﻿68 
  TWENTY-FIRST 
  REPORT 
  ON 
  THE 
  STATE 
  CABINET. 
  

  

  so 
  long 
  ago 
  as 
  1818, 
  described 
  by 
  Dr. 
  John 
  Davy 
  [Trans. 
  Geol. 
  

   Soc, 
  London, 
  1st 
  series, 
  v. 
  311) 
  as 
  made 
  up 
  of 
  old 
  feldspathic 
  

   gneiss 
  and 
  gneissod 
  limestone, 
  together 
  with 
  granular 
  crystalline 
  

   limestone 
  and 
  dolraite, 
  both 
  in 
  mountain 
  masses 
  and 
  in 
  veins, 
  the 
  

   latter 
  sometimes 
  white 
  and 
  lamellar, 
  and 
  enclosing 
  spinel 
  and 
  apa- 
  

   tite, 
  prisms 
  of 
  yellow 
  mica, 
  cinnamon-stone 
  garnet, 
  yellow 
  tour- 
  

   maline 
  and 
  zircon, 
  the 
  latter 
  two 
  minerals 
  associated 
  with 
  feldspar 
  

   and 
  quartz. 
  The 
  lamellar 
  graphite, 
  so 
  abundant 
  in 
  the 
  island, 
  was 
  

   regaaded 
  by 
  Dr. 
  Davy 
  as 
  the 
  characteristic 
  associate 
  of 
  the 
  gems, 
  

   spinel, 
  zircon, 
  garnet, 
  etc. 
  Anhydrite 
  exists 
  there 
  in 
  the 
  gneissoid 
  

   limestone, 
  which 
  he 
  found 
  to 
  be 
  impregnated 
  also 
  with 
  sulphate 
  

   of 
  magnesia, 
  nitre 
  and 
  nitrate 
  of 
  lime. 
  In 
  addition 
  to 
  these 
  mine- 
  

   rals 
  may 
  be 
  mentioned 
  sapphire 
  and 
  chondrodite, 
  which 
  are 
  found 
  

   together, 
  imbedded 
  in 
  lamellar 
  calcite, 
  in 
  Ceylon, 
  and 
  were 
  men- 
  

   tioned 
  by 
  me 
  in 
  the 
  Report 
  on 
  the 
  Geology 
  of 
  Canada 
  for 
  1847, 
  

   page 
  134, 
  as 
  similar 
  to 
  those 
  of 
  our 
  Laurentian 
  rocks. 
  

  

  It 
  is 
  now 
  proposed 
  to 
  consider 
  the 
  minerals 
  of 
  the 
  limestones, 
  

   with 
  their 
  accompanying 
  beds 
  of 
  pyroxenite, 
  gneiss, 
  etc., 
  which 
  

   together 
  constitute 
  what 
  we 
  have 
  denominated 
  the 
  limestone 
  

   groups 
  of 
  the 
  Laurentian 
  system. 
  When 
  the 
  mineral 
  species 
  occur 
  

   disseminated 
  in 
  the 
  stratified 
  or 
  indigenous 
  rocks, 
  and 
  form 
  an 
  

   integral 
  part 
  of 
  them, 
  they 
  will 
  be 
  designated 
  as 
  bed 
  minerals, 
  but 
  

   when, 
  on 
  the 
  contrary, 
  they 
  appear 
  to 
  belong 
  to 
  endogenous 
  

   masses, 
  occupying 
  fissures 
  or 
  cavities; 
  in 
  the 
  strata, 
  they 
  will 
  be 
  

   spoken 
  of 
  as 
  vein-minerals. 
  The 
  study 
  of 
  the 
  species 
  found 
  under 
  

   these 
  two 
  conditions 
  will 
  show 
  that 
  nearly 
  all 
  the 
  minerals 
  met 
  with 
  

   in 
  the 
  veins 
  likewise 
  occur 
  disseminated 
  in 
  the 
  strata, 
  and 
  will 
  per- 
  

   mit 
  the 
  inference 
  that 
  it 
  is 
  from 
  the 
  latter 
  that 
  the 
  vein-minerals 
  

   have 
  all 
  been 
  derived. 
  In 
  the 
  case 
  of 
  such 
  as 
  contain 
  the 
  rarer 
  

   elements, 
  however, 
  it 
  may 
  well 
  be 
  supposed 
  that 
  these 
  are 
  so 
  dif- 
  

   fused 
  through 
  the 
  mass 
  of 
  the 
  sediments, 
  that 
  it 
  was 
  only 
  when 
  

   concentrated 
  in 
  the 
  veinstones 
  that 
  they 
  are 
  capable 
  of 
  being 
  

   recognized 
  by 
  ininera 
  logical 
  characters. 
  It 
  is 
  nevertheless 
  evident 
  

   that, 
  in 
  certain 
  cases 
  at 
  least, 
  the 
  particles 
  of 
  the 
  sedimentary 
  

   strata 
  have 
  at 
  one 
  time 
  possessed 
  a 
  sufficient 
  mobility 
  to 
  permit 
  of 
  

   crystallization, 
  and 
  of 
  a 
  partial 
  segregation 
  and 
  grouping 
  of 
  their 
  

   heterogeneous 
  elements. 
  

  

  In 
  the 
  following 
  list 
  are 
  included 
  all 
  the 
  minerals, 
  so 
  far 
  as 
  yet 
  

   known, 
  which 
  may 
  be 
  regarded 
  as 
  belonging 
  to 
  the 
  Laurentian 
  

   limestones 
  of 
  North 
  America, 
  and 
  their 
  immediately 
  related 
  strata. 
  

   In 
  addition 
  to 
  the 
  rocks 
  of 
  this 
  denomination 
  in 
  Canada, 
  and 
  in 
  

  

  