these circumstances the
Government would fail in their duty if they did not do some-
thing to deal effectively with this disease in its infancy.
Dr. Pret Nessirr thought there was no doubt that the ova
were ingested with uncooked vegetables, and this was probably
the reason why the disease was so common in the neighbour-
hood of Mount Gambier, because it did not exist in the North,
where the people drank water obtained from dams, and did not
often get fresh vegetables to eat. He did not believe, however,
that many patients suffermg from hydatids came to Mount
Gambier Hospital from Victoria, for although Dr. Jackson had
a high reputation every effort was made to exclude Victorian
patients He agreed that something should be done with the
dogs if the disease was to be stamped out.
Mr. Smeaton suggested that it might be well to go further
back—to the sheeps’ livers with which the dogs were fed.
Mr. Smyru was of opinion that some comparison should be
instituted between the livers of the sheep in Adelaide and
those of the sheep in the South-East, with the view of ascer-
taining why the latter contained more hydatids than the
former. If the disease was communicated by means of un-
cooked vegetables it should be very prevalent in and around
Adelaide.
Professor Tarr asked Dr. Thomas if the water of the South-
East had been examined, with a view of detecting any eges of
the Tenia, as this was one link in the chain of research which
should be carried out.
Dr. Tuomas was of opinion that this had not been done.
B
18
Dr. Wuirrett said there could be no doubt that this was a
subject which was of the greatest importance to this colony,
because if Dr. Thomas’s papers proved anything they proved that
hydatids were largely on the increase ; that they were spreading
from place to place, and that year by year a larger number of
people died from them. After complimenting Dr. Thomas on
his research, he expressed the opinion that the papers would
do a great deal of good in dissipating some of the ignorance
that existed amongst the people with respect to the causes and
development of this disease. He had felt for some time that,
although scientific men had done a great deal in investigating
this subject, they had not quite succeeded in clearing up all
the difficult poits connected with hydatid disease as it
affected man. Tenia Echinococcus, like all tapeworms, had to
pass through two stages—first, as larva in the cysts, and then
in a developed state after it had obtained entrance into the
human subject. There was no doubt that there was a direct
connection between the cyst in one animal and the tapeworm
in another; and it was also certain that there were different
kinds of tapeworms and different kinds of cysts which affected
or preferred particular animals. In fact, it was possible
from an examination of the cysts to predict the kind of
tapeworm that would be produced, and to fix upon the kind
of animal that bred it. They found, moreover, that there were
certain larve in the cow, in the pig, in the sheep, in dogs, and
in man which were called hydatids, and so far as they had been
able to tell there was a great resemblance between the hydatids
of the sheep andof man. Up to recent times these had distinct
names, but closer observation had led scientific men to the
opinion that the hydatids of the sheep and of man were identical
—that they were both derived from Tenia Echinococcus.
Personally he was satisfied of this identity, but it was only an
assumption which might at some future time be overturned.
He was strongly of opinion that this question should receive
more attention than it had, and this was apparent when they
remembered the evidence upon which scientific men had based
their conclusion that hydatids came from the Tenia in the dog.
Experiments in dogs had been generally successful in countries
where Tenia were rare; but in this colony, where they were
common, such experiments would not be so satisfactory. So
far, however, failure had attended all experiments to convey
hydatids taken from the human subject to dogs, and this was
the weak link in the chain. It had not been demonstrated
absolutely and positively that the Tenia was the cause of
hydatids. He would suggest to Dr. Thomas the advisableness
ot experimenting in this direction, in order to get a satisfactory
solution of the problem, and he believed that this end could be
19
attained by an expenditure of time, money, patience, and some
little personal risk. And this would be a great gain, because
it was the question of questions in regard to the settlement of
the origin of hydatid disease. He also thought that a large
number of ova obtained from the Tenia in this colony should
be sent to England for experiment in the same direction. He
was afraid that he had made a mistake in saying “to England,”
because if a scientific man caused the same amount of pain to
animals, with a view ot discovering something that would tend
to the saving of human life, as resulted from many so-called
sports, he would stand a good chance of seeing the inside of
one of Her Majesty’s prisons. These ova should be sent to
some place where the physiologist and biologist were not
watched by the policeman while they were making their experi-
ments. Physiology was not exactly dead in England, but it
was seriously hindered in its investigations by the senti-
mentality of old women of both sexes. While he could
bear testimony to the industry that had characterized Dr.
Thomas in the collection of his statistics, he could not agree
with some of the conclusions that he had drawn. A leading
proposition. in the paper was that there are four factors
which regulated the spread of hydatid disease in any country—
(1) the number of dogs in proportion to the population
of the country; (2) the number of sheep and oxen in the
country; (8) the opportunities that existed for the dogs to
swallow the eggs bred in the sheep; (4) the frequency with
which the dog devoured the organs of infected sheep containing
hydatids. As far as Australia was concerned the two last
factors would be equal in all the colonies, and the sheep in one
colony would be just as liable to get the disease as any other,
so that they were reduced to the other two factors. Although
there was only one series of figures the conclusions suggested
were different from those drawn by Dr. Thomas. In Victoria,
the number of dogs during the seven years dealt with remained
about stationary, viz., one dog to every twenty of the inhabi-
tants, but the deaths from hydatids had enormously increased.
From 1872 to 1877 the number of deaths was 960, but in the
next five years they had increased to 1,150. Of course there
had been some slight increase in the population, which should
be taken into consideration; but that should not add more than
three or four deaths to the number, but instead of that they
had an annual average death-rate of 231 against 182. Then,
as to the other factor, the statistics seemed to prove that the
greater the number of sheep and oxen the less hydatids. New
South Wales had the most stock, but was only fifth on the list
of mortality from hydatid disease; while Victoria, with the
least stock, had in proportion to her population the highest
20
death-rate from hydatids. Queensland in stock came close be-
hind New South Wales, and there hydatids were practically
unknown, as only six cases of death from that cause had been
reported. From these facts he was disposed to think that there
was something wrong about Dr. Thomas’s figures—there seemed
to be a hidden factor somewhere, which had not yet been dis-
covered, but he hoped that Dr. Thomas, during his forthcoming
visit to the South-East, would be able to ascertain what it was.
With regard to the number of cases of hydatids at Mount
Gambier, he was inclined to think that the comparison had not
been drawn correctly—that Dr. Thomas had overlooked one
fact which vitiated a great part of the conclusion he had come
to, that the South-East was, next to Iceland, the country most
affected by hydatids. He had taken the experience of the
Adelaide Hospital during the past thirty years, and the experi-
ence of the Mount Gambier Hospital for seven years, and this
was hardly fair. The first death from hydatids in the Adelaide
Hospital was reported in 1876, and it was only right to assume
that the disease had not been known or made its appearance in
Australia much before that time. A more equitable comparison
would have been to take the results of seven years’ experience
at both hospitals, and if this were done he did not think that
there would be so great a difference in the proportion of per-
sons suffering from hydatid disease as Dr. Thomas’s figures
indicated. The practical question we had to deal with was how
to arrest the ravages of this enemy, which was rapidly extend-
ing in all directions, and although it might be necessary to call
on the Government to assist in the making the prolonged in-
quiries that were necessary, a great deal might be done by the
agencies already available. Professar Tate had asked a ques-
tion with regard to the vitality of the Tenia. He did not
know that any evidence existed with regard to that, but
Davaine had demonstrated the extreme vitality of the pig tape-
worm. After the ova had been kept in water for over twelve
months, they were found to be living and able to create disease
in animals to whom it was administered. Other observers had
ascertained that even after the worms had become rotten and
mildewed, the eggs, when taken away and administered to
animals, produced cystic disease. There was one satisfactory
fact about the matter, however, and it was this—that all ob-
servers were agreed that after the eggs became dry they lost
their vitality ; and bearing this in mind it was easy to realise
the vast amount of good done by our hot weather and winds.
If there were the requisite determination, he was convinced
that the disease could be stamped out in three or four months,
because Tenia were not very long-lived parasites, and came to
maturity and fulfilled ali their functions in ten or thirteen
21
weeks. If all those interested in the slaughter of sheep, oxen,
pigs, and other animals, whenever they saw any indication of
hydatids in their internal organs, cut out the affected parts and
burned them the disease would be stamped out within four
months. Of course there would be still those animals affected
with the diseases ; but as far as human beings were concerned,
the doctors would cure some, the hydatids would kill some, and
others again would outlive the hydatids. There was a want of |
knowledge how to deal with this matter all over the colony;
the people were looking everywhere for means to escape from
or cope with this disease, but they nad looked in the wrong
directions.
Dr. THomas, inreply to the criticisms and observations made
on his papers, referred briefly to the various points involved in
the discussion of such a subject, and expressed the opinion
that Professor Tate had pointed out the direction in which
inquiries should be made. While his statistics were not so
complete as was desirable, he believed they were as complete
as could be obtained in the colonies. He believed that the
tapeworm and Tenia were conveyed into the dog by means
of herbivorous animals, and that at least 40 per cent. of
the stray dogs of the city were affected with this pest. In
fact, the specimens of the Tenia which had been shown
under the microscope had been taken from various dogs of
that description. He suggested that pigs or other suitable
animals should be obtained and inoculated, and kept for say
twelve months, as by this means all the stages of the parasite
from the larve to the secondary cysts might be ascertained.
Even if his comparison had been restricted to a seven years’
experience of the Adelaide and Mount Gambier Hospitals,
he did not think that it would alter the fact that the South-
East was the worst place after Iceland for hydatids. In
referring to the four factors which, in his opinion, regulated
the spread of hydatids, he never meant to say that the number
of herbivorous animals or dogs decided this question, but that
these factors must all work together in a co-ordinate strain.
With regard to water being the main medium for the propaga-
tion of the disease, Dr. Jackson was distinctly of opinion,
before the people of the South-East awoke to the fact, that
their water was their poison, that they were very careless in
their use of it. He intended to have the water of the district
tested, not only shortly, but also later on in the season. He
also intended, if possible, to ascertain what proportion of the
sheep and cattle had the hydatid disease. Mr. Chalwin, the
veterinary surgeon, had made the statement on good author ity
that every beast was affected, and as he thought the kangaroos
also were very much affected with hydatids of the liver, of
22
course, when the dogs killed them they too contracted the
disease. With regard to the dogs, he was convinced that if
he could not find 40 per cent. unaffected in Adelaide, the
percentage diseased would be 60 or even more in the South-
East.
SUPPLEMENT.
[Read March 6, 1883.]
[Dr. Tuomas, at a subsequent date, after a personal inspec-
tion of the South-Eastern portion of South Australia, the
western district of Victoria, and the City of Melbourne, made
the following additional remarks as the result of his observa-
tions :— |
As regards our colony, my investigations were principally
made in two directions :—First, as to the alleged prevalence of
hydatid disease in man and the lower animals in the South-
East; and, secondly, as regards the occurrence of the adult
tapeworm in the dogs there. Upon the first of these points the
records of the Mount Gambier Hospital and the experience of
the medical men practising in the various towns supplied me ©
with valuable information, and I shall in the first place com-
municate that to you. From questions put to medical men
practising at Kingston, Millicent, and Mount Gambier, I was
informed that hydatids were extremely common in their several
practices, and it appeared that the part of the country most
liable to this disease was, roughly speaking, a triangular dis-
trict, which was bounded on the north by the line of railway
from Kingston to Narracoorte; on the east by a line drawn
from Narracoorte to MacDonnell Bay; and on the west by the
coast line. Of course it is not meant that this is the only
infected part, but merely that in a rough-and-ready way this
marks the worst part of the country. And it appears, too, that
kangaroo and domestic animals suffer more from hydatids here
than elsewhere. Of course during a brief sojourn in these parts
it was impossible for me to authenticate these statements for
myself, but I am quite willing to believe them. I must say, how-
ever, that at Benara Station, near Mount Gambier, where alone
I had the opportunity of examining about half a dozen brush-
kangaroos, I failed to find in any single instance any hydatids,
either in the lungs or other viscera of the animals; and the
same remark applies to eight brush-kangaroos examined on the
opposite side of the Victorian frontier at the Punt. This,
however, proves but little, for at the Punt there is an abundant
supply of drinking water in the beautiful Glenelg River, and
23
of course so large a water supply could never suiier serious
contamination. I do not know whence the game on Benara
obtain their drinking water. In order to arrive at any trust-
worthy data of this kind the water supply most accessible to
the kangaroo should be noticed, and as this is being done in
some parts of the South-East, I have no doubt that ere long we
shall have some interesting facts to record. Dr. Jackson, whose
opinions upon this subject must command the greatest respect,
was of opinion that “ the unusual prevalence of hydatid disease
in the South-Eastern District may be fairly attributed to the
large number of marsupials and (to a lesser extent) of native
dogs or dingos which abound, and to the peculiar disposition of
the water supply, most of which exists as surface-water or
swamps.” Dr. Jackson attributes the chief réle to the mar-
supials, inasmuch as the dingo is rapidly becoming extinct. It
is highly probable that kangaroos are much infested with
hydatids in this district as a whole, so that I attach no import-
ance to my inability to find cysts in the few specimens examined
by me. It would be very interesting to receive information
upon this point from sportsmen of a scientific turn of mind.
As regards the sheep, there is no doubt that hydatid infection
is very common in them, and that the parasite often co-exists
with, and is often mistaken for, fluke. This is not surprising,
when we learn that the water supply is the medium of infection
in each case. And now as regards the records of the Mount
Gambier Hospital. I may remind you that in my statistical
paper I gave you, upon the authority of Dr. Jackson, the
returns of this hospital for the seven years 1873-1880. They
showed that during that period one out of every 53 in-patients
treated was a case of hydatids. Of course this represents a
very alarming prevalence of the disease; but it was doubted
by Professor Tate whether the localization of the disease in
the South-East was proven by the cases treated in the Mount
Gambier Hospital. Professor Tate was inclined to think that
the high reputation of Dr. Jackson—then in charge of the
Mount Gambier Hospital—had something to do with the large
number of cases of hydatids treated in that institution. This
was, of course, a very cogent objection, and during my recent
visit to Mount Gambier I brought this question before the
notice of Mr. A. K. Varley, the very obliging Secretary of the
hospital. This gentleman, who has taken a warm and intelli-
gent interest in this subject, has been kind enough to collect
and tabulate for me all the cases of hydatids admitted into the
hospital from January, 1869, to December, 1882, 7.e., for 14
years. They amount in all to 54 cases, and during the same
period there were 3,365 admissions of in-patients duly recorded.
So that in round numbers about one out of every 62 cases
24,
admitted during these 14 years was hydatid. This is a rather
lower proportion than that of Dr. Jackson’s seven years, but
still the difference is not very great. Now, Mr. Varley has
recorded the places of residence of these hydatid cases, and
this is very important. He states that “all the cases except
one are from the South-East, and nearly all from swampy
country.” This is more than a complete answer to Professor
Tate’s objection, for Dr. Jackson had a very high reputation
as an oculist, and cases of eye diseases came far and wide to
reap the fruits of his skill. So that if we eliminated cases of
eye diseases that did not come from the South-East, the pro-
portion of hydatids would rise even higher than the figures
quoted. Dr. Whittell objected that I had omitted to take
corresponding years into account when contrasting the propor-
tional numbers of cases of that disease treated at the Adelaide
and Mount Gambier Hospitals. I have now done so, and the
results are as follows for the years 1873 to 1880:—Mount
Gambier Hospital, one hydatid out of 53 in-patients ; Adelaide
Hospital, one hydatid out of 144°6 in-patients. So that hydatids
were in proportion three times (nearly) as numerous in the
Mount Gambier as in the Adelaide Hospital during the seven
years in point.
Ten dogs were examined at different places, viz., Millicent,
Mount Gambier, and Penola. In each place the parasite was
found. In all, four dogs were actually found to be infested,
and a larger proportion may have been so. As regards both
Adelaide and the South-East, 40 per cent. of the stray dogs
have Tenia Echinococcus. Of course this is a very serious
matter, and it quite explains the frequency of hydatids in man
and animals in this country. Even in Iceland Krabbe found
only 28 per cent. of the dogs thus dangerous to man and beast.
Of ten dogs examined in Melbourne, five contained Toenta
Echinococcus, viz., No. 2 contained hundreds, No. 3 thousands,
No. 4 only a few, Nos. 9 and 10 a very few; but.in all cases of
doubt the specimens were identified by microscopic examina-
tion. So that Melbourne dogs appear to be quite as dangerous
in this respect as those of Adelaide. The Dog Act is virtually
in many parts at least of Victoria a dead letter, for during my
recent visit to Melbourne I had the curiosity on two or three
oceasions to count the dogs provided with, and also those not
possessed of, collars. The figures were—Without collars, 59
dogs; with collars, 4 dogs. The dogs counted were wandering
about the streets of Melbourne and Richmond. It was much
the same at Casterton, Hamilton, and Ballarat. In many of
the country towns of Victoria the source of infection of the
dogs is evidently the same as in South Australia—ze., the
easy access of stray dogs into slaughterhouses and butchers’
25
premises, and the careless habit of throwing offal infected by
cysts aside, so that dogs might eat it. In consequence of these
observations I am convinced that the elaborate returns so
courteously supplied to me by the Victorian Government as to
the dogs registered in the various cities, towns, boroughs, and
by the ‘Shire Councils do not represent by a vast number the
real number of dogs in the province.
As regards the media of conv eyance of the tapeworm
egos into the body, there can be no doubt that the water
supply is the chief one. ‘There is really every factor at
work in the South-East to spread the disease—a large
number of sheep, marsupials, &¢., to act as “hosts’’ for
the cystic germ; a great many useless dogs which, through
want of know ledge ‘of their owners , are allowed to eat the
offal of sheep and the viscera of kangaroo caught in the
chase; a reat area of land, swampy in the w inter, and in
places pe erennially so, but at other spots becoming dry or sandy
in the summer. Finally, many people are not acquainted with,
or too indifferent to, the danger of drinking from water-holes or
smail swamps; and in excuse it must be remembered that the
dangerous draught may be cool, clean-looking, and inviting.
Hence we cannot wonder that hydatids are common in man. The
perversity of ignorance is often astounding. An influential
sheep-farmer in “the South-East assured me recently that he had
found it almost impossible to prevent station hands in his em-
ployment from drinking surface-water, although he had
thoughtfully provided an . auple supply of ‘wholesome and safe
drink for their use.
DiIscussIon.
Mr. Grunpy drew Dr. Thomas’s attention to the nature of
the water supply on the Benara Station. It consisted of two
well-watered permanent creeks, and the water collected in
underground caves. There was always an abundant supply.
Mr. “Topp, C.M.G., remarked that in the country townships
the people mainly got their water supply from tanks and wells.
He thought that the swamps in the South-East were far too
extensive to be capable of becoming infected to any appreci-
able extent with the ova from the tapeworm of the dog.
Prof. Tare asked Dr. Thomas if he thought the parasite to
be endemie.
Dr. Tuomas, in replying, made a few remarks respecting
prophylactic measures. He thought that the chief of these
would be to increase the dog-tax, see that it was rigidly carried
out, and take steps to destroy all unregistered dogs. A pure
26
water supply was also very important. He thought that Mr.
Grundy’s statement respecting the abundant water-supply of
the Benara Station exceedingly confirmatory of his views
respecting one of the chief sources of hydatid infection, viz., a
scanty surface supply of water, to which dogs could have
access; and that it fully explained why that part of the
country should have such a happy exemption from the parasite.
With respect to Mr. Todd’s objection that the swamps would
be too extensive to be capable of being contaminated by
dogs, he would say that he had not meant that the whole of the
larger swamps had been thus infected, but merely small
portions near dwellings and presenting such conditions as he
had mentioned, favourable for the reception and retention of
the ova, and to which man and the lower animals had easy
access. In reply to Prof. Tate’s question as to whether he
thought the parasite to be endemic in the colony, he said that
he thought not, as there was no tradition of the natives having
suffered from hydatid disease prior to the coming of the white
man. Neither did he think that the dog had brought it here,
for as a rule the Tenia Echinococcus did not live for more
than twelve weeks in the intestine of the dog, and in the early
days of the colony voyages from Europe took a much longer
time. In sheep and oxen the hydatid may, on the other hand,
remain for years embedded in the tissues; and these were
most probably the source of the infection. There appeared to
be no increase in the recorded cases of the disease in man at
the Adelaide and Mount Gambier Hospitals during the past
five years as compared with the previous five.
27
ON SOME IMPROVEMENTS IN THE CONSTRUCTION
OF CURRE’S DI-ELECTRIC MACHINE.
By D. B. Apamson.
(Read February 6, 1883.}
My object in coming before the Society on this occasion is
principally to detail a few experiments made by me in con-
structing the machine now before you. Being desirous of
rendering it as effective as possible, I took some trouble in
experimenting in various ways for that purpose.
The machine is known by the name of “ Curre’s Di-electric
Induction Machine.” It consists of two parts, one resembling
the common frictional-plate machine with its rubbers and
collecting comb; the other of a larger dise overlapping the
former, and running as close to it as may be, without touching.
The large dise acts the part of a di-electric between the
smaller one and the points of a comb which carries off the
electricity toward the prime conductor. The smaller disc, as it
passes between the rubbers, becomes charged with positive
electricity, and therefore, by induction, attracts negative
electricity from the points of the comb, which is deposited on
the large disc, and leaves the lower comb and its conductor
charged positively. The large disc, which by means of the belt
and pulley is made to rotate eight times for every turn of the
smaller one, delivers up its charge of negative electricity as it
passes the points of the upper comb, and so the prime conductor
becomes negatively charged.
By the upright rod which acts on a joint, the ball at the top
can be brought nearer to, or removed further from, the prime
conductor, so as to show the length of spark the machine can
produce.
The wooden apparatus on the top forms no part of Curre’s
machine, but is an addition of my own, and is a modification of
what is known as Winter’s ring.
Having finished the machine in the first place without this
appendage, although I found it gave out electricity in con-
siderable quantity, I was not satisfied with the length of spark,
which was seldom above five inches, and my first experiment
was on the slab of ebonite opposite the upper comb. This
appendage is by some makers supposed to lengthen the spark
by one-third. Others again who have tried it say it has no
28
effect whatever, their machines working equally well without
it. For my own part, after having experimented with this
appendage in various forms, I have laid it aside, replacing it by
an ebonite ball. These ebonite balls, I may remark, I have
found to be much more effective than brass for the prevention
of the escape of electricity.
My next experiment was on the rubbers, the stuffing of
which is commonly of horse-hair, but in my machine is com-
posed of sheet-indiarubber about half-inch thick, covered with
sheepskin, which forms a good flat surface, and fits closely to
the plate.
I thought by raising these rubbers higher there would be
less time for the charge to escape from the friction plate before
its coming opposite the di- electric, but after having raised
them one and a-half inches there was no perceptible difference.
While speaking of the rubbers, 1 may remark that it isa
very common opinion that the electricity generated by the one
on the side of the plate farthest from the di-electric is lost or
wasted, but that such is not the case 1s easily proved, as one
can be laid off; and we find on applying them alternately that
the most distant one is quite as efiective as the other.
My next experiment was on the spindle of the upper disc,
which being of iron allowed some of the electricity to escape.
This spindle I replaced by one made of ebonite, but the slight
advantage gained was so small that it was more than counter-
balanced by the loss in stiffness; so I laid this aside, and again
used the iron one. This spindle I have insulated from the disc.
I next tried the effect of lengthening the upper comb by
means of an additional point projecting from the lower ball of
the same. This proved to be a decided disadvantage, as it con-
siderably diminished the length of spark, the reason being, as
I afterwards found, that the di-electric—while it is from the
circumference to a certain distance inwards negatively charged
—has at the same time its central parts and spindle equally
charged with positive electricity ; and so the extra point ap-
proaching too near this central portion, instead of receiving an
addition, gave up a part of what the comb had already
gathered.
As there exists a diversity of opinion as to the best form of
collectors, many. being highly in favour of those used in
‘“‘ Winter’s’”? machine—which are made in the form of a ring,
and having the points set in a groove—I constructed a pair on
this plan. These I found not quite so effective as the forks,
but this, I think, is to be attributed to their diameter being
somewhat less than the length of the forks; otherwise I think
their performance would have been very nearly equal.
My next experiment consisted in the introduction of the
ive
ed
ioe
29
link-shaped appendage on the top of the machine. This con-
tains a continuous core of iron wire, which communicates with
the cylinder through the supports at the ends. and works on
the same principle as a “ Winter’s” ring, of which it is a modi-
fication, being made in the link-shape for the purpose of
keeping it as low as possible. This appendage adds consider-
ably to the length of spark; still I believe the same end might
have been attained by making the prime-conductor of larger
dimensions.
The last experiment I have to mention is the substitution in
the place of the slab of ebonite before-mentioned of one of
the ring collectors. This addition I find still farther increases
the length of the spark, so that the machine which originally
would only spark about six inches, will in its present form,
under similar conditions, yield ten-inch sparks.
NOTES ON THE NIGHT PARROT
(Geopsittacus occidentalis).
By F. W. Anprews.
[Read February 6, 1883. |
The Night Parrot (Geopsittacus occidentalis) is found in the
northern and north-western portions of this colony, and speci-
mens have also been procured from Western Australia.
During the day this bird lies concealed in the inside of a
tussock or bunch of porcupine grass (Zriodia), the inside
being pulled out and a snug retreat formed for its protection.
Here, also, its rough nest is formed, and four white eggs laid.
When the dark shades of evening have fairly set in it comes
out to feed, but generally flies direct to the nearest water,
which is often at a considerable distance from its nest ; in some
instances I have known them to fly a distance of four or five
miles. After drinking and shaking themselves up a little they
fly off to feed on the seeds of the porcupine grass, returning to
the water two or three times during the night.
The name given to this bird by the aborigines is “ Myrrlum-
bing,” from the supposed resemblance of their whistling note
to the sound of that word. They have also a very peculiar
croaking note of alarm whilst at the water, which much re-
sembles the loud croak of a frog. On one occasion one of
30
these parrots was caught in a hut, where it had apparently
been attracted by the ght of a bush lamp; it was put into a
box witha handful of dry grass. On examination next morning
the bird could not be seen; it had placed the dry grass ina
heap, and had then drawn out the inside straw by straw until
it had formed a hole, in which it had concealed itself.
These birds are pretty generally distributed through the
north and north-west of this colony; they come and go
according to the nature of the season. When the early season
is wet the porcupine grass flourishes and bears large quantities
of seed, on which many birds feed; but if, on the contrary, the
season is a dry one the grass does not seed, and no birds are to
be seen.
I shot some specimens at Cooper’s Creek in 1875, when out
as collecting naturalist for the late Mr. J. W. Lewis in his
exploration of the country about Lake Eyre. They were in
that district observed to conceal themselves during the day in
the thick patches of shrubby samphire, on the salt flats bor-
dering on the creeks and on Lake Eyre. The first specimen of
this bird brought under notice was forwarded to the late Mr.
Gould, from Perth, in Western Australia, and was named by
him in consequence Geopsittacus occidentalis. He was not
aware until many years afterwards that it was a night bird,
and numerous mistakes were made concerning its habits and
economy which I have endeavoured to correct by many years
of study and observation.
BrsLioGRaAPHicaL Notes, by Professor R. Tate.
Geopsittacus occidentalis was first diagnostically made known
by Mr. Gould in Proceedings Zoological Society, 1861, p. 100,
from askin sent from Perth. Itis described by the same author
in his ‘‘ Handbook to Birds of Australia,” 1865, vol. 2, p. 88, and
is figured in the “ Birds of Australia,” supplt., part iv., pl. 2,
1867.
Baron Mueller, towards the end of 1867, transmitted to the
Zoological Society’s Gardens, London, a living specimen of
this singular bird ; it was described by the donor as inhabiting
the Gawler Ranges in South Australia, and in some respects to
be a night-bird, like the Nightjars and Owls. During its short
life in the Gardens, its habits were carefully watched, and the
results arrived at were—that it is chiefly a nocturnal bird,
shows a preference for green food, and that its voice is a
double note harsh and loud. The specimen was anatomically
examined by Dr. Murie, Prosector to the Society, and his
observations are detailed in a paper printed in the Proceedings
Zoeiogical Society, 1868, pp. 158-165.
ol
DIAGNOSES OF A NEW GENUS AND TWO SPECIES
OF COMPOSITZ FROM SOUTH AUSTRALIA.
By Bazon Siz F. von Mvenier, M.D., F.BS., &e.,
Hon. Member.
[Read March 6, 1883.]
Epaltes Tatei.
Annual, dwarf, diffuse, somewhat downy; leaves small,
oblong-lanceolar, quite or almost sessile, not decurrent,
toothless or towards the summit minutely denticulated ; the
lower mostly opposite, the upper somewhat crowded; flower-
heads small, axillary, sessile; bracts few, irregular, in two or
three rows, scarious, whitish, mostly oval, ciliolated, forming a
campanular-ovate involucre ; female flowers in several circum-
ferential rows, with exceedingly narrow corolla and exserted
style-branches ; bisexual flowers few, central, partly sterile ;
corolla widening gradually upwards, towards the summit dark-
purplish ; fruits minute, cylindrical-ellipsoid, slightly angular,
not furrowed, faintly scabrous ; pappus on none of the flowers.
On sandy scrub-lands between Wellington and Mason’s
Look-Out, at the east side of Lake Alexandrina. (Prof. R. Tate).
In external appearance this plant reminds of some minute
Alternanthera. Stems numerous from a slender root, not ex-
ceeding two inches in height. Indument from short crisp to
partly papillary hairs. Leaves flat, occasionally some oval,
measuring only 2 to 4 lines in length. Flower-heads not above
two lines long; when in fruit upwards contracted. Receptacle
flat, smooth. Involucrating bracts light-brownish towards the
base, occasionally one or more of the innermost rudimentary,
these narrow and stalked. Corolla of bisexual flowers com-
paratively slender, not callous at the base. Style branches not
thickened at the summit. Female corollas slightly widened
towards the base. Achenes when fully ripe dark-brownish,
hardly one-third line long.
The identical species was known to me since very many years
from the vicinity of Spencer’s Gulf; but as the specimens from
there were gathered in mid-summer, all their florets had
dropped. It is an early spring plant, for Professor Tate found
it in full fruit already at the commencement of October.
I have not ventured to exclude this interesting little weed
from a generic position in Epaltes, although the outward aspect,
32
the disposition of the leaves, the paucity and petaloid colora-
tion of the involucre-bracts, as well as the approach to
universality in fruit-ripening flowers would warrant to assign
to the species sectional rank under the name Petalopholis.
Systematically the plant should be piaced nearest to #. Harrisit.
Still more anomalous in the genus is #. Cunningham through
its almost complete diclinism, and through its bisexual flowers
being provided with pappus-bristles to the number of five, as
shown in the lithogram xxxviii of the ‘‘ Plants of Victoria.”
As a genus Epaltes shows also some affinity to Hlachanthus,
Tsoetopsis, and Stuartina.
[Read April 3, 1883.]
Achnophora.
Flower-head heterogamous. Bracts in few rows, of unequal
length, nearly ovate, not much pointed, membranous at the
margin, forming an almost hemispheric involucre. Receptacle
conically raised at its centre, bearing as many canalicular-
lanceolate deciduous bracts as flowers. Outermost flowers
ligulate and female, the other flowers bisexual, all fruit-bear-
ing. Corolla of the bisexual flowers tubular, slightly widened
upwards, terminated by five or rarely four deltoid very short
tooth-like lobes. Anthers narrow-acuminate, without basal
appendages. Stigmata short, capillary, neither truncated nor
dilated at the end. Achenes semiovate, wedge shaped, some-
what three or four-angular. Segments of the pappus eight to
twelve, semilanceolar-subulate, flat, very shghtly ciliated.
A stemless glabrous herb, in appearance like the smaller
species of Brachycome, with bundles of short rather thick
rootlets with all the leaves radical filiform-linear and quite
entire, on broader clasping and rather long and mem-
branous stalks with elongated single-headed bractless flower-
stalks, with pale ligules and silky slightly compressed achenes.
This new genus of Asteroidez differs from Wablonium in the
involueral bracts being more unequal, in the development of
ray-flowers, in not distinctly bi-tailed anthers, in acute stig-
mata, as well as in the number and tender texture of the
pappus-segments. From Ozlotis it is at once removed by the
presence of bracts on the receptacle, as also by the structure
of the pappus, in which latter respect it is nearer Quinetia ;
from Erodiophyllum and Ammobium it is still more widely
distant. But it shows among Extra-Australian genera some
approach to the South African Amellus, though it is readily
separable by habit, by more deciduous floral bracts and par-
ticularly by the pappus and achenes.
33
Achnophora Tatei.
On wet heathy ground about two miles east from Karatta,
on the Stun’sail Boom River, Kangaroo Island, forming peren-
nial tufts. (Professor Ralph Tate).
Leaves three-fourths to one and a half inches long, a half to
one line broad. Leaf-stalks measuring one-half to three-
fourths of an inch in length, one to two lines in width, pellucid,
three nerved. Peduncles thin, about two inches long. Outer
involucral bracts shorter than the inner ones, and hardly pellu-
cid towards the margin; inner bracts two or three lines high.
Ultimate separate floral bracts entire and membranous at the
margin, somewhat broader upwards, reaching as high as their
flowers. Corolla of bisexual flower about two lines long. Anthers
enclosed. Ligules narrowly oblong-lanceolar, hardly three
lines long. Achenes scarcely one line high. Segments of
calyx-limb (pappus) brownish-yellow, equal in size or somewhat
unequal, but all of one form, about one line long, persistent.
DIAGNOSIS OF A NEw GENUS OF VERBENACE&
FROM ARNHEM’S LAND.
By Baron Sre F. von Mvetrer, M.D., F.RS., &e., Hon.
Member. 3
‘Read May 1, 1883.]
Tatea.
Calyx with a semiovate soon hemispheric tube and five
somewhat unequal semiovate deltoid or finally semiorbicular
lobes. Corolla with very short blunt irregular lobes of imbri-
cate preflorescence and with a short tube inside bearded
towards the middle. Stamens four, inclosed, didynamous.
Filaments short, inserted near the middle of the corolla-tube.
Anthers almost cordate, longitudinally dehiscent, without
any appendage. Style singularly short, deciduous. Stigma
minute. Disk none. Ovary two-celled, with a solitary
amphitropal ovule in each cell. Fruit drupaceous, ovate-
globular, clasped at the base by the persistent calyx, perfectly
two-celled, two-seeded or by evanescence of one of the ovules
one-seeded. Placente axillary, fixed to the middle of the
septum, moderately convex. Pericarp baceate. Endocarp
bony, wrinkled or furrowed, not splitting. Seeds oblique-
c
34
ovate, impressed at the placenta, fixed at the middle. Testa
membranous, pale. Albumen thin, amygdaline. Embryo
white, but little shorter than the albumen. Cotyledons plane-
convex, free, downwards straight, upwards somewhat bent or
twisted. Radicle very short, almost globular, exserted,
inferior.
A somewhat hairy herb, stemless or producing a very short
stem, with creeping root-stock, with leaves opposite or quatern-
arily crowded of comparatively large size, of ovate shape,
of wedge-shaped attenuation into their very short stalk or
sessile base, and of upwards many denticulation, with cymes
on rather short peduncles, with narrow or minute bracts, with
small flowers and outside black drupes.
This new genus, notwithstanding its albuminous seeds, is
better placed into the tribe of Viticee than that of Chloan-
thacez, approaching to some extent Premna, but introducing
unwontedly the feature of a stemless gesneraceous or scrophu-
larinous plant into the order of Verbenacee. It is dedicated
to the accomplished and unwearied Professor of Natural
Science in the University of Adelaide, who himself was the
first discoverer of this remarkable botanic novelty.
Tatea subacaulis.
In Arnhem’s Land, North Australia, along the route from
Bridge Creek to McKinlay River at the Twelve-Mile, on
alluvial soil (Professor Ralph Tate); near Yam _ Creek,
(Inspector Foelsche).
Rhizome sometimes two feet long. Leaves of tender texture,
generally four only in number, measuring two to five inches
in length and one and a half to three inches in width; always
flat, almost glabrescent, paler beneath. Peduncles one to two
inches long, beset with very short spreading hairlets. Cyme
compound, hardly ever exceeding one and a half inches in
length, conspersed with minute glands irrespective of its
copious hairlets. Calyces one to one and a half lines long.
Corolla about twice as long as the calyx, glabrous outside.
Upper anthers at least sometimes smaller than the others.
Style only about two-thirds of a line long. Fruit measuring
three to four lines.
This plant is principally in flower from March to April, and
ripens its fruit towards the end of the year.
35
THE PROTEACEZ OF THE VICTORIAN ALPS,
Wirth an InrRODUCTION ON THE TOPOGRAPHICAL AND
GEOLOGICAL FEATURES OF THAT REGION.
By James Srrrimne, Corresponding Member.
(Read April 3, 1883.)
The Australian Alps, in Victoria, may be described as con-
sisting of a vast extent of mountains traversing the south-
eastern portion of Australia ; flanked on the south-east by lower
lying tracts, which embrace the lacustrine areas of Gippsland,
and on the north by the extensive levels of the Murray basin.
The central mountain mass does not, however, present to us
an original axis of elevation, but, on the contrary, the area
embraced by what is now called the Main Dividing Range was
during Miocene times covered by an extensive plateau. ” Since
that period long-continued sub-aerial denudation has eroded
drainage channels, and has so altered the surface configura-
tion as to produce orographical features essentially different
from those which existed during the Miocene period. It seems
probable that the present drainage channels, especially those
forming the Murray-source affluents, were considerably in-
fluenced by the pre-existing meridional corrugations of the
Paleozoic rock masses, as well as by their composition and
texture. Whether these regions were subjected to a period of
climatic conditions analagous to that which formed the glacial
epoch of Europe is a matter of some uncertainty, as no precise
data exist, as far as known at present, for aiding in the solution
of the problem. However, from the remarks “made by Prof.
Tate in his admirable “ Address to the Royal Society of South
Austraha,” vol. IL., p. lxiv., it would appear that there are not
wanting evidences of glacial action in South Australia; it
would, ‘therefore, be at least probable that the Australian Alps
participated in those glacial movements. I have carefully
examined the old lake basins near Omeo, referred to by my
friend Mr. A. W. Howitt, F.G.S. (Quart. Jour. Geo. Soc., vol.
Xxxv., p. 35, 187), and although there are not wanting evidences
of transportation in the huge blocks now undergoing decom-
position which compose the so-called false bottom of these
ancient lake basins or tarns, yet there are no traces of ice
36
action in the form of grooved or scratched rock surfaces. It
is possible, however, that powerful meteorological conditions
during the past have removed by denudation evidences of
glacial action such as those referred to by Prof. Tate as existing
in South Australian territory. The orographical features of
the main watershed line which constitutes the central chain of
the Australian Alps is most varied, rising into dome-shaped
heights as Mount Hotham, 6,015 feet above sea level ; opening
out at lower levels into flat, although somewhat limited, ex-
panses of table-lands, as Paw-Paw and Precipice Plains, 5,000
feet above sea level, forming thence an anticlinal ridge; again
descending into low gaps or saddlebacks; rising again as a
well-defined ridge, which gives place to rugged mountain peaks,
as Mount Tambo and the Cobberas, the latter over 6,000 feet
above sea level; and finally culminating in the towering heights
of Mount Koscuisko, 7,308 feet above sea level. Connected
with this main watershed line by ridges of varying width and
surface contour are lofty plateaux, snowclad during winter for
many months, such as Bogong High Plains, at an elevation of
6,000 feet above sea level, north of it; and the Snowy, Dargo,
and Gelantipy tablelands, at 4,000 to 5,000 feet, south of it.
These plateaux.form the gathering ground of some of the prin-
cipal streams flowing northerly into the Murray River and
southerly into the Gippsland lakes and Southern Ocean.
During the midsummer these lofty plateaux, with their verdant
aspect, rich carpetings of alpine flowers (principally of the
order Composite), mosses, and lichens, form a striking and
most agreeable contrast with the burnt-up, browned appearance
of the lower lands and valleys, languishing in excessive dryness,
at this time of the year. The surrounding scenery, as observed
from the summit of one of the low rolling ridges intersecting
the Bogong High Plains, is very grand and impressive—seas
of mountains rising wave-like on every side, presenting in the
distance almost infinite shades of blue and purple colouring ;
while the extreme rarity of the air and other conditions all |
tend to produce a scene of wild mountain grandeur charming
beyond description. Unfortunately, the severity of the winter
months and the accumulated snow render these high lands
practically inhospitable at that time of the year.
Geologically considered, the Australian Alps may be
briefly described as consisting of highly-inclined Lower Palzo-
zoic strata, on the denuded edges of which rest isolated tracts
of either Upper Paleozoic strata or Tertiary volcanic sheets.
The Lower Paleozoic formation, showing in many places as
highly metamorphosed schists surrounded by, or surrounding,
more or less central granitic masses, the latter being in all
probability the lower portions of the Lower Palzozoic strata
37
partially or completely altered by the influence of central
heat, and which have become exposed by long-continued pro-
cesses of sub-aeriel denudation. The Metamorphic rocks are
themselves invaded by porphyrites. Amoug the isolated patches
of Upper Paleozoic rocks are remnants of a Devonian forma-
tion of limestones and conglomerates, as at Bendi and other
localities. The Tertiary basalts occupy mostly elevated posi-
tions, forming indeed parts of the lofty plateau before referred
to. They appeared to be the remnants of extensive lava flows,
filling up the valleys excavated during the Miocene period,
while the ancient ridges have in many places become the sites
of the present river valleys by the extensive denudation and
erosion which subsequently took place. Along the course of
the principal streams are deposits of Tertiary gravels all more
or less auriferous. The Tertiary formations which fringe the
mountain mass on either side do not appear to rise on their
flanks to a greater-height than S00 feet above the present sea
level; or, in other words, the maximum level in respect to the
mountain mass at which the sea has stood during Cainozoie
time, or the total elevation of the land above sea level during
that period.
In order that local collections of indigenous plants may be
made scientifically valuable for future phytographic researches,
it seems to me that more attention to the precise locality
should be noted, so that as the areas become geologically
mapped, the formations upon which any given species pre-
dominates may be traced out, and by this means aid in
determining how far varieties of plants are due to geological
or meteorological agencies. As far as our alpine representa-
tives of the order under consideration are concerned, 1t seems
probable that they are confined to the granitic and Silurian
areas. It is much to be regretted that many of the names
given to prominent peaks of our Australian Alps by our dis-
tinguished botanist, Baron von Mueller, during his early
botanical explorations, and published in that grand standard
work, the “Flora Australiensis,’” have been subsequently
arbitrarily altered, thus leading to confusion in tracing out
the stations of any particular species.
As far as known at present our alpine Proteaceous plants
are endemic in these elevated regions, and I would remark, en
passant, that it may be interesting to South Australian
botanists to determine how far our alpine species may be
correlated with any South Australian species under different
climatic and geologic conditions. Most of the species herein
referred to occur in the catchment basins of the Mitta Mitta
and Hume Rivers, both source affluents of the Murray River.
Of the Proteacee as a whole, the researches of Baron
38
Mueller, Robt. Brown, Dallachy, Bentham, and others have .
determined the predominence of species in Western Australia
and North-Eastern Australia.* Outside of Australian terri-
tory, the order would appear to have a wide geographic range,
through New Caledonia, Indian Archipelago, and Eastern
tropical Asia to Japan, and also in South Africa and South
America. Of the relation of this order of plants to the pre-
existing flora of Australia, it seems probable that Proteaceous
genera were contemporaneous with the deposition of the Lower
Pliocene deposits, the fossil fruit Conchotheca rotunda bearing a
resemblance to several tropical representatives of the genus
Grevillea.
As might be inferred from the altitudinal conditions, the
Australian Alps present hypsometric zones of vegetation, rising
from the gigantic Eucalypts of lower levels, through dense
masses of arboreous shrubs clothing the moist heads of gullies
at higher elevations, through zones of pasture lands and
dwarfed heath-like plants to the treeless region at 6,000 feet,
covered with alpine herbs, grasses, mosses, and lichens. Such
hypsometric zones, however, do not present us with any great
ordinal differences; on the contrary, the shrubs and plants
found growing at sub-alpine and alpine heights are, for the
most part, dwarfed representatives of lowland genera. There
are, of course, a few exceptions to the rule, such as the genus
Orites, which, as far as known, is limited to the mountainous
regions of New South Wales, Victoria, and Tasmania.
List oF SPECIES OF PROTEACE®S.
Persoonia confertiflora Grevillea ramosissima
Af Chamepeuce Hakea eriantha
‘i juniperina “« rugosa
Va Bereich
Orites lancifolia ‘ acicularis
Grevillea alpina ‘¢ — microcarpa
ne Miqueliana Lomatia ilicifolia
parviflora “ longifolia
¢ - . 5 .
‘ australis Banksia marginata
Persoonia confertiflora, Bentham.
This interesting plant forms at elevations between 1,000 and
8,000 feet an erect shrub, but at higher elevations up to 4,500
feet it becomes dwarfed and divaricate. It is most abundant
*From Baron Mueller’s “Systematic Census” the following statistics
have been compiled :—Total Australian species, 587; number in West
Australia, 396; South Australia, 33; Victoria, 51; Tasmania, 23; New
South Wales, 127; Queensland, 63; North Australia, 35.—R. Tate.
39
on the heathy, rocky ridges of Metamorphic schist near Omeo,
and also on the Silurian areas at Limestone Creek (head of
Murray River) at elevations of 3,000 feet. Its other station
is on the Genoa River (F. v. I).
Persoonia Chamepeuce, Lhotsky.
This is a rather decumbent shrub; is abundant on the un-
dulating ranges of mica schist at elevations between 2,000
and 4,000 feet. It extends as far westward as the Broken
River (fF. v. J), and northerly to Bathurst, New South Wales.
Persoonia juniperina, Labillardiére.
On the margin of source runnels intersecting the basaltic
plateau at the head of Victoria River. This species forms a
low divaricate shrub seldom exceeding one foot in height. It
has a much wider geographic range than either of its congeners,
as it has been found growing at the Genoa River; Tasmania, at
elevations of 3,200 feet; Wimmera and Glenelg Rivers; and
on the higher parts of the Mount Lofty Range in South Aus-
traha.
Orites lancifolia, F. v. M.
This very handsome shrub inhabits the rocky summits of the
Great Dividing Range as at Mount Hotham, and the high
lateral ranges as Mount Feathertop; Mount Bogong, 6,508
feet, and Mount Wellington, principally on Silurian and
granitic soils. I have not seen the species below 3,000 feet
altitude ; its general limit is between 5,000 and 6,000 feet, and
appears to flourish best at that zone.
Grevillea alpina, Lindley.
This interesting species is prolific in the ranges around
Omeo on Metamorphic schists. It ascends to 4,000 feet. At
3,000 feet it is an erect shrub attaining a height of six feet. At
the higher elevations it becomes dwarfed to a low straggling
bush scarcely a foot above ground. It extends westerly to the
granitic ridges of the Buffalo Ranges to the Upper Yarra
Ranges, and further westward to the Grampians.
Grevillea Miqueliana, F. v. M.
On the porphyritic (Lower Devonian probably) ridges near
the Omeo Plains, between Mount Sisters and Mount Tambo,
at elevations of 4,000 feet, it forms a robust shrub fully ten
feet high. It extends westerly in favourable rocky situations
along the northern flanks of the Dividing Range to Mount
Useful ; and has been found by the writer on the Silurian
ranges near Grant, south of Dividing Range, at elevations of
4,000 feet.
40
Grevillea parviflora, R. Brown.
Along the margin of the streams forming the source
affluents of the Mitta Mitta River, on Metamorphic and
Silurian areas, it is an erect rather bushy shrub, which attains
a height of ten to twelve feet; but at elevations of 4,000 feet
it becomes dwarfed. It extends easterly to the Genoa River,
to the Illawarra and Blue Mountains in New South Wales;
westerly to Portland, and South Australia at Kangaroo Island.
It would be interesting to note the difference between the
South Australian variety if found growing on the Tertiary
formation of Kangaroo Island and our alpine form common to
the older Paleozoic and Metamorphic schists.
Grevillea australis, R. Brown.
This much-branched shrub is found growing on the Silurian
areas in the Mitchell River source basin south of the Dividing
Range, at elevations of 5,000 feet. Near Mount Selwyn it be-
comes dwarfed and decumbent, clinging to the rocks. It has
been found at Mount Wellington and the sources of the Yarra
River, and southerly in Tasmania, at elevations of 4,000 feet.
Grevillea ramosissima, Meissner.
This interesting species is apparently confined in Victoria to
two stations—the Upper Hume River on Silurian formation
(Baron Mueller), and at the junction of Livingstone Creek
with the Mitta Mitta River on Metamorphic schists. At the
latter station it attains a height,of three to six feet, and its
altitudinal limit is 3,000 feet. It appears to be rapidly under-
going extinction. It is more plentiful in New South Wales,
extending to the Goulburn River, Macquarie River, and other
localities.
Hakea eriantha, R. Brown.
An erect arborescent shrub, the fruits of which are locally
known as hickory nuts; is most abundant on the Silurian areas
of the Tambo and Dargo Rivers, south of the Dividing Range,
at elevations of from 2,000 to 4,000 feet ; and on the gneissic
schists of the Mitta Mitta basin, at elevations of 3,000 feet.
It extends easterly to the Genoa River, and to the Hastings
River and New England, New South Wales.
Hakea rugosa, R. Brown.
A prostrate species; confined, as far as known, in Victoria
to the Upper Paleozoic formation at the head of the Macalister
River, south of Dividing Range. It is widely distributed in
South Australia.
41
Hakea acicularis, R. Brown.
An arboreous shrub or small tree. Attains a height of 15
feet on the basaltic ledges of the Dargo High Plains tableland,
at Mayford Spur, at an elevation of 5,000 feet. It extends
northerly to Port Jackson and Blue Mountains, N.S.W., and
southerly to the head of the Macalister River and Tasmania, at
elevations of 2,000 to 4,000 feet.
Hakea microcarpa, R. Brown.
This stout, rigid shrub is common along the banks of the
streams forming the head waters of the Mitta Mitta River on
Metamorphic rocks up to 5,000 feet elevation. On the Omeo
Ranges it attains a height of 8 to 12 feet, but becomes almost
prostrate at the higher alpine stations. It extends northerly
to the Macquarie and Clarence Rivers in New South Wales,
and southerly to Tasmania, at elevations of 3,000 feet.
Lomatia ilicifolia, R. Brown.
This is an erect, somewhat arboreous shrub, attaining amid
the sub-alpine slopes of our Australian Alps a height of 20
feet ; it is most abundant south of the Dividing Range, in the
humid gullies at the sources of the Wentworth and other
affluents of the Mitchell River, on Silurian soils, at elevations
of 3,000 to 5,000 feet. It extends westerly along the Dividing
Range to the Delatite Mountains and the Dandenong Ranges,
and also to Port Phillip, and northerly to the Clarence River
and Snowy Mountains at the heads of the Macleay and Bellinger
Rivers, N.S.W.
Lomatia longifolia, R. Brown.
On the Livingstone Creek and Upper Mitta Mitta sources
this erect shrub attains a height of 12 feet, on Metamorphic
schist areas; on the Mitchell River basin, on the Lower
Silurian areas, it is equally robust. It extends westerly to the
Buffalo Ranges and King Rivers, and northerly to the Blue
Mountains, N.S.W.
Banksia marginata, Cavanilles.
On the rocky ledges of Metamorphic schist, near Omeo,
Livingstone Creek, at 2,000 feet elevation, this species forms a
small bushy tree. It extends from the Wonnangulla River,
on Paleozoic rocks, to Port Phillip; southerly to Tasmania, at
elevations of 3,000 feet; westerly to Port Lincoln, in South
Australia; and northerly to Port Jackson and Mudgee, in New
South Wales.
42
Discussion.
Professor Tare, in the course of his remarks, stated that of
the sixteen species of Proteacee inhabiting the alpine region
about Omeo four of them occur in South Austraha. They
are :—
Banksia marginata and Hakea rugosa, which he regarded as
lowland plants straggling to high elevations; they flourish in
the warm regions wherein the annual rainfall is not below 20
inches. The latter species he considered to be of South Aus-
tralian origin.
Persoonia juniperina is, in South Australia, restricted to the
Mount Lofty and Willunga Ranges, and descends rarely below
about 1,500 feet elevation. He was inclined to claim it asa
survival of an alpine flora of Pliocene date.
Grevillea parviflora in a varietal form is known from two
stations on Kangaroo Island, on rich loam in river valleys, both
at elevations not much above sea level. The Kangaroo Island
plant is readily separable from the alpine one, and he thought
that it had fair claim to subspecific rank as G. halmaturina.
43
NOTES OF THE DISSECTION OF A COMPOUND
ASCIDIAN FOUND IN ST. VINCENT’S GULF.
By H. T. Warirrert, M.D.
[Read April 3, 1885.)
Plate I.
I do not know whether the Ascidian I am about to describe
has been found or named by earlier observers. It is new to
me, and differs in many respects from other Ascidians found at
the same locality, and from the description of the compound
Ascidians given in the text books of zoology. I have found
two specimens on different days during the last two months,
both floating in the ripple at low water within a little distance
of the Glenelg jetty.
The larger one was flattened, oval, and about three inches
long by two broad; its thickness was about the third of an
inch. In the water it was not unlike a piece of boiled tripe.
It was soft and villose over its whole surface except at one
portion of the side, where it was smooth and membranous, and
in the centre of this smooth surface there was a small round
opening which looked like a mouth. This specimen was decom-
posing when I found it, and I could make nothing out of its
structure except that on cutting through it, I found a number
of bodies which I supposed to be ova.
The second specimen was very much smaller, but in a good
state of preservation. This also had the side opening at about
the same part as in the larger one. I preserved this as nearly
as possible in its natural condition, and before dissecting it,
Professor Tate kindly gave me his opinion that I should find
it to be a compound Ascidian. After hardening the specimen
in spirit, I commenced the dissection by passing a fine probe
through the opening at the side. The probe moved freely in any
direction for about a quarter of an inch, but beyond this dis-
tance there was resistance. One point of a small scissors was
then introduced into the orifice, and the opening was enlarged
above and below. An attempt was made from this point to
peel off the outer membrane. We know it is easy as a rule in
dissecting the solitary Ascidians to separate the outer test
from the membranous mantle or second coat. In the specimen
now under examination the separation could not be effected
except. with the assistance of frequent snippings with the
44
scissors, and even then the work was anything but clean. In
some parts nothing remained but the membrane, together with
a portion of the softer tissue on the inner surface, in which, as
seen under a simple lens, were numerous small pits, and at the
bottom of each of these there was a small opening leading to
the exterior (see a, fig. 1). On that part of the membrane
where the removal had been less successful there remained
numerous minute bodies, which at a glance proved the correct-
ness of Professor Tate’s diagnosis, each of these being a small
Ascidian with its branchial chamber or pharynx, according as
we adopt Professor Huxley’s or Professor Allman’s nomen-
clature, so beautifully shown that I doubt if any dissection of a
larger Ascidian could enable a student to get a more accurate
knowledge of this structure. The numerous sago-looking
bodies which can be seen by the unaided eye are each the body
of an Ascidian, having a complicated organization; but the
most striking part of the view is the structure intervening
between these bodies and the little openings communicating
with the outer world—the so-called branchial chamber or
pharynx. Many of these will be seen to be torn from their
attachments, but some will be found in sitw, and. afford us a
perfect knowledge of their arrangement. If we imagine a
Chinese lantern to be divided by horizontal ribs, and the parts
between these ribs to consist of many longitudinal bars,
separated from each other at intervals, so as to give a bird-cage
appearance to the whole, we shall have a rough notion of the
appearance of these structures. In some instances the mouth
(6, fig. 1) is still attached to the border of the opening. Be-
hind this is a conical cap (c, fig. 1) denser and less transparent
than the other parts, and composed of long flat fusiform cells
with central nuclei. This cap, which fits on to the bird-cage
structure, is composed of three or four tiers of perpendicular
bars divided by the horizontal ribs as already described.
Under a high power we can sometimes see here and there
the remains of the cilia attached to these bars, by which, as
in all the Ascidians, the animal keeps up a constant flow of
water through its system. Each of these perpendicular bars
appears to be hollow, having on each side a row of oblong
cells with central nuclei. In all the specimens examined there
was a thickened structure on the outer side of the bird-cage
arrangement (d, fig. 1), and running up as high as the cap.
It is certainly hollow, but terminates in a blind extremity. It
has often been asserted that this structure being hollow serves
as a means of conveying fluid along the walls of the bird-cage
structure, and that the transverse bars are also hollow, and
open into this tube. It is probable that the large tube may have
some uses of this sort, but I have here a preparation adapted
45
for the highest powers, and it shows that each of these ribs is
in fact a thin band of finely-striated muscular fibres, which can
be traced all round the cage, and can be seen to divide into
smaller fibres and fibrille, which split up and distribute them-
selves on the walls of the large tube at the side. We can
understand the uses of these muscles, which, by contracting,
can readily cause the walls of the cage to contract, and eject
water rapidly, as Ascidians are known to do, and from which
the larger ones get the popular name of sea-squirts. I think
it not improbable that the tube at the side also has muscular
fibres entering into its structure, but I have not yet been able
to demonstrate them.
The end of the cage nearest to the body of the animal is
larger than the mouth, and joins by a tube the digestive cavity
of the Ascidian.
If we turn again to the mouth of the animal we find seven
short leaf-like expansions, which probably admit of motion
during life (a, fig. 2), but cannot be extended and retracted
like the tentacles of the Polyzoa. We know that the absence
of vibratile ‘tentacles in Ascidians led to great difference of
opinion between no less distinguished observers than Profes-
sors Allman and Huxley as to the exact nature of the part I
ha¥e hitherto mentioned as the bird-cage structure. By Pro-
fessor Allman the true mouth of the Ascidian is supposed to be
at the farther end of the structure, near the digestive cavity ;
and the ribs and bars of the cage are believed to be the homo-
logues of the tentacles of the Polyzoa. By Huxley the end
nearest the outer membrane is believed to be the true mouth ;
and the cage-like structure is supposed to be a greatly modified
and dilated pharynx. My own observations have hitherto in-
clined me to the views of Professor Allman, but an attentive
study of the specimen now under notice leads to the belief
that Professor Huxley is more correct. I find attached just
within the cap a plentiful supply of conspicuous tentacles,
which are sufficiently long to be easily protruded when neces-
sary. In one of my mounts I have seen one or two of these
tentacles protruded through the mouth, but in the majority of
instances they are retracted, as in the Polyzoa, and he curled up
within the cap. Fig. 2 is an enlarged view of the cap, and at
bare seen several of these tentacles as observed in a slide J
have here for exhibition.
These cage-like bodies separate so easily from the other parts
of the Ascidian that hundreds of them were found floating in
the water under which the dissection was made.
After the outer membrane had been removed as described,
there remained an appurently semi-solid substance in which
Ascidians in every stage of development were embedded. A
46
longitudinal incision was made through this substance, and it was
found after cutting about one-eighth of an inch inward, that the
knifeentered a cavity from which fluid was driven out with some
force. On examination, it was found that this cavity was lined
with a rather tough membrane not unlike the external coat,
except that it was much smoother, and no openings could be
found in it. I was not prepared for this cavity, and it was
too late to take careful measures to ascertain whether it com-
municated by any canal with any other part of the structure,
but a prolonged search with a fine probe did not reveal any
such opening, and I am inclined to believe that the only com-
munication between the walls of this cavity and the other
portions is by imbibition through the substance of the structure
itself.
During the dissection it was abundantly shown that the
chief mode of growth, if not the only one, in this compound
form was budding. I met with numerous buds growing inward
from the lower part of the more mature Ascidians, and also
embryo forms in all stages of development. We are all aware
that a mass of evidence has been accumulated within the last
few years tending to show that the Ascidian is the connecting
link in the stage of evolution between the invertebrata and the
vertebrata. The young larva of the solitary Ascidian has a
tail, but as in the case of the young embryo of man, the tail
disappears in the progress of development. Within this tail
there is a prolongation of nervous structures, which also dis-
appear, but during the existence of these structures the young
Ascidian has a close resemblance to the forms of animals on
the border land of vertebrata, as seen in the Amphioxus, one of
the primitive forms of fish. I have here specimens of embryos
dissected out from the substance of the Ascidian I am describ-
ing; some are stained and others are simply mounted in pre-
servative fluid. All these show that even in the compound
Ascidians the embryos, though never likely to require to swim
about, but always confined in the substance of the tissue, within
which they are developed, have long well-formed tails, and in
some of the better marked specimens there is evidence that
there is within the tail a canal in which cells of a somewhat
ovate shape can be distinguished. These tails show under a
one-fifth objective unmistakable transverse markings like those
of striated muscle. In one of the thicker specimens there are
numerous embryos, showing the stages of tail formation. Fig.3
vives a view of one of these embryos, and ¢ shows the fully
formed tail winding around the body.
It will be remembered that in the embryo of the solitary
Ascidian, and in its early free swimming stage of existence,
there is to be seen near the head three rope-like appendages,
47
with bell-shaped ends not unlike the ends of the old-fashioned
bell-pulls of former days. It has been ascertained that these
are suckers, if I may use the expression, by which the young
Ascidian ultimately fastens itself to stones or seaweeds when
it settles down to a quiet life and a permanent residence.
These appendages are remarkably well shown in some of the
embryos under notice (fig. 3, 6). Three are always very
distinct, and in some specimens three or four smaller ones
are present. It is difficult to understand why they are there,
knowing as we do that these embryos can never enjoy a free
swimming existence. As the embryo grows we see _ these
appendages lengthen out, and they may be seen traversing the
inter-ascidian tissue in all directions, and can be sometimes
traced for considerable distances. I suspect that these cords
are hollow, and that they form a network of communication
between the members of the colony. I must, however, wait for
chance to put in my way a few living specimens before this and
many other questions can be worked out.
In all the embryo specimens there is a projecting portion of
ill-defined tissue (fig. 3, a), which is probably nervous, and
in it are embedded behind each other two distinct masses of
pigment, which I take to be rudimentary eyes; but I do not
notice any ocelli between the tentacles of the adult animal.
The digestive organs, nervous system, and organs of cireula-
tion are not so distinct in any of my specimens as to enable me
to note more than that they appear to have a general resem-
blance to those of the larger Ascidians. Some specimens I
began to prepare yesterday will probably enable me by means
of differential staining to get a step onward to more minute
details. At present I believe the intestine terminates in a
tube passing a short way upward by the side of the pharynx
(fig. 3, e), opposite to that where the longer tube already
described is seen. I have not been able to trace how it com-
municates with the exterior.
I believe this Ascidian comes nearest to the family of
Botryllide, but to all appearances it is free swimming.
Expranations To Puare I.
Fig. 1. a, Pits in external test ; 6, mouth; ¢, cap; d, tube run-
ning up side of pharynx; e, supposed end of intestine ;
jf. body of Ascidian.
Fig. 2. Enlarged view of cap. a, Mouth-tentacles ; 0, vibratile
tentacles.
Fig. 3. a, Eye and otolith; 4, suckers; ¢, tail; d, digestive
organs in formation; e, birdeage-like pharynx in for-
mation.
48
DESCRIPTIONS OF SOME NEW SPECIES OF
SQUILLA FROM SOUTH AUSTRALIA.
By Prorressor Ratren Tare, F.G.S., F.LS., &e.
[Read May 1, 1883.]
Plate IT.
With the aid of Mr. Mier’s* “ Revision of the Genera and
Species of the Squillide,’’ I have undertaken with some con-
fidence an examination of the Australian species preserved in
the South Australian Museum. These are, with one exception
(Gonodactylus graphurus, from Edgecombe Bay, Queensland),
from the tropical and extra-tropical waters of our province,
and are as follows :—
SPECIES FROM THE NortTHERN TERRITORY.
1.—Squilla raphidea, Fabricius.
The only example in the collection, which is, from the
Northern Territory (probably Port Darwin), I have identified
with S. harpax, De Haan,+ placed by Mr. Miers as synonymic
with the Fabrician species here named. 8S. raphidea has
hitherto been unrecorded for Australia, though it is known
from various parts of the Indo-Pacific region. The Port
Darwin specimen measures 7} inches in length.
2.—Gonodactylus chiragra, Fabricius.
Many examples from the Northern Territory, probably Port
Darwin, whence I have seen several specimens in the collection
of Mr. W. T. Bednall, by whom they were taken.
3.—Gonodactylus graphurus, White.
Two examples from the Northern Territory, probably Port
Darwin.
The following are also known from Port Essington :—
Lysiosquilla acanthocarpus, Miers; Chloridella microphthalna,
M.-Edw. ; and Squilla scorpio, Latreille.
SpecrEs FRoM SourH AUSTRALIA.
Mr. Haswell had evidently not been aware of the occurence
of any member of the Squilla family in South Australian
waters, as in his “ Australian Crustacea” not one of the species
~ *« On the Squillide,” in Annals Mag. Nat. History 5, vel. 5; 1880.
+ ‘*Fauna Japonica, Crustacea,” p. 222, t. li., fig. 1; 1850.
49
has assigned to it a South Australian habitat; indeed, our
knowledge of the existence of representatives of the family
off the whole of the south coast of the continent is limited to
Squilla miles—a Victorian example of which is in the British
Museum. Under these circumstances it is with much satisfac-
tion that I have to report the presence of three species in our
much-neglected field of carcinographical research.
These species are, moreover, diagnostically unknown, and I
propose to describe them under the names of Squilla pectinata,
S. inornata, and S. subfasciata. They agree in one character,
namely, that the anterior margin of the penultimate joint of
the raptorial limb is furnished throughout its whole length
with close-set comb-like teeth. This character is entirely
foreign to the genus, though present in Chloridella and some
species of Lysiosquilla. My S. subfasciata makes some approach
to Chloridella, but the generic characters are those proper to
Squilla.
Following the analytical scheme of Mr. Miers, I have in the
subjoined schedule brought the three South Australian species
into correlation with others of the genus.
A, Exposed thoracic and first five abdominal segments, with
submedian carine on the dorsal surface.
1. Penultimate jomt of the raptorial limbs without a
series of immobile spines.
11. Penultimate joint of the raptorial limbs with immo-
bile spines (or denticulations) along its whole length.
* Armature of penultimate joint spinous, as in
S. raphidea.
** Armature of penultimate joint consisting of
denticles, in addition to the mobile spines.
1. Dactyli of raptorial limbs armed with
four spines; antero-lateral angles of
carapace rounded ty es! S. pectinata
2. Dactyli of raptorial limbs with six
spines; antero-lateral angles of carapace
spinous... ae Ae ase S. inornata
B. Exposed thoracic and first five abdominal segments with
the dorsal surface smooth.
1. Dactyli of raptorial hmbs with six spines; antero-
lateral angles of carapace spinous.
1. Penultimate joint of the raptorial limbs
without immobile spines ... 22 S. fasciata
2. Penultimate joint of the raptorial limbs :
margined with close-set denticles ... S. subfasciata
50
Squilla pectinata, spec. nov.
Species name in allusion to the comb-lke front margin of
the penultimate joint of the raptorial limbs.
Carapace in the form of a truncated isosceles triangle, with
the sides nearly straight, and the angles rounded; length,
1:05, breadth at base, ‘85, breadth at front, ‘5 of an inch;
smooth, very convex in the middle, with the sulci deep and
prolonged to the cervical suture. Posterior to the cervical
suture are two lateral carine on each side. Rostrum semi-oval,
as long as broad—0:15 of an inch—partially covering the
ophthalmic segment. The exposed thoracic and the first five
abdominal segments ornamented with two submedian carine,
and a lateral carina on each side. The first five abdominal
segments have in addition two lateral carine inferior to the
first on each side; the postero-lateral angles spinulate. The
sixth abdominal segment has two submedian and four lateral
carine, each terminating in a strong spine.
The telson has seven acute longitudinal crests and a few sub-
marginal carunculations, more or less confluent ; the median
crest terminates in a spine, and the crest on either side of the
median one has a few spinulose serrations towards the ex-
tremity. The margin is produced into two submedian triangular
spines and four lateral spines, the spaces between the sub-
median and the first lateral spines with about ten strong
serratures. The basal prolongation of the uropoda is margined
on the inner side with narrow and acute spines gradually in-
creasing in length; the inner of its two elongated terminal
spines is slightly longer, and is notched on its outer margin
near to the extremity.
The dactyli of the raptorial limbs have four spines, the ter-
minal one more than half the length of the dactylus. Penulti-
mate joint armed on its anterior and superior margin with
close set comb-like teeth ; there are afew unequal-sized mobile -
spines in the grooved front of the same joint. The appendages
to the thoracic limbs are styliform; the lateral processes of
the first exposed thoracic segment is narrow, straight, and
acute; those of the following are truncated laterally with
rounded angles.
Length of the body, 43 inches ; greatest breadth, 1 inch.
The colour of the specimens preserved in spirit is pale-horn,
the coste and margins of the carapace and thoracic and
abdominal segments dark-coloured.
Locality.—Port Adelaide Creek and St. Vincent’s Gulf (8.
Aust. Mus., three specimens) ; Fowler’s Bay (Vrs. 4. Richards,
one specimen).
51
Squilla inornata, spec. nov.
Species name in allusion to the unornamented telson.
Carapace with the base much arched, the postero-lateral
angles rounded and backward produced, sides slightly excavated,
front margin sinuous, the antero-lateral angles are armed with
a short spine; median longitudinal diameter, °51, breadth of
base, ‘4, breadth of front, ‘125 inch. There are three longi-
tudinal carine, which are interrupted by the distinctly marked
cervical suture, posterior to which, the median carina is
bipartite anteriorly and terminates in a spinule.
Rostrum oblong, a little longer than wide, with the lateral
margins slightly raised, there is no median ridge; it reaches to
the base of the ophthalmic segment.
The exposed thoracic and first six abdominal segments are
ornamented with six longitudinal carine ; all the carine of the
fifth and sixth, the laterals of the fourth, and the inferior
laterals of the third and second abdominal segments terminate
in spinules; the postero-lateral angles of the first five abdominal
segments spinulose.
The telson is smooth on its upper surface, but is provided
with a median crest ending in a spinule; its margin is pro-
longed into two submedian spines and two laterals on each
side. The deep notch between the submedian spines has on
each side four blunt denticulations; between the submedian
and superior lateral spines there are eight comb-lke denticu-
lations.
The distal prolongation of the basal part of the uropoda is
armed on the inner edge with minute serratures, and ter-
minates in two unequal spines, the inner one of which is the
longer and is armed with a spinule on its outer edge.
The dactyli of the raptorial limbs have six spines, the
terminal one half the length of the joimt. The penultimate
- joint much compressed, its anterior edge denticulated through
its length; a few mobile spines arise from the marginal groove.
The appendages to the thoracic limbs are styliform. The
lateral processes of the exposed segments are bilobate ; the
anterior lobe of the first of the exposed segments is elongated,
curved forward, and acute; in those of the second, third, and
fourth exposed segments the posterior lobe is the larger.
Length of body, two and a half inches.
Colour in spirit, greenish-brown.
Locality—St. Vineent’s Gulf (S. Aust. Mus., two examples.)
In general appearance S. inornata resembles S. Dufresnii,
Miers (loc. cit, t. 2, f. 8), but differs in the pectinated
margin of the penultimate joint of the raptorial limbs, in the
shape of the rostrum, and in the lateral processes of the ex-
52
posed thoracic segments. In this last character our species
resembles S. nepa.
Squilla subfasciata, spec. nov.
Species name to indicate its affinity with S. fasciata.
Carapace smooth, with a faint lateral carina on each side,
widening posteriorly ; very convex in the middle, with the sulei
deep, and produced to the posterior margin; antero-lateral
angles armed with a spine; postero-lateral angles broadly
rounded; posterior margin strongly arched. Rostral plate
truncatedly trigonous, a little longer than broad, reaching to
the base of the ophthalmic segment.
The exposed thoracic and the first five abdominal segments
have their medio-dorsal surfaces convex, smooth, but are faintly
marked with a lateral carina on each side, whilst the abdominal
segments have a stronger carina on each side inferior to the
other. The postero-lateral angle and the inferior carine of
each abdominal segment end in spinules. On the sixth
abdominal segment the submedian as well as the lateral carine
are present and end in spines.
The telson is much broader than long, and is ornamented
with a median acute crest, spinous at the end, and about six
ridges on each side. The margin is prolonged into six acute
teeth, between which are a number of smaller spiniform teeth.
The basal prolongation of the uropoda is armed on its inner
edge with narrow and acute spines gradually increasing in
length; the inner of its two elongated terminal spines is the
longer, and armed with an acute tooth on its outer margin.
The dactyli of the raptorial limbs are six-spined, gradually
increasing in size. The anterior margin of the penultimate
joint is pectinated throughout its length, and carries on the
inferior face a few mobile spines. The appendages of the three
post-thoracic limbs are linear-spathulate, flat. The first ex-
posed thoracic segment is not laterally produced, but is armed
with a spinule on each side; the following segments are suc-
cessively broader, scarcely laterally produced, and rounded on
the sides.
Length of body, two and one-fourth inches; greatest
breadth, one-fourth inch. Colour in spirit, pale straw.
Locality —St. Vincent’s Gulf (S. Aust. Mus., one example).
S. fasciata has much resemblance to Chloridella microph-
thalma; and differs from S. fasciata only in its pectinated
penultimate joint of the raptorial limbs, in the arched
posterior margin of the carapace, and in the truncated apex
of the rostral plate.
53
EXPLANATIONS TO Prats II.
Fig. 1.—Squzlla subfasciata: a, carapace; b, dactylus and penul-
timate joint of raptorial limb; ¢, telson; d, basal pro-
longation of uropoda.
Fig. 2.—Squilla pectinata: a, carapace; b, dactylus and penul-
timate joint of raptorial limb; ec, telson and_ sixth
abdominal segment; d, lateral view of exposed thoracic
segments.
Fig. 3.—Squilla inornata: a, dactylus and penultimate joint of
raptorial mb; 6, telson; ¢, lateral view of exposed
thoracic segments.
—— se Ba fot.
HousE SANITATION.
By Jonun Hastram.
{Read June 5, 1883. |
(Abridged. ]
The subject of sanitation is one that is exercising the
thoughts of the professional and scientific world, in the hope
of discovering the most effectual means to deal with an enemy
that is still defeating their most careful research.
In the air of sewers and house drains the products of de-
composition are variable, arising from both solid and liquid
excreta, together with house water and other refuse matter
poured down the sinks, which pass into the sewers.
Diarrhea and typhoid fever arise from the air of sewers and
fecal emanations. With regard to the productions of
diarrhoea from fecal emanations, it appears from observations
in England that it is intimately connected with temperature,
and usually commences when the thermometer is persistently
above 60°, and when there is at the time a scarcity of rainfall.
T wish to show that it will be in the summer in this climate
that any defects in the sanitary arrangements of the city will
assert themselves with the greatest persistency, as heat is one
of the chief agents in inducing the sewer gas to leave its
solitude and poison our homes and surroundings.
The presence of such sewer gas in the air we breathe will be
an unfailing source of depression and debility, and will be a
certain source of the spread of typhoid fever.
During the last ten years the subject of sanitation has been
discussed in England in all its bearings. The results have
been varied, but the discussion has established two things.
First —That when drinking water is contaminated by sewage
those who drink the water are in danger of suffering from
typhoid fever, diphtheria, scarlet fever, and other febrile ail-
ments classed under the term zymotic.
Second.—That when sewer gas finds its way into a house or
its surroundings the inmates are in danger of an outbreak of
such zymotic diseases, not to speak of minor illnesses, the
connection of which with sewer gas has: been clearly
established.
We should, therefore, be inspired with the determination to
have the best system of house sanitation, together with the
55
most efficient ventilation of the sewers, adopted in Adelaide as
its system of sewerage is being completed. We have the
advantage of knowing what has been done in England by the
best engineers; we have the knowledge of the climatic changes
of the country, and we ought to have a drainage system based
it may be from English practical experience, but adapted to
our altered circumstances.
I am indebted to our esteemed President for the comparison
of the climatic conditions of Greenwich and Adelaide for the
year 1880 (vide appendix). I will quote the main points as
they bear upon our subject :—
GREENWICH. ADELAIDE.
The average mean temperature is 49°5 ft ... 63°3
“ highest reading is We: 87°5 ott ... 1145
“lowest reading is ee 17°2 adi Lie ere
** mean daily range is... 15°2 a ere
‘“* humidity is nos Me 83°0 a ets 70),
** rainfall is ee ae OG et .. 22°47
For ten months the mean temperature at Greenwich is under
60°, whilst in Adelaide only during six months does the same
temperature prevail. For eight months the highest readings
at Greenwich vary from 61°4 to 87°5, whilst in Adelaide the
highest readings vary from 63:2 to 114°5.
Barometric changes affect the amount of foul air present in
the sewers. The diminution in barometric pressure leads to
the escape of gases, which are stored in the interstices of the
sewage, and favours decomposition. An increase of barometric
pressure enables sewer air to carry a larger amount of the
vapour of water, and for the sewage to retain a larger volume
of the offensive gases due to decomposition or absorption
without parting with them. Temperature and barometric
changes are therefore the fruitful agents by which air is
liberated from sewage, and it is consequently during atmos-
pheric changes that sewers which appear sweet at other times
become offensive and noxious.
Under these conditions, and with the knowledge that in
England “ preventible disease” caused by drainage is intimately
connected with temperature, and, as stated, usually commences
when the thermometer is persistently above 60°, inasmuch
as then the fecal emanations reach a certain rapidity of evolu-
tion in consequence of the high temperature, it behoves us to
examine these figures, which go to prove that in Adelaide the
decomposing matter will cause the sewer air to be ina constant
state of evolution, and, therefore, requires the most thorough
and perfect system of ventilation. I may here say that
extreme cold will prevent the germ matter from being diffused,
56
and, therefore, restrain decomposition ; and this condition may
be indefinitely prolonged at or below freezing point, but with
an elevation of temperature the lability to undergo change or
decomposition immediately returns. Heat above 140° destroys
the structure of organic poisons, while it otherwise operates
beneficially by producing expansion and consequent dilution
of the noxious matter. But under 120° it evolves gaseous
matter.
In the ventilators from the sewers to the street level
in my opinion columns of sewer gas will be formed through
the various causes within the sewers which are always in opera-
tions—escapes from which will be determined by the tempera-
ture and barometric changes; and thus the air of our streets
will be rendered impure by such emanations, and the body less
healthy, and, therefore, less capable of resisting disease poisons.
In the treatment of this subject I propose to consider—
1st. House drainage in Adelaide as proposed by the late
Mr. Clark.
2nd. House drainage in Adelaide, as enforced by regula-
tions.
3rd. House drainage in Adelaide, as suggested by the
author.
I.—Mr. Criarx’s System.
The report under date January 14, 1878, by the late Mr.
Clark distinctly lays down fixed laws, viz., (1) pure air is
essential to healthy existence; (2) modern instances are
numerous, testifying to the sanitary influence which pure water
and efficient drainage have upon the public health; (3) if all
the filth which is produced be removed at once and completely
before decomposition can take place, and the malarious gases
are engendered, the city is in a perfect sanitary condition.
He then states :—‘‘ The third use of the sewers is the re-
moval of the water supply after having served its domestic
purposes, and with it the excrementitious and other matter
which can be conveyed away in running water. To do this
perfectly and continuously they must be laid with an inclination
which shall insure a certain velocity. There must be no stoppage
or stagnation in the stream from the point of inlet to the outlet.
If these objects be attained—and they easily can be—it is evident
that there will be no time for decomposition to engender
noxious gases in the sewer.” He then recommends for con-
sideration of the authorities that a plan of the city be made
with the points where drainage will be required shown on,
such as sinks, closets, water taps, and stack-pipes. The pos-
session of such a plan will enable the engineer to lay out in
57
detail all public and private drainage with confidence and ac-
curacy.
In every system of sewers provision for perfect ventilation
must be made, as every cubic foot of fluid admitted will dis-
place a similar quantity of air. If no provision be made for
escape, the air in the sewer would be under pressure, and tend
to force its way through every imperfectly trapped inlet which
may be existing; and should such inlet be within the house,
the atmosphere thereof would be vitiated.
The means of ventilating the sewers is by small brick
chambers placed five or six hundred feet apart, constructed in
connection with a manhole at or near the centre of street. The
air in escaping passes through a basket of charcoal, and after-
wards through an iron grid fixed at the level of street surface,
the charcoal rendering the air inodorous. A more active venti-
lation has in some cases been attempted by connecting the
sewers with a furnace or large chimneys. Undoubtedly a more
rapid change of the air of the sewers would thus be effected,
as the draught would be promoted by the heated chimney. If
any stagnation should occur in the sewers of Adelaide it will
be due to errors in construction.
When there are several branches to the house drains it is
desirable to carry them all to one point into adip trap. if
this be done, no further trapping at the junction of the house
drain with the public sewer will be required. A direct com-
munication from this trap to some convenient wall where a
ventilating pipe can be fixed is desirable, as it removes all
chance of pressure within the pipes, and ensures a perfect
ventilation. If the soil pipe be carried for its full size up to
the top of the house, and a syphon trap be fixed at its lower
end, the ventilation of the pipe will be perfect, and the danger
of gas entering the house reduced to a minimum.
Such, gentlemen, is the advice the late Mr. Clark gave the
citizens of Adelaide in his report.
IIl.—Tuer System EnNFoRCED BY REGULATIONS.
Under the heading of “ Descriptive Directions’’ the regula-
tions say :—‘“‘The most important part of a system of deep
drainage, such as has been carried out in Adelaide, is the estab-
lishment of connections between the sewers and dwelling-
houses. Upon the manner in which these connections are
made, and the care bestowed upon them, will depend in a great
measure the success or failure of the whole undertaking. If
the connections are properly made avast benefit will have been
conferred on the community by the construction of the works,
and a considerable improvement in the health of the city may
be expected ; if, however, the connection be improperly made,
58
then great injury and inconvenience may result, and the conse-
quences to the public health may be most serious. At the lower
end of every house drain what is called a disconnector trap
will be fixed; this will prevent any passage upwards of any gas
Jrom the sewer, whilst at the same time it will admit air to the
drain. At the upper end of every drain a ventilating shaft
will be placed leading from a second disconnector trap, which
receives sinkwater and excreta from closets ; and various other
descriptions are given on the same principle, and in conclusion
adds:—It is believed that the best method of constructing
house drains has now been clearly indicated, and if the prin-
ciples pointed out be faithfully adhered to, Adelaide will
rejoice in the reputation of being the only city in Australia,
and one of the few cities of the world, which possesses a perfect
system of house drainage.”
In the system adopted by these regulations they are, in my
opinion, trapped once too much, causing unnecessary outlay on
the part of householders, and I venture to assert will not be
effective in their results as a sanitary scheme. Small-bore
pipes are all very well in calculation; they will dispose of so
much sewage according to their inclinations, but in practice
they very soon lose their diameter by furring or corrosion,
thereby becoming too small to perform their office, however
carefully they may have been laid. The cases of stoppage at
the first diseconnector from the sewer have been numerous, and
there is always liability for such to occur by the very con-
struction of the trap. It is also designed to prevent the passage
towards the dwelling of any gas from the sewer, consequently
we have this noxious sewer gas thrown back into the main
sewer, and delivered at the street level.
Il].—Tue System As SUGGESTED BY THE AUTHOR.
From the various complaints which have been made by the
citizens, we are aware that sewer gas is generated on the line
of our sewers, which is felt in the summer to be most objection-
able, though we are at once met with the statement that this
will not occur when the system is complete. Even when the
present system is complete, in my opinion smells will always
arise at the surface, either in centre of streets or the more
objectionable part at our boundaries. The ventilation of the
sewers is undoubtedly insufficient. It is now settled beyond
doubt that sewer gas will pass water seals in every kind of
trap, therefore the sewer gas which cannot get away will ina
few hours normally break the seal at the first disconnector
trap, and find its way inside the boundary line upwards, par-
ticularly when the position of the outlet of these traps stands
higher than the crown of the road.
59
Though I may be in advance of professional practice, I
cannot see why such an obstruction as the boundary trap un-
doubtedly is should be employed, because the main thing is to
have no stoppages; the reason being the conveyance of excreta
and sewage should be immediate, every particle committed to
the entire ramification of the passages being kept in ceaseless
motion until it #rrives at the final outlet at the farm. Even
considering the natural course of ventilation for the sewers,
these traps are objectionable, as they do not allow that freedom
of air which is absolutely essential for perfect safety. My
objections to traps in this position are the uncertainty of their
being changed by the flush used at one deposit, and the danger
of their simply becoming small cesspools between the house
and the sewers. The awkwardness and expense incurred when
a stoppage occurs must not be overlooked, as the traps are
fixed at from three to ten feet below the ground level, and also,
as I have already mentioned, are lable to derangement and
overflow.
It is obviously necessary to discharge the sewer gas as far as
possible out of the respired atmosphere, consequently it is
wrong in principle to ventilate the sewers into the streets
alone; therefore I would do away with the first disconnector
trap, and form a disconnecting chamber between the house and
the sewers ventilated by a pipe rising above the eaves of build-
ings, so that the noxious gases may mingle freely with the
higher strata of the atmosphere and become oxidised by the
stratified zones of heat and consequent currents that traverse
and intersect it. The ventilating pipes to house connections
wouid have to be fully considered in laying out the drainage
in districts, and not indiscriminately carried six feet above the
buildings they chanced to be against. The gratings in the
streets would then perform their true functions—that of being
the inlet of fresh air, and by a free course being provided to
the outlet there would not be any foul gases left in the sewers.
Under some conditions of the temperature the action will be
reversed, and whichever way the air flows we get nearer to
uniformity, and consequently arrive at natural laws. No ven-
tilating pipes from the drain to surface of ground should be
allowed within the boundary of property, as the varying dis-
tribution of heat in the system of sewers and the relative
temperature of the external atmosphere will inevitably cause
an escape of sewer gas. For the same reason no ventilating
pipe should be allowed to deliver at the surface in confined
rights-of-way or narrow streets. In the former case the ver-
tical ventilating pipe from the chamber would be sufficient to
prevent their becoming foul, assisted by the ventilating pipe in
connection with the pan, and in the latter cases efficient means
should be taken at the head of the pipes for ventilation.
60
The excreta from soil pipes in connection with water-closets
should be delivered by easy bends into the house drains leading
to this disconnecting chamber. The top part of these pipes
should be carried up to the highest point of roofs for additional
ventilation, each watercloset basin having its own trap, which
ought in all cases to be provided with an air pipe to prevent
syphonage. Then there would be no danger of undue pressure,
as the means of its escape is already otherwise provided for in
the main ventilator.
The waste-pipes from baths, lavatories, sinks, &c., should be
delivered on to a small syphon or other approved trap—the
outlets being free to the air above the surface of ground. No
sewer gas can then penetrate in their direction. All traps
should be of the simplest character, and on no account should
one be used which is not self-cleansing with a good flush of
water. All house drains should be brought to the disconnecting
chamber, and the soil pipes kept distinct from slop-water pipes
up to this point.
I would point out that however good the general sewerage
may be, unless the drainage proper of the houses and their
connections with the sewers are carefully planned, well
executed, and maintained in proper order, there is danger of
typhoid fever and other diseases. No trade is so important to
the public health as that of the plumber. The more thoroughly
householders will study and look into the sanitary arrange-
ments of their houses the more obligation will be laid upon
architects to see that sanitary work is well provided for in the
buildings they design, and display as much care in seeing to
the drains as to the more ornate parts of the structure. Badly
constructed houses will be a burden to their owners, and as the
house is an important factor in the longevity of its inhabitants,
it becomes a matter of the utmost consideration to every one
what sort of a house they hve in. Therefore, no time or ex-
pense is wasted that is fairly expended in examining into
every minute detail connected with its sanitary condition.
People do not realise, even if they have read or have been told,
that the laws which bring sewer gas into houses when certain
physical conditions are fulfilled are inevitable, unless such
precautions are adopted to secure immunity from their presence.
The public do not yet realise that the presence of sewer gas
in the air they breathe, especially in that of summer nights,
when the powers of the body to resist noxious influences are
at a low ebb, is certain to produce illness. In other countries
this subject is receiving all the attention the most scientific
minds can give to it, with a view of arriving at the most
perfect system, and I do not see why South Australia may not
take its place in the van of progress.
61
APPENDIX.
ComMpaRISon OF CLIMATE AT GREENWICH AND ADELAIDE.
GREENWICH, 1880.
-| Mean : Mean
Months, 1880. temper- eee Pitt daily
rature. johns 4 Riaek aha range.
° ° ° °
January. e-| 33°3 54:1 17:2 9°6
February . w [pp Bed 54°9 23°0 11:4
March oo| 44:2 61:4 27°4 16:2
April er We: Fa 66°9 34:8 16:0
May ays F 52°6 87°5 S175 21°8
June ‘ . 57°5 80:2 37°5 18°6
July aa . 61°6 194 475 1971
August 5 a 62°8 80°9 46-4 yg
September .. oe eas LIST 87°2 43-2 17°5
October .. .. 46°4 66°3 29-2 13:1
November .. .| 42:8 57°5 25°0 11-9
December .. tts ghey al ee 26°7 98
Year 1880 .. 49°5 87°5 17°2 15:2
|
ADELAIDE, 1880.
O° ° Oo °
January sf. (o'O 114°5 51:0 27:0
February yult eeee. AOE 53°0 24:0
March ars fini (1s (or ek! 5705, 50°5 18°9
April --| 63°5 82-0 47:0 15°7
May welts 80°0 72°0 42-0 15:2
June --| 53°8 65:0 41°6 LES
July : 50°7 63:2 35:0 14:7
August td : 55°3 71:5 41:0 1671
September .. F 56°6 76°5 38°9 16-1
October : ’ 59°8 82°5 43:0 19°3
November .. = 64:1 91:0 44-2 21°7
December .. 71:4 108-0 48-0 25°9
Year 1880 .. 63°3 | 1145 35°0 18°9
Hum- | Rainfall
idity. in
°/. | inches.
— |
86 0-261
88 2°357
82 0-595
80 2°205
70 0-497
81 2°257
80 3°812
83 0-978
85 4-002
90 7°653
85 2-060
89 3°005
83 29°682
37 0-760
44 0°635
55 2°645
63 3°190
71 1613
78 3°078
76 2°197
66 2°916
68 2°158
60 2-060
55 0-807
43 0:420
57 22°479
62
Discussion.
The PresIpENT, in asking the Fellows to express their views
of the subject on which the paper had just been read, said
there could be no more important question than that of drain-
age. The works at present being carried on in Adelaide were .
very extensive, and it would be very disappointing if they were
not a success. He thought that the smells from the street-
gratings were often very disagreeable, and he had noticed that
they were worse in summer than in winter. He accounted for
this by the greater difference of temperature that existed in
the hot weather ; this would cause a suction action out of the
drain in proportion as the street air became more rarified by
the heat. He thought the law of the diffusion of gases would
also exert a considerable influence.
Hon. AttaAn CampBELL remarked that by the plan carried
out in the formation of the deep drains in Adelaide there could
be no storage of sewage anywhere in the system, and conse-
quently no sewer gas could be formed. He thought that there
was a good deal of misapprehension on the part of the public
as to the nature of sewer gas and of sewer air. The former
could only result from decomposing sewage; the latter was
simply stagnant or foul air, such as would be noticed in any
space that had been shut up for any length of time. In the
system of deep drainage they were now considering the only
outlet for the sewer air was at the street gratings. The chief
factor in causing motion or a current in air was, in his opinion,
variations of temperature. He thought that there was a
greater stagnation in the air of the drains in summer than in
winter owing to the temperature of the outside air being then
higher, and therefore lighter, than the sewer air, and hence
there would be no tendency for the formation of a current of
air into the sewer through the street grating. In winter, on
the contrary, the street air being colder, and therefore heavier
than the sewer air, there would be a greater tendency for air to
enter the drain. The first important point in any system of
drainage was to isolate the interior of the houses from any
chance of becoming contaminated by the sewer air. He thought
that the plan adopted by the South Australian Government
was a very effectual method of trapping, and ought to secure
the end desired. The second great desideratum was to have a
free outlet for the escape of the sewer air at some elevation.
This alone would not always ensure a proper ventilation of
the drain; and to effect this it might be necessary to place
cowls on the ventilating pipes to overcome the stagnation.
The tendency to stagnation would not always be equally great,
as, for instance, in winter. In reply to an opinion that a high
63
temperature of the outside air would be sufficient to cause a
current of air from street gratings, he said that it seemed
to him quite clear that the summer air being so much
lighter could not fail to replace the cooler or heavier sewer
air, whilst n winter the case would be reversed, for the sewer
air would then be the warmer. There was no doubt that the
tendency for gases to mix and become diffused was an impor-
tant consideration, but he thought that in such a ease as ven-
tilating a large system of drains its action would be too slow
to be of much practical utility, something much prompter and
more effectual being required.
Mr. Parker, C.E., thought that the deep drainage system
in Adelaide was at present illusory, because so few of the
closets were connected with it. To make it of any use, con-
nections should be made complete. He condemned the
plan suggested by Mr. Haslam of bringing the sewer air
nearer to the house. The great danger in all cases was the
sewer emanations entering the house. With respect to the
proposal to take the sewer air by ventilating pipes to the
eaves of the houses, or even five or six feet above them,
was, he thought, also very objectionable, for there would bea
fear of its falling and entering by the bedroom windows, &e.
He thought that the present plan of allowing the air to escape
at the-street gratings was much safer, as there was a greater
chance of its becoming diffused. Before, however, the matter
could be fully discussed it would be necessary to collect more
data. The size of the sewer pipes was said to be small. To-
wards evening they would be nearly full of sewage. This
would cause a displacement of the air, and serve as a means of
ventilating or removing the sewer air daily. It would be
necessary to ascertain the relative differences of temperature
inside and outside of the sewers, and also as to the direction
of the currents of air at the outlets at the street gratings,
before the question as to the best method of ventilating the
sewers could be profitably discussed.
Mr. Rurr, C.E., pointed out that all the outlets at the street
sratings were not at the same level, hence this would cause a
current of air to pass sometimes from an upper level to a lower
and vice versa. It would be necessary to place cowls on the
ventilating pipes if they were to produce any effect in causing
a ventilation of the drains.
Mr. Portirzer, C.E., advocated strongly the plan of flushing
drains. He thought that the climatic conditions in Adelaide
were highly favourable to the successful carrying out of a
system of drainage such as he advocated. It would not only
carry off all the refuse, but also sweep out all the sewer air.
He said that the system of flushing had been found eminently
64
satisfactory, whereas as regards the disconnected trap system
there is no experience to warrant its utility. He thought the
pneumatic suction method was also a very satisfactory one.
He would recommend that both be tried.
Mr. Brack, C.E., agreed with Mr. Rutt as to the effect of
the difference between the different street levels. He pointed
out that Mr. Haslam’s plan necessitated two ventilating pipes.
The objection to the disconnected traps was that they collected
refuse. He thought smells were often very useful in drawing
attention to defects or accumulations of sewage, and that they
were not in themselves necessarily injurious.
Mr. Macarey, M.B., thought that the hot weather was not
the most unhealthy period of the year, notwithstanding that it
might interfere with the ventilation of the sewers. It is
impossible to say yet what effect the deep drainage will have
on the public health, owing to the very imperfect system exist-
ing of allowing it to be optional whether a house should be
connected or not. To make the drainage system of any use,
connection should be compulsory. At present typhoid fever
was quite as prevalent in the suburbs as in the city, and it
seemed to be worse as one got nearer the hills. In fact, it was
all over the country. He thought that there was a great deal
of unnecessary alarm in the public mind respecting the deep
drainage and the public health.
Hon. Annan Camppett differed from Mr. Magarey. He
thought that the first cases of typhoid fever were in January.
He suggested that Mr. Magarey should give the Society a
paper on the origin of typhoid fever. He agreed with Mr.
Parker as to the desirability of having more accurate data at
command; but he could not see how they would affect the
action of a natural law, such as that a heavier stratum of air
could not le above a lighter one, without there being a ten-
dency for a mutual displacement taking place. With respect
to the sewer air falling down from the ventilating pipe, he
thought the chances were quite as great of its rising to the
bed-room windows from the street-gratings. He would insist
again upon the absolute necessity for there being a proper
system of thorough ventilation in the drains ; there should he
no smells, and decomposition should be impossible.
Hon. G. W. Corron asked if there were sufficient data for
ascertaining in what direction sewer air would go. This should
be ascertained before more money was spent.
Mr. Hastam, in making a few remarks in reply, said that
the great thing was to have a free circulation of air in the
drains. He expressed his willingness to confer with the others
on the subject at any future time.
65
BoTANICAL NOTES RELATING TO SOUTH
AUSTRALIA.
By J. G. O. Tepper, F.L.S., Corr. Member.
1. New Locaniries oF RaRE PHANEROGAMOUS PLANTS.
[Read February 6, 1883.)
Ixiolena supina, /v. WM. Granite Island, Encounter Bay.
Eriostemon sediflorus, #. v. MZ. Murray Scrub, near Swanport.
Acacia rhigiophylla, Fv. M@ Murray Scrub. ‘By me dis-
covered and named in 1848, but since then not again ob-
tained,” F. v. M., zn litteris.
Bertya Mitchelli, J. Mueller. Port Victor, Encounter Bay.
Dodonea hexandra, F. v. WM. Murray Scrub and Port Victor.
Microtis atrata, Lindley. Square Waterhole.
Selaginella Preissiana. Near Clarendon.
Cladium Radula, 2. Br. Among heathy or scrubby vegetation
near the watershed on the ranges between the Meadows
and Macclesfield. It is here only twelve to sixteen inches
high, growing in numerous small tufts.
Alopecurus geniculatus, Zinn. Rare in a moist gully between
Clarendon and Kangarilla.
Mitrasaeme distylis, Mv. WZ. Collected in October, 1882, on
the scrubby flat at the foot of Mount Saddlebags, near
Kangarilla, in moist spots sheltered by shrubs.
2, List or Atnce anp LicuEens CoLuEctep at NEw
Locanities 1n SourH AUSTRALIA.
(Read March 6, 1883.]
The specimens which have served for specific identification
were transmitted to Baron Sir F. von Mueller, and by him to
the following specialists :—The Alge, to Professor J. Agardh ;
and the Lichens, to Prof... Mueller, from whom the subjoined
names have been received through the same channel :-—
ALGH.
Zonaria variegata, Mart. Encounter Bay.
Sphacelaria paniculata, Igb. Hallett’ 8 Cove, St. V incent’ s Gulf.
Cystophora spartioides, J. Ag.
Halophlegma Preissu, Sond. “k
Thamnoclonium codioides, J. Aq. iu ee
Erythroclonium Sonderi, Harvey. “ =
E
66
Areschougia Laurencia, Hook. and Harv. Hallett’s Cove, St.
Vincent’s Gulf.
le ag divaricata, J. Ag. THallett’s Cove, St. Vincent’s
Gulf.
Plocamium nidificum, Harv. Hallett’s Cove, St. Vincent’s Gulf.
Mertensii, Grev. . a
angustum, J. Ag. 5 ss
Phacelocarpus sessilis, Harv. Encounter Bay.
Nitophyllum Curdieanum, Harv. -
Galaxaura marginata, Lamour. Hallett’s Cove.
Gelidium corneum, Grev. +
Soliera chordalis, J. Ag. i
Rhabdonia dendroides, Harv. *
Laurencia Forsteri, Grev. a:
Asparagopsis Sandfordiana, Harv. i
Pollexfenia ciliaris, J. Ag., n. sp. ‘
Dasya Gunniana, Harv. Hallett’s Cove.
eallithamnion, Harv. 3
Wrangelioides, Harv. 7
ce
Caulerpa hypnoides, &. Brown.
Letterstedtia australis
Fauchea, sp.
c¢
cé
LIcHENS.
Heterodea Muelleri, Nylander; Lichina confinis, dgardh; and
Cladonia verticillata, Floerke. Clarendon.
8 AppriTIons TO THE List oF AUSTRALIAN AND SOUTH
AUSTRALIAN FUNGI.
[Read May 1, 1883.]
The species herein enumerated were collected by me in the
neighbourhood of Clarendon mostly during the latter part of
last year, and, accompanied by pencil sketches from fresh
plants, were sent to Baron Sir Ferd. v. Mueller, who has now
forwarded the list of such as have been identified by European
specialists, requesting me to report the novelties to this Society.
To ascertain them, I compared those in my hsts with the
census of Australian fungi, published in 1889 by Dr. M. C.
Cooke under the title ‘ Fungi Australiani,” which, with some
addenda issued in 1881, is, 1 believe, the latest work on the
subject. Accordingly, the terms “ New for South Australia”
mean that the respective fungi are not so recorded in the pub-
lications mentioned. There are eighteen species to be men-
tioned, eight of which are unrecorded for Australia, though
occurring elsewhere, and ten have hitherto not been known to
occur in this province.
10.
iam
12.
67
HYMENOMYCETES.
. AGARICUS (PSATYRELLA) squamosus, Fries. Species not
recorded for Australia. Locality—Clarendon, 24-9-’82,
on moist, moss-covered ground; moderately large, being
3 inches high, and the diameter of pileus, 1} inch.
. Potyporvus (Mesopus) opnecrans, Berkeley. Species not
recorded for South Australia. Locality—Scott’s Creek,
near Clarendon; on moist, black soil; resembling a
mushroom somewhat in form. 15-10-’82.
. Potyporus (RESUPINARIA) VULGARIS, Fries. Species new
for South Australia. Locality—Jupiter Creek; on
charred, wet logs of Eucalyptus obliqua. 7-8-’82.
. Ponyrorus (?) conrrauus, Fries. Species not recorded for
Australia. Locality—Hills west of Clarendon ; in thin
sheet-like patches on the sawn surface of a dry log of
Eucalyptus leucorylon. 12-’82.
. STEREUM ELEGANS, Fries. Species recorded from all Aus-
tralian colonies except South Australia. Locality—
Jupiter Creek, 7-8-’82; on much decayed wet bark of
Eucalyptus obliqua.
. STEREUM sPADICEUM, Fires. Species new for South Aus-
tralia, but recorded from the same localities as the pre-
ceding ones. Locality—Clarendon; on small dead and
decayed branches of Hucalyptus leucoxylon. 9-9-'82.
. STEREUM sULFURATUM, Fries. Species not recorded for
Australia. Locality—Mount Bold, 18-8-’82; on decay-
ing trunk of Hucalyptus obliqua.
. TREMELLA ALBIDA, Hudson. New for South Australia.
Locality—Clarendon.
. TREMELLA CINNABRINA, Berkeley. Species not recorded for
Australia. Locality — Kangarilla, 29-7-’82 ; growing
from fissures of recently-felled timber of Eucalyptus
rostrata.
DacroMYcEs sreLLaTus, Wees. Species not recorded for
Australia. |
Inxgopicryon, sp. The genus with one species, I. gracile,
is recorded for all Australian colonies except South Aus-
tralia and Queensland. Locality—Among moss, banks
of River Onkaparinga, near Clarendon, 10-9-’82; it is a
small, delicate, branching fungus, of fleshy-grey colour,
about 14 inch high.
Secorium, sp. The genus new for South Australia, and
only recorded with two species from West Australia.
Loeality, Jupiter Creek, in moist, black soil. A stem-
less, ovate body, buried almost entirely in the ground;
hard, solid, covered with profuse slimy mucilage, and
13.
14.
18.
68
orange-yellow colour. Only one specimen was seen.
7-8-’82.
Furieo vartans, Rastof. Genus and species only recorded
for Tasmania. Locality, ridge of hills north of and near
Almanda Mine, Scott’s Creek, in a hollow cut by the axe
in a living tree of Eucalyptus obliqua. A white, soft,
spongy fungus of indeterminate form, producing a great
number of black spores. Only one specimen noticed.
18-2-’82.
ToRULA PrrvopHIna, Fries. The genus with a different
-species, 7. herbarum, recorded for Queensland only ;
thus the genus appears new for South Australia, and the
species for Australia. Locality, the seaward incline of
the hills west of Clarendon, on the bark of living,
dwarfed trees of Hucalyptus odorata, 9-9-’82 ; colour in-
tensely black, in small patches of indefinite shape.
RHINOTRICHIUM RAMOSISSIMUM, Berk. and Cooke. The
genus appears new for South Australia, and the species
for Australia. Locality, bank of River Onkaparinga,
near Mount Bold, 20-9-’82, among shrubs. Form com-
pressed, spherical, regular, 25 x 13 inches, colour
brownish-grey, with numerous depressed labyrinthine
reticulations over the whole surface.
. PEZIZA BADIOBERBIS, Berkeley. Species not recorded for
Australia. Locality, hillsides Mount Bold, 20-9-’82, on
the ground, forming small, shallow, scarlet-coloured
cups.
. XYBARIA, sp. Genus not recorded for South Australia.
Locality, Clarendon, 21-10-’82, on the broken surface of
the stump of decaying fencing, sheltered by tall, thick
grass. Branching, woody, 13-inch high; rare.
Poronta puncTAvTA, Fries. Locality, hillsides Clarendon,
6-8-’82, on horse droppings. Small, hard, whitish fungus,
with a few black pores scattered over the surface.
69
NOTES ON SOME RARE BIRDS COLLECTED IN
THE NEIGHBOURHOOD OF MOUNTS COMPASS
AND JAGGED.
By F. W. Anprews, Corr. Member.
[Read October 2, 1883.]
An albino variety of the common and well-known Honey-
bird (Meliornis Nove-Hollandie).
The belts of Banksias growing in this district are the
favourite retreats of the Honey-bird, which is also called the
“ Whisker-bird,” and here they are always to be found. They
also live and breed in the gardens and outlying country about
Burnside, and are well-known visitors in gardens. Their food
consists of honey and occasionally small insects, especially
aphides, and may often be seen flying in the air chasing a small
moth or butterfly. They make a very compact cup-shaped nest
of bark or other suitable material, lining it with the velvety
covering of the honeysuckle-cone when this is dry and ripe.
They usually lay four eggs of a pinkish-white colour, blotched
with pinkish-brown spots, but the colours and markings vary
considerably. From authentic information I received, it ap-
peared that three albinos were hatched in one nest. They kept
together for a long time, when one of them got chased and
killed by some young men who were road making. The second
I shot about one mile south from the Square Water Hole on
the road to Mount Jagged. The third made off after losing its
mate, und was not afterwards seen. One peculiarity of this
specimen is that its eyes are white, like the ordinary Honey-
bird, and not pink as in most albinos. I found it much
wilder than the common ones, and followed this one from bush
to bush for a long time; it always concealed itself in the
thickest part of the foliage, but kept up a continual chattering,
which was a good guide as to its whereabouts. At last it flew
some distance away into a thick clump of low mallee bushes
situated in the middle of a small plain. On arriving at the
spot and going down on one knee, I waited a short time to re-
cover my breath, and then commenced chirruping with my fore
finger and lips. I shortly saw it rising from branch to
branch, until at last it alighted on the topmost twig. Being
all ready, I shot it at once, before it had time to satisfy its
curiosity respecting the chirping. When flying about in the
scrub it presented a most attractive appearance, and on a care-
70
ful examination of the body after skinning it I found it to be
a full-grown adult male. It was in this district that I shot an
albino emu-wren some years ago.
Lichmera Nove-Hollandie.
I wish to introduce to your notice a bird that at first sight
in the bush much resembles the Meliornis, but is much scarcer,
and frequents higher timber for its food, which consists of
honey and insects. This pretty bird is the “Butterfly-bird” of
the boys in the district where it is found, and is so-called from
the horseshoe-like markings on its breast, giving the front of
the bird the appearance of a butterfly.
I have always found it very local in its habitat, its principal
haunt being Mount Compass and the deep rocky, thickly-timbered
cullies running into the neighbouring ranges. It has a loud bold
song, consisting in the male bird of a variety of up and down calls,
then a low plaintive song, and then its challenge-lke whistle
again. The bird may easily be heard a mile off on a fine still
day. The female is seldom seen except about the pairing time,
and specimens of it are difficult to procure. But when the
breeding season approaches, the hen bird secretes herself in
some low bush and warbles out such a lovely song, so long and
varied in its melodious tones, that the idea of there being no
song birds in Australia is at once dispelled. Popular impres-
sions are often far from the truth, and in regard to this matter
especially so. I could enumerate several birds having a most
pleasing song; I may instance the Redthroat (Pyrrhalemus
brunneus), a small bird found at the Gawler Ranges, Cooper’s
Creek and other outlying places. This little bird has a sweet
little song much hke a linnet’s. Another curious and interest-
ing songster to be heard on a warm evening about swampy
country, such as the Square Waterhole, is the Ground Parrot
(Pezoporus formosus). I say zs to be heard, but I may almost
say was, for the domesticated cats, that have become wild and ~
are now very numerous, have, as it appears, nearly exterminated
them in their old retreats. The song of this parrot consists of
a perfect octave, given out in very beautiful sweet notes. I
was a long time before I could find out what bird it was, and
had to shoot one singing in the twilight to be sure of its
identity.
Petroica phoenicea.
The flame-breasted Robin is a yearly visitor to the Square
Waterhole district. Being a very wet season this year they
arrived early, and were first seen on the 25th of April, or about a
month before their usual time. The South-East and the swampy
parts of South Australia are their principal habitats. In New
South Wales they are not so numerous. After their arrival,
71
wnich occurs in a flock, they commence to pair and make a
cup-shaped nest in a hole in a tree, rock or other similar
situation. The nest is made of bark lined with wool, &c. They
lay four greenish-white eggs freckled with purple and chesnut-
brown, but no two eggs are quite alike. The male bird soon
gets very shy and difficult to obtain, hiding himself in the
swampy places, where, standing on a clod or stick, he presents
a handsome picture—the female the while sitting close about
the collector and singing a pretty twittering song. The
common Robin may be said to be quite arboreal in its habits,
but the bird under notice is quite the reverse, and delights in
wet flats with plenty of dead timber on which to perch and
show himself off. The peculiar feature in the habits of these
birds is that when they have reared their young, say in six or
eight weeks after their arrival, they make off again and are
seen no more until the following season. Whither do they
go?
A CATALOGUE OF SOUTH AUSTRALIAN MINERALS.
By T. C. Croup, Assoc. Roy. Sch. of Mines, F.C.S., F.LC.,
Corr. Member.
[Read September 4, 1833.]}
In contributing the following catalogue of South Australian
minerals I have thought it desirable to offer the ensuing re-
marks in order that a just estimate may be formed of the
trustworthiness of the determinations and of the accuracy of
the list of localities given.
When not otherwise mentioned the determinations have been
made by myself after a proper physical and chemical examina-
tion of the specimens. The correctness of the localities of
such minerals as have been determined by myself rests for the
most part merely upon the testimony of those who have kindly
furnished the specimens, but I have every reason to believe
this testimony to be substantially reliable.
The determinations of competent observers have been em-
bodied in this catalogue, and in this connection I would desire
to acknowledge my indebtedness to Professor Tate, and to the
various papers by Messrs. A. R. C. Selwyn and Geo. H. F.
Ulrich, bearing upon the geology and mineralogy of the colony.
T am also largely indebted to a little work published in 1846,
entitled “Remarks on the Geology and Mineralogy of South
Australia,” by Thomas Burr, Esq., Deputy Surveyor-General,
wherein a considerable number of species and localities are
mentioned; and although a few of the species named in the
appendix require confirmation, | have deemed it advisable to
mention them—if for no other object than that of calling the
attention of those interested in the matter to the necessity of
seeking in the localities indicated for these species, with the
view of having them authoritatively re-determined.
With regard to the order in which the species are placed in
this catalogue, I have not thought it desirable to adopt a
strictly scientific arrangement, as I consider this list of
minerals to form merely a preliminary attempt at cataloguing
the species which occur in the colony. At present whole
families are unrepresented ; further research, however, will
doubtless result in the addition of at least some members to
these divisions, and a more strictly scientific arrangement will
then be practicable.
73
In the meantime I have thought it sufficient to arrange them
under two general heads, as (A) the so-called non-metallic, and
(B) the metallic minerals; the former (a) being sub-divided
into carbon, salts of the alkalies, alkaline earths, and alumina,
and the anhydrous and hydrous silicates; and the latter (B)
into divisions corresponding with their chief metallic con-
stituent. It is hoped that this list of minerals will serve as a
starting point, and that contributions in the forms of fresh
determinations and new localities may form a not unimportant
item in the future transactions of the Society, in which
interesting work I trust to be able to personally participate.
The nomenclature employed is that adopted by Dana in his
“Descriptive Mineralogy.”’
NON-METALLIC MINERALS.
CARBON.
DIAMOND.
As far as J am aware the only locality in which this gem has
been found is Echunga. The largest example, the property of
the South Australian Government, is of a sherry-yellow colour,
and weighed before cutting 5} carats, its present weight being
227 carats. It is cut in the form of a brilliant. A second
specimen (also the property of the Government), somewhat
lighter in colour than the foregoing, weighed before cutting
dy carats, the cutting reducing its weight to 143 carats. Two
very good specimens, illustrating the crystalline form of the
diamond, are to be noted—one weighing 1} carats, and ex-
hibiting the planes of the hexakis-octahedron, and the other
weighing +3 carats, and presenting the form of the triakis-
octahedron.
GRAPHITE.
This mineral occurs at Warrow, County Flinders, and at one
or two localities on the west coast of Spencer Gulf. It has
also been found at Mount Charles (G. Francis) and Mount
Torrens (C. Thomas). Burr mentions it as occurring in the
Belvidere Range, and about 23 miles north-east of Adelaide.
SULPHUR.
This mineral occurs in a specimen of pyrite associated with
quartz from Echunga (the specimen is in the collection of the
South Australian Institute). Burr mentions its occurrence
near the Montacute copper mine, enclosed in veins of quartz
with pyrite. A deposit formed round the mound-springs at
Strangways Springs has frequently been reported to be
sulphur. It is, however, chiefly salt coloured yellow by a basic
salt of iron.
74
SALTS OF THE ALKALIES, ALKALINE EARTHS, AND ALUMINA.
Harrre (Common Salt).
This mineral occurs in beds near and on the shores of the
various salt lakes of the colony, and Tate reports it in the form
of an efflorescence on the faces of the cliffs of the River
Murray.
Barite (Barytes—Heavy Spar)
Occurs at the Wheal Coglin Mine, Rapid Bay; at Apoinga;
also at the Burra Burra, Great Gladstone, and Rhondda Mines.
Selwyn reports its occurrence at the Emu Flat Copper Mine,
and Ulrich at the Blinman Mine.
CELESTITE (Celestine).
I have met with this mineral in the form of radiated erystal-
line nodules in a bed of clay, Hundred of Wallaroo.
GYPSUM.
The crystallised variety of this mineral (Selenite) is fre-
quently met with in the form of isolated lenticular-shaped
erystals imbedded in the mud of the salt lakes, notably those
of Southern Yorke Peninsula. It is also found massive in the
salt lakes. Gypsum also occurs in the following localities :—
Wallaroo Mine, Hummocks Range, Kanyaka, Kapunda; near
Point Riley, Yorke Peninsula; on the Wirryalpa Run,
Central Australia; and fine specimens of the fibrous variety
(Satin Spar) occur in the Stuart Range, Central Australia.
Professor Tate reports its occurrence at the Lady Alice Mine
and cliffs of the River Murray, and with red ochre near the
springs at the Peake, Central Australia; also in a curious rock-
form composed of slightly coherent grains on the north-eastern
shore of Lake Alexandrina. Ulrich noticed it in the form of
veins at the Beltana Mine, and Burr mentions it as occurring
at Brighton.
CALCITE.
This mineral, in one or other of its numerous rock forms, is of
very common occurrence in the colony, although good crystallised
specimens are not as frequent as might be expected. Finely
crystallised specimens have, however, been obtained from the
Wallaroo Mines. The most noticeable of these are in the
form of six-sided prismatic crystals, formed by a very acute
rhombohedron, terminated by an obtuse rhombohedron of the
opposite sign; another form, which is almost unique, being a
triangular prism with a rhombohedral termination. A very flat
lenticular form is also found. It also occurs coarsely crystal-
line and milk-white with the copper ore in the above-men-
tioned and neighbouring mines.
75
The Iceland spar variety occurs at Angaston, as do also
various coloured marbles. Ordinary marble at Kapunda, and
in thin veins in the metamorphic rocks near Franklin Harbour.
Calcite also occurs at the Yudanamutana Mine. Ulrich re-
ports white calcite, generally imperfectly crystallised, at the
Blinman Mine. Tate reports it between Mounts Parry and
Playfair, Central Australia; in the stalactitic form at Cape
Jervis ; massive and in scalenohedrons at New Mecklenburg,
near Lyndoch; and also states that it occurs in the quartz
veins in the metamorphic rocks in the neighbourhood of the
Peak, and as a cellular calcareous tufa forming the top crust
of the Mound Springs of the same neighbourhood. Calcite
also occurs at the following localities :—Mount Crawford, Ard-
rossan, Rapid Bay, Mount Gambier, Point Curtis, Macclesfield,
and at Mattawarrangala, in largely crystalline masses.
Tate has described a nearly black, largely crystalline calcite
(the colour due to finely divided carbonaceous matter) occupy-
ing a vein in a dark-coloured slate at Whyte-Yarcowie.
Burr mentions these additional localities for this species :—
Barossa, Flinders, and Mount Lofty Ranges; in the form of
calcareous tufa at Flinders and Barossa Ranges, Depét Creek,
near Mount Arden; at Rapid Bay, Crystal Brook, and Rivoli
Bay; also on the plains near Mount Hawdon.
ARAGONITE
Occurs associated with native copper and chalcocite at the
Wallaroo Mines; in the form of. long prismatic crystals at
Armagh, near Clare; and, according to Ulrich, at the Blinman
and Oratunga Mines.
DoLoMiTE.
Selwyn mentions this species as occurring at Victoria Creek,
Wilhamstown, (the variety is not stated), and J. E. T. Woods
has noticed it in the limestones of Mount Gambier. Burr
mentions the following localities:—Belvidere Range, Barossa
Range, Rapid Bay, and near Mount Barker. Pearl spar at
Rapid Bay and north-east of Adelaide. I have found it as a
pseudomorph in a specimen from Central Australia.
Fruorire (fluor Spar).
This mineral was found massive in considerable quantity at
the Paramatta Mine, Yorke Peninsula—the colour varying
from colourless to sea-green. The purple-coloured mineral
occurs in small quantity at the Moonta Mine. Professor Tate
mentions it as follows:—In silicious limestone of the Pre-
Silurian age, at Field River, between Reynella and the coast,
and in Lower Silurian limestone at Parara, near Ardrossan,
Yorke Peninsula—the blue variety having been discovered in
76
both eases. Burr alludes to its occurrence in the form of
cubical crystals at the Kapunda Mine.
APATITE.
This mineral occurs at the Wallaroo Mine, where it was
mistaken for fluorite, and I have also met with it amongst the
copper ore from the Kurilla Mine. A specimen obtained from
the Wallaroo Mine (about one inch in diameter) was of the
characteristic sea-green colour, and exhibited the planes of the
hexagonal prism ; the greater portion of the pyramidal planes
were, however, destroyed. Specimens from the Kurilla Mine
were in the form of isolated crystals embedded in yellow
copper ore; the crystals were of a greenish-grey colour,
exhibiting the planes of the hexagonal prism and pyraraid,
together with the terminal plane of the former. These crystals
were about a quarter of an inch long. The chemical, blowpipe
and physical characters are those of the mineral apatite.
MAGNESITE
Occurs in the Flinders Range near Port Pirie, in more or less
weathered masses. It is also found scattered about in medium-
sized reniform masses on hills of crystalline limestone in the
northern part of the Hundred of Cunningham, and it occurs in
a large vein on the banks of the Oolabidnie Creek, Hundred of
Playford, and in botryoidal masses at Blinman. Burr mentions
carbonate of magnesia as occurring in the Mount Lofty and
Barossa Ranges.
SILICA.
QUARTZ.
Stock crystal occurs in various parts of the colony, among
which the following may be named:—The mining district of
Yorke Peninsula (at the Wallaroo Mine crystals with two
perfect terminal pyramids are obtainable), Angaston, Green’s
Plains, Stanley Mine, Highbury, Barossa Range, Emu Flat
near Clare, Lyndoch Valley and Coonatto, while rolled
pebbles, frequently mistaken for rolled topaz, are common in
several localities in Central Australia—notably near Lake
Hope and Charlotte Waters. Tate states this variety occurs
at Wilhamstown, Morialta, Tanunda Creek and Pekina. Burr
also reports the following localities for this variety :—En-
counter Bay, Montacute Mine, Flaxman Valley, Mount
Barker, and the Belvidere Range.
Amethystine quartz occurs at the Wallaroo Mine, and in
small veins on the beach north of Point Riley, Yorke
Peninsula.
Rose quartz occurs in the Hundred of Cunningham, and Burr
mentions its occurrence near the Montacute Mine.
77
Smoky quartz.—Fine specimens are obtainable at the Wal-
laroo Mine, and it occurs at Angaston and Mount Crawford.
Burr also notes it at the Belvidere Range.
Milky quartz occurs at the Wallaroo Mine, and Tate reports
it at the springs at the Peake, Central Australia.
Bronze-coloured crystals (the colour due to a thin coating of
ferric oxide) occur at the Stanley Mine, and also at Emu Flat,
near Clare.
Chalcedony occurs at Redruth, Wallaroo Mine, Angaston,
and at North Para near Gawler. ‘Tate reports it at the Peake,
Central Australia; in the Miocene cliffs at the mouth of the
Onkaparinga; and as fossil casts at Ardrossan. Burr names
it as occurring at Flaxman Valley, Mount Barker, Barossa
Range, and near the Kapunda Mine.
Carnelian is reported by Tate at Stuart Creek, Central
Australia.
Heliotrope is reported by Tate at Stuart Creek.
Agate pebbles are to be found at Stuart Creek, near the
Charlotte Waters; and at various other places in Central
Australia; near the Katherine Telegraph Station. Also, ac-
cording to Burr, at Flaxman Valley.
Silicious sinter occurs at Angaston, and, according to Burr,
at the Barossa Range and Mount Barker.
Flint.—Tate reports this variety in the older Tertiary rocks
of Mount Gambier, MacDonnell Bay and Bunda Chiffs. Burr
also mentions it as occurring in the form of nodules on the
beach at Rivoli Bay.
Hornstone cecurs at the Crinnis Mine, and Burr indicates
the following localities for this variety :—Barossa Range,
Flaxman Valley, and 25 miles north-east of Adelaide.
Jasper occurs at Stuart Range, at Greenock, Ardrossan,
and Burra Range. Tate also reports it at Angaston, and near
the Peak, Central Australia, and Burr in the Barossa and
Belvidere Ranges.
OPAL.
Var. Precious Opal.—There is good reason for believing that
this variety exists in the colony. IJtis found in Queensland
near the South Australian border, and I have seen specimens
which were said to have been discovered just within the border,
the locality doubtless being that given by Tate, viz. :—Inna-
mincka, Cooper’s Creek.
Girasol.—l have met with a specimen of this variety from
near Arkaba, Far North.
Common opal occurs at Angaston and at Mount Crawford in
all varieties of colours—notably milk-white, green, yellow,
blue, resin-opal and honey-opal. It also occurs at Nuriootpa
78
in cellular masses, and at Yudanamutana enclosing ferric
oxide (See also under Malachite). Tate reports it at Kelly’s
Well, 30 miles south of Tennant Creek and in the vicinity
of the Peake. Burr mentions the occurrence of common opal
of various colours at Flaxman Valley, and of jasp-opal at the
Belvidere Range.
Hyalite—This variety has been noted by Prof. Tate as
occurring in the Munno Para hills near Smithfield.
SILICATES (Anhydrous).
PYROXENE.
The occurrence of this mineral is reported at Mount Schank
by Tate, and by Burr at Mount Gambier, under the name of
Augite. The var. Coccolite is also noted by Burr at Mount
Gambier.
AmPHIBOLE (Hornblende),
This species occurs at various localities on Yorke Peninsula,
notably at the Wallaroo and Moonta Mines; also at Tanunda
Creek, Angaston, in the district about Franklin Harbour and
at Tungkillo (Tate).
Tar. Asbestus is found at New Mecklenburg, Tungk:zllo and
Angaston; at the Lobethal Mine (Tate) and near Menge
Town (Selwyn). Burr mentions the following additional
loealities:—Mount Barker (with chalcedony and silicious tufa)
and the Belvidere Range.
Actinolite occurs at Wallaroo Bay, at Yudanamutana Mine
(Ulrich), and, according to Burr, at Lyndoch Valley, Flax-
man Valley and near Strathalbyn.
Tremolite at Victoria Creek, Williamstown (Selwyn), and
Flaxman Valley and Barossa Range (Burr).
CrocipoLitE (Blue Asbestus).
Ulrich states that this species occurs at the Wirrawilka.
BERYL.
This mineral occurs of various colours—red, blue, green, Xe.
—at Mount Crawford. The bluish-green variety known as
Aquamarine occurs there also. The Emerald is said to have
been discovered by Menge (probably at or near Mount Craw-
ford), but so far as I am aware none of the specimens of this
mineral which have been found up to the present time are of
sufficient brilliancy and purity of colour to entitle them to rank
as valuable gems. Burr mentions Barossa Range for this
species.
CHRYSOLITE.
The common variety of this mineral—Olivine—occurs, accord-
ing to J. E. T. Woods, at Mount Schank and extensively in
79
the volcanic lavas of Mount Gambier. The variety Hyalosiderite
-is also mentioned by Woods as occurring in the basalt of
Mount Schank.
GARNET.
Red crystals of this mineral in white tale are to be found at
Kanmantoo. Black garnet occurs at Bundaleer ; and garnet-
rock—z.e., garnet forming a more or less compact rocky mass—
occurs at Monarto. Crystals of iron-garnet occur in the granite
rocks at Yadmana in the Hundred of Hawker. Burr mentions
the following localities :—Red garnet, Belvidere Range and in
the neighbourhood of Mount Barker ; black garnet, about 20
miles north-east of Adelaide ; and cinnamon stone, Belvidere
Range.
EPIDOTE.
The two following localities are named for the occurrence of
this mineral :—Barossa Range (Burr) and the Yudanamutana
Mine (Ulrich).
Brorire (Mica.)
This mineral is of frequent occurrence in the copper mines
of Yorke Peninsula, the most characteristic specimen being
obtainable at the Yelta Mine, near Moonta.
The following is the result of an analysis of a specimen ob-
tained from the Yelta Mine :—
Silica... hia) AS OS
Magnesia... a SMES
Alumina fae Lae ee aie! ol ars
Ferric oxide... Fie el Ae
Ferrous oxide We 5c. .L'GS
Manganous oxide ... Sch AOU
Lime AS ae cst daty hee
Potash me <2 Ay, eee
Soda ... iy ast Jee A
Water ne mi: paper ie
Fluorine a Le LOU trace
99°12
The specific gravity of this specimen was 2'9. The colour was
a dark greenish-black; that of thin lamine brownish-green.
The occurrence of this species is reported at Williamstown
by Selwyn. i
Muscovire (Common Mica).
This species forms a common constituent of our granite
rocks. ‘The following localities may be more especially noted:
—Mount Pleasant, Williamstown, Barossa Ranges and
Mount Crawford. ‘Tate reports its occurrence in large trans-
80
parent plates at the MacDonnell Ranges; and Burr gives for
it (under the name of Mica) these additional localites :—River .
Gawler, Valley of the Nixon and Yankalilla.
LAPIS-LAZULI.
I have met with a specimen of this mineral (in the form of
veins in white granite), which was said to have been obtained
in the Murray Scrub—most probably from near Monarto.
ALBITE.
This species occurs in veins in the metamorphic rocks exposed
in the Oolabidnie Creek near Franklin Harbour. It forms the
chief felspathic constituent of the granites of that district.
ORTHOCLASE.
Well crystallized specimens occur at Angaston, and near
the Wallaroo Mine; massive and crystalline at Angaston,
Ardrossan and Wallaroo. Burr names the following localities :
—Barossa Range and east of Mount Barker.
TOURMALINE
Occurs at the Moonta and Paramatta Mines, at Mount Craw-
ford, Ardrossan and Angaston ; and Tate reports it at Mount
Boothby (90 miles north of Alice Springs), where it is said to
be abundant; also at Barrow’s Creek and in the neighbour-
hood of the Peake, Central Australia. Burr enumerates these
additional localities:—Valley of the Nixon, Barossa Range,
Encounter Bay and Rapid Bay; and the variety Ruwbellite also
in the valley of the Nixon.
CYANITE.
This mineral is to be found at Nuriootpa in quartz. Burr
mentions it as occurring in the colony, but does not give the
locality. Selwyn states that it occurs near Menge Town and
Mount Crawford.
Topaz.
In this colony the white Topaz appears to be the most com-
monly occurring variety of this species. It is found near
Blanchewater and elsewhere near Lake Eyre, Central Aus-
tralia.
SILICATES (Hydrous).
ALLOPHANE
Occurs in the form of a blue deposit in the Miocene rocks of
the South-East (J. E. T. Woods).
Taxe.
Tate reports the occurrence of this species on the flanks of
the Kaiserstuhl, and the var. Steatite at New Mecklenburg
81
Selwyn names (for crystallised Talc) near Menge Town, Mount
Crawford. A. bronze-coloured Tale occurs on Yorke Peninsula,
and white Tale at the Barossa Range and Kanmantoo. Burr
mentions the following additional localities :—Belvidere Range,
River Hutt and Lyndoch Valley.
GLAUCONITE.
Professor Tate has noted the occurrence of this mineral in
the limestone rocks of the Aldinga cliffs, and the Bunda cliffs
of the Great Australian Bight.
KAOLINITE.
All varieties of this mineral are to be found in this colony,
while ordinary clays consisting of Kaolinite more or less inti-
mately mixed with impurities are abundant. The following are
a few of the many localities for the pure white Kaolin :-—
Wallaroo mining district, Tanunda, Ardrossan, near Charlotte
Waters, Hummocks Range and Teatree Gully.
The following are the results of the analysis of two specimens
of pure white Kaolin dried at 100° C.—A being obtained from
near Point Riley, Hundred of Wallaroo, and B from Teatree
Gully, the former comprising an aggregation of pearly scales
easily seen under the microscope with a low power :—
A B
Alumina nas Aes ae 36°18 Es
Silica ... et i i 47°53 22°67
Magnesia We uh ae ‘50 “72
Geme -),.. ae ae eet Trace £39
Ferric oxide ... iS ss 2°18 Pot
Titanic acid f ies sap 1°63
Alkalies A 17 1°48
Loss on 1gmition (chiefly water) 13°31 9°95
100°87 10046
In A, the alkalies, being chiefly soda, are calculated as such ;
in B, they were principally potass and are so calculated.
Tate reports its occurrence at Port Vincent, and of a hard
Kaolin clay eight miles west of Charlotte Waters; while Burr
mentions white clay on the Gawler Plains at the source of the
Angus, Flaxman Valley and River Gawler.
PENNINITE.
A specimen of the massive variety of this species has
reached me from near Beltana, the colour being a fine apple-
green. A chemical examination proved the presence of chromium.
F
82
METALLIC MINERALS.
TITANIUM.
Rvtive.
This mineral occurs in the form of fair-sized crystals at
Lyndoch, Collingrove, Tanunda Creek, Mount Crawford and
near Encounter Bay ; also (with quartz sand) near Balhannah.
TIN.
CASSITERITE.
Although the finding of this mineral has been frequently re-
ported, it is doubtful whether any authentic specimens have
been discovered in the southern part of this province. I have
a specimen of stream tin in the form of fine grains, which is
stated to have been found in the Port Lincoln district ; but as
the party who is supposed to have found it there failed to ob-
tain a further supply from the same spot, I am compelled to
look upon this discovery as very dubious. Rutile in the form
of sand and erystals has been frequently mistaken for tin ore.
Cassiterite occurs in the Northern Territory at the McKinlay
River, Mount Wells &c.
MOLYBDENUM.
MoLyYBDENITE
Is of frequent occurrence at the Yelta Mine, and in smaller
quantities at the Moonta, Wallaroo, Kurilla and other mines
in the same district. Tate also reports it as being found in
eneiss near Franklin Harbour.
BISMUTH.
Native BrsmMvura.
This mineral oceurs at the Balhannah Mine and the Mur-
ninnie Mine, about 20 miles north of Franklin Harbour.
BISMUTHINITE
Occurs at the Balhannah Mine.
BIsMUTITE
Occurs at the Balhannah Mine, associated with native gold and
chalcopyrite (copper pyrites). Ulrich reports its occurrence
at the Stanley Mine.
IRON.
Native Iron.
The only specimen* of Native Iron which has been found, or
at any rate scientifically made known, up to the present time
is in the form of a mass of meteoric iron obtained in the
Gawler Range in November, 1875. As no particulars of this
meteorite have hitherto been published, the following informa-
* Now in the South Australian Museum.
83
tion may be of interest :—The form is bounded by a series of
more or less concave and irregularly-shaped planes. The
surface is, for the most part, coated with a somewhat shining
and dark-brown oxide of iron. This meteorite consists of
metallic iron and contains a small proportion of nickel. It
weighs 3,268°7 grm., or 7 lbs. 3} 0zs. As originally found it
was a trifle heavier, a small piece having been broken off by the
finder ; and the long chisel mark to the right hand on the top
shows where an attempt was made to cut off a larger piece.
The locality and circumstances attending the discovery of the
meteorite are thus described by Mr. James Martlew :—‘I
found the stone on the flat in a mallee scrub about half a mile
from the northern foot of the range, being distant four miles
south of Yardea Station. It was about 15 inches under the
surface, and was surrounded for about three feet by limestone
broken into small pieces. All round this there was from four
to eight inches of soil covering the limestone.”
MAGNETITE.
This species occurs near Mount Jagged, and Burr states that
the crystallised and massive varieties are of very genera! occur-
rence from Cape Jervis to Black Rock Hill. Tate reports it in
the vicinity of the Peake, Central Australia, and in the Hun-
dred of Cunningham. The following analysis of a sample of
ore from Mount Lofty, by Wallace of Glasgow, may be of in-
terest :—
Ferric oxide... obi lee ay i AA es
Ferrous oxide bh GG iron Sie ee
Manganic oxide _... _ ‘20
Sulphur r oh ae ‘20
Iron, combined with sulphur ‘18
Phosphoric acid... Pe ‘O5
Alumina, &e. a. oon W cee
Magnesia ... $3 eek coe
Silica... a ae ay "92
100°00
HeMAtire.
Var. Micaceous Hematite occurs at numerous localities in this
province, among which may be mentioned the following :—
Angaston, Port Lincoln, near Inglewood, at the Yudanamutana
Copper Mine and the Paramatta Mine, Yorke Peninsula.
It occurs in the quartz veins running through the metamorphic
rocks in the neighbourhood of the Peake and at Tennant
Creek, Central Australia (Tate). Also in druses in close
proximity to the copper deposits at the Blinman Mine (Ulrich)
84
and in the Gawler Range, Barossa Range and Mount Lofty
Range (Burr).
Compact Columnar (Red Hematite) occurs near Port Lincoln,
at the Wallaroo Mine, Barossa Range, Angaston and at
numerous other places; while Professor Tate notes it at
Eudunda, Tennant Creek and in the neighbourhood of the
Peake, Central Australia.
Red Ochre occurs at Parachilna, and Tate reports it in the
vicinity of the Peake, Central Australia.
_ Marrrre—(sub-species)
Occurs in the form of octahedral crystals imbedded in mica-
ceous hematite, at Carey’s Gully, Mount Lofty.
Limonite (Brown Hematite).
This mineral occurs at numerous localities in the province,
among which the following are perhaps the most deserving of
mention, viz., Angaston, Waukaringa, in and near the Bliinman
Mine, Munjibbie, Yorke Peninsula, Sixth Creek, near Ingle-
wood, Macclesfield and Hindmarsh Valley.
Limonite pseudomorph after pyrite occurs in the form of
isolated and grouped cubical crystals in various parts of Cen-
tral Australia; and near Lake Eyre, is very plentiful on the
surface. Tate also notes it in the vicinity of Eudunda and
in most of the auriferous quartz veins in the Mount Pleasant
district. It occurs, in the form of pentagonal dodecahedral
crystals pseudomorph after pyrite, near Mount Lyndhurst.
The following is the result of an analysis of a specimen from
Hindmarsh Valley, by Wallace of Glasgow :—
Ferric oxide... .. 76°71=Iron, 53°7 per cent.
Manganic oxide fuel. “btace
Magnesia ies Pe 0°30
lime ... off ay 0°45
Phosphoric acid uF. 1:20
Sulphurie acid... A 0°42
Alumina Py eee 3°05
Silica... Yk ty 5°88
Water (combined) .... 10°91
Moisture ; ase 1°08
100°00
Burr mentions the following localities for this species :—Near
the Montacute Copper Mine, Rapid Ray and Mount Barker.
MENACCANITE.
Var. Ilmenite occursat Victoria Creek, Williamstown (Selwyn).
SIDERITE.
Selwyn mentions the occurrence of this species at the
85
Crinnis Mine, Ulrich at the Oratunga Mine, Tate at Eudunda
and Burr reports it at Rapid Bay, Barossa Range, Mount Lofty
Range and various other places. It also occurs at the Kar-
kulto Mine, whence a specimen has been obtained for examina-
tion. It was in the form of a largely crystalline mass of a
brownish-grey colour. Hardness, 3°5; and specific gravity, 3°9.
The analysis of this specimen yielded the following results
(1). No. 11, introduced for the sake of comparison, is the
composition of a specimen from Mitterberg, Tyrol, quoted from
Dana :—
ef Er,
Ferrous oxide ... en ip Ok £O 51:15
Manganous oxide... ~=—1°56 1°62
Magnesia be ast hee: 7°72
Carbonic acid ... SOO LOO BE
—_—_——_———
100:00 = 100°00
The composition of the mineral as given above is represented
by the formula 4 FeCO, + MgCO,. From the composition
of this specimen and from that of others, which have from time
to time passed through my hands, it would appear that the
siderite of this colony is chiefly of the magnesian variety.
PISTOMESITE.
This mineral occurs in large quantities at the Balhannah
Mine, the waste tip being for the most part formed of it.
When first obtained this mineral is of a yellowish-grey colour,
but on exposure it assumes a bronze-coloured coating.
A preliminary examination showed that the mineral consisted
of magnesic, ferrous and manganous carbonates, and at first
I was inclined to think that it was Breunnerite, a ferriferous
variety of Magnesite. A complete quantitative analysis showed,
however, that the mineral had the composition of Pistomesite,
with which it also agrees in its physical properties. The
specimen for examination was selected from the centre of a
large mass, and was free from the incrustation referred to
above. The result of the analysis was as follows (4), No. 1
being the analysis of a specimen from Thurnburg quoted by
Dana :—
i II.
Ferrous oxide... 64 OE 33°92
Magnesia f ce 2066 21°72
Manganous oxide... 349 —
Carbonie acid ... ... 48°52 43°62
99:98 99°26
*Obtained by difference.
86
The hardness of the Balhannah specimen is 3'5. Its specific
gravity is 3'5, while that of the Thurnburg specimen is given
at 3'4. This speciesis also reported by Tate as occurring at
Nuccaleena.
Pyrite (Lron pyrites).
This species is to be found in most of the lodes of the
Yorke Peninsula mining district. Finely crystallised speci-
mens exhibiting the form of the pentagonal dodecahedron have
been obtained from both the Wallaroo and Paramatta Mines.
This form is reported by Burr as occurring at the Montacute
Mine and the district in its neighbourhood, and also at Rapid
and Encounter Bays. Other localities for this mineral are
Talisker Mine and Bundaleer, and it is very general in the
various ranges in limestone, quartz, hornstone, slate, and as-
sociated with other metalliferous minerals (Burr). A stalac-
titic form occurs at the Wallaroo Mine.
ARSENOPRYITE (Mispickel) 7
Occurs at the Glen Bar Mine, near Strathalbyn, at the Talisker
Mine, and between Victor Harbour and Encounter Bay.
VIVIANITE.
The massive form of this species occurs at Angaston, and
Burr states that the earthy form occurs near Mount Rufus and
near Strathalbyn. |
MANGANESE.
PYROLUSITE.
This species occurs near the Wallaroo Mines both massive
and stalactitic; also at Wonna Pandappa Dam and at Wauka-
ringa (Tate)—the specimen from the latter place beg an
impure variety.
MANGANITE.
This species is mined for shipment to Europe in the neigh-
borhood of Gordon, between Quorn and Hawker.
Oxides of Manganese of varying composition occur in the
Port Lincoln district, at Wonna Pandappa Dam and at various
localities in the Far North. Burr reports manganese ores at
Rapid Bay, Myponga, Noarlunga, River Light, Barossa Range
and Mount Bryan.
ZINC.
SPAHLERITE (Zine blende).
This mineral occurs at the Wallaroo Mine, and on the west
coast of Yorke Peninsula, between Point Pearce and Corney
Point. Tate reports it at North Rhine, and L. Seeger at the
Wheal Ellen Mine.
87
LEAD.
CERUSITE
Occurs massive at the Glen Osmond stone quarries. I have
found it crystallised with phosgenite in a specimen from the
western side of Spencer Gulf, and Ulrich reports it as lining
druses at the Beltana Mine, while L. Seeger states that he has
met with finely crystallised specimens at the Strathalbyn Mine.
ANGLESITE.
This species occurs both massive and in the form of small
ervatals at the Wilvena Pound.
ErratuM.—Page 87, line 5 from bottom, fc
ere: or Moockr
read Mount Lyndhurst. ; ckra Tower
specimen Ouse LLU VIG, Wen, Cuan or SP ee > ~~
exact locality being unknown; and Burr mentions it as ocur-
ring at the Glen Osmond lead mines.
PYROMORPHITE.
I have met with massive specimens of this mineral, varying
in colour from green to greyish-brown, obtained from the west
coast of Spencer Gulf (Iam uncertain as to the exact locality),
J. E. T. Woods, in a private communication, mentions that he
has found phosphate of lead at the Strathalbyn Mine.
NICKEL.
ULLMANNITE.
This mineral (a double sulphide of antimony and nickel)
occurs near Moockra Tower, from whence very characteristic
specimens have been obtained.
COBALT.
Eryrurite (Cobalt Bloom).
This species has been found at the Glen Bar Mine.
88
CopattTiItE (Cobalt Glanz).
L. Seeger reports having found this species at the Glen Bar
Mine associated with mispickel.
COPPER.
Native Copper.
This mineral species is represented in a great variety of
forms in the upper parts of the lodes of the Wallaroo and
Moonta mining districts of Yorke Peninsula. Some speci-
mens exhibit well-defined, though distorted crystals; while
some very fine examples of the arborescent form have also been
produced. In more or less rounded masses it may be said to be
common to the lodes of the district. At the Sliding Rock
Mine it occurs disseminated in various sized grains. It is also
found at Angaston, and to greater or less extent in several of
the other copper-bearing lodes of the colony.
CUPRITE.
This mineral is of very general occurrence in the upper por-
tions of the copper lodes of this colony, most frequently in the
massive form, but finely crystallised specimens are also to be
noted. Of these latter, the Moonta Mine has produced some
very good examples in which the planes of the octahedron are
most fully developed; while the Spring Creek Mine was at one
time celebrated for crystals exhibiting the planes of the cube in
avery marked degree. The crystals from the Moonta Mine
are characterised by an unusually strong metallic lustre.
Cuprite is also found in isolated octahedral crystals at the
Moonta and Burra Burra Mines; while hopper-shaped octahe-
dral crystals have been met with at the Kapunda Mine.
Crystals have been occasionally obtained from the Burra
Burra Mine which were more or less converted into malachite,
and in a locality near the Rhondda Mine, north of Port
Augusta, they have been found converted into atacamite.
Var. Chalcotrichite.—I have met with this variety of cuprite
in a specimen from this colony—the precise locality is un-
known. It occurs in groups of small acicular crystals with
native copper.
Cuaucocire (Redruthite).
As far as I am aware, this mineral has not been met with
erystallized in the colony. The massive variety is of frequent
occurrence in the copper mines of Yorke Peninsula—fine
specimens being obtainable more especially from the Moonta
Mines. Burr mentions it as occurring at the Kapunda, Monta-
cute, and Burra Burra Mines, and also at Mount Barker.
89
CovELLITE (Indigo Copper Ore.)
Very fine specimens of this mineral, in the massive form,
have been obtained from the mines on Yorke Peninsula, the
most characteristic being chiefly taken from the southern end
of the district. A more or less impure variety, black in colour,
occurs not unfrequently, more especially in the northern part
of the district.
The mineral which generally passes under the name of
Melaconite in the Yorke Peninsula mining district is actually
Covellite.
Burr mentions “black sulphuret of copper” as occurring at
the Kapunda Mine.
BornitE (Purple Copper Ore).
This mineral occurs at several of the copper mines in the
colony, generally associated with chalcopyrite (copper pyrites).
The most notable locality is the Moonta Mine. The analysis
of a specimen of massive Bornite from the Moonta Mine
yielded the following result :—
I. Le: III.
Copper: 's. ot ... 59°84 62:00 61.87
Iron... 2 yeh a NS Br 12°15 12°13
sulphur; 2 ous wee 24°95 25°85 26°00
Insoluble silicious residue 4°03 — —
10055 1€0:00 100°00
Column 11. shows the composition of the specimen after deduct-
ing the insoluble residue, and column 111. is the percentage
composition calculated from the formula 9 Cu,S, 2 Fe,S,.
Bornite occurs at the Lady Alice Mine, the Barossa Mine,
the Burra Burra Mine and the Try Again Mine.
Tate reports its occurrence in the quartz veins in the meta-
morphic rocks in the neighbourhood of the Peake, Central
Australia, and Burr at the Kapunda Mine.
As far as the writer is aware, the mineral has only been found
massive.
CHALCOPYRITE (Copper pyrites).
This mineral is of pretty general occurrence in the lower
parts of the copper lodes of the province. It has been found
erystallised at the Wallaroo Mine. Some of the crystals in
my collection obtained from thence measure from half an inch
to three quarters of an inch in diameter.
Although this mineral forms the chief copper ore of the
Yorke Peninsula mining district, it only occurs pure in any
considerable quantity at the Moonta Mine. In the other parts
of the district it is more or less intimately mixed with pyrite,
covellite, bornite, &e.
90
Fine typical specimens of the ordinary variety and that
known as “peacock ore” (from the iridescent tarnish exhi-
bited by some of the fractured surfaces) are obtainable at
the Moonta Mine. The analyses of both varieties prove the
identity of composition, viz., that represented by the formula
Cu,8, FeS,, FeS.
The results of the analysis of specimens of this ore from the
Moonta Mine are given below. (No. 1. is the analysis of the
untarnished variety, and No. 11. that of the peacock ore. No.
111. shows the theoretical composition of pyrite deduced from
the formula given above.
i. II. III.
Copper _... iy ww. B421 34°04: 34°57
Iron oe Boks wk DOWD 31°14 30°53
Solphar 6 2 gH, LO 34°34 3490
Insoluble silicious residue 0°50 0°63 —
————
100°52 10015 100.00
Copper pyrites is reported by Tate as occurring in quartz
veins in the metamorphic rock in the neighbourhood of the
Peake, Central Australia, while it is noted by Burr as occurr-
ing (generally variegated) as follows:—At the Montacute
Mine and all the lodes in its vicinity, Rapid Bay, Flaxman
Valley, Hutt River &c.
Azurite (Blue Carbonate of Copper).
This mineral occurs pretty generally in the copper lodes of
the colony, with the exception of those on Yorke Peninsula,
where it is rarely met with. The Burra Burra Mine and
Kapunda Mine were at one time noted for the quantity of this
mineral which they produced. It has also been found at the
Blinman Mine, Yudanamutana Mine, &c. &c., and near
Franklin Harbour and other places on the west coast of
Spencer Gulf.
MALACHITE
Occurs crystallised in ascicular crystals at the Rhondda Mine,
and in brown iron ore at the Wallaroo Mine; also in the same
form in the so-called “red jasper rock” at the Yudanamutana
Mine. This red jasper is opal, enclosing red oxide of iron,
and from an examination of thin sections under the microscope
I am inclined to think that we have had here a spongy mass of
oxide of iron (probably the cap of a lode) into which silica in
the form of opal has infiltered and thus enclosed the oxide of
iron). Ulrich mentions the occurrence of this mineral in
acicular crystals at the Oratunga Mine.
Nodular and lenticular-shaped masses, with a radiated
91
crystalline structure, are not uncommon in the copper-bearing
country north of Port Augusta. The ordinary massive mala-
chite occurs at several localities—most notably at the Burra ;
and Burr mentions the following places (without, however,
indicating the form—whether massive or crystallized) :—Mount
Barker, Montacute Mine, Rapid Bay, Wakefield, near the
Horseshoe on the Onkaparinga. It formed the chief ore at
the Kapunda and Burra Mines.
Tate states that it occurs in the quartz veins in the meta-
phoric rocks in the neighbourhood of the Peake, Central Aus-
tralia. It occurs in perfectly round nodules about three-
quarters of an inch in diameter on and near the surface of the
country round about Beltana.
It is worthy of note that true malachite does not occur in
the Yorke Peninsula mining district. It has there been met
with only as atacamite altered more or lessinto green carbonate
of copper by contact with the calcareous rocks.
Sub-species Mysorin.—I have found this mineral of a dark-
brown colour occurring with crystallized malachite in red opal
rock from the Yudanamutana Mine.
DIOPTASE.
This form of silicate of copper occurs at the Appialina Mine
(Selwyn).
CHRYSOCOLLA.
Very good specimens of this mineral, enamel-like in texture,
have been found at the Burra Burra Mine, associated with
Azurite and Malachite. I have met with characteristic speci-
mens from the Wallaroo and Kurilla Mines, Yorke Penin-
sula; and Ulrich reports it as occurring at the Nuccaleena,
Yudanamutana and Mount Lyndhurst Mines.
Burr mentions its occurrence at the Mount Barker Mine.
ATACAMITE.
This mineral is known to occur in three distinct states of
hydration, the varieties so formed containing in round numbers
about 12, 17, and 20 per cent. of water. I incline to the
opinion that two, if not all of these varieties occur in this
colony ; but up to the present time I have only had the oppor-
tunity of chemically examining one specimen belonging to the
first variety. This mineral is found in every copper mine on
Yorke Peninsula, and was at one time represented by most
magnificent specimens at the New Cornwall Mine. Perfect
crystals nine inches long were found there, and groups of
crystals varying from an inch to two or three inches could be
obtained in considerable quantity.
The specimen employed for analysis was from the Wallaroo
92
Mine, the crystals (which were about one quarter-inch long)
being carefully separated from the matrix. The analysis of this
specimen yielded the following result (1.). For the sake of
comparison I subjoin the analysis of a specimen from Chili
(a1.) quoted by Dana—
ze iL.
Wopper’-.... a ae ee ae 14°54
Chlorine ... Mat Joe, Oe 16°33
Cupric oxide Vy ast oe 55'94
Water. 4° a. ae ... 13°51 (by diff.) 12°96
Insoluble silicious residue 1°47 ‘08 (quartz ?)
100-00 99°85
It occurs also at the Yudanamutana, Daly and Rhondda
Mines. From the latter—situated near Moockra Tower—Il
have obtained pseudomorphs after cuprite.
SILVER.
Although silver occurs in considerable quantity in some of
the lead ores of the colony, so far as I am aware no isolated
species containing this metal as an essential constituent has
yet been discovered.
GOLD.
“The geological distribution of gold in South Australia is
restricted to the Pre-Silurian, certain gravels of the Miocene
period, and to drifts of later age. In the first it occurs dis-
seminated in veins of quartz; in the second and third cases as
alluvial gold.” (Tate).
Among the numerous localities in which gold has been found,
in one or other of the conditions mentioned above, the follow-
ing may be named :-—In the sand of the Onkaparinga, South
Para and Torrens Rivers; in the Bremer and Barossa Ranges ;
at Nairne, Woodside, Strathalbyn, Mount Barker, Clarendon,
Noarlunga, Currency Creek, Mount Pleasant, Jupiter Creek and
Echunga in the Adelaide District; Ulooloo and Waukaringa,
North of Burra. At Bigg’s Flat near Echunga a few nuggets of
an ounce in weight have been obtained.
At the Balhannah Mine gold occurs associated with native
bismuth and bismuthinite ; at the Lady Alice Mine it has been
found in some abundance, associated with bornite ; and at the
Moonta Mine it also occurs in small quantity associated with
the latter mineral.
In the Northern Territory gold is widely distributed over
that portion of Arnheim Land occupied by metamorphic rocks.
The gold-fields extend from the River Stapleton to the Driffield,
a distance of about a hundred miles. The chief centres of
93
gold-reefiing are the Howley, Twelve-Mile, McKinlay, the
Union and Pine Creek. (Prof. Tate’s Report on the Northern
Territory.)
APPENDIX.
NITRE. ic
Burr states that efflorescent nitrate of potass occurs on the
cliffs of the River Murray, but does not specify the exact
locality.
Mrrasinite (Glauber Salt)
Is stated by Burr to occur in the form of efflorescent crystals
at Crystal Brook.
Katinite (Potass Alum).
Burr states that this species occurs mammillated and efflor-
escent in the gorge of the River Torrens and in the ranges
near Mount Barker.
WAVELLITE.
Burr states that this species occurs at the River Gawler.
- Frero.ire.
According to Burr this mineral has been noticed in the
Barossa Range.
MeELaconitEe (Black Oxide of Copper).
I have not hitherto personally met with a specimen of this
mineral, although Burr reports it as occurring both mammil-
lated and earthy at the Kapunda and Montacute Mines.
94
LIsT OF PLANTS UNRECORDED FOR SOUTHERN
EYRE PENINSULA.
By Proressor Rateu Tate, F.G.8., F.LS., &e.
{Read October 2, 1883.]
This enumeration is chiefly based upon collections made by
our Corresponding Member, Mrs. A. Richards (4.2.), while
journeying from Port Lincoln to Streaky Bay during October,
1882, and by Mr. Samuel Dixon (8.D.) during a recent tour in
the country around Port Lincoln.
The asterisk prefixed to a name indicates that the geo-
graphical range of the species has been extended to the west-
ward ; in the case of Pteris arguta the western limit has been
shifted 400 miles from Penola, where I gathered it in November
of last year. With regard to the other additions, they serve
to lessen the width of the wide gap in the longitudinal range
of the species, extending in many instances from the mid-
southern parts of the province to beyond the frontier of West
Australia. The occurrence of Grevillea parviflora, Quinetia
Urvillet and Calocephalus Drummondii are noteworthy.
*Papaver aculeatum, Colton, Venus Bay, A.#&. Drosera
elanduligera, S.D.; *D. peltata, S.D.; D. Menzsiesii, 4.2. and
S.D. Comesperma scoparium and Poranthera ericoides, SD.
Pelargonium australe, at Colton, 4.R. *Eriostemon pungens,
at Colton, A.R.; S.D. Claytonia corrigioloides, §.D. Daviesia
brevifolia and *Pultenza canaliculata, S.D. Goodia medica-
ginea and *Kennedya monophylla, at Colton, 4.R. *Acacia
rupicola, near Port Lincoln, 4.R. Acacia myrtifolia, Marble
Range, J. H. Brown. Haloragis teucrioides, 4.h. *Melaleuca
pustulata, at Denial Bay, &. Tate. *Eucalyptus cosmophylla,
Marble Range, J. #. Brown. Spyridium eriocephalum, S.D. ;
S. vexilliferum and *S. leucophractum, 4.R. and SD. *Gre-
villea parviflora—halmaturina, *Conospermum patens and
Hydrocotyle callicarpa, $.D. Didiscus eriocarpus, 4.#., and
D. cyanopetalus, 8.D. Galium umbrosum, S.D. *Opercularia
scabrida, 4A.R. Calocephalus Drummondii, Rutidosis Pumilo,
Quinetia Urvillei and Myriocephalus rhizocephalus, SD.
*Helichrysum Baxteri, A.#. Microseris Forsteri, at Lake
Hamilton, A.R. Candollea despecta, Leewenhoekia dubia,
Sebea ovata and Mitrasacme paradoxa, S.D. *Styphelia
strigosa, 4A.R.; also at base of Marble Range, J. HL. Brown.
Microtis porrifolia and Caladenia latifolia, at Colton, 4.2.
95
Caladenia Patersoni, at Colton, A.R.; near Marble Range,
J. E. Brown. C. deformis, near Marble Range, J. #. Brown.
Thysanotus Patersoni, Neurachne alopecuroides and Stipa
scabra, at Lake Hamilton, 4.#. Centrolepis aristata,
C. strigosa and C. polygyna, S.D. *Pteris arguta, limestone-
wells five miles back from Streaky Bay, 4.2.
A LIsT OF UNRECORDED PLANTS AND OF NEW
LOCALITIES FOR RARE PLANTS IN THE SOUTH=
EAST PART OF THIS COLONY.
By Proressor Ratpex Tarts, F.G.S8., F.LS., &e.
(Read October 2, 1883.]
During the latter half of November, 1882, I made a long
and extensive botanical tour over region E. of the inter-
provincial divisions into which I had divided extra-tropical
South Australia*, with the special object of tracing out its
western limit. Briefly, the region, small as it is, must be con-
siderably reduced in area, but in the present communication I
will deal with it as at first delineated. In the course of my
explorations I found several species hitherto unrecorded for
the region, and discovered not a few rare species at new locali-
ties. The chief novelties have already been indicated in m
“Additions to the Flora of South Australia,” published in the
Society's Transactions for this year and last.
Hibbertia stricta Nangwarry; Mount McIntyre; Yallum
(Miss Allen !).
Cassytha melantha. Lake George; Cave Range.
Cardamine tenuifolia. Considered by F.v. M. a state of C.
laciniata; marsh lands about Mount Burr Range, and
Mount Julian near Penola.
Stenopetalum lineare. Sandhills, Beachport.
Drosera auriculata. Marsh lands, Mount Graham.
Conesperma calymega. Mount Burr Range; Nangwarry ;
Mount Julian; Cave Range and Narracoorte.
Elatine Americana. Swamps, Mount Graham.
* Trans. Roy. Soc., 8. Aust., vol. iii., p. 48, 1880.
96
Pelargonium Rodneyanum. Almost restricted to sandy
Shalt Mount Graham; Cave Range; Narracoorte ;
tewart Range; Reedy Creek.
Boronia pinnata. Mount McIntyre; Nangwarry; near Penola.
Didymotheca thesioides. Rivoli Bay.
Saponaria tubulosa. Cave Range and Narracoorte.
Sagina apetala. Marshes and sandhills, Rivoli Bay; Mosquito
Creek.
Lepigonum marinum. Lacepede Bay.
Scleranthus pungens. Cave Range and Narracoorte.
Polyenemon pentandrum. lLacepede Bay and Lake George.
Ptilotus spathulatus. Cave Range and Narracoorte.
Rhagodia Biliardieri. Coast Range! and Mount Gambier!
(Rev. J. LE. T. Woods.)
Rumex Brown. Beachport; Mount Gambier; Yallum Cave
near Penola.
Rumex bidens. Cape Northumberland; Lake Leake.
Polygonum prostratum. Mount Graham.
Muhlenbeckia Cunningkamii. Subsaline plains, Narracoorte.
Spherolobium vimineum. Sphagnum bog, Mount McIntyre.
Pultenza humilis. Riddoch Bay and Cape Northumberland.
Pultenza involucrata. Near Yallum (Miss Allen!).
Eutaxia empetrifolia. Heathy ground near Lake George.
Acacia pycnantha. Towards the Punt, Glenelg River; near
MacDonnell Bay and Beachport.
Acena ovina. Kingston; Mount Gambier; Cape Northumber-
land; Cave Range; Narracoorte; Reedy Creek.
Tillea verticillaris. Beachport; Mount Gambier; Mosquito
Creek; Narracoorte.
Tillea purpurata. Mosquito Creek.
Tillea recurva. Cape Northumberland; Mount Graham; _
Lake Edward ; Mosquito Creek.
Haloragis ceratophylla. On limestone soil, Beachport.
Haloragis micrantha. Mount Graham swamps.
Epilobium pallidiflorum. Mount Graham swamps.
Lhotzkya genetylloides. Nangwarry ; Stewart Range.
Thryptomene ciliata. Near Yallum, Penola; Stewart Range.
Leptospermum myrsinoides. Cape Northumberland, Nang-
warry and Penola.
Callistemon coccineus. Heath near Yallum Cave, Penola.
Melaleuca uncinata. Stewart Range.
Melaleuca pustulata. Salt swamps, Rivoli Bay; Yallum
Heath ; Stewart Range.
Stackhousia linarifolia. Lake George; Cape Northumberland;
Riddoch Bay; Nangwarry.
Pomaderris racemosa. Sandhills, Rivoli Bay.
Pimelea serpyllifolia. Beachport.
97
Pimelea humilis. Millicent flats to Tarpeena; Nangwarry ;
Narracoorte and Cave Range.
Pimelea octophylla. Mount Graham; Nangwarry; Penola.
Pimelea phylicoides. Mount Julian, near Penola.
Conospermum patens. Mount McIntyre; Nangwarry; Mount
Julian ; Stewart Range.
Hakea rugosa. Mount Graham; Yallum; Cave Range.
Hydrocotyle callicarpa. Mount Graham.
Opercularia ovata. Lake George.
Galium australe. Beachport.
Aster floribundus. River Glenelg; The Springs near Mount
Graham ; Yallum (Miss Allen!).
Aster aff. glandulosus. With slender wiry stems and short
scattered leaves; achenes densely silky. Yallum (Miss
Allen!).
Lagenophora Huegelii. Fern brakes, Mount Graham.
Brachycome Mueller. Lake George; Cave Range; Narra-
coorte ; Mosquito Creek ; Reedy Creek.
Siegesbeckia orientalis. Mount Gambier cone; Glencoe Cave.
Eclipta platyglossa. Narracoorte Creek.
Cotula filifolia. Coast swamps Kingston to the River Glenelg ;
Mount Graham; Yallum (Mss Allen!) ; Mosquito Creek ;
Narracoorte.
Centipeda Cunninghami. Mount Graham; Penola; Narra-
coorte.
Myriocephalus rhizocephalus. Nangwarry; Penola to Narra-
coorte.
Angianthus tomentosus. Narracoorte plain.
Ixodia achilleoides. Yallum (Miss Allen!).
Rutidosis Pumilo. Mount Graham; Mount Julian.
Podotheca angustifolia. Sandhills, Rivoli Bay; Mount Gam-
bier.
Leptorrhynchos squamatus. Rivoli Bay ; Mount McIntyre;
Cave Range ; Narracoorte.
Leptorrhynchos tenuifolius. Yallum (Miss Allen!).
Helipterum dimorpholepis. Narracoorte Creek.
Erechtites picridioides. Mosquito Plains (Rev. J. E. T.
Woods) ; Mosquito Creek.
Erechtites quadridentata. Mount Gambier cone.
Erechtites hispidula. Cape Northumberland.
Cymbonotus Lawsonianus. Benara near Mount Gambier.
Candollea (Stylidium) perpusilla. Yallum (Miss Allen!).
Goodenia pinnatifida. Narracoorte Plains
Limosella aquatica. Mount Graham Swamps.
Wilsonia rotundifolia. Subsaline plain, Narracoorte.
Wilsonia Backhousii. Lake George.
Polypompholyx tenella. Yallum (Miss Allen’).
G
98
Eritrichium australasicum. Mount Graham.
Cynoglossum suaveolens. Mounts Gambier and Graham ;
Cape Northumberland ; Yallum Cave; Narracoorte Caves.
Verbena officinalis. The Springs, Mount Graham.
Styphelia virgata. Mount McIntyre; Nangwarry; Yallum
(Miss Allen!)
Brachyloma ciliata. Beachport, Rivoli Bay.
Thelymitra antennifera. Mount McIntyre; Yallum (Miss
Allen!).
Microtis porrifoha. Mount Burr Range and Mount Graham ;
Riddoch Bay ; Cape Northumberland ; Tarpeena.
Pterostylis furcata. Included by Baron Sir F. von Mueller
under P. cucullata. Lake Edward; Mount Graham.
Diuris palustris. Yallum (MMss Allen!).
Caladenia latifolia. Yallum (A&ss Allen!).
Eriochilus autumnalis. Yallum, near Penola (Miss Allen!)
Burchardia umbellata. Tintanulla; Benara; Yallum (MMfss
Allen!).
Thysanotus tuberosus. Lake George; Mount Graham; Tar-
peena; Mount Julian; Cave Range.
Chameescilla corymbosa. Mount Graham.
Bartlingia sessiliflora. Nangwarry; Narracoorte; Yallum
(Miss Allen!).
Lemna trisulea. Mount Gambier, Valley Lake.
Xanthorrhea semiplana. Beachport; Mount Graham; Nang-
warry to Narracoorte and Stewart Range.
Xanthorrhea quadrangulata. Sandy ground, Mount Burr;
Stewart Range.
Liuzula campestris. Beachport; Benara and Mount Gambier.
Juncus cespititius.
Juncus paucifiorus. Glenelg River; Lake Leake; Mount
Graham; Mosquito Creek.
Aphelia gracilis. Mount Graham.
Centrolepis aristata. Mounts Graham and Julian; Narra-
coorte Creek.
Centrolepis fascicularis. Mount Julian.
Centrolepis strigosa. Mount Graham; Cave Range.
Lepidosperma viscidum. Beachport.
Lepidosperma laterale. Margining swamps, Mount Graham ;.
Tarpeena; Mount Julian.
Lepidosperma carphoides. Heathy ground, Yallum; Nang-
warry ; Cave Range.
Heleocharis sphacelata. Lake Leake.
Heleocharis acuta. Glenelg River; Riddoch Bay; Mount
Gambier; Mosquito Creek ; Narracoorte.
Heleocharis multicaulis. Marshy ground, Lake George.
Scirpus cartilagineus. Lake George; Mount Gambier.
99
Scirpus pungens. Lake George.
Scirpus lacustris. Mount Graham; Lake Leake; Mount
Gambier.
Schcenus nitens. Lake George; Mount Graham; Narracoorte
Plains.
Cladium Mariscus. Mosquito Creek.
Cladium articulatum. Mosquito Creek.
Cladium filum. Glenelg River; Riddoch Bay; Lake Bonney;
Mosquito Creek ; Lake George; Yallum; Narracoorte.
Carex Gunniana. Glenelg River; Cape Northumberland ;
Mount Graham.
Carex pseudo-cyperus. Mount Graham and towards Mount
McIntyre.
Carex breviculmis. Mount Graham.
Agrostis quadriseta. Mount Burr. : |
Echinopogon ovatus. Cape Northumberland; Glencoe Cave.
Eragrostis Brown. WNarracoorte.
Poa syrtica. Kingston.
Bromus arenarius. Cave Range.
Danthonia nervosa. Sphagnum bog near Mount McIntyre.
Neurachne alopecuroides. Cave Range.
Lepturus incurvatus. Lacepede Bay; subsaline plain, Narra-
coorte.
Ophioglossum vulgatum. Mount Graham.
Pteris arguta. Cave four miles west from Yallum, Penola.
100
LIST OF SOME PLANTS INHABITING THE NORTH=
EASTERN PART OF THE LAKE TORRENS BASIN.
By Proressor Ratpu Tate, F.G.S., F.LS.
[Read October 1, 1883.]
The region, which I examined botanically during two weeks
in each of the months of June and September of this year, em-
braces the southern half of the Aroona Range and the plain
extending therefrom to the shore of Lake Torrens. The Lake
Torrens Plain is here bounded at the distance of about 25 miles
from the lake by a range of hills, commencing in the latitude
of Beltana and following a north-west course through Mount
Deception, Mount Scott, Aroona Mountain, Mount Parry,
Termination Hill and Mount Nor’-West. This elevated
region, which I name the Aroona Range, is west of and diver-
gent from the Flinders Range ; its western flank is constituted.
of clay slates, quartzites and quartzose sandstones, dipping
easterly ; to the eastward limestones are intercalated, and the
whole finally concealed by the drifts which occupy the synclinal
valley of Leigh Creek.
The plain of Lake Torrens is at its margin chiefly composed
of loams and gravels shed from the adjacent slopes, or trans-
ported from the far distant Flinders Range by the torrential
streams, which debouch upon the plain; further out, these
drifts are concealed by low, more or less parallel, sandhills
separated from one another by loamy flats or claypans.
The flora of the basin of Lake Torrens is chiefly known from
collections made by Babbage, Lattorf and others at its wes-
tern and north-western parts; whilst little or nothing is
known of the region under review. It belongs to that type of
vegetation proper to the “salt-bush’’ country, such as prevails
throughout the dry zone of Central Australia.
The majority of the plants are common to the plain and
hills, though the sandhills, after a sufficient rainfall, bloom with
a great variety of annuals not met with on the stony ranges.
In the accompanying list, I have given the names of the
plants which have not been recorded from the Far North,
except those of a few which call for special remarks.
The most noteworthy fact is the presence in this area of
many species hitherto not known in South Austraha except on
the confines of this province towards New South Wales and
101
Queensland, and at the MacDonnell Ranges on the verge of
the tropics. They have thus been moved, as it were, well
within our territorial limits. Of these the following may be
especially mentioned: — Abutilon halophilum, Zygophyllum
Howittii, Ptilotus incanus, Kuxolus Mitchelli, Rhynchosia
minima, Loranthus Quandang, Santalum lanceolatum, Oldenlandia
tilleacea, Millotia Kempet, Panicum helopus, Eriochloa annulata
and Chloris truncata; whilst a few species have been added to
our provincial flora, including at least four species new to
science. Some critical species, particularly of the genera
Bassia, Kochia and Atriplex, remain to be identified.
Myosurus minimus. Claypan near Termination Hill.
Ranunculus parviflorus. Water channels on the slope of
Aroona Mountain.
Ranunculus parviflorus var. Lake Weatherstone and claypans
near Termination Hill. The same state grows abundantly
around the “ billibongs” of the River Murray.
Sisymbrium filifolium.. Rocky gullies, Mount Parry.
Sisymbrium procumbens, n. sp. Claypans near Termination
Hill.
Sisymbrium trisectum, with yellow flowers. Claypan near
Termination Hill.
Erysimum Blennodia. Lake Torrens Plain.
Capsella cochlearina. Lake Torrens Plain and at Hookina.
Lepidium leptopetalum. Rocky gullies, Mount Parry.
Plagianthus glomeratus. On limestone soil between Mounts
Parry and Playfair.
Sida (corrugata var.?) pedunculata, Cunningham. Dry water
course of Mount Parry Creek.
Sida virgata. By Lake Torrens on sandy soil.
Abutilon halophilum. Depot Creek and Mount Parry Gap.
Hibiscus Krichauffi. By Lake Torrens.
Euphorbia erythrantha. Mount Parry and Lake Torrens
Plain.
Phyllanthus rigens. An intricate shrub usually about two but
attaining to three feet high, in arid ground with spinescent
branches ; capsules globular or ovoid, attaining to three
lines broad and five lines long ; seeds smooth; leaves and
young branches with short stiff pellucid hairs. Rocky
ground, Mount Parry.
Phyllanthus rhytidospermus? Wet ground at Yadlacena, on
Lake Torrens Plain near Mount Parry.
Phyllanthus Fuernrohrii. Sandhills at Ediacara, Lake Torrens
Plain.
Parietaria debilis. Among rocks in shady situations, Aroona
Range.
102
Zygophyllum Howittii. Sandhills, Lake Torrens Plain, chiefly
under shelter of shrubs; widely dispersed. Plant pros-
trate, spreading to one foot or more; radicular leaves,
three very large; flowers very small, solitary, axillary
and pedunculate ; sepals and petals four-merous; sepals
ovate, acute; petals yellow, barely exceeding the sepals,
obovate, one line long, attenuated into a claw; stamens
eight, included; filaments subulate, slightly dilated at the
base, but not winged; ripe capsules, indehiscent, red
fading to yellow in colour, five lines diameter and six lines
long.
Frankenia levis. Lake Torrens Plain; and stony ground,
Aroona Range.
Saponaria tubulosa. By water courses on Lake Torrens Plain;
stony hill slopes, Mount Parry.
Spergularia rubra. Lake Torrens Plain.
Portulaca oleracea. Sandy beds of creeks and Lake Torrens
Plain.
Claytonia Balonnensis. Sandhills, Lake Torrens Plain, under
shade of shrubs.
Claytonia polyandra. With the last.
Ptilotus incanus. Lake Torrens Plain and by Lake Weather-
stone.
Ptilotus exaltatus. Mount Parry Gap.
Euxolus Mitchelli. Dry channels of Mount Parry and Depot
Creeks.
Alternanthera triandra. Wet margins of Depot Creek.
Rhagodia spinescens. Dry beds of creeks.
Rhagodia parabolica. With the last.
Rhagodia nutans. Mount Parry Creek.
Chenopodium nitrariaceum. On the dry slopes of the Aroona
Range, this species has the form of a low intricate bush
with very small leaves and spinescent branches. Around
Lake Weatherstone, it is a bush about five feet high, with
the flowering branches very long, lateral, declinous and
spinescent.
Atriplex nummularium. Lake Weatherstone.
Atriplex velutinellum. Lake Weatherstone.
Atriplex Muelleri. Depot Creek.
Atriplex sp. Lake Weatherstone.
Atriplex leptocarpum. Mount Parry Gap.
Atriplex holocarpum. Kanyaka, Wonoka and northward.
Bassia Dallachyana. Mount Parry.
Bassia tricornis. Mount Parry.
Bassia uniflora. Lake Torrens and Mount Parry.
Bassia lanicuspis. Mount Parry.
Bassia biflora. Stony ground, Termination Hill.
103
Bassia paradoxa. Mount Parry.
Bassia quinquecuspis. Stony ground, Mount Parry.
Babbagia dipterocarpa. Sandy ground, Lake Torrens Plain.
Babbagia pentaptera. Stony ground, west flank of Mount
Parry.
Pee cceiiens Mount Parry Gap to Lake Torrens.
Kochia lanosa. Lake Weatherstone.
Kochia fimbriolata. Lake Weatherstone.
Kochia pyramidata. Rocky gullies, Mount Parry.
Kochia eriantha. Lake Weatherstone.
Kochia ciliata. Lake Weatherstone.
Kochia pentatropis, n. sp., aff. A. triptera. Limestone soil
between Mounts Parry and Playfair.
Aizoon quadrifidum. Sandhills, Lake Torrens Plain.
Aizoon zygophylloides. A prostrate annual, leaves thick,
fleshy. On calcareous loam between Mounts Parry and
Playfair.
Trianthema crystallina. Stony ground, Mount Parry.
Boerhaavia repanda. About bases of red gum-trees, dry bed of
Mount Parry Creek.
Crotalaria dissitiflora var. eremea. Lake Torrens Plain on
sandy ground.
Lotus australis var. Behrianus. Lake Torrens Plain.
Trigonella suavissima. Lake Weatherstone.
Psoralea eriantha. Sandhills at Idyaka by Termination Hill.
Swainsonia phacoides. Lake Torrens Plain.
Rhynchosia minima. Aroona Creek.
Cassia Sophera. Stony ground, Mount Parry.
Cassia desolata. Aroona Range.
Melaleuca glomerata. Beds of creeks in the Aroona Range ;
Leigh Creek.
Melaleuca parviflora. Aroona Mountain.
Eucalyptus oleosa. Eastern slope of Aroona Range.
Melothria Maderaspatana. Creek beds in the Aroona Range.
Pimelea microcephala. Creeks in the Aroona Range and by
watercourses Lake Torrens Plain.
Hakea sp., with foliage of H. purpurea, but with a different
inflorescence and fruit. Aroona Mountain and Mount
Parry.
Loranthus Exocarpi. Berry orange, turning to red and purple.
Aroona Creek.
Loranthus linearifolius. Berry white. Aroona and Mount
Parry Creeks.
Loranthus Murrayi. On Acacia aneura; sandy ground by
Termination Hill.
Loranthus Quandang. Berry green, with thick epicarp. On
Acacia aneura, Lake Torrens Plain.
104:
Santalum lanceolatum. Berries black. Mount Parry Gap and
to Lake Torrens.
Santalum acuminatum. Margin of creeks and wet ground,
Lake Torrens Plain. Pericarp red, succulent.
Santalum persicarium. Stony ground, Aroona Range. Peri-
carp yellow, rarely red, thin, bitter.
Oldenlandia tilleacea. Wet sandy ground, Lake Torrens
Plain.
Minuria denticulata. About all claypans, Lake Torrens Plain.
Minuria integerrima. Idyaka claypan, near Termination Hill—
the only known station in the district.
Pterocaulon sphacelatus. Mount Parry and Leigh Creek.
Calotis plumulifera. Lake Torrens Plain and west slopes of
Mount Parry.
Pterigeron liatroides. Gullies, Mount Parry.
Epaltes Cunninghamiul. Lake Weatherstone.
Centipeda thespidioides. Claypans, Lake Torrens Plain.
Myriocephalus Stuartii. Lake Torrens Plain.
Dimorphocoma minutula. West slopes of Mount Parry and
plain adjoining.
Calocephalus platycephalus. Lake Torrens Plain.
Cassinia levis. Aroona Mountain.
Millotia Greevesii. Margins of drainage channels, Lake
Torrens Plain.
Millotia Kempei. Idyaka sandhills by Termination Hill.
Helichrysum podolepideum. Limestone soil between Mounts
Parry and Playfair.
Helipterum polygalifolium. Hookina.
Helipterum microglossum. Mount Parry slopes and Lake
Torrens Plain.
Senecio Gregorii. Lake Torrens Plain.
Goodenia cycloptera. Sandhills, Lake Torrens Plain.
Goodenia glauca. Mount Parry.
Scevola spinescens. Mount Parry Gap. Leaves ¢ to 1 inch
long, peduncles nearly twice as long; drupe purple-
black.
Scevola humilis. Lake Torrens Plain.
Sarcostemma australe. Lake Torrens Plain. An erect shrub
3 to 4 feet high ; never twining.
Marsdenia Leichhardtiana. Twining to a considerable height,
chiefly on Casuarina glauca. Aroona Range.
Solanum ferocissimum. Shady places, Mount Parry Gap and
Depot Creek. Fruit small, globular, changing with age
from green to red and black.
Lycium australe. Mount Parry.
Datura Leichhardtii. Beds of creeks, Aroona Range.
Limosella Curdieana. Idyaka claypan by Termination Hill.
105
Justicia procumbens. Beds of creeks, Aroona Range. Peren-
nial and erect.
Heliotropium Curassavicum. Around waterholes, Aroona
Creek.
Echinospermum concavum. Creeks, Aroona Range and Lake
Torrens Plain.
Teucrium racemosum. Mount Parry Gap.
Myoporum montanum. Mount Parry Gap.
Eremophila oppositifolia. Flowers white or pale violet,
withering reddish-brown. Mount Parry and Aroona Creek.
Eremophila MacDonelli. A diffuse branching shrub of about
one foot high. Lake Torrens Plain.
Eremophila longifolia. Flowers red. Aroona Creek and by
watercourses Lake Torrens Plain.
Eremophila Freelingii. Flowers lavender. Aroona Ranges.
Eremophila Elderi. Mount Parry.
Eremophila Duttoniu. Flowers maroon. Mount Parry, Aroona
Creek.
Eremophila Latrobei. Mount Parry.
Eremophila maculata. Idyaka claypan, by Termination Hill.
Eremophila latifolia. Flowers green. Mount Parry and
Aroona Creek.
Wurmbea dioica. Perianth green or yellow. Lake Torrens
Plain.
Triglochin centrocarpa. Wet ground, Lake Torrens Plain.
Centrolepis aristata, var. pygmea. Idyaka, by Termination
Hill.
Cyperus exaltatus. Idyaka claypan.
Cyperus vaginatus. Aroona water.
Heleocharis acuta. Idyaka claypan.
Fimbristylis communis. Idyaka claypan.
Panicum reversum. Depot Creek.
Panicum decompositum. Depot Creek.
Panicum helopus. Depot Creek.
Eriochloa annulata. Wet ground, Lake Torrens Plain.
Setaria viridis. Depot Creek.
Lappago racemosus. Lake Torrens Plain and Depot Creek.
Spinifex paradoxus. Sandhills, Lake Torrens Plain.
Aristida stipoides. Mount Parry Gap.
Aristida arenaria. Lake Torrens Plain.
Aristida ramosa. Stony bed of Mount Parry Creek.
Aristida calycina. Stony hill slopes, Aroona Range.
Alopecurus geniculatus. Idyaka claypan.
Stipa scabra. Creeks and rocky places, Aroona Range.
Astrebla pectinata. Mount Parry Gap.
Trirhaphis mollis. Beds of creeks, Aroona Range.
Chloris acicularis. Beds of creeks, Aroona Range.
106
Chloris truncata. Mount Parry Gap.
Eleusine cruciata. Lake Torrens Plain.
Eragrostis leptocarpa. Lake Weatherstone, Depot Creek.
Eragrostis laniflora. Mount Parry Gap.
Eragrostis Brownii. Mount Parry Gap and Depot Creek.
Poa ramigera. Lake Weatherstone; claypans, Lake Torrens
Plain.
Festuca litoralis. Aroona Mountain.
Diplachne loliiformis. Wet depressions between sandhills of
Lake Torrens Plain and on slopes of Mount Parry.
Ophioglossum vulgatum. Lake Torrens Plain and by Lake
Weatherstone.
Grammitis rutefolia. Mount Parry and Aroona Mountain.
Cheilanthes vellea. Mount Parry and Aroona Mountain.
107
DIAGNOSES OF SOME NEW PLANTS FROM SOUTH
AUSTRALIA,
By Baron Srr F. von Muveuier, M.D., F.BS. &. and
Proressor Ratew Tate, F.G.S., F.LS. &e.
[Read August 7, 1883.]
Dimorphocoma.
Flower-head nearly bell-shaped. Bracts forming the in-
volucre nine or ten, herbaceous, in two rows, narrow-lanceolate.
Receptacle without special bracts. Flowers few. Corolla of
the outer flowers radiating with short and narrow ligules;
stamens none; style enclosed; stigmas exceedingly thin,
rather acute. Innermost flowers bisexual, very few in
number ; corolla tubular, with five short tooth-like lobes ;
anthers very short, rounded at the base; stigmas very thin,
papillular. Achenes of the anantherous flowers fertile,
obconic-oblong, densely silky; their pappus consisting of
numerous capillary bristles in several rows unequal in length,
and of five or six linear-lanceolate inner scales. Achenes of
the bisexual flowers exceedingly slender, glabrous ; their pappus
formed by a few very short bristles.
A minute annual of Central Australia, having much the
aspect of Vittadinia australis, with short hairs, with oblong- or
narrow-lanceolar leaves at the base and along the stem, with
terminal solitary small flower-heads almost sessile or on short
peduncles, and with whitish rays of the outer flowers.
The genus, thus defined, differs chiefly from Hlachanthus and
Isoetopsis in its anantherous flowers being ligulate, and in
having the pappus of the fertile fruits provided not only with
scales, but also with bristles ; from Isoetopsis it is furthermore
distinct in habit; from Minuria it is separated by its fewer
and broader involucral bracts, and by its anantherous flowers
producing a scaly as well as bristly pappus.
Dimorphocoma minutula.
On barren stony ground, forming the western slope of
Mount Parry, in the Aroona-Range, towards Lake Torrens.
R. Tate.
The specimens vary from one and a-half inch to four inches
high, beset with septate hairs. Stems one or two or few, erect
or ascending. Root very thin, attaining a length of three and
108
a half inches, producing scattered capillary fibres. Leaves flat,
a half to one inch long; the radical leaves somewhat shorter
and broader than the others, the uppermost narrower than the
rest. Flower-heads about one-fourth of an inch Jong. In-
volucral bracts nine or ten, the inner not much longer than the
outer. Anandrous flowers eight or nine; their ligular portion
white, hardly exceeding one line in length, undivided and acute.
Bisexual flowers three or four; their corolla yellow, only about
one-eighth of an inch long, gradually widening upwards. Fer-
tile achenes nearly one and a half line long, truncated at the
summit; their scales whitish and equal in length to the longer
bristles, which measure about one and a half line. Sterile
achenes with bristles of hardly one-fourth of their length.
In flower during the early part of June, but continuing to
September.
[Read October 2, 1883.]
Babbagia pentaptera.
A small undershrub, with diffuse procumbent branches and
numerous ascending branchlets ; leaves short, club-shaped or
linear semi-cylindrical, glabrous and succulent; flowering
calyces somewhat downy ; style very short ; stigmastwo; fruits
streaked along their exceedingly short tube, only slightly
excavated at the base, angular from five very spreading stiff
prominences, and provided with five deltoid wedge-shaped
vertical imperfectly denticulated wing-like membranes, yel-
lowish, tinged with pink; seeds very depressed.
On barren stony ground, on the western slope of Mount
Parry, in the Aroona Range. &. Tate.
This new Babbagia differs from its congener chiefly in
its fruit, the base of which is very much less protracted cylin-
drically, and the wing-like appendages being five in number,
almost dimidiated and at least slightly toothed. Through this
new plant a close connection is established between Babbagia
and Kochia, more particularly so, as K. dichoptera has besides
its horizontal fruit-membrane also five vertically-ascending
appendages. To some extent Babbagia approaches also Bassia
through B. salsuginosa, although the fruits are less hard and
five-winged.
Babbagia acroptera.
Leaves oblong-semicylindrical ; fruit-calyx above the tubular
base turgid, thence produced into two oblique-roundish or
broad-cuneate completely terminal and conspicuously stipitated
membranous appendages.
On loamy soils, from the slopes of the Aroona-Range to
Lake Torrens. R. Tate. Near Mount Murchison, Dr. Beckler ;
between Stokes Range and Cooper’s Creek, Howitt.
109
This plant seems specifically distinct from B. dipterocarpa
in the characteristics of its fruit, as the hollow base of the
aged calyx is not so wide, as the appendages are neither renate
nor half-ascending, stronger stipitated and gradually narrowed
at their lower portion; one of the two appendages is usually
not so well developed as the other. The peculiarities of this
new form, as here pointed out, do not depend on an imperfect
ripening of the fruit, as the seeds may be seen well matured.
In Sir Joseph Hooker’s “ Icones Plantarum,”’ xi. 62, pl. 1,078,
fruits of both species are illustrated, figure 5 representing that
of B. acroptera and figure 6 that of B. dipterocarpa. Both
plants occur in the vicinity of Mount Parry, though the latter
is somewhat local ; but what we have from the Finke River and
from Eyre Creek is solely B. dipterocarpa. An approach is
offered by B. acroptera to the section Osteoearpum of Bassia.
Loranthus Murrayi.
Glabrous; leaves alternate, semiterete, slender, veinless, not
exceeding two inches in length, somewhat attenuated at the
base ; flowers mostly solitary, sometimes in pairs, on flattened,
shortly winged pedicels of about half an inch long, without a
common peduncle; bract unequally bilobed, conspicuous,
decurrent on the pedicel; calyx-tube prominent, glaucous, its
border truncate and obscurely toothed; petals usually six,
about ten lines long, united to about the two-thirds of their
length into a slightly dilated tube; corolla-tube pale yellow ;
segments linear-lanceolate, yellow below, pale rose above;
stigma capitate; style and filaments brown, anthers adnate,
broadly linear; unripe fruit globular, glaucous.
Parasitic on Acacia aneura, on sandy ground at Idyaka, near
Termination Hill. MW. Murray and &. Tate.
This species was first brought to notice by Malcolm Murray,
Esq., whose kind hospitality and active promotion of the field
labours of one of us have been the means of introducing to
botanical science several new species; it is, therefore, with
very great pleasure that we dedicate to him this new
Loranthus.
L. Murrayi is closely related to L. lineartfolius differing,
however, in several minor particulars, and is separable from it
and from its congeners by the peculiarity of the pedicel.
CoRRIGENDUM.
Vol. v., pp. 80 and 87, for Trymalium Waye read Wayit.
110
ADDITIONS TO THE FLORA OF SOUTH
AUSTRALIA.
By Proressor Raten Tarte, F.G.S., F.L.S., &.
[Read October 2, 1883.]
The publication of Baron Sir F. von Mueller’s “Systematic
Census of Australian Plants, Part I., Vasculares,” has
brought to notice the occurrence of several plants hitherto
unrecorded for South Australia; for these Baron Mueller has
obligingly furnished localities. A few species included in the
subjoined catalogue had been omitted from my “Census of
South Australian Plants” because their claims to rank as
indigenous coustituents or as species, respectively, were at
that time not conclusively established. The rest of the
enumerated species are more recent accessions to the provincial
list, and their identifications have been made or approved by
Baron Mueller. The nomenclature herein used is adopted
from the “Systematic Census ;” from that work and manu-
script data supplied by Baron Mueller I have compiled the
following tables of comparative statistics :—
TasLe showing total number indigenous in Australia and in
each colony.
Dicotyledons. Monocotyledons. Acotyledons. Totals.
228
Australia .. ms 6,916 1,524 8,668
West Australia .. 2,847 537 17 3,401
South Australia .. 1,401 382 36 1,819
Tasmania ae 691 268 66 1,025
Victoria .. es 1,286 417 79 1,782
N. 8. Wales 4p 2,301 652 138 3,091
Queensland ey. 2,382 715 178 3,275
N. Australia $3 1,390 394 32 1,816
Total species restricted to each colony.
Dicotyledons. Monocotyledons. Acotyledons. Totals.
West Australia .. 2,203 345 0 2,548
South Australia .. 134 13 1 148
Tasmania sits 144 22 6 172
Victoria .. a3 44 6 0 50
N.S. Wales te 362 74 15 451
Queensland € 728 155 62 945
N. Australia at 590 113 3 706
The ratio of the Monocotyledons to the Dicotyledons is for
the whole flora 1 : 4°53, and is considerably greater than that
for these classes of the world’s vegetation ; this is attributable
111
to the high ratio for West Australia, which is 1:53. The
relative proportions of the species of the two classes is for
South Australia 1 : 3°7, for New New South Wales and North
Australia 1 : 35, and for Queensland 1: 3°3; falling to 1:3
for Victoria and 1 : 2°6 for Tasmania.
The Pepconaaes of peculiar species for each colony are :—
West Australia >t 74r SG
North Australia FOS ts te
Queensland _... ... 28°78
Tasmania peeemi 5 te
New South Wales x LESE
South Australia Piast hie ee
Victoria in sad ent An.
The schematic form of the ‘‘ Systematic Census”’ affords at
a glance the regional distribution of the species; and it will
not escape notice of the analytical reader that the initial
letters S.A. are wanting to bridge over a hiatus in the longi-
tudinal range of a few species. Thus there are 21 which are
common to extratropical parts of West Australia and corres-
ponding regions on the east side of continent, but are absent
from South Australia Of these, which are not maritime
species of intratropical origin, the following may be expected
to occur within the boundaries of our province :—
1. Species unrecorded for South Australia, though probably
inhabiting the more humid parts of the province :—Ranunculus
hirtus, Bossiea cordigera, Calocephalus angianthoides, Stypandra
glauca, Scirpus arenarius, Chorizandra eymbaria, Lsoetes Drum-
mondi and Phylloglossum Drummondit.
2. Species unrecorded for South Australia, though probably
inhabiting the arid regions of this province, towards the Tropic
of Capricorn :—Cassytha racemosa, Dodoneaadenophora, Psoralea
cinerea, Canavalia obtusifolia, Acacia ixiophylla, Xanthosia Atkin-
soniana, Lambertia formosa, Conospermum stechadis, Cucumis
trigonus, Lindernia (Vandellia) alsinoides, Lippia nodiflora,
Andr opogon contortus and A. Halepensis.
_ The following species recorded for South Australia in the
Systematic Census of Australian Plants are omitted, for the
present, by the advice of Baron Sir F. von Mueller, as their
occurrence within South Australian boundaries wants confirma-
tion :—Stenopetalum robustum, Hibiscus Huegelii, Securinega
Leucopyrus.
Hibbertia hirsuta, Bentham in Fl. Aust. I., 26. Sandy ground
by margin of alluvial flats in the valley of Meadows
Creek. ” Tepper and Tate.
Capparis lasiantha, R. Brown; I., 94. Cooper’s Creek.
Gregory.
112
Bergia perennis, F. v. M.; I., 181. Near the River Finke,
Central Australia. Rev. H. Kempe.
Beyeria uncinata, F. vy. M.; VI., 65. Murray Scrub near the
Great Bend. F. v. Mueller.
Phyllanthus rigens, J. Mueller; VI., 99. Aroona Range, Far
North. &. Tate.
Phyllanthus australis, J. Hooker; VI.,108. Kangaroo Island.
R. Tate.
Babbagia pentaptera, F. v. M. and Tate. Mount Parry,
Aroona Range. #. Jute.
Babbagia acroptera, F.v. M. and Tate. Lake Torrens Plain,
by Aroona Range.
Rhagodia Preissii, Moquin; V.,155. About the head of the
‘Great Australian Bight. ‘Eucla, Richards; between
Ooldea and Ooldabinna, Young ;” Mundayarra sand-patch,
east from Wilson Bluff. #. Tate. ‘“ Yorke Peninsula.
Salmon.” See Frag. Phyt. xii., 15.
Emex australis, Steinheil; V., 262. Near Adelaide and Hold-
fast Bay. #. v. M. in Fl. Austral.
Herniaria incana, Lamarck. Moist sandy ground ty the
Murray River, near Blanchetown, and at Aroona Water,
Far North. R. Tate.
This species “has, as an indigenous plant, a wide range
through the countries around the Mediterranean area,
and has found its way also to South Africa. If it was
a native with you, I should think we must have traced
it like Cressa cretica, and some other Mediterranean
plants, across from N.W. Australia. Nothing would be
easier than the introduction of such a weed by emballage.”
—F. von Mueller zn litteris. The genus is unrepresented
in the Australian Flora, and to me it is difficult, in view
of its environments and stations, to account for its in-
troduction.
Aischymomene indica, Linné; II., 27. Charlotte Waters,
Central Australia. C. Giles.
Tephrosia spherospora, F. v. M. in “‘ Southern Science Record,”
May, 1888. Near the River Finke, Central Australia.
Rev. H. Kempe.
Acacia Peuce, F. v. M.; II.,323. N. of Wills Creek. Howitt’s
Exped. in F1. Austral.
Acacia cochlearis, Wendland; II,, 324. Port Lincoln. Fide
Ff, o. MM.
Acacia aspera, Lindley; II., 347. Murray River. Fide
mA
Acacia pyrifolia, DeCandolle; II., 376. Finke River. Rev.
H. Kempe.
113
Acacia pravifolia, F. v. M.; Frag. Phyt.,I.,4. Crystal Brook,
Flinders and Elder Ranges. FF. v. M.
Acacia trineura, F. v. M.; II, 381. Murray River. Fide
Ws MM.
Acacia cyclops, Cunningham ; II., 388. Near Eucla. Oliver.
Acacia doratoxylon, Cunningham; II., 403. Near Cooper’s
Creek. Fide F. v. WM.
Eucalyptus amygdalina, Labillardiere; TII., 202. Nangwarry
Forest and Tarpeena. J. #. Brown and R. Tate.
Hydrocotyle tripartita, R. Brown; III., 341. Kangaroo
Island. &. Tate.
Loranthus Murrayi, F. v. M. and R. Tate; Trans. Roy. Soc., 8.
Aust., vol. vi. Idyaka near Termination Hill in the
Aroona Range. J. Murray and BR. Tate.
Brachycome melanocarpa, Sonder and F. v. M.; III., 511.
River Murray. Ff v. i.
Aster exiguifolius, F. v. M.; III., 478. Bunda Cliffs, Great
Australian Bight, R. Tate, 2--79; Fowler’s Bay; Mrs.
Annie Richards, 10-’80.
Epaltes Tatei, F. v. M., Trans. Roy. Soc. 8. Aust., 1883. Hast
side of Lake Alexandrina, &. Tate; vicinity of Spencer
Gulf, F. von Mueller.
Eriochlamys Knappi, F. v. M.; ‘‘ Melbourne Chemist,” May,
1888. Near the River Finke, Central Australia. ev.
H. Kempe.
Calocephalus Drummondii, Bentham; III., 574. Port Lincoln.
S. Dixon. The Gnephosis skirrophora in the geographic
columns ¢ and d in Census of S. Aust. Plants belongs
here—Ardrossan. Tepper. Scrub-lands at Inkermann,
Munno Parra, and at Highbury; stony hill slopes, Fifth
Creek, near Adelaide; and scrub-lands at east side of
Lake Alexandrina. WR. Tute.
Achnophora Tatei, F. v. M.; Trans. Roy. Soc. 8. Aust., 1883.
Kangaroo Island. 2. Tate.
Dimorphocoma minutula, F. v. M. and Tate; Trans. Roy. Soc.
S. Aust., 1888. Mount Parry, Aroona Range. A&. Tate.
Senecio spathulatus, A. Richard ; IIT.,665. MacDonnell Bay.
Ero.
Senecio australis, A. Richard; III., 668. Near the Glenelg
River, Ff. v. i.
Lobelia platyealyx, F. v. M.; IV., 133. Kangaroo Island. #&.
Tate.
Goodenia elongata, Labillardiere ; IV., 74. Near the Glenelg
River. F. v. i.
Samolus platyphyllus, F. v. M., in “Systematic Census,” p. 91.
Finke River. Rev. H. Kempe.
H
‘114
Mitrasacme pilosa, Labillardiere; IV., 353. Mount Burr
Range. &. Tate.
Mitrasacme distylis, F. v. M.; IV.,359. Clarendon. O. Tepper.
Solanum nigrum, Linné; IV., 446. Mount Lofty, # v. IL;
Kangaroo Island, Waterhouse, Tate; cultivated grounds
in the South-East, Rev. J. EL. T. Woods; waste places about
Adelaide, Mannum and other stations on the River
Murray; Ediowie, Far North, R. Tate; Ardrossan, Tepper.
Thelymitra Mackibbinii, F.v. M.; “Melbourne Chemist,” 1881.
T. rubra, Fitzgerald, in “ Gardeners’ Chonicle,” 1882, which
was instituted on South Australian specimens, is referred
to the above by Baron F. von Mueller (vide “Southern
Science Record,” June, 1882). Sandy scrub-lands at
Highbury near Adelaide, and Tintaro, Maclaren Vale;
stony ground on the higher parts of the Mount Lofty
Range. R. Tate. Yallum, near Penola (Miss Allen!).
Diuris punctata, Smith; VI., 326. Near the Glenelg River.
Prasophyllum australe, R. Brown; VI., 337. Near the Glenelg
River. fF. vo.
Damasonium australe, Salisbury; VII., 186. Near Strath-
albyn. iv. I, 4-48. Marshes by River Murray at
Mannum. Af. Tate.
Juncus homalocaulis, F. v. M.; VII., 128. Near the Glenelg
River. F. v. M. (1857).
Restio complanatus, R. Brown; VI., 228. Near the Glenelg
River. Fv. i.
Kyllinga intermedia, R. Brown; VII., 251. River Torrens.
F. v. M., in 1848.
Heleocharis acicularis, R. Brown; VII., 297. River Murray.
FP. v. M.
Fimbristylis ferruginea, Vahl; VII, 312. River Finke,
Central Australia. Rev. H. Kempe.
Fimbristylis Neilsoni, F. v. M.; VII., 320. Near the Darling
River. Teste & v. AL.
Scheenus aphyllus, Boeckler; VII., 8361. River Murray near
the Great Bend. FF. v. I.
Schenus deformis, Poiret; VII., 364. Memory Cove, Port
Lincoln. &. Brown, in Fl. Austral.
Schenus capillaris, F.v. M.; VIL, 377. Near the Glenelg
River. Fv. DL.
Schenus spherocephalus, Poiret; VII., 380. Mount Burr
Range. &. Tate.
Lepidosperma exaltatum, R. Brown; VII., 389. Near the
~ Glenelg River. Robertson and F. v. I.
Lepidosperma longitudinale, Labill.; VII., 389. Near the
Glenelg River. F vo. I.
115
Lepidosperma globosum, Labill.; VII., 394. Near the Glenelg
River. F. v. W.
Cladium Radula, R. Brown; VII., 417. Mount Burr Range.
R. Tate.
Panicum Crus-Galli, Linné ; VII., 479. Near Hahndorf (pro-
bably mtroduced). #. v. WZ. Reedbeds near Adelaide.
ti. Tate. -.
Panicum Mitchelli, Bentham; VII., 489. Cooper’s Creek.
Howitt’s Exped. (F 1. Austral.)
Andropogon exaltatus, R. Brown; VII., 532. R. Torrens,
Crystal Brook, Flinders Range, F. v. I.; and Lake Eyre,
Andrews (Fl. Austral.). Aroona Range and Lake Torrens
Blam. #. Tate:
Stipa teretifolia, Steudel ; VII., 567. On rocks at high water-
mark, north coast of Dudley Peninsula, Kangaroo Island. -
R. Tate.
Alopecurus geniculatus, Linné; VII., 555. Spencer and St.
Vincent Gulfs to the River Murray, F. v. IZ, in FI.
Austral. Near Penola, Rev. T. Woods. Claypans on Lake
Torrens Plain, by Aroona Range, R. Tate.
Poa Billardieri, Steudel; VII., 651. Near the Glenelg River.
2 a a)
Festuca duriuscula, Linné; VII., 663. Flinders and Barossa
Ranges. F. v. ., in Fl. Austral.
Eragrostis eriopoda, Bentham; VII., 648. Towards the
Darling River. Teste F. v. IL
Lycopodium Carolinianum, Linné; VII., 675. Bogs about
Mounts Compass and Jagged. 2. Tate.
Botrychium ternatum, Swartz; VII., 690. Kangarilla near
Clarendon. O. Tepper.
Pteris arguta, Aiton (P. tremula, R. Br.) ; VIL, 731. Rocky
waterhole five miles back from Streaky Bay. fs. A.
Richards. Limestone cave about eight miles from Penola
on the road to Millicent and near Glencoe. R&R. Tate.
116
THE BOTANY OF KANGAROO ISLAND,
Prefaced by a Historical Sketch of its Discovery and Settlement,
and by Notes on its Geology,
By Proressor Ratpu Tare, F.G-.S., F.L.8. &e.
[Read August 7, and September 4, 1883.]
INTRODUCTION.
The large size of Kangaroo Island suggests the question,
has it that amount of geographical independence which suffices
to produce a flora and fauna different from those of the main-
land? In other words, are its floral and faunal constituents
distinct from the inhabitants of the adjacent continent ? With
the exception of the flora little has been done to elucidate the
natural history of the island, though some of its animal
species are diagnostically known, yet [ am not aware if any
other than a few conspicuous species have been recorded from
the mainland; at any rate, no systematic comparison has been
undertaken. In respect to its flora the case is different, as
also that of the continent; botanical records have been more
systematic, and in consequence the botanical geography of
Australia is very far in advance of its zoological geography.
Formerly, authors were content to speak of animal objects as
coming from New Holland or Australia; and even now when
localities are given, it not infrequently happens that they are
widely inaccurate, so that it is, at the present time, hardly
possible to elaborate zoological provinces, or to bring into
co-ordination animal colonies with well-defined climatological
and botanical features.
Iam sorry to say that no help can be obtained from the
South Australian Museum in working out the question, has
Kangaroo Island any peculiar species of animals? And the
Herbarium of our Phytologic Museum is similarly valueless as
concerns botanical information.
It may be mentioned incidentally, that there does not exist
any connected account of the zoology of the island as resulting
from the observations or collections made by Mr. Waterhouse,
who spent there some months of the year 1861, in making col-
lections by command of the South Australian Government.
Some longicorn beetles would seem, however, to have fallen
117
into the hands of Mr. Pascoe*, who described two species.
Peron} made large collections during a month’s stay at the
island, and has given us a general view of its animal inhabitants,
both of sea and land. A few of the insects are described by
Boisduval; some reptiles by Gray and Dumeril; and the marine
shells by Lamarck in his “‘ Animaux sans Vertebrés.”’
Historica SKETCH OF THE DISCOVERY AND OF THE PROGRESS
OF OccCUPATION OF THE ISLAND.
Kangaroo Island was discovered by Flinderst during his
survey of the southern shores of the continent. Coming from
the westward, he sighted the north coast of the island on
March 21, 1802; made for the most northern promontory,
which he named Port Marsden, and anchored off Kangaroo
Head. The next day a party of the ship’s company landed to
procure a supply of fresh meat, which was abundantly furnished
by numerous kangaroos, and “in gratitude for so seasonable a
supply, I named this southern land Kanguroo (sie) Island.’’ The
ship remained at its anchorage until March 24, but returned
April 1. On this second visit a party explored Pelican Lagoon,
and traversed the narrow isthmus which connects Dudley
Peninsula with the main mass of the island. Flinders says very
little about the natural features, but references will be made
in their proper connection. A final leave was taken on April
6, and on the 8th of the same month Flinders met his rival,
Captain Baudin, commanding the French corvette Le Geo-
graphe, in Lacépéde: Bay, and communicated to him, among
other discoveries, that of Kangaroo Island.
The island, which was sighted by Baudin on April 9, was
named by him Decrés Island. On this voyage, it would appear,
that he only skirted the north coast, on his way through In-
vestigator’s Straits to the Great Australian Bight; as the
author§ of the narrative of the expedition writes :—“ The
geography of Decrés Island was not complete—gulfs not ex-
plored. A second campaign to this region was then still indis-
pensable”’ (loe. cit., I., p. 332).
On January 2, 1803, Baudin commenced the circumnaviga-
tion of the island, starting from Cape Willoughby, its eastern
extremity, by the south coast, naming the capes and bays—
most of which are still known by their original names—and on
January 6 anchored in Nepean Bay, off Kingscote. Here a
* “ Journal of Entomology,” II., 1863.
T ‘* Voyage de Decouvertes aux Terres Australes,” vol. ii., pp. 76-83.
{ “A Voyage to Terra Australis,” 1814.
§ F. Peron, ‘‘ Voyage de Decouvertes aux Terres Australes, sur les Cor-
vettes le Geographe et la Naturaliste, 1800-4.” Vol. i., 1807; vol. ii., 1816.
118
portion of the expedition remained nearly a month, and the
members of the scientific staff occupied themselves in investi-
gating the natural productions, though it is evident that no
attempt was made to penetrate beyond the immediate vicinity
of the shore line, else Cygnet River would most certainly have
been discovered. Peron remarks, that this island appeared
almost entirely wanting in fresh water, and it was only near
to the close of the cireumnavigation that water was obtained
by digging wells at the east side of Hog Bay, which circum-
stance 1s recorded on the surface of a slab of mica slate, which
also marks the site of a well. The inscription was imperfectly
legible when I saw it in 1878.
Peron’s account of the natural history and physical features
of the island is not only graphic, but rich in details, and occu-
pies many pages of his second volume. It remains to this day
the only published general description of the island.
Flinders and Peron have each remarked on the absence of
any trace of man’s sojourn on the island.
After Baudin, the next visitor to the island was. Captain
Sutherland, who published in 1819 “glowing and exaggerated
accounts of it.” So writes John Stephens (“ History of the
Rise and Progress of South Australia,” p. 26; 1839).
The first extensive settlement was by the South Australian
Company, who had selected 300 acres for their establishment,
and by virtue of which they leased 5,120 acres of pasturage.
The Company contemplated the salting and curing of beef and
pork, and the pursuit of whale, seal, and other fisheries. They
fixed a station at Kingscote for the re-victualling and re-fitting
of their ships, and worked a farm on the Cygnet River, nine
miles off. During 1836 and 1837 several ships discharged the
Company’s servants and emigrants at Kingscote; but the great
bulk of the emigrants shortly afterwards proceeded to Adelaide,
leaving some of the Company’s people to retain a settlement
on the island. (Abridged from Stephens’s “History of South
Australia,’ 1839.) .
Settlement on a small scale had, however, taken place many
years before by sealers and runaway sailors, who cultivated a
little wheat, potatoes, turnips &c., but subsisted largely by
sealing and kangaroo hunting—the skins being sold or ex-
changed to whalers. One settler on the Cygnet River had
been there since 1824; a party had settled at Western River
‘ about 1827, and resided there several years; and another at
American River prior to 1836.. These primitive settlers had
living with them a few aboriginals, whom they had induced to
follow them from the main.
According to the testimony of Inspector Tolmer (see his
“ Reminiscences,” &c., 1882), Kangaroo Island, in the year
119
1844, was an asylum for the offscourings of Australian society,
including escaped convicts and deserters, with whom were
aboriginal women from Tasmania, Port Lincoln and Cape
Jervis, earning a precarious livelihood by hunting and a little
cultivation. From the same author we gather that in 1844
there were residents at Hog Bay, Point Morrison and Ante-
chamber Bay, in addition to those previously mentioned.
The first pastoral leases were granted in 1851, and comprised
twelve square miles at Cygnet River and six at Smith’s Bay.
Since this date nearly the whole island has gradually been
brought into use for sheepfarming ona small scale; but it was
not till 1882-3 that any large importation of sheep took place,
when Messrs. Taylor & Co. stocked their runs in the south-
western parts of the island with sheep brought from the Mount
Gambier district.
The first land sales were made 15 years after the foundation
of the settlement at Kingscote, and purchases of small blocks
averaging 100 acres continued io be made for the next 20
ears.
: At and near Kingscote 468 acres were purchased during
the years 1851-8; at Cygnet River, 1,087 acres during 1851-71;
at Shoal Point, 127 acres during 1855-58; about Hog Bay,
1,068 acres during 1857 to 1863.
By proclamation 13th August, 1874, the Hundred of Dudley,
comprising 21,975 acres, was offered for selection, and the first
selection was taken out September 19, 1876. On April 11,
1878, the Hundred of Menzies was proclaimed, and 37,302
acres offered for selection, and the first sales were made
January 24, 1882. On May 10, 1883, the Hundred of Haines,
embracing the south shore of Nepean Bay, was proclaimed,
but the land has not yet been offered for sale.
SURFACE FEATURES.
‘Of all islands belonging to the Australian system, Kangaroo
Island is the second in point of size; it is of an oblong
shape, attenuated in its eastern third into the Peninsula of
Dudley ; the longer diameter, which is nearly due east and
west, is 90 miles; the breadth of the main mass is about 25
miles, and of the peninsular portion ten miles; and its cir-
cumference is not less than 300 miles. Its area is about 1,500
square miles.
Kangaroo Island bridles the deep indentation of the main
known as St. Vincent Gulf, and is separated from the Cape
Jervis Promontory by Backstairs Passage, which is eight miles
wide at its narrowest part; the other entrance to St. Vincent
Gulf is Investigator’s Straits, which is 28 miles broad at the
narrowest part between Cape Spencer, on Yorke Peninsula..
120
The whole of the south side is exposed without protection to
the impetuous waves of the vast Southern Ocean.
In regard to the surface features the only author who has
occupied himself with them is Peron, and as his observations in
relation to the littoral tracts are the most extensive, I reproduce
them here. He says Kangaroo Island “does not present, despite
its great extent, any form of mountains properly so-called ; the
entire framework of the country is composed of hills more or
less elevated, but of which the summits are nearly everywhere
regular and uniform. All the length of the south coast its
cliffs are developed upon a single plan from 200 to 300 feet
high, sloping inland, but presenting to the sea a perpendicular
front surrounding it as a rampart. Their colours are sombre,
and vary from grey to brown, or even blackish; where least so
they are of a yellowish ochre or more or less dirty. From Cape
Bedout to the Ravine des Casoars the rocks present the same
appearance as those on the south coast, but are higher; and
though they are deprived of all kinds of trees, yet the interior
cliffs are seen to be wooded. The north coast is arid and
naked as that of the south, and exhibits everywhere a similar
constitution. The shores of Bougainville [Nepean] Bay are
formed of low cliffs, but the verdure which covers them and the
forests which grow on the heights give to this part a more
pleasing and agreeable aspect. Such appears to the eyes of
the circumnavigator the greatest island of New Holland;
however, the view pictured with rigorous exactitude for its
shores might have doubtlessly become more interesting and
more varied had it been possible to penetrate into the interior
of the country.”
The picture drawn by Peron is not at all exaggerated, and
the interior is alike marked by uniformity of a rather cheerless
type. The country is undulating, not at all rangy; the
northern half is elevated, rising from the coast in bold cliffs;
the southern half gradually sinks to near sea level, but is
margined by hills of consolidated sand-dunes, which rise to
considerable elevation—Mount Bloomfield and Mount Mary,
at Vivonne Bay, are respectively 272 and 224 feet.
The chief watershed is nearly longitudinal and supra-medial
—commencing near Cape Borda, and with a slight southerly
curve, changing to north, to terminate in the sea cliffs from
Point Morrison to American River. It is continued into
Dudley Peninsula, which it traverses in a medial direction.
The aspect of this elevated ground is of the most modest type,
and is apparently of about the same altitude throughout, pro-
bably nowhere exceeding a thousand feet.
To the north of the main watershed there is a minor one,
which follows the trend of the coast from Kingscote to Cape
121
Borda. Part of it, called the Freestone Range, is by contrast
with the rest of the island bold and picturesque, and is clothed
with timber. Mount McDonnell‘is 984 feet elevation ; from
this point the general elevation falls to the westward, though
the heights by the sea coast still maintain considerable altitude,
such as between Middle and Western Rivers at 658, Cape
Forbin 560, Cape Borda 506. Between the two watersheds
there intervenes the valley of the Cygnet River, which, after a
course of 40 miles, enters Nepean Bay. It has its source in
several large lagoons. Excepting the Stun’sail-boom and rivers
to the westward of it, none of the watercourses on Kangaroo
Island are perennial.
; GEOLOGY.
From personal observation, I classify the rocks as indicated
by the subjoined table :-—
TERTIARY.
. Recent sand-dunes. Lacustrine deposits.
. Pleistocene. Calciferous sand-rock of the south coast and
marine beds.
. Pliocene. Pluvial drifts.
. Miocene. Bryozoal limestone of Roll’s Point.
PALZOZOIC.
. Diorite and intrusive granite.
. Pre-silurian schists and associated strata.
Peron had notified the presence of No. 6, No. 4, No. 1 and
No. 2, about which last he devotes several pages to the con-
sideration of its origin, and that of the petrified remains
entombed in it.
Mr. Brough Smyth, in his Geological Map of Australia, 1875,
colours Kangaroo Island to represent Tertiary, except the
eastern half of Dudley Penmsula, which is shown as Silurian.
I know not whence he derived his information, but, like that
for much of our province, it is very erroneous. Had Peron been
consulted, such adverse criticism would have been uncalled for.
Pre-Sinue1an Scuists.—As correctly observed by Peron,
Kangaroo Island “is composed essentially of different kinds of
primitive schists, between which are found some veins of opaque
quartz. All the eastern part of Bougainville Bay | Nepean
Bay] is principally composed of a red and very hard ferrugin-
ous sandstone ; it is to this singular rock that Kangaroo Head,
Cape Geographe, Red Cape and Vendome Cape owe the reddish
and sombre tint which distinguishes them from afar. A primi-
tive sandstone, quartzose and very compact, forms some parts
of the coast."’ The prevailing rock is a mica schist, which is
displayed in magnificent sections along the north coast of
He» Oo Noe
GO 1
122
Dudley Peninsula, about American River, Point Morrison,
Bay of Shoals, and to the westward along the north coast.
From Cape Willoughby to Antechamber Bay, it is associated
with gneiss and [metamorphic? | granite ; and the almost vertical
stratification is rendered visible at the distance of some miles
by the alternation of the diversified coloured massive beds.
The prevailing dip of the strata on the north-west coast of
Dudley Peninsula is south-east, and the same direction is
observable in the micaceous beds of the gorge of the Hog Bay
River.
At Christmas Cove and extending westward towards Kan-
garoo Head along the shore-line, there are intercalated bands of
angular and subangular pebbles, chiefly of quartzite, and in the
ageregate of many feet in thickness; the pebbles varying in
size from six inches in diameter to small gravel, and their
bedding planes are coincident with the plane of foliation.
These rocks are comparable with those constituting the Cape
Jervis Promontory, though no crystalline lmestones are here
developed, and are doubtlessly coeval with them. Mica slate
constitutes the bold inland cliffs on the Hog Bay River, about
two miles from its mouth; and it also forms the base of an
unnamed cape, three miles to the west of the mouth of that river.
Most of the headlands on the south and west coasts are com-
posed of, or are based upon, granite, but whether of metamor-
phic or intrusive origin cannot definitely be ascertained; yet
the presumptive opinion is that it forms part of the metamor-
phic series. Such formation constitutes Cape Willoughby,
Cape Gantheaume, Pelorus Islet, Cape Du Couedic, Cape
Borda, &c. Inland the exposures of mica slate are not frequent,
because of the widespread covering of superficial detritus,
derived from the mica slate and associated micaceous sand-
stones, more or less in place. However, they are sufficiently
numerous to place beyond doubt that the greater part of the
island is constituted of this rock. Among the more extensive
outcrops may be mentioned those near Birchmore’s and White
Lagoons, the ridge separating the latter from Murray’s Lagoon,
and the beds of the Harriet and Stun’sail-boom Rivers.
Ienrovs Rocxs.—A white granite, apparently intrusive, is
quarried near Karatta, on the Stun’sail-boom River. A diorite
seems largely to have determined the direction of the elevated
ground known as Freestone Hill Range.
Miocene.—Forming a low mural cliff at Roll’s Point,
Kingscote, is a bryozoal limestone, similar in structure and of
the same age as that of the cliffs about Oyster Bay, Yorke
Peninsula. Among the common fossils, proper to this particular
formation of this period, Echinolampas Gambierensis is note-
worthy. The deposit is continued along the shore for about a
123
mile south of Roll’s Point, and inland is traceable over a
limited area by the presence of a white travertine lmestone
crust, chemically deposited from the underlying organic lime-
stone. Both these formations are evidently referred to by
Peron in the following passage:—“ At many points of Bougain-
ville Bay there occur two kinds of calcareous rocks; the one
harder in the grain, of a more homogenous nature, approaching
in nature some sandstones; the other more like chalk. These
calcareous stones are ordinarily superposed upon the schistose
rocks, as well as upon the primitive sandstone; they may be
seen at 50 or 60 feet above sea level, and at this elevation con-
tain a great quantity of detritus and debris of petrified shells.”
PriocENE Drirr.—In the small bight on the west side of
Roll’s Point, Kingscote, there may be seen resting against, and
partially overlying the Miocene limestone, red loams and _
mottied clays, which have been shed from the metamorphic
rocks constituting the elevated ground which terminates sea-
ward at Kingscote Point. Similar beds are exposed on the
western flank of the same ridge, along the east shore of the
Bay of Shoals. But the most extensive section is that pre-
sented by the sea-cliffs, called ‘‘Red-banks” from the prevail-
ing colour of the formation, which has a depth above sea level
of about 100 feet. At this place we have evidently the remnant
of an extensive plain constituted of the residuum of disinte-
grated rocks and of the diluvium brought down by surface
drainage from the rocks forming the high lands to the east and
south. Similarly the valley of the lower part of the Cygnet
River is composed of loams, varying from clayey to sandy, as
is shown in the deep banks confining the river and by the cha-
racter of the soil. This formation is destined to play an im-
portant part in the réle of the future agricultural history of
the island, as it has done already in a slight measure. It
affords the only soil of value, and I am sorry to have to say
that its superficial area is comparatively small. On the map
are indicated the chief Pliocene basins. One other claims
special reference, it is that resting on the north flank of the
Freestone Range, which owes its more argillaceous character to
the disintegration of the diorite which forms the axis of that
elevated track. The Pliocene Drift of Kangaroo Island is
judged, by its mode of occurrence and by its lithological cha-
racter, to be of pluvial origin—certainly not aerial as is the
“loess” of some parts of this colony; and the absence of
organic remains favours this assumption. Excepting in this
last particular, it so much resembles the “drift” of the Ade-
laide Plain, and of others similarly constituted, that it may be
relegated to the same period of time.
PLEISTOCcENE.—Much of the littoral tracts about Western
124
Cove, Nepean Bay, are covered with recent marine deposits in
the form of a succession of shell-banks, the most inland being
about one mile from the present shore, and not less than about
twenty feet above sea level. Around the head of the Bay of
Shoals and about Pelican Lagoon the same phenomena are ob-
servable. The whole of the southern coast-line is encumbered
with cliffs of calcareous sand-rock and recent sand-dunes, and
in these respects is similar to other parts of South Australian
shores washed by the Southern Ocean, as I have described
with some detail in “Trans. Roy. Soc. 8S. Aust.,”’ vol. IL., pp.
67 and 113. The cliffs of calciferous sandrock attain to
elevations of 100 to 150 feet or more, and are not infrequently
crowned by blown sand. Mounts Mary and Bloomfield,
Vivonne Bay, are of this character, and are respectively 272
and 224 feet high. By chemical metamorphism, the upper
layers of the sandrock are more firmly consolidated, and by
natural fracture—probably through failure of support—become
broken up into rectangular masses, usually of large dimen-
sions, which prove most serious obstacles to horse-travel. From
Mount Prospect to Cape Willoughby, nearly the whole way is
encumbered by this kind of material. Peron investigated
closely the nature and origin of this calciferous sandstone, and
fully recognised its relationship to the sand of the dunes. I
will, therefore, reproduce his most pertinent remarks :—‘ The
sand of the shore is very fine, of a quartzose nature, mixed
with about one-fifth part of finely comminuted calcareous
matter. It is driven from the sea margin by the winds upon a
great part of the shore into dunes 60 to 80 feet high.”
“Tt is in the midst of this caleareous sandstone that trees
are entombed, nay, even some entire portions of petrified
forests. In many places, where the dunes are perpendicular,
there may be distinguished perfectly the trunks of trees with
their branches, and on the level surface they appear like
broad mosaics. If these trunks are carefully examined, the
several layers of ligneous tissue are discernible.’ Similar
phenomena are stated by Peron to occur at Josephine Islands
[Nuyt’s Archipelago] and on the adjacent mainland, at
Esperance Bay, at Leuwin &c., indeed “ throughout a space of
25° of latitude and upon as wide extent of longitude the same
' appearances are reproduced on the south, west, and north-west
of New Holland.” Flinders describes the same phenomena as
observed by him at Bald Hill, King George’s Sound, but
attributed them to coral reefs. And it has usually been con-
sidered that Darwin was the first to present a true explanation
of their nature and origin. Nevertheless, in this he was
anticipated by Peron, who 40 years earlier advanced the same
explanations, though with less chemical exactitude. He says :—
125
“So varied, so imposing as these phenomena are, yet they
appear to me referrable to the same cause—a cause as simple
as itis energetic. In effect, the numerous minute shells which
multiply in these seas, and thrown up by millions upon the
shore, are subject to the twofold influence of an ardent sun
and a penetrating humidity. In losing a portion more or less
of their carbonic acid, they tend to approach to the state of
lime. This calcareous debris, pulverized by the action of the
waves, becomes mixed with the sand on the shore, and forms
with it a veritable calcareo-quartzose cement. This material
encrusts the various substances which are found on the shore—
shells, zoophytes, seaweeds, pebbles, all are agglutinated by it.
Transported by the winds this active matter is deposited upon
the neighbouring bushes—at first as a thin layer, later as a
solidified mass embracing the stem; after this, the function of
nutrition is impaired, the plant languishes, and while still
living isin process of becoming petrified. On breaking the
branches of these kinds of lithophytes there is to be seen, if
the inerustation is recent, the ligneous tissue enveloped in a
solid case but without any remarkable alteration ; but as the
calcareous envelope augments, the wood is disorganised, and is
insensibly changed into a dry and blackish debris; then the
interior of the tube preserves a diameter nearly equal to that
of the branch which has served it for a mould; finally the tube
becomes filled with quartzose and calcareous particles, and
after the lapse of some years all is converted into a solid mass
of sandstone. I have frequently referred to those enormous
sand-dunes, which are raised like ramparts around the isles of
New Holland, and at various points on the mainland. They
exceed sometimes in height that of the tallest trees, and are
composed of a sand like that of the shore, susceptible as it is
of solidification, often the rock which supports them is of the
same origin. On the inner slope of these moving hills, there
grow various species of shrubs; in such a position, sand driven
by the winds, or washed by the rain, accumulates at the foot of
the trees and insensibly overwhelms them. Then after long
periods of years have elapsed, the vegetable tissue in the trunk
is altered, after the same manner we have seen it destroy the
branch ; the substance of the ligneous layers, being much more
solid than that which occupies the intervals, is decomposed
less rapidly than the Jatter; hence the concentric circles, which
give to these extraordinary incrustations the appearance of
true fossils, but on close observation it is easy to convince
oneself, that these apparently petrified trees are nothing else
than masses of more or less hard sandstone, which preserves
only the vegetable form which had served it for a mould.”
That elevation of the land has taken place during the exist
126
ence of living marine forms is incontestable, and the evidences
are in accord with those furnished by other localities on the south
coast of this colony (see Trans. Roy. Soc., vol. II., p. lxvii.)
Dudley Peninsula is at the present time joined to the main
mass of the island by an isthmus, which at its narrowest is three-
- fourths of a mile wide. The connecting land is low; on the ocean
side the pleistocene sand-rock forms a perpendicular cliff of
about 40 feet high; from the summit of the cliff the surface of
the ground slopes gradually inland till the shell-banks at a
few hundred yards from the shore at the Head of American
River are reached. These shell-banks have an elevation of
from ten to fifteen feet above sea level. It has been alleged
that the coast about American River is rising, but I am not
satisfied on this point. From personal observation, I have
no doubt that Pelican Lagoon is fast silting up, and it is highly
probable that the appearances consequent thereon have given
rise to the supposition that elevatory action has taken place
within the last quarter of a century. The fact that Dudley
Peninsula has recently been joined to the other part of Kan-
garoo Island may have some significance when we come to con-
sider the origin of the flora and fauna of the island as it now is.
SUPERFICIAL ACCUMULATIONS AND SOILS.
On the main portion of the island, excepting the north coast,
the exposures of the subter rock are rare, as it is concealed by
superficial debris in the form of sand, or gravelly ironstone, or
clays. The nature of the superficial detritus depends on the
nature of the subjacent rock and on relative elevation. Sands
largely prevail, and seem to have originated, as far as the
limited exposures will allow of generalization, from quartzose-
sandstones. Over the micaceous slaty beds ironstone gravels
occur on the higher ground, sand on the lower slopes,
whilst the basin-like depressions are levelled up with clay,
more or less calcareous in proportion to the amount of con-
tained shelly debris. In most instances the margin of the
inundated ground is fringed by a sheet of calcareous travertine
of several inches thick, derived from, and including debris of,
the shells of living species of Bulinus. Not always is the
mollusk lving over the same area, inasmuch as through lapse
of time the waters have acquired a too saline property for its
existence. The large sheet of water called Murray’s Lagoon
is in this state ; whilst its former extension and comparative
freshness of its water are indicated by the considerable area
above present water level covered by a white chalky clay teem-
ing with the shells of a species of that freshwater water-snail.
All the above described surface deposits are of local origin,
and are, either from their mechanical properties or from abso-
127
lute sterility, unfit for agriculture. The very large area covered
by these deposits has led hasty observers to condemn the whole
island for agricultural purposes. Opinions on this head have
been very conflicting. Flinders says:—“ The soil of that part
of Kanguroo Island [Kahgaroo Head] examined by us was
judged to be much superior to any before seen, either upon the
south coast or upon the islands nearit . . . and I thought
the soil superior to some of the land cultivated at Port Jackson,
and to much of that in our stony counties in England.” On
the other hand, Peron characterised the island as monotonous
and sterile. Sutherland’s accounts were slowing ; whilst the
early settlers at Kingscote found the character of the soil did
not hold out any very strong inducement for permanent or
extensive settlement.
It is now easy to reconcile these apparently contradictory
estimates of the character of the soil. The productive areas
are limited and detached, and, as I have stated previously, are
restricted to those of the Pliocene drifts. The sources of the
material have been less local, than in the case of the more
superficial deposits, and in consequence an intimate mixture
of diverse mineral matters has resulted. The productiveness
of this kind of soil is best attested by an appeal to agricultural
statistics. The neighbourhood of Hog Bay has patches of land
which carry as high as 50 bushels of barley to the acre ; and at
the Cygnet River and at Freestone Range the yield of wheat and
barley ‘last year ranged up to 30 bushels for the former and 50
to 60 for the latter per acre.
UsEFuL MINERALS.
The belief that Kangaroo Island is largely metalliferous and
possesses coal is widespread, though up to the present time no
discoveries have been made which justify such prophetic view.
Nevertheless, the geological structure is not incompatible with
the existence of metalliferous deposits, though it pr ecludes the
presence of workable coal.
Gold.—tThe earliest discovery of this metal is that recorded
by Mr. Tolmer in his recent work entitled “Reminiscences,”
1882. He therein states at p. 320 of vol. I. that he found in a
freshwater creek near Vivonne Bay ‘a quartz specimen, with
a small portion of yellow metal embedded therein, which I have
now no doubt was gold.” Mr. T. Willson has obtained gold
from a quartz reef situate in the northern part of the Hundred
of Haines, and further informs me that it has been gathered
from detritus at Pig’s Head Flat, Dudley Peninsula.
Tin.—Mr. Tolmer writes further that he revisited the spot
in 1856, and obtained by washing the stuff of the bed of the
creek about one ounce of black sand, a sample of which was
128
tested by Mr. G. W. Goyder, Surveyor-General, and pro-
nounced by him to be tin.
Copper.—Ores of this metal most certainly occur, and
several applications for mineral claims had been granted be-
tween the years 1861 to 1865, but in all cases the leases were
forfeited. The sites of these claims were at Hog Bay, Cape
St. Albans, Cuttlefish Bay, three miles south-west of Kingscote,
twelve miles west by south of the mouth of the Cygnet River,
and seven miles westerly from Mount MacDonnell.
Lead.—I have been shown specimens of galena, stated to
have come from a large vein situated to the west of Smith’s
Bay, on the north coast.
Petrolewm.—F rom a very early period in the history of the
occupation of Kangaroo Island there had been known and
used a pitch, which was collected upon the south coast; but it
is only through the above-mentioned work of Mr. Tolmer that
any of the observed facts have been committed to writing. He
says:—‘‘ During my wanderings along the south coast I ob-
served numerous fragments of a substance resembling pitch,
which was stated to be plentiful, and to be used in lieu of the
imported pitch in paying the seams of the vessels and boats
built and repaired on the island. Some twenty years after, in
1864, I revisited the island, and was conducted to the spot
- where the petroleum exudes from the fissures in the rocks”
(loc. cit. I., p. 820).
In 1871 coal leases were granted by the Crown Lands De-
partment of 10,000 acres each at False Cape and Flour-cask
Bay; and at an earlier period borings were made in the cliff at
a point about three miles west from the mouth of the Hog Bay
River and at Vivonue Bay—in all these cases with the
ostensible object of working the petroleum deposits, which
were alleged to exist on this part of the coast, an inference
drawn from the presence of pitch fragments on the beach.
I have conversed with several islanders as to the place and .
mode of occurrence of the substance, and have moreover
inspected the site of one of the above-referred-to bore-
holes, and the shore line of Flour-cask Bay. The sub-
stance has been picked up at many points along the south
coast, chiefly on the western beaches of the bays, and
Vivonne Bay in particular was an important repository for it.
The opinion as to the exudation of the substance from the
rocks on the shore line is most assuredly based on erroneous
observation, inasmuch as when thrown up beyond high tide and
subjected to a hot sun it would be softened and insinuate itself
among the crannies and irregularities of the surface of the
calciterous sand-rock, and would present to the untrained
129
observer the appearance of having flowed from the rock,
Moreover, the nature and origin of the surface rock preclude
the probability of its having been contained in it. So also do
those of the subjacent mica-schist, into which the boring was
~ made at the spot previously indicated. Indeed, all the circum-
stances conspire to prove, that the substance is a waif upon
these shores. Corroborative evidence is afforded by the finding
of the same substance at Coffin Bay, Eyre Peninsula, resin at
Fowler Bay, beeswax at the head of the Great Australian Bight
and gutta-percha at Eucla. Doubtlessly all have formed part of
the cargo of some wrecked vessel. Mr. G. Dixon informs me
that he found in 1867 a mineral pitch in the whole littoral
tract between Cape Arid and Doubtful Island Bay, West
Australia. Moreover, the substance, locally known as dammar,
belongs to at least three different chemical bodies. The com-
monest kind is black, breaking with a lustrous conchoidal frac-
ture; melts easily and burns with a bright flame, evolving an
asphaltic odour. On distillation it yields dark-coloured hydro-
carbon oils and parafin, leaving a copious residue of carbon,
without ash; it is insoluble in nitric acid, alcohol and turpen-
tine, but is partly soluble in benzole. It resembles in appear-
ance and properties a refined asphalt, but is more lustrous
than that obtained at Trinidad with which it has been critically
compared.
Another material similar in most respects, softens under
the fingers and is soluble in oil of turpentine and nitric acid.
A third matter, picked up between Hog Bay and Table Cape,
is resinous-brown with dark stripes and externally yellow,
brittle ; burning with a bright flame and giving off an aromatic
odour; on distillation it yields a little parafin and oils, without
residue. It is insoluble in alcohol and nitric acid, but readily
soluble in bisulphide of carbon.
Coal.—In 1879 a reported discovery of good coal at Hog
Bay raised the hopes of the Adelaide public, that the opinion
touching the absence of coal within this colony was not to be:
prophetic. I visited the locality, and certainly found frag-.
ments of a steam coal in the soil of a barley-field ; but the
presence of mica slate around the basin of drift deposit was.
sufficient to satisfy the geologist, that the coal was not derived
from the immediate neighbourhood. Finally I traced it to a
discarded smithy, the rubbish of which had got mingled with
the manure heap, and so carted to the field and worked into
the soil. Mr. Tolmer’s “‘firm belief that coal will eventually
be found by boring in the flats and about Hog Bay River’”
(loc. cit. I., p. 321) must fail to find endorsement at the hands.
of the veriest tyro in geology.
I
130
CLIMATOLOGY.
Kangaroo Island has been spoken of as the sanatorium for
South Australia in the future ; and it well deserves this pros-
pective reputation. The climate is characterised by a warm
temperature, without that heat fervency in summer which is so
familiar to residents on the mainland, by moist winds, a good
rainfall and the absence of frosts.
Some meteorological observations were made by Peron
during his stay at Nepean Bay extending from January 6 to
February 1, 1803, which I will quote:—‘The mean of our
thermometric readings at noon were 65'6° Fahr. The 20th,
25th, 27th, 29th and 30th January were the hottest days; the
mercury in the shade at 2 p.m. showed on the island 81°5°
Fahr.; the land breezes—that is to say, those from the N.E.,
N.N.E., and E.N.E.—dominated then, and we were satisfied
that they partook of the nature of the hot winds, which desolate
the interior of Australia. The atmosphere over the arid and
low shores exhibits nearly always a perfect serenity. In the
space of one month we had only a few slight showers; on
January 15 a feeble storm which arrived from the west was
dissipated as soon as, so to say, it had touched the shores of
the island. The range of the hygrometer was conformable
with the state of the atmosphere, and was comprised between
68° and 94°, the mean term being 82°05°. But of all the results
which were obtained of this kind the most noteworthy was the
rapid movement of the needle towards dryness at the moment
when the N.E. winds blew with force after midday of the 29th
—from 94° it retrograded to 68°.” The figures given by Peron
should not be examined rigidly ; but they suffice to show the
relatively low temperature and the absolutely great humidity
of the air during the second hottest month in the year. They
are not altogether in accord with the results of -similar obser-
vations made at Cape Borda under the direction of Mr. Todd,
and published by him in “ Meteorological Observations for
1880,” from which I have taken the following results. Cape
Borda is the most north-west point of land, and the station is
at an elevation of 506 feet above sea level :—.
Humidity —The yearly mean— |
Cape Borda. Adelaide.
72 57
The extremes—61 for February 37 for January
82 for September 78 for June.
131
Temperature.— Cape Borda. Adelaide.
The yearly mean... sh: bse OE 62°4
Maximum, January 31 .. :..493°0 1145
Minimum, September 26 ... 40°0 350
Mean diurnal range for the year, 82 18°9
Greatest diurnal range ... oo 48°0
Rainfall—At Cape Borda, average for 12 years, 23°8 inches.
, American River “ 1 ET” Oar ore
Kingscote, for year 1880 BS ORE a
The rainfall on the north coast of Kangaroo Island is about
equal to that at Adelaide, but the other climatic elements, as
indicated in the foregoing tables, show in what way the climate
of Kangaroo Island is superior to that of Adelaide. The south
coast during the summer months is visited by light and local
showers, which do not penetrate far inland, but which doubt-
lessly serve to maintain a perennial flow of water in the many
channels of the south-western portion of the island.
BorTaNICAL EXPLORATIONS.
1. Rozerr Brown, the naturalist to Flinders’s expedition,
carried the first botanical collection from Kangaroo Island to
Europe. The number of species was small, but it included
types of several new species. In the “Flora Australiensis,”
the locality-name, Kangaroo Island, with the collector’s name,
k. Brown, annexed, will be found recorded under 29 species
names. Robert Brown’s opportunities for extended botanical
work were few, and the period of his visit was unfavourable.
From the narrative of the voyage I compile the following brief
diary :—March 22 and 23, 1802, on shore at Kangaroo Head.
April 2-5, 1802, on shore at Kangaroo Head; boat excursion to
American River and Pelican Lagoon; ascended Prospect Hill,
situated on the isthmus connecting Dudley Peninsula with the
main mass of the island. The collection was derived almost
entirely from the littoral tracts, and Robert Brown could not
have seen the characteristic inland flora.
2. Larour LescHenavtt, one of the botanists to Baudin’s
expedition, who followed in the next year, sojourned off Kings-
cote from January 7 to February 1, 1803; and he tells us, that
“the island is sandy and without rivulets, that the vegetation
is beautiful, and the plants very varied. I have discovered a
great number of new species” (‘‘ Peron’s Voyages,” vol. II.,; p.
366). F. Peron, the zoologist to the expedition, and the author
of the narrative, writes:—‘‘ At the head of. this grand bay
[Nepean Bay] there are forests which appear to extend far
away towards the interior, and which are composed of different
132
species of Eucalyptus, Banksia, Phebalium, Acacia, Casuarina,
Metrosideros, Leptospermum, WStyphelia, Conchium, Diosma,
Hakea, Embothrium” &c., &c. (op. cit., vol. L., p. 76). From
the narrative of the expedition it is uncertain, if other oppor-
tunities were offered for collecting plants than during the long
stay in Nepean Bay, unless it were at Hog Bay. Leschenault
botanised at other parts of the Australian coasts, but the col-
lection as a whole remains unpublished up to the present day,
Desfontaines made a few selections from the West Australian
plants gathered on this expedition, but with few exceptions
not any of thé Kangaroo Island plants were described, though
doubtless all have been identified. Mr. Bentham examined
many of the plants of Baudin’s expedition in the Paris her-
barium for the “Flora Australiensis,’’ but from that collection
only two species are recorded for Kangaroo Island :—Hucalyptus
incrassata, erroneously attributed to Labillardiere, who was
never on the island, and Acacia dodoneifolia. Leschenault
(loc. cit., vol. IT., p. 8366) cites a few species, which he had ob-
served on Kangaroo Island. 1853
*Woods, Rev. J. E. ed bee F.LS., F.G.S.,
&e. <- 7. pyaney ‘=. oe 1877
CORRESPONDING MEMBERS.
*Andrews, F. W. .. a -. Adelaide Museum .. of Sos
Bailey, F. M., F.L.S., ae .. Goy. Botanist, Brisbane,Q. 1881
Canham, J. <- -. Stuart’s Creek -. 1880
*Cloud, T. Cs. C. S. sf -- Wallaroo 1881
Chandler, rE. Sy se -- Peake 1881
*Foelsche, Paul .. os .- Palmerston 1880
Goldstein, Ju. *Y. - Melbourne 1880
*Hayter, H. i, M.A;, C.M: coh F.S. S. Government Statist, Melbourne 1878
Holtze, Maurice ae . Palmerston 1882
*Kempe, Rev. J. .. Ae .. Finke, MacDonnell Ranges. 1880
*Richards, Mrs. A. a .. Fowler’s Bay ae 1880
*Scoular, Gavin .. ne .. Smithfield 1878
*Stirling, James, F.L.8. .. -» Omeo, Victoria : 1883
aieoper J. G. O., F.L.8.'.. .. Museum.. ae 1878
FELLOWS.
*Adamson, D. B. .. re .. Angas-street aaa . 1867
Addis, W. L. of as .. Currie-street, «i379
Angas, J. H. oe =f .. Angaston 1874
Biggs, Col. J. H.. oe .. Edwardstown 1878
Black, A. B. 3 ae .. Exchange, Pirie-street ae) Jee
Bowyer- Smyth, C., CEs: .. Engineer-in-Chief’s Office .. 1883
Brown, J. G., F.L. 's. Se .. Conservator of Forests, Adel. 1882
Brown, L. G. 5. os .. Two Wells : wei toor
Browne, SY. Di: oy: -. Gov. Geologist, Adelaide 1883
Brunskill, Geo. .. a +3 'Morgan> ©. epee te:
Burchell, F. N.
192
Campbell, Hon. i, L.RB.GP., Edin.
A.
Caterer, T. A., B.
*Chalwin, Thos., M.R.L.V.S.
Chapple, F., B. Ag B.Se.
Cleland, W. Tie M. B.
*(L)Cooke, E. ee ‘ee
Cox, W. C. se fe
Cornish, W.H. .. as
Crawford, F.S. .. 3
*Davenport,S. .. “
Davies, Edward .. ae
Davis, F. W. ae ae
Dobbie, A. W. .. ies
Driffield, F. 8. C. aie
Elder, Sir Thomas a
Evans, Thomas .. As:
Barrar, G. BH. . «s
*Fletcher, Rev. W. BR, M. ie
Florance, W. ce
Foote, H. es
Fowler, W.
Gall, D..
Gardner, 'W., M. D. i
Gee, Lionel, C. E. wie
Giles, Geo. F. ie
Gill, H. C.
Grandy, EB. ..
Gosse, Charles, M.D.
*Goyder, Geo., jun. oe
*Haacke, Wm., Ph.D. s%
earris, . W.. ‘ss es
Harris, C. H. =k a
Harrold; A.L. .. ‘
Harry, Thomas ..
*Haslam, John, C.EH. cs
Hay, Hon. Alexander We
Henry, Alexander, M.D.
Hopkins, Rev. W. ‘
Howchin, Rev. W., F.G. S.
Hughes, H. W. 56
*Hullett, J. W. EO "
Johnson, sae af
*Joyce, J. F.,
*(r) Kay, R.
Knevett, S.
*Lamb, Prof. ele ,M.A. ie
«Laughton, K.
Leary, J. W.
*Lloyd, J. 5S.
MRCS. ..
Madley, L. G., Principal of Training
College se oe
Magarey, A. T. ..
*Magarey, S. J., M.B.
Mais, H. C., C. EK.
*Mann, Jas., L.R.C.P. et 8.
*Mayo, George, Rakes a0
Mayo, G. G. ws °
Survey Office a 2
Adelaide’.. *y- "
Norwood 4
Currie-street :
Prince Alfred College
Parkside Asylum .. ‘
South Terrace
Survey Office : re
Surveyor- General’s Office
Beaumont a ok
Hutt-street y a
Advertiser Office .. BS
Gawler-place sin =
Waymouth-street .. ok
Grenfell-street .. ate
Adelaide .. +5 ihe
Adelaide.. ae aa
Kent Town 3
Outalpa .. sis ae
Yarroo, Kulpara ..
Tynte-street, North | Adelaide
Adelaide .
Survey Office oe -
General Post Office ike
S.A. Institute "2 Se
Adelaide .. Be es
Adelaide .. Se aes
Government Offices
Director S.A. Museum
Register Office .. oe
Survey Office —
Hindley-street
Exchange, Pirie-street ae
Adelaide .. oe Sos
Beaumont ae an
Victoria-square ee
Glenelg .. +
Christian Colonist’ Office ab
Booyoolie - -
Port Augusta oi aid
Alfred Chambers .. f
South-terrace ke
S.A. Institute
Carrington-street ..
University ot =
Currie-street fe ce
North-terrace 2
Lefevre-terrace, N. ‘Adelaide
Whitmore-square ..
emeend s-terrace
Adelaide. ‘
eee in- Chief's Office . Pe
Adelaide. a .
Adelaide . dig
Engineer-i in- Chief's ’ Office “®
1881
1882
1882
1877
1876
1879
1876
1880
1883
1865
1856
1882
1882
1876
1883
1871
1883
1883
1876
1881
1883
1882
1865
1882
1882
1883
1883
1882
1877
1880
1882
1882
1883
1876
1878
1883
1861
1882
1880
1883
1883
1876
1875
1880
1853
1878
1883
1874
1883
1856
1879
1873
1874
1883
1882
1853
1874
*Meyrick, E., B.A. ‘
Middleton, W. J. C.
Mohan, John Henry
Molineux, A. 45
(u) Murray, David..
Nesbit, E. Pariss, jun.
Nesbitt, W. Peel, M.B.,
Nickolls, J.
Parker, Thos.,
Phillips, W. H.
Pickels, W. E. EF. R. M.S.
*Pollitzer, S. ;
Poulton, oo MB. =
Rees, John, M.R.C.S.
Rees, Roland, M.P.
Rigaud, R. J. ..
Robertson, R., F.F.P.S.
Robin, BR. B. oe
Rogers, Rev. N. .
Russell, W. wa
*Rutt, Walter, C.H.
Salom, Hon. M...
*Schomburgk, R., Ph.D.
*Smeaton, Stirling, B.A.
*Smeaton, Thos. D.
Smith, E. Mitchell
Smith, R. Barr ..
Smith, William ..
Smyth, J. Y., B.A.
Sparks, H. Y.
*Stirling, E.C.,
Stuckey, J. J. , MA.
C.E.
eo 8) oOo ge 6 "9: 8) Cee
*Tate, Prof. R., E.G.S., E.LS., &e.
*Telfer, W.
*Thomas, J. Davies, M.D., F. B.C.S.
Shaw, William ..
*Tietkins, W. H., F.R.G.S. 1
M.D., F.B.C.S.
193
*Todd, Charles, C. M.G., F.R.A.S., &e.
Tomkinson, Samuel
Tyas, J. Ww. e
Umbehann, C. ..
"Varley, A.K. ..
*Verco, J. Cooke, M.D., F. R. C. 8.
Vickery, G.
Ware, W. L.
Way, E. W., M.B., ‘M.R.C.S.
Way, 8. J., Chief Justice oe
White, R. A. a
Whiting, John B.
*Whittell, H., M.D.
Woodward, H. O.
Wragge, C. L., F.R.G.S.
Wyatt, Wm., M.D. ae
Young, Wm., M.A. ote
Burchell, D. rr as
ee
Christchurch, N.Z. ste
Kangarilla aa ra
Kent Town a i
North Adelaide ..
King William-street
North Adelaide ..
New Zealand
Port Adelaide :
Adeline.
Adelaide Hospital. .
Hindmarsh ae
North Adelaide .
Register Office 3 =
Adelaide.. ae :
Grenfell-street fe 3
Moonta .. 6 a
Port Adelaide os
Engineer-in-Chief’s Office ..
North Adelaide ..
Director of Botanic Gardens:
Engineer-in-Chief’s Office ..
Bank of South Australia ..
Survey Department x
Torrens Park, Mitcham ..
Hydraulic Engineer’ s Office
Norwood Sa -
Glenelg .. os oe
North Adelaide .. ae
Adelaide .. wa
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Adelaide . ea ei -
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PLAN OF
KANGAROO ISLAND
COUNTY CARNARVON.
xB PEAWN Ba ae
y ae jo° gsi
fan, : ae
cA ym PENNESHAW
Ms C Torrans . Feat:
C. Borda y
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72 SG
Peg /SD3
"TRANSACTIONS AND PROCEEDINGS
AND
] REPORT
OF THE
ROYAL SOCIETY of SOUTH AUSTRALIA.
TES Eat ot ere EE
BORSSMEDUCHSOURORPSPOED
Se
4
Gy ES GP OM Be NOR eT Mee
(FOR 1880-81.)
| Pees Moby AN PALIN ¥y Goo 2
| ~~ 2 aS ORS BE Poss ~_—~
Adclaiwe :
G. ROBERTSON, 103, KING WILLIAM STREET.
Parcels for transmission to the Royal Society of South
Australia, from Europe and America, should be addressed
‘per Mr. W.C. Rigby, care Messrs. Thos. Meadows & Co.,
35, Milk Street, Cheapside, London.”’
Scadibiarsduialndiusiignstase :
> Bune, ese
--seneunaucananE SUREUTIGELIUEEES i aa
iy ‘w See ae
ihe See LO
Praavsicnion ‘AND. PROCEEDINGS 3 |
REP @-R-T
ROYAL SOCIETY of SOUTH AUSTRALIA
BY gk SO tore Pe yes
(FOR. 1881-82.)
ISSUED DECEMBER, 1882.
“Adelaide:
G. ROBERTSON, 103, KING WILLIAM STREET.
1882.
a Be te
2
os {
1
NA =
on
{:
;
‘
a
Y Gxpirs i Ree een 7 = we
/
Broly. ia ee )
ie
REPORT
| ROYAL SOCIETY of SOUTH AUSTRALIA.
= S2 oe ae AES ae
(FOR 1882-83.)
MONI
Adelaide :
G. ROBERTSON, 103, KING WILLIAM STREET.
|
|
ISSUED. DECEMBER, 1883.
|
|
|
| 1883.
6:
Parcels for transmission to the Royal Society of South Aus-
|| tralia, from Europe and America, should be addressed
“per W.C. Rigby, care Messrs. Thos. Meadows and
ned Co., 35, Milk Street, Cheapside, London.” |
——. fe
Webb, Vardon, & Pritchard, Printers, Gresham-street, Adelaide.
aay a
aims lente acne git en
wi
: ont ;
at OM Ta
~—INEONO