Fossils. 16f 



in, that state, is called a mineratizer, and 

 the compound of both, an ore ; which term 

 is applicable when stones, or earths, con- 

 tain metallic substances, \vhether native or 

 mineralized, in a notable proportion. 



Several metals are ductile and mallea- 

 ble, and their parts may be displaced from 

 each other by compression, or hammer- 

 ing, without losing their cohesion. Hence., 

 some of them may be stretched out to 

 thin laminae, or drawn into slender fila- 

 ments ; as, for instance, gold, silver, plan- 

 tina, copper, lead, tin, and iron. Other 

 metals are fragile, or brittle, and do not 

 admit of being stretched and extended ; 

 such are antimony, arsenic, cobalt, bis- 

 muth, &Pc. 



All metals are fusible, but not all in 

 the same degree ; thus mercury is mel- 

 ued even by the usual temperature of our 

 atmosphere. Some metals, as tin and 

 ^ead, melt even before ignition ; others, 

 as silver, gold copper, iron, fuse only af- 

 ter being ignited. 



All metals, iron and platina only excep- 

 ted, melt on a sudden, as soon as they 

 are heated in a due degree ; but iron 

 and platina grow soft before they fuse.. 



