PRECIOUS STONES 329 



Alexander county, N. C, in 1877; but these, althoiifi;h valuable 

 and beautiful as specimens, were not clear enoujj;h to cut into 

 gems. More recently a locality has been opened at Crab tree, 

 Haywood county, in the same state, where small and hand- 

 some emerald crystals, both translucent and opaque, occur 

 thickly in the white feldspar and quartz of a vein of pegma- 

 tite (coarse feldspathic granite). This green and white mix- 

 ture is ver>' pleasing, and as the three miaerals have nearly 

 the same degree of hardness, the whole can be cut and polished 

 together, making a novel and beautiful ornamental stone. 

 Pieces are cut en cabochon, i. e., rounded, not faceted, show- 

 ing sectioas of the emerald crystals in different directions in 

 the white mass. This material has been introduced iato orna- 

 mental and minor jewel work under the name of emerald ma- 

 trix, by the American Gem company. 



Beryl is essentiall}" the same mineral as emerald, though 

 of paler shades and much less esteemed. Fine transparent 

 beryls, however, are choice gem stones, and several varieties 

 of them are found in the United States. Among these are 

 emerald berjds, of rich light green shades, aquamarines, 

 faintly tinged with green ; golden beryls of a rich yellow ; blue 

 ber\ds, sometimes almost as beautiful as pale sapphires ; and 

 rose beryls of light pink color. Some very fine gems have been 

 cut from crystals of these kinds, especially from Topsham, Me., 

 in the quarries of the Trenton Flint and Spar company. Other 

 fine gems come from Connecticut, North CaroUna, and Colorado. 

 In North CaroUna, near Sprucepine many fine beryls — 

 some of the richest blue color ever found — have been mined by 

 the American Gem company. The finest and largest aqua- 

 marine known is from Stoneham, Me. Golden beryls of much 

 beauty have been cut from material mined at Merryall, in Litch- 

 field county, Conn. Green and blue beryls have been found 

 in North Carolina, and aquamarines at Mt. Antero, Colo. The 

 discoveries of fine gem material are, however, not frequent nor 

 in large amount, so that there is no systematic mining or regular 

 production. 



Topaz is a fluosiUcate of alumina and crystallizes in rhom- 

 bic prisms ^^ith a hardness of 8. The true topaz occurs but 

 sparingly in the United States, although here and there it has 



