THE NEW ELEMENT

Dominion, Volume 16, Issue 120, 6 February 1923, Page 6

THE NEW ELEMENT

NEW ZEALAND RESEARCHES RECALLED ST TZLUOZAPn— PBS3S ASSOCIATION. Auckland, February 5. Tho announcement from London of the isolation of a new element, liefniuni; recalls tho experiments made in New Zealand in 1915 by Mr. Leslie Macarthur. Exhaustive tests _ were made by him through the medium of an electrical combination to discover if New Zealand black sand was radioactive. Observations on the beach near Haweru lod to the deduction that there must be some chemical constituent in the ironsand which prevented oxidation when exposed to sun, weather, and salt water. Ferruginous sand was subjected to extensive rests, the immediate results being r.tich a« to justify the treatment of over 16 cwt. of sand in 101 b. sections. Each was treated with a variety of chemically appropriate fluxes, and gleanings from tlie negative were sent tn Madame Curie, fn reply a report was received to the effect that tho -ample was of high value. Mr. Macarthur then made an .offer to the New Zealand Government. to conduct bulk experiments if electricity could be supplied, but nothing was done. The cinnamon coloured powder referred to in the ci.blegram is thought by Air. Macarthur to be similar to the extract secured by him.