The minerals of Sarawak
This brief note by A.H. Everett, dated 23 November 1878, provides an updated account of minerals identified in Sarawak, supplementing an earlier publication of his on the subject (p. 230).
Summary
Everett reports on the occurrence of several minerals in Sarawak, including traces of copper at the Salak river entrance in Santubong Bay, minute quantities of galena, and indications of antimony in the Rejang district and the Sesang branch of the Kalakah river (p. 230). He clarifies that his earlier remarks on coal referred to the Silantek (Lingga) deposit rather than the Sadong coal then being worked by the Government, which he notes is of inferior quality. Indications of petroleum are reported in Sadong but considered economically insignificant. A lode of wolfram (tungstate of iron and manganese) is identified at Busau, and the note closes with observations on the availability of limestone and plastic clays, and on two ornamental stones—a white saccharoid marble in the Upper Samarahan and a dark serpentine variety from the Upper Rejang (pp. 230–231). Everett also corrects an inadvertent omission, noting that silver was not included in his list of minerals outside the Borneo Company’s monopoly (p. 231).