| Dewey's Geological Section. 249 
Wavellite? 
I have lately analysed a mineral, found by Mr. Emmons, 
in an iron mine in Richmond, in this county. It is new, or 
a new variety of Wavellite. 
Colour, greenish white ; scratches crystalized carbonate 
of lime, but is less hard than fluate of lime; infusible by 
the blowpipe ; and sp. gr. about 2. 4. It occurs in a sta- 
lactical form, or as an incrustation, presenting many small 
-mamillary concretions, which, as well as the stalactites, are 
composed of minute radiating crystals, or crystaline fibres. 
Its lustre is rather weak—vather tough to break, but is pul- 
verised without difficulty in a glass mortar. It contains a 
little less than seventy per. cent. of alumine, much water, 
and a little lime and silex. From an exammation of seve- 
ral specimens, the lime appears to be variable. ‘The above 
characters bring it so near wavellite, that | am inclined to 
think it only a varvety. 
When pulverised, it is nearly all dissolved in solution of 
pure potash by heat. If nitric acid be poured on the solution, 
very nearly the whole is dissolved asa nitrate. The re- 
mainder is clearly silex. If the nitrate be mixed with car- 
bonate of potash, and the precipitate be well washed, it is 
nearly all dissolved by pure potash. ‘The remainder is 
lime—is perfectly dissolved by nitric acid, or forms a mil- 
ky mixture with sulphuric acid, and the sulphate of lime is 
soon precipitated. When the alkaline solution is precipita- 
ted by an acid, and the precipitate well washed, and sul- 
phuric acid added, you have the full and distinct taste of 
alum. There can be no doubt of the general constituents. 
Several days after I had obtained these results, a letter from 
Dr. Torrey, of New-York, informed me that he had obtain- 
ed the same results,* except the lime. can, however,no more 
doubt about the lime, than about the alumine. Probably 
the lime is accidental, and his specimen contained none. 
* A letter from Dr. Torrey, to the Editor, dated Sept. 22d, confirms this 
statement, and promises a detailed analysis, which we should be glad to 
see, especially as it appears that the analysis of the Wavellite bas been re- 
cently repeated in Sweden, by Berzelius, with the following result ; Alu- 
mine, 35, 35: phosphoric acid, 33, 40; fluoric acid, 2, 06; lime 0,50 ; 
oxids of iron and manganese, 1, 28; water, 26, 80. . 
