HOW — ON MINEEALS FOR TEDE PARIS EXHEBITIOK. 31 



illustration of the oil coal from Pictou Co., which is known to 

 yield a considerable amount of oil by distillation ; the oil pro- 

 duced is also shewn in two specimens, distilled by the exhibitor, 

 Mr. Jackson, one of which represents the crude oil, and the other 

 the oil refined by a second distillation. We then come to the 



Generai. Collectioxs of Minerals. — The first case we 

 come to contains duplicate specimens of minerals of which finer 

 specimens are in the other cases, along with some clays and a 

 few other species. In the other three cases are specimens too 

 numerous to describe in full : among them I may mention as 

 specially interesting, minerals of the same name as some in the 

 Webster collection, bnt exhibiting very interesting variations 

 from the most common forms. Here are very fine specimens 

 of analcime alone, and most exquisite groups of analcime and 

 natrolite, fine examples of apophyllite, and the most l^eautiful 

 specimen I ever saw of that form of chabazite which from 

 being found only in Nova Scotia is called acadiolite. It is in 

 rich red crystals nearly cubical in shape, the common form being 

 white or nearly colourless. Here too are a few minerals which 

 will be especially interesting to the mineralogist as being entirely 

 new to him, from not being found out of Xova Scotia, or as 

 being found in very few localities, namely, central lasite, morde- 

 nite andfaroelite. Among these minerals may be mentioned one 

 which if found in quantity would have the additional interest of 

 being very valuable in a commercial sense, I speak of a 

 mineral I found several years ago, in the gypsum of Windsor, 

 called natroboro calcite. It is known to occur only in a few 

 other localities. It is rich in boracic acid, and on this account is 

 very much valued in forming glazes on pottery, for which 

 purpose it is exported from Peru, where alone so far it has been 

 found in quantity. When I first described this mineral as met 

 with here, the attention of an English pottery maker was drawn to 

 it by some newspaper account of what I had found, and he wrote 

 to me asking for some of it to try in glazing pottery. I sent a 

 sample and in return received a piece of pottery glazed with the 

 mineral I had forwarded used alone, accompanied by the state- 

 ment that used in this way the Nova Scotia mineral formed an 

 excellent o:laze, while the custom was to use borates along: with 



