201 



Wilsonite. — This mineral is now generally believed to be an. 

 altered scapolite, and may often be observed forming a iieucleus in 

 mas.ses of the latter mineral. Good illustrations occur at many of the 

 scapolite loca.lities. 



Epidote. — Independent of the occurrence of this mineral in the 

 stratified rocks of the neighborho )d, we meet with it in crystals lining 

 cavities, besides forming an ingredient in many mixed veins. On lot 

 18, range 2, of Wakefield, dark yellowish green crystals, from a six- 

 teenth to an inch in length, line cavities in massive garnet. At Hal- 

 dane's mine in Wakefield large quantities of a gi-eenish crystalline 

 epidote were extracted, associated with pyrite, &c. Occasionally ter- 

 minated square prisms of a light yellowish green color, enclosing dis- 

 seminated' pyrites, are embedded in a grayish green granular apatite, 

 and are apparently pseudomorphs after scapolite. In the township of 

 Templeton this mineral occurs on lot 9, range 10 and lob 23, range 13. 



Mica. — -This name will be retained to include a number of doubt- 

 ful minerals, all of which have one peifect basal cleavage. Besides 

 being disseminated through the schistose and gneissic rocks it often 

 constitutes large volumes in some of the phosphate veins, either dis- 

 tributed in small scales through e.xtensive masses of apatite and pyrox- 

 ene, or forming large aggregations, sometimes affording plates two feet 

 square in a calcareous gangue. 



The mica fever, so prevalent in all parts of the Dominion, does 

 not seem any milder in this neighborhood. The unwavering enthu- 

 siasm after marketable mica, encouraged by flattering reports, of irre- 

 sponsible persons, will always remain a source of dubious speculation 

 with the far-seeing capitalists. We shall not attempt to deny that 

 unlimited quantities of this mineral are found in the above townships, 

 but with one or two exceptions I have rarely met with plates suffi- 

 ciently transparent, or free from included minerals, or fr^ni contortion, 

 as to be available for commercial purposes. On the south half of lot 

 10, range 10, of Templeton, plates two feet square were taken out durino- 

 the development of an apatite deposit. These {ilates were perfectly free 

 from folds or inclusions, transparent enough in thin laminte, but yet 

 unsaleable because they would not stand the so-called New York fire 

 test. Yet this same mica has been exposed to the heat of an ordinary 



