JYorth Carolina and Tennessee. 5 



greatest abundance of gold ; most of the veins opened, are near and 

 lie parallel to it ; thus have been discovered the finest deposits. 



At some distance on either side, the granite rears its wedge like 

 top in lines generally parallel. This rock, by disintegration, is usual- 

 ly rounded off. Gneiss and mica slate are common ; these alternate 

 with diabase. Veins of talcose slate, hornblende, garnet, quartz, 

 euphotide, imperfect soapstone, and with veins and beds of kaolin. 

 Most, if not all these lie in parallels, (to use the workmen's phrase,) 

 like the leaves of a book ; their relative position I was not enabled 

 satisfactorily to fix. The strata are generally vertical, though 

 when a dip is observed, it is to the north-west toward the base of the 

 Blue ridge. 



When it is in veins, more gold has been found in quartz rock than 

 in any other substance. The vein of quartz may be found at the 

 surface, usually running with the talcose slate, and sometimes with 

 that slate passing into mica slate. Very frequently it is associated 

 with hepatic pyrites, often greatly decomposed, (particularly at the 

 surface.) Such is the quantity of iron in some veins, that it would 

 seem to be the gangue ; but much as it may predominate, still a por- 

 tion of quartz is present ; and the same remark applies to the talcose 

 slate where it is found to contain gold ; there is always a portion of 

 quartz associated with it ; usually it is granular, and disseminated with 

 the gold ; and with this rock there is less of the pyrites, and if any, 

 the cubes are small. 



Gold is found in veins of quartz, running with greenstone, passing 

 into chlorite ; often the quartz is diffused and splintery, with a trace of 

 iron and kaolin ; but in general this substance is in the wall of the 

 vein on one side. Some of the best deposits seem to have had their 

 supplies from such sources. Loud's and Hughes's deposits may be 

 placed to this latter class of veins. They are rich ; the gold is in 

 large and rough pieces, holding in its filaments and thin plates, por- 

 tions of finely granular quartz. I did not see any vein of this char- 

 acter so far opened as to develop a satisfactory view of its associa- 

 tion ; one, in which the writer had an interest, contained much gold, 

 but it was hard to penetrate the gangue, and for the first ten or twelve 

 feet, was found in confusion : my opinion is, that should these veins 

 in the descent become ochery, they might be easily worked. 



Humphrey's vein on the Chatahoochy, was quartz, walled with 

 talcose slate. The masses of quartz containing the gold were reni- 

 form ; it is rich } it had not been opened to the water. At the base 



