﻿Judd 
  and 
  Hidden 
  — 
  Hiihy 
  in 
  North 
  Carolina. 
  375 
  

  

  The 
  corundum 
  crystals, 
  whether 
  ruby-red 
  or 
  pink 
  in 
  color, 
  

   occur 
  in 
  " 
  nests 
  " 
  and 
  " 
  bands," 
  and 
  also 
  in 
  what 
  appear 
  to 
  

   have 
  once 
  been 
  empty 
  spaces 
  in 
  the 
  rocks, 
  either 
  amphibolite, 
  

   or 
  eclogite, 
  or 
  hornblendic 
  gneiss. 
  The 
  spaces, 
  when 
  the 
  

   corundum 
  is 
  pale 
  colored, 
  appear 
  to 
  have 
  been 
  filled 
  up 
  with 
  

   felspathic 
  material 
  ; 
  but 
  when 
  the 
  corundum 
  is 
  of 
  ruby-red 
  

   color, 
  the 
  surrounding 
  space 
  is 
  filled 
  up 
  with 
  chloritic 
  material. 
  

  

  Corundum 
  is 
  not, 
  however, 
  confined 
  wholly 
  to 
  these 
  bands, 
  

   which 
  were 
  once 
  druse-like 
  cavities 
  in 
  the 
  rock, 
  but 
  it 
  often 
  

   happens 
  that 
  the 
  mineral, 
  sometimes 
  red 
  and 
  transparent, 
  is 
  

   found 
  in 
  the 
  midst 
  of 
  the 
  rock. 
  

  

  One 
  respect 
  in 
  which 
  the 
  corundum 
  of 
  Cowee 
  Creek 
  resem- 
  

   bles 
  that 
  of 
  Burma 
  is 
  in 
  the 
  readiness 
  with 
  which 
  it 
  seems 
  to 
  

   have 
  undergone 
  pseudomorphous 
  change 
  by 
  hydration 
  followed 
  

   by 
  combination 
  of 
  the 
  resulting 
  diaspore 
  with 
  surrounding 
  

   silicates. 
  The 
  pseudomorphous 
  material 
  often 
  retains 
  the 
  

   shape 
  and 
  occupies 
  the 
  place 
  where 
  crystals 
  of 
  corundum 
  were 
  

   originally 
  firmly 
  embedded 
  in 
  the 
  hard 
  matrix. 
  Often 
  only 
  a 
  

   thin 
  flake 
  of 
  corundum 
  remains 
  in 
  the 
  midst 
  of 
  a 
  mass 
  of 
  alter- 
  

   ation 
  products 
  to 
  tell 
  the 
  character 
  and 
  color 
  of 
  what 
  was 
  once 
  

   a 
  large 
  crystal. 
  

  

  It 
  is 
  surprising 
  to 
  see 
  the 
  positive 
  evidence 
  of 
  the 
  former 
  

   existence 
  of 
  hundreds 
  of 
  pounds 
  weight 
  of 
  ruby 
  and 
  other 
  

   varieties 
  of 
  corundum, 
  where, 
  to-day, 
  only 
  a 
  few 
  ounces 
  of 
  

   fragments 
  or 
  flakes 
  remain. 
  

  

  The 
  most 
  notable 
  6f 
  the 
  minerals 
  associated 
  with 
  the 
  rubies 
  

   and 
  other 
  forms 
  of 
  corundum 
  at 
  Cowee 
  Creek 
  is 
  garnet, 
  and 
  

   this 
  garnet 
  is 
  remarkable 
  for 
  its 
  color 
  and 
  beauty 
  as 
  a 
  gem- 
  

   stone. 
  The 
  color 
  is 
  unlike 
  that 
  either 
  of 
  pyrope 
  or 
  almandine, 
  

   and 
  lacks 
  that 
  depth 
  and 
  intensity 
  which 
  usually 
  makes 
  garnets 
  

   such 
  dark-looking 
  stones, 
  especially 
  by 
  artificial 
  light. 
  These 
  

   garnets, 
  on 
  the 
  contrary, 
  have 
  a 
  peculiar 
  and 
  very 
  beautiful 
  

   tint, 
  combined 
  with 
  a 
  transparency 
  and 
  brilliancy 
  which 
  is 
  

   more 
  striking 
  in 
  artificial 
  light 
  than 
  in 
  ordinary 
  daylight. 
  

   From 
  the 
  resemblance 
  of 
  its 
  color 
  (a 
  pale 
  rosy 
  tint 
  inclining 
  to 
  

   purple) 
  to 
  that 
  of 
  certain 
  roses 
  and 
  rhododendrons, 
  this 
  variety 
  

   of 
  garnet 
  lias 
  received 
  the 
  name 
  of 
  " 
  rhodolite.""^ 
  

  

  The 
  rhodolite 
  usually 
  occurs 
  in 
  water- 
  worn 
  fragments, 
  mixed 
  

   with 
  corundum 
  and 
  the 
  other 
  minerals 
  found 
  in 
  the 
  " 
  saprolitic" 
  

   rock 
  and 
  in 
  the 
  gravels 
  of 
  the 
  district. 
  Only 
  minute 
  crystals, 
  

   occurring 
  as 
  inclusions, 
  have 
  as 
  yet 
  been 
  found, 
  and 
  these 
  are 
  

   sometimes 
  rhombic-dodecahedrons 
  and 
  at 
  other 
  times 
  trapezo- 
  

   hedrons 
  (icositetrahedrons). 
  The 
  garnets 
  show 
  the 
  same 
  ten- 
  

   dency 
  to 
  alteration 
  as 
  the 
  corundum, 
  and 
  pseudomorphs 
  of 
  the 
  

   mineral 
  abound, 
  as 
  is 
  the 
  case 
  in 
  Burma. 
  

  

  * 
  The 
  rhodolite 
  of 
  the 
  Cowee 
  Creek 
  and 
  Mason's 
  Branch 
  district 
  has 
  been 
  

   recently 
  carefully 
  studied 
  by 
  Dr. 
  Pratt 
  in 
  conjunction 
  with 
  one 
  of 
  us. 
  

  

  