CATALOGUE OF GEMS. 499 



The best rubies come from the mines of Upper Riinna. in an area 

 about HO miles sijuare of which ]Mo(>x)k is the center. The rubies are 

 found in i)lace in crvstalline limestone; occurring- also in o-em-l>earino- 

 o-ra\el and in the soil of the hillsides. A similar hx-ality exists in the 

 marble hills of Saovin. 1»» miles north of Mandalay. Rul>y miii(>s iiave 

 also been worked at Ja*;dalak, near Kabul, Afghaidstan. Individuals 

 occur near Bilin in Bohemia and in the sands of the Expaill}' River 

 in Auvergne. Blue sapphires are broui>-lit from Ceylon. Corundum 

 occurs in the Carnatic, on the Malabar coast, in the territoi'ies of A\a, 

 and elscnvhere in the East; also near Canton, China. At St. Gotthard, 

 it occurs of a red or blue tinge in dolomite, and near Mozzo in the 

 Piedmont in white compact feldspar. Adamantine spar is met with 

 in large, coarse, hexagonal pyramids on the Malabar coast and in Gelli- 

 vara, Sweden. 



The great corundum region of the United States extends from the 

 Virginia line through North and South Carolina, across Georgia and 

 into Alal)ania. Numerous localities are known in the crystalline rocks 

 of the region, especially in Madison, Buncombe, Haywood, Jackson, 

 Macon, and Clay counties, North Carolina. Quite recently rubies, 

 rivaling those from Burma in color, have been found in the Cowee dis- 

 trict of North Carolina. In variety of color the North Carolina corun- 

 dum excels; it is gray, green, rose, ruby, emei'ald, sapphire to dai'k 

 ])lue, violet, amethystine, brown, 3"ellow of all shades, and colorless. 

 Fine gem sapphires are found on bars in the Upper ^Missouri River 

 near Helena, Montana. They are most abundant at Eldorado liiir. 

 Frenchman's Bar, and Yogo Gulch, where they occui- as ])eb})les more 

 or less rolled. Corundum has been found in place in granite and tra- 

 chN'te rock in Fergus County, Montana. The Montana specimens 

 rarely exceed one-fourtli to one-half inch in length and range in color 

 from light green, light blue, steel blue, bluish red, light red, and inter- 

 mediate shades; fre({uently the colors mentioned will ai)pear red or 

 assume a reddish tinge ])y aititicial light. They are usually dichroic 

 and often blue in one direction and red in another. 



CROCIDOLITE. 



CA'I-'s-HVK — IKiKlt's-KYE. 



Crocidolite, from /cpo/cij, woof, in allusion to its libi'ous structuie, 

 is a fibrous, asbestus-like mineral, having a hardness of 4 and a specific 

 gravity of 3.26. Its color varies from gold yellow to yellowish brown, 

 indigo to greenish ])lue, leek green, and dull red. Crocidolite often 

 contains a siliceous base, usualh' a ferruginous quartz, and when cut 

 cal)Ochon v/ith a high summit and the longer diameter of the oval at 

 right angles to the direction of the libers of which the mineral is made 

 up, will give the "cat's-e3'e" ray. The gem is also called ''tiger's- 



