170 American Cinnabar and Natwe Lead. 
10. American Cinnabar and Native Lead. 
Extract of a letter from B. F. Stickney, Esq. dated Port 
Lawrence, Michigan Territory, Mouth of the Miami of 
the Lakes, June 17, 1819. 
Remork.—In Vol. 1. page 433, mention is made of Amer- 
ican Cinnabar and native Lead. I have procured from Mr. 
Stickney, U.S. Agent, for Indian affairs a statement of 
facts relative to a subject, which, so far as regards the cin- 
nabar, is so important, and as regards the native lead, is so 
curious, that I have not been willing to abridge thé state- 
ment. Some of the mercurial sand which Mr. Stickney 
enclosed in his letter was unfortunately lost, so that I have 
never seen a specimen.—LHd. 
Cinnabar. 
It is true, that there is in this vicinity, a large district of 
country abounding with sulphuret of Mercury, more or less 
interspersed through the soil, in the state of a black and red 
cinnabarine sand, and in one place, the genuine red cinna- 
bar occurs in the form of an impalpable powder or in small 
lumps and grains, interspersed in banks of clay. This is 
near the mouth of the Vermilion river, discharging itself in- 
to Lake Erie, about eighty miles south east of this place. 
From the mouth of the Vermilion, round the whole shore 
of the western end of Lake Erie, on the shores of Detroit 
river, Lakes St. Clair, Huron, and Michigan, the banks are 
streaked with small reefs of this black and red sand of Cin- 
nabar. The whole body of the soil is interspersed with this 
sand through the whole of this extensive district of country. 
But generally itis more abundant in banks of fine ferrugin- 
ous clay. When gentle breezes agitate the Lakes and 
wear away their banks, the water bears off the lighter 
particles of earth and leaves the heavy sand predominant, 
when it is found in great abundance. But after a violent 
storm, there is scarcely any to be seen ; for the great agita- 
tion of the whole sand of the shore, gives an opportunity to 
the ore of mercury, to find a lower level, in conformity te 
its much greater specific gravity. 
