104 Journal of the Mitchell Society [^August 



having no definite orientation with respect to the accompany- 

 ing formations. All the rocks in this area are more or less 

 weathered and decomposed and a clue to the nature of the rock 

 formations themselves is often obtained bj a study of the char- 

 acter of the gravels in the bottom lands and streams draining 

 a particular region. Thus, a very light colored gravel with 

 quartz debris indicates a granite or a very highly pegmatized 

 country rock. Garnet and hematite, with fragments of mica or 

 cyanite gneiss, indicate Carolina gneiss. When quantities of 

 black sands containing magnetite, ilmenite, hornblende, etc., 

 are found in the stream' gravels, it is an indication of the Roan 

 gneiss. Monazite occurs for the most part in the pegmatized 

 gneiss and schist bodies which are phases of the Carolina gneiss. 

 The texture developed during the pegmatization is generally 

 porphyritic and there may be a gradation from the porphyritic 

 gneiss into more or less highly pegmatized gneiss and from 

 this into regular pegmatite. 



In those beds or portions of beds where there has been lit- 

 tle pegmatization, there is but a small amount of monazite. It 

 is also true that where pegmatization has been complete and 

 but little of the original gneiss remains, there is but little mona- 

 zite. The chief occurrences of the monazite are in those por- 

 tions of the gneisses and schists which have been highly pegma- 

 tized and are rich in secondary quartz and contain numerous 

 small masses of feldspar with some biotite, graphite and other 

 accessory minerals. The monazite is nearly always well crys- 

 tallized, although the crystals are extremely small. The per- 

 centage of the monazite in the rock is very small and will not 

 average over .Y5 of one per cent. An attempt has been made 

 to work the rock itself, but it was found impossible to do so at 

 a profit on account of the low percentage of monazite. 



The origin of the monazite in the pegmatized gneisses and 

 schists was either by the bringing together of the elements ne- 

 cessary for its formation from the original rock during re- 

 crystallization, or by the introduction of these elements into 

 the pegmatizing materials from external sources. This form 

 of pegmatization is usually in close proximity to granite mas- 



