14 Olmsted on the Gold Mines of North Carolina. 



throughout all the branches of Rocky River. It is evident, 

 then, that the rivers do not bring down the gold from their 

 sources, but that they cut through a stratum containing it, 

 which covers like a mantle, an extensive tract of the coun- 

 try through which they flow, and that they bring the pre- 

 cious metal to view by separating it from its stony matrix. 



2. Did the present lumps and grains ever form parts of 

 large masses in a continued bed or vein? 



It has been already remarked that the present aspect of 

 these pieces is such as would naturally result from collision 

 among the siliceous fragments that accompany them. Im- 

 pressions of sand and gravel, or even imbedded sand, might, 

 it is true, be the result of fusion in a bed of sand ; but the 

 appearance is not that which arises from fusion under such 

 circumstances, the cavities being superficial^ forming im- 

 pressions or indentations, while there is no appearance in 

 any specimen that I have seen of a grain of sand enveloped 

 by the mass* But if the present appearance of these 

 lumps and grains be owing to attrition, and the formation 

 be, as we have supposed, a deposit from water, then we 

 must regard them as the remains of larger pieces, reduced 

 in size by collision with the accompanying minerals, but not 

 as parts of very large masses which have been torn up 

 and broken into fragments. The same cause that would 

 be sufficient to break up into fragments the accompanying 

 gravel would not break up large masses of Gold into small- 

 er pieces, since gold is soft and malleable, and not brittle 

 and unyielding like quartz. The eifect of running water 

 and dashing rocks would be to wear dozon the pieces of gold 

 and compress them, but not to break them. The fine 

 flakes and dust of gold may be conceived to have been 

 produced in this manner; and the relative quantity of dust 

 may afford some means of judging of the original size of the 

 lumps and grains from which it was derived. In the gold 

 of this formation, but little dust, comparatively, is saved, 

 although more, I believe, might be saved by a more im- 

 proved process of working. At present the greater part 

 collected is in the state of grains, or small scattered 



* Vide Kirwaa's Geoloc'cal Essays. 402. 



