414 On Metallic Minerals. 



NOTE 11. 



Mineralogical characters of the sulphuret of zinc found 

 in the transition limestone of Kingston. 



Two varieties arc found, the yellow, the lustre of which 

 is resinous and the lead coloured, which bears a resemblance 

 to galena. The structure of the latter to which, I at pre- 

 sent confine myself, is perfectly laminar, and the faces of 

 the laminae exhibit the splendent metallic lustre, Avhich, 

 however, although it does not entirely vanish on being 

 scraped, is then only glimmering metallic. It is brittle 

 and easily scraped by the knife, and the powder thus 

 obtained is of a light grey colour. Its spacific gravity 4-1. 

 In the mattrass it decrepitates violently. In the interior 

 flameof the blow-pipe it becomes first yellowish and by 

 continuing the heat blackish, during which period a sul- 

 phurous odour is exhaled, and a powder of a lemon colour, 

 (sulphur,) is deposited upon the charcoal. But its most 

 distinguishing character is the unpleasant smell of sulphu- 

 retted hydrogen which it cxhates when its powder is 

 digested in acid. 



NOTE 12. 



" I have found a black and garnet coloured sand in great 

 abundance on the shores of the Lakes Erie and Michigan. 

 This is a sulphuret of mercury, and yields about 60 per 

 cent, It is so easy to be obtained and in so convenient a form 

 for distillation, that it must become an important article of 

 commerce." — Stickxey in Silliman's Journal, vol. I. 



Garnet coloured sands are very common in Canada, but 

 thev are composed of a mixture of maxnetic iron and garnet. 



