South Wales, in the form of cinnabar, it has been discovered on the Cudgegong river, near Rylstone, and it also occurs at Bingara, Solferino, Yulgilbar and Cooma. In the last-named place the assays of ore yielded 22% of mercury.Titanium, in the minerals known as octahedrite and brookite, is found in alluvial deposits in New South Wales, in conjunction with diamonds.
Wolfram (tungstate of iron and manganese) occurs in some of the states, notably in New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania and Queensland. Scheelite, another mineral of tungsten, is also found in Queensland. Molybdenum, in the form of molybdenite (sulphide of molybdenum), is found in Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria, associated in the parent state with tin and bismuth in quartz reefs.
Zinc ores, in the several varieties of carbonates, silicates, oxide, sulphide and sulphate of zinc, have been found in several of the Australian states but have attracted little attention except in New South Wales, where special efforts are being made successfully to produce a high-grade zinc concentrate from the sulphide ores. Several companies are devoting all their energies to zinc extraction, and the output is now equal to about 5% of the world’s production.
Nickel, so abundant in the island of New Caledonia, has up to the present been found in none of the Australian states except Queensland and Tasmania. Few attempts, however, have been made to prospect systematically for this valuable mineral.
Cobalt occurs in New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia, and efforts have been made in the former state to treat the ore, the metal having a high commercial value; but the market is small, and no attempt has been made up to 1907 to produce it on any large scale. The manganese ores of the Bathurst district of New South Wales often contain a small percentage of cobalt—sufficient, indeed, to warrant further attempts to work them. In New South Wales chromium is found in the northern portion of the state, in the Clarence and Tamworth districts and also near Gundagai. It is usually associated with serpentine. In the Gundagai district the industry was rapidly becoming a valuable one, but the low price of chrome has greatly restricted the output. Chromium has been discovered in Tasmania also.
Arsenic, in its well-known and beautiful forms, orpiment and realgar, is found in New South Wales and Victoria. It usually occurs in association with other minerals in veins.
The Australian states have been bountifully supplied with mineral fuel. Five distinct varieties of black coal, of well-characterized types, may be distinguished, and these, with the two extremes of brown coal or lignite and anthracite, form a perfectly continuous series. Brown coal, or lignite, occurs principally in Victoria. Fuel.Attempts have frequently been made to use the mineral for ordinary fuel purposes, but its inferior quality has prevented its general use. Black coal forms one of the principal resources of New South Wales; and in the other states the deposits of this valuable mineral are being rapidly developed. Coal of a very fair description was discovered in the basin of the Irwin river, in Western Australia, as far back as the year 1846. It has been ascertained from recent explorations that the area of carboniferous formation in that state extends from the Irwin northwards to the Gascoyne river, about 300 m., and probably all the way to the Kimberley district. The most important discovery of coal in the state, so far, is that made in the bed of the Collie river, near Bunbury, to the south of Perth. The coal has been treated and found to be of good quality, and there are grounds for supposing that there are 250,000,000 tons in the field. Dr Jack, late government geologist of Queensland, considers the extent of the coal-fields of that state to be practically unlimited, and is of opinion that the carboniferous formations extend to a considerable distance under the Great Western Plains. It is roughly estimated that the Coal Measures at present practically explored extend over an area of about 24,000 sq. m. Coal-mining is an established industry in Queensland, and is progressing satisfactorily. The mines, however, are situated too far from the coast to permit of serious competition with Newcastle in an export trade, and the output is practically restricted to supplying local requirements. The coal-fields of New South Wales are situated in three distinct regions—the northern, southern and western districts. The first of these comprises chiefly the mines of the Hunter river districts; the second includes the Illawarra district, and, generally, the coastal regions to the south of Sydney, together with Berrima, on the tableland; and the third consists of the mountainous regions on the Great Western railway and extends as far as Dubbo. The total area of the Carboniferous strata of New South Wales is estimated at 23,950 sq. m. The seams vary in thickness. One of the richest has been found at Greta in the Hunter river district; it contains an average thickness of 41 ft. of clean coal, and the quantity underlying each acre of ground has been computed to be 63,700 tons. The coal mines of New South Wales give employment to 14,000 persons, and the annual production is over 6,600,000 tons. Black coal has been discovered in Victoria, and about 250,000 tons are now being raised. The principal collieries in the state are the Outtrim Howitt, the Coal Creek Proprietary and the Jumbunna. In South Australia, at Leigh’s Creek, north of Port Augusta, coal-beds have been discovered. The quantity of coal extracted annually in Australia had in 1906 reached 7,497,000 tons.
Kerosene shale (torbanite) is found in several parts of New South Wales. It is a species of cannel coal, somewhat similar to the Boghead mineral of Scotland, but yielding a much larger percentage of volatile hydro-carbon than the Scottish mineral. The richest quality yields about 100 to 130 gallons of crude oil per ton, or 17,000 to 18,000 cub. ft. of gas, with an illuminating power of 35 to 40 sperm candles, when gas only is extracted from the shale.
Large deposits of alum occur close to the village of Bulladelah, 30 m. from Port Stephens, New South Wales. It is said to yield well, and a quantity of the manufactured alum is sent to Sydney for local consumption. Marble is found in many parts of New South Wales and South Australia. Kaolin, fire-clays and brick-clays are common to all the states. Except in the vicinity of cities and townships, however, little use has been made of the abundant deposits of clay. Kaolin, or porcelain clay, although capable of application to commercial purposes, has not as yet been utilized to any extent, although found in several places in New South Wales and in Western Australia.
Asbestos has been found in New South Wales in the Gundagai Bathurst and Broken Hill districts—in the last-mentioned district in considerable quantities. Several specimens of very fair quality have also been met with in Western Australia.
Many descriptions of gems and gem stones have been discovered in various parts of the Australian states, but systematic search has been made principally for the diamond and the noble opal. Diamonds are found in all the states; but only in New South Wales have any attempts been made to work the diamond Gems.drifts. The best of the New South Wales diamonds are harder and much whiter than the South African diamonds, and are classified as on a par with the best Brazilian gems, but no large specimens have yet been found. The finest opal known is obtained in the Upper Cretaceous formation at White Cliffs, near Wilcannia, New South Wales, and at these mines about 700 men find constant employment. Other precious stones, including the sapphire, emerald, oriental emerald, ruby, opal, amethyst, garnet, chrysolite, topaz, cairngorm, onyx, zircon, &c., have been found in the gold and tin bearing drifts and river gravels in numerous localities throughout the states. The sapphire is found in all the states, principally in the neighbourhood of Beechworth, Victoria. The oriental topaz has been found in New South Wales. Oriental amethysts also have been found in that state, and the ruby has been found in Queensland, as well as in New South Wales. Turquoises have been found near Wangaratta, in Victoria, and mining operations are being carried on in that state. Chrysoberyls have been found in New South Wales; spinel rubies in New South Wales and Victoria; and white topaz in all the states. Chalcedony, carnelian, onyx and cat’s eyes are found in New South Wales; and it is probable that they are also to be met with in the other states, particularly in Queensland. Zircon, tourmaline, garnet and other precious stones of little commercial value are found throughout Australia.
Commerce.—The number of vessels engaged in the over-sea trade of Australia in 1905 was 2112, viz. 1050 steamers, with a tonnage of 2,629,000, and 1062 sailers, tonnage 1,090,000; the total of both classes was 3,719,000 tons. The nationality of the tonnage was, British 2,771,000, including Australian 288,000, and foreign 948,000. The destination of the shipping was, to British ports 2,360,000 tons, and to foreign ports 1,350,000 tons. The value of the external trade was £95,188,000, viz. £38,347,000 imports, and £56,841,000 exports. The imports represent £9:11:6 per inhabitant and the exports £14 : 4 : 2, with a total trade of £23 : 15 : 8. The import trade is divided between the United Kingdom and possessions and foreign countries as follows:—United Kingdom £23,074,000, British possessions £5,384,000, and foreign states £9,889,000, while the destination of the exports is, United Kingdom £26,703,000, British possessions £12,519,000, and foreign countries £17,619,000. The United Kingdom in 1905 sent 60% of the imports taken by Australia, compared with 26% from foreign countries, and 14% from British possessions; of Australian imports the United Kingdom takes 47%, foreign countries 31% and British possessions 22%. In normal years (that is to say, when there is no large movement of capital) the exports of Australia exceed the imports by some £15,300,000. This sum represents the interest payable on government loans placed outside Australia, mainly in England, and the income from British and other capital invested in the country; the former may be estimated at £7,300,000 and the latter £8,000,000 per annum. The principal items of export are wool, skins, tallow, frozen mutton, chilled beef, preserved meats, butter and other articles of pastoral produce, timber, wheat, flour and fruits, gold, silver, lead, copper, tin and other metals. In 1905 the value of the wool export regained the £20,000,000 level, and with the rapid recovery of the numerical
