The mineral district of Northampton, connected with the port of Geraldton by railway, is rich in lead and copper.  Tin has been found in great quantity at Greenbushes in the South-West.  Thirty years ago these districts were worked for their ores, but a great scarcity of labour, combined with a sudden fall in the prices of the metals, led to the abandonment of the mines.  Since, however, the discovery of telluride ores at Kalgoorlie the abandoned lead and copper mines have recovered their old value, and many mining leases have quite recently been taken out in the Northampton district for the purpose of working them, and after the preliminary work of emptying the old shafts of the water which has accumulated, has been accomplished, there is every probability that smelting operations will yield a handsome profit.  Coal has been found on the Collie River district and, tested by the Government, has been proved to be of good quality and to exist in seams varying from two to four feet in thickness.

The Government, by way of trial, raised 1,000 tons of coal at a cost of about 16 shillings per ton.  The field is open to private enterprise, and as the land may be leased on the lowest possible terms there seems to be a good opening for the capitalist.

In considering other sources of revenue in the Colony I should be inclined to put that of the timber industry at the head, and this the more so that steps have been taken by the West Australian Government for the proper conservation, systematic working, and efficient replanting of the forest-lands.  Hitherto in young colonies the disafforesting of districts has been for agricultural and other purposes recklessly proceeded with.  Warned by example, the West Australian Government have taken steps for the preservation and utilisation of their valuable forest-lands.  In 1895 Mr. J. Ednie-Brown was engaged by the Bureau of Agriculture to make a tour of inspection in the Colony.  This gentleman having had experience as Conservator of Forests both in South Australia and New South Wales, was eminently fitted for his position as Conservator in West Australia.  Having made his tour in 1896 he issued his report.  It is to this report I am indebted for the information contained in this brief notice.

The principal commercial forests lie in the South-Western districts of the Colony.

Mr. Ednie-Brown gives a list of thirty-five varieties of indigenous forest-trees, but as only a certain number of them are known to be of real commercial value, I shall confine my remarks to the better known and more widely used species.  These are:  Jarrah (eucalyptus MARGINATA), Karri (eucalyptus DIVERSICOLOR), Tuart (eucalyptus GOMPHOCEPHALA).  Sandalwood (SANTALUM CYGNORUM).

In addition to these are many important but secondary forest-trees, as the Wattle (acacia SALIGNA), Raspberry Jam (acacia ACUMINATA), Badjong (acacia MICROBOTRYA), Peppermint Tree (AGONIS FLEENOSA), Banksias of all sorts—­the Sheoaks (Casuarina FRASERIANA, GLAUCA and DECAISNEANA), the Red Gum (eucalyptus CALOPHYLLA), Wandoo (eucalyptus REDUNEA), Mallee (eucalyptus OLEOSA).