color is doubtless due to some organic 

 matter, as it disappears, leaving the 

 stone white, on heating. The stone is al- 

 ways opaque. Its use is not extensive, 

 its sale being greater to tourists in the 

 vicinity of the regions where it is found 

 than to gem cutters. Several other 

 localities in the United States besides 

 those mentioned afford the mineral, 

 though not in large quantities. It oc- 

 curs in two or three localities in North 

 Carolina ; in Paris, Maine ; Mount 

 Desert, Maine ; Rockport, Massachu- 

 setts ; and Delaware county, Pennsyl- 

 vania. The finest comes from the Pike's 

 Peak locality. Mr. G. F. Klunz states in 

 regard to these crystals that when they 

 were first exhibited at the Centennial 

 Exposition in Philadelphia in 1876 they 

 were a great surprise to Russian dealers 

 who had brought over some amazonstone 

 from the Urals, expecting to sell it at 

 what would now be considered fabulously 

 high prices. 



The second species of Feldspar which 

 may be mentioned as of use as an or- 

 namental stone is labradorite. This dif- 

 fers in composition from amazonstone in 

 containing soda and lime in place of pot- 

 ash, the percentages in a typical labra- 

 dorite being, silica 53.7, alumina 29.6, 

 lime 1 1.8 and soda 4.8. Labradorite has 

 the typical cleavage of Feldspar and 

 cleavage surfaces in the direction of 

 easiest cleavage are usually marked by 

 rows of parallel striae. These show that 

 the mass is made up of a series of crystal 

 twins in parallel position and afford an 

 excellent criterion for determining a 

 triclinic Feldspar. Labradorite is a 

 common rock-forming mineral, especial- 

 ly in the older rocks. It is only, how- 

 ever, when it occurs in large pieces 

 which exhibit a play of colors that it is 

 prized as an ornamental stone. The 

 labradorite exhibiting the latter prop- 

 erty in the most remarkable degree and 

 hence most valued is that found on the 

 coast of Labrador near Nain and the 

 adjacent island of St. Paul. It was first 

 found here by a Moravian missionary 

 named Wolfe and brought to Europe in 

 the year 1775. It occurs together with 

 the form of pyroxene known as hyper- 

 sthene, in a coarse-grained granite, or 

 perhaps a gneiss. From these it is 

 weathered out by wave and atmospheric 



action and occurs as beach pebbles. It 

 is also mi;ied from veins. Labradorite 

 of pleasing color and opalescence occurs 

 in a few other localities in Canada, and 

 in Essex county, New York, in the 

 United States. Two localities occur in 

 Russia, one near St. Petersburg and 

 the other in the region of Kiew. The 

 labradorite of the latter locality is the 

 better, its occcurrence being in a coarse- 

 grained gabbro. The Labrador occur- 

 rence exceeds all others, however, in 

 abundance and beauty and by far the 

 larger quantity used in the arts comes 

 from there. The play of colors which 

 gives labradorite its attractiveness is 

 rarely seen to advantage except upon a 

 polished surface, but whether polished 

 or unpolished it only appears when the 

 surface is held at a particular angle with 

 reference to the eye. Emerson thus de- 

 scribes it in his essay on Experience as 

 illustrating the limitations of the individ- 

 ual : "A man is like a bit of Labrado;- 

 spar, which has no lustre as you turn it 

 in your hand until you come to a par- 

 ticular angle; then it shows deep and 

 beautiful colors." 



The play of colors seen in labradorite 

 is not like that of the opal, which pre- 

 sents to the eye fragments of different 

 colors varying in different positions, but 

 appears as broad surfaces of a single 

 color. It is only rarely that these colors 

 change with a change of position. Bauer 

 remarks that the appearance is similar 

 to that seen on the wings of some trop- 

 ical butterflies. The colors over any 

 given surface are not necessarily alike, 

 but more than two or three tints are rare. 

 Each tint is uniform where it occurs. A 

 surface may be interspersed with many 

 spots exhibiting no sheen. Both colored 

 and uncolored portions have only vague 

 outlines and merge into each other at the 

 edges. Bauer mentions a labradorite 

 from Russia the colored portions of 

 which formed a striking likeness of 

 Louis XVI, the head being a beautiful 

 blue against a gold green background, 

 while above appeared a beautiful garnet 

 red crown. Excellent effects are some- 

 times produced in labradorite by cut- 

 ting it in the form of cameos so as to 

 make the base of different color from 

 the figure in relief. Of the different 

 colors shown by labradorite blue and 



77 



