22 TRANSACTIONS OF THE [NOV. 26, 
November 26, 1888. 
STaTED MEETING. 
The President, Dr. NEWBERRY, in the chair. 
Thirty-eight persons present. 
Dr. J. J. FRIEDRICH exhibited some interesting minerals from 
California, and made the following remarks thereon : 
I wish to present a peculiar formation of stalactites from the 
Bradford Quicksilver Mine, Lake Co., California. In rainy 
weather, a brilliant green stalactite forms along the pillars and 
boards supporting the tunnels of the mine. The foreman of the 
mine drew my attention to these stalactites, some of which were 
several feet in length ; but he did not know their chemical com- 
position. Our examination of the mineral gives the following 
results: in the closed tube, yields a large quantity of water ; and 
changes color, when cold, showing the red oxide of iron. With 
soda on charcoal, it forms ‘‘ hepar” (reacts for sulphur). On 
charcoal it melts and yields a magnetic mass. 
Reagents show the presence of magnesia and iron. 
It is melanterite: and as most melanterite contains magnesia, 
the occurrence of magnesia in this instance is easily explained, 
as serpentine forms the mother rock of the mine. In the Red- 
dington Mine, in Napa Co., California, beautiful crystals of 
epsomite are of common occurrence. 
Melanterite has not been enumerated in the list of California 
minerals given by Prof. Hanks in his latest report as State Min- 
eralogist. Besides melanterite, I found another mineral not yet 
reported by Hanks in his State, namely, cyanite. I gave notice of 
this discovery at a session of the Microscopical Society of San 
Francisco. Cyanite I found in a very interesting Archean dis- 
trict in San Diego Co. In this region there exist two isolated 
basaltic cones, the material of which I may exhibit at some 
future meeting. 
The cinnabar vein in this particular mine is associated with a 
vein of quartz, which resembles chalcedony in its nature. 
The specimen of cinnabar and native mercury taken from the 
veins in my presence may give an indication of the nature and 
value of this deposit. 
Mr. W. E. HippENn read a paper describing more in detail 
the new mineral species, auerlite and sulphohalite, announced 
by him at the meeting of October 15th.* 
1 See Amer. Jour, Science, December, 1888. 
