MINEKALS. 527 



Pyroxene, Orthoclase and Tourmaline, are described under Calcareous Mica Schist. 



Chromic Iron, or Chromite. This crystallizes in the monoraetric system and is generally found as an 

 octahedron. Color between iron and brownish-black and is sometimes magnetic. In composition it is com- 

 posed of protoxyd of iron, sesquoxyd of chromicum, alumina, magnesia and a trace of silica and protoxyd 

 manganese in some specimens. One of the best localities in this country is at Baltimore, Md., where it is 

 mined to the extent of 1000 tons annually for the purpose of procuring the oxyd of chrome which is used in 

 painting on porcelain and with oil. It is found mostly in serpentine, and is the essential coloring matter in 

 Verd-antique marble. It occurs in Vermont at Troy, Jay, Westfield, Newfane and Koxbury. No. 66 in 

 the Collection is a specimen from Jay, Vt. 



Asbestus. This fibrous mineral has already been partially described under Mountain Leather. The 

 name is derived from the Greek signifying unextinguished, since it was used as wicking by the ancients 

 for their lamps, which kept continually burning in the temples. It is a fibrous variety of tremolite or 

 actinolite. The fibers are as fine as flax, and may easily be separated by the fingers. The color is usually 

 white or nearly so. In Lowell, Vt., it is found in considerable quantity, lying loosely in the soil : the con- 

 taining rock being entirely decomposed. One use of this mineral is to pack the air chambers of salamander 

 safes. It is also said that it has been woven into a coarse cloth, which is fire proof. This is done by 

 "mixing the fibers with flax, carding, spinning, and weaving the compound, and then burning out the 

 vegetable constituent by exposing the goods to fire." It has been found in Vermont at Lowell, Troy, Jay, 

 Weybridge, Swanton, Cavendish, Chester, Roxbury, Mount Holly and Newfane. Specimens of it in the 

 Cabinet, may be seen from Nos. 206 to 225 inclusive. 



Talc and Steatite. According to Prof. Shepard, it crystallizes in right rhombic prisms. In chemical 

 composition it is a hydrous silicate of magnesia, with traces of iron and alumina in some specimens. It is 

 the essential ingredient in steatite or soapstone, and in talcose schists. In color it varies from white to 

 green of various shades. Talc has a greasy feel, and in hardness is marked 1.00 or the softest mineral on 

 the scale of hardness. Talc, especially in the form of steatite or soapstone, resists the most powerful heat, 

 and retains heat the longest of any known substance. Its uses however will be described in another part 

 of this Report. Talc and soapstone have been discovered in Vermont, at a great many places : among the 

 many, may be mentioned Thetford, Braintree, Moretown, Koxbury, Waterbury, Belvidere, Johnson, 

 Sterling, Waterville, Stow, Enosburgh, Richford, Windham, Grrafton, Marlboro, Newfane, Arlington, Bethel, 

 Bridgewater, Cavendish, Chester, Norwich, Rochester, Baltimore, Athens, Troy, Jay, Lowell, Westfield, 

 Norwich. Specimens of talc and soapstone are to be found in the Cabinet, from Nos. 298 to 311 inclusive. 



Native Copper and Galena. (Described under Calciferous Mica Schist.) 



Blende is sulphuret of zinc with a small percentage of iron in some specimens. Its primary form is 

 the cube, though it is found in tetrahedrons, octahedrons and dodecahedrons. Its prevalent color is the red- 

 brown, and it is often associated with ores of lead and silver. It is a very abundant mineral. In Vermont 

 it has been found in Bridgewater and Thetford. In the State Collection it may be seen under the Nos. 15, 

 16, 17, 18 and 19. 



Blue Spinel or Automolite. This mineral is a zinc spinel, with color black, bluish-black, and grass-green. 

 The primary form is a cube, but it occurs as a regular octahedron with various modifications. The 

 constituents are alumina, 55.14 ; magnesia, 5.25 ; oxyd of zinc, 30.02 ; peroxyd of iron, 5.85 ; silica, 

 3.84. This occurs in Vermont at Bridgewater, and may be seen in the Cabinet under Nos. 50 to 53 

 inclusive. 



ChalcopyrUe and Graphite (already described.) 



Ghalybite or Spathic Iron. This is principally a carbonate of iron. An analysis of this ore from 

 Plymouth, Vt., gave carbonate of iron, 74.28 ; carbonate of magnesia, 16.40 ; carbonate of Manganese, 

 6.56 ; oxyd of iron, 0.30 ; and undecided, 1.40. It crystallizes in rhombohedra, which are sometimes 

 curiously curved. In color it is very various, from ash, gray, brown, green and red, to white. It is one of 

 the most valuable ores of iron, being one of the principal ones from which steel is made. Hence the name 

 chalybite. It has been found in Vermont at Plymouth, Lowell, Troy, Swanton, Huntington, Guilford, 

 Norwich, Bennington, Putney, Highgate, Chittenden and Sherburne. In the State Cabinet specimens of 

 it may be seen under Nos. 363 to 366 inclusive. 



