354 DOMAIN IV. TALCOUS. 



'Saussure presents some uncommon examples : 



Serpentine, with spots approaching to crystal- 

 lisation : may not this be the stone mentioned by 

 Pliny as gemmose? 107- 



Laminar serpentine, of a yellowish grey, with 

 striated surfaces, and translucent on the edges. 

 2253. 



He also describes, 1434, another granular ser- 

 pentine, with an earthy fracture. 



Mount Cervin rises to a prodigious height, un- 

 der the form of a triangular obelisk of bare rock, 

 which seems hewn with a chisel : the appearance 

 is alike singular and magnificent. Saussure, 

 2220, gives a curious account of this surprising 

 mountain of serpentine. 



MODE VII. SAUSSURITE. 



Characters. Texture, fine-grained, compact. 



Hardness, basaltic. Fracture, generally even 

 and earthy, sometimes scaly. Fragments, amor- 

 phous, rather blunt. 



Weight, granitose. 



Lustre, dull, sometimes rather glimmering, 

 from particles of siderite. Opake. 



Colour, black or dark grey, sometimes faintly 



