JARGOON 7 



in compact tough masses, breaking with a splintery fracture. The specific gravity 

 varies irom 2'9 to 3 - l, rising to 3'38 in Saussurite. All the jades are hard stones, being 

 nearly as hard as quartz, but it is said that some varieties when first broken, are so 

 soft as to be readily cut with a knife. The colours are various shades of green, 

 occasionally passing into a greenish white tint. 



Like most green stones, jade has always been a favourite material for amulets. It 

 formerly possessed special repute for curing diseases of the kidneys, whence the 

 mineralogical name nephrite (ve<j>p6s, the kidneys), and the popiilar name "kidney-atone 

 (pierre nepkritique, Fr. ; pietra di hijada, Sp. ; Nierenstein, Ger.). 



Jade is largely used in China as an ornamental stone under the name of yu. Mr. 

 Pumpelly has shown that the jado of the province of Yunnan, known as fetsui, Is 

 really jadeite. The Chinese appear to have formerly obtained considerable supplies 

 of jade from Eastern Turkestan, where it is found in the chain of the Kuen-lun 

 Mountains. The jade-quarries on the Kara-kash River have been visited and de- 

 scribed by Dr. Cayley and by Hermann von Schlagintweit. According to the latter 

 traveller, jade is always known in Khotan under the name of yashm. 



Jade is found extensively in New Zealand, and is employed by the natives for 

 making tikis, or the grotesque ornaments worn on the breast, and for the peculiar 

 instruments of war, called pattoo-pattoos or meres. The use of jade for these axe-like 

 weapons has led to the popular name of axe-stone (Beilstein, Ger.). The New Zealand 

 jade is known to the Maories as punamu or ' greenstone ; ' and, according to Von 

 Hochstetter's map it is found along the west coast of the South Island ; indeed, this 

 island is called, from the occurrence of jade, Te Wahi Punamu, or ' The place of the 

 greenstone.' 



Jade also occurs in Siberia, and fine specimens have been brought by M. Alibert, 

 with his graphite, from the Government of Irkutsk. 



In prehistoric times, jade and jadeite were used for amulets and ornaments, and 

 specimens have been found among the relics of the old pile-buildings, or Pfahlbauten, 

 of the Swiss lakes. It is curious to conjecture whence this material could have been 

 derived ; for, with the exception of an erratic block found at Schwemsal in Germany, 

 true jade is not known to occur in western Europe. The so-called jade pebbles of 

 lona are nothing more than serpentinous marble. F.W.E. 



JADEXTE. See JADE. 



JAGGERY. Palm-sugar, prepared from Saguerus saccharifer 



JAXiAP. The root of the Exogonium purga, Bth., a member of the Convolvulacece, 

 or Bindweed order. It takes its name from Xalapa, a city of Mexico. Its uses as a 

 common purgative are well known. 



JAMAICA PEPPER. One of the names given to ALLSPICE. 



JAXVTESOlffXTE. A sulphide of lead and antimony, containing about 40 per 

 cent, of lead and 34 of antimony. It occurs in several mines in the north-east of 

 Cornwall, and in Devonshire, but has not hitherto been available as an ore of lead. 



JAN APUM. Crotalaria juncea, a vegetable fibre used for ropes. See FIBBES. 



JAP AX ZSARTH. Terra Japonica. See GAMBIE. 



JAPAN XiACQUER. A hard black varnish prepared from the Stagmaria 

 verniciflua. 



JAPAN PEPPER. A condiment prepared in China and Japan by bruising the 

 capsules of the Xanthoxylon piperitum, D.C. From this plant, or from a closely-allied 

 species, Stenhouse obtained two peculiar principles, which he called Xanthoxylene and 

 Xantkoxylin. 



JAP Air SAGO. A starch obtained from the stem of tho Cycas revoluta. 



JAPAN WAX. A vegetable wax obtained from the fruits of Efms succedanea, 

 L., and perhaps other species. It has been imported from Japan for use in candle- 

 making. 



JAPANNXN G is a kind of varnishing or lacquering, practised with excellence by 

 the Japanese, whence the name. 



The only difference between Varnishing and japanning is that after the application 

 of every coat of colour or varnish, the object so varnished is placed in an oven or 

 stove at as high a temperature as can safely be employed without injuring the articles 

 or causing the varnish to blister or run. 



For black japanned works, the ground is first prepared with a coating of black, made 

 by mixing dross ivory black to a proper consistence with dark coloured online varnish, 

 as this gives a blacker surface than could be produced by japan alone. If the surface 

 is required to be polished, five or six coats of japan are necessary to give sufficient 

 body to prevent the japan from being rubbed through in polishing. 



Coloured japans are made by mixing with some hard varnishes the required colour, 

 and proceeding as described. See VARNISH. 



JARGOON, the name given to a variety of Zircon from Ceylon, It is seldom 



