144 IT. F. Hillebrand — Vanadium Sulphide, Patronite. 



times loosely filled with the brittle pitchy matter just men- 

 tioned. Elsewhere the surface is rather dull and of a color 

 having a suggestion of red when contrasted with the pitch 

 black of adjacent parts. The texture is extremely fine-grained 

 like that of steel aud the fracture rather conchoidal. These 

 peculiarities of texture often give rise to great unevenness on 

 large fracture surfaces. In the closed tube there appears a 

 sublimate of sulphur and then the odor of hydrogen sulphide. 

 The composition of the sample analyzed follows : 



S soluble in CS 2 0*64 



S combined 5-36 



C 86-63 



H 0-25 



N 0-51 



O by diff 4-64 



Moisture none 



Ash 1-97 



100-00 

 The ash is highly vanadiferous. 



The Vanadium Ore. 



The remainder of the deposit, about eight feet in thickness, 

 is a complex mixture of mineral substances. The color in mass, 

 as earlier mentioned, is dark, almost black, with perhaps a 

 suggestion of green as stated by Hewett. It breaks for the 

 greater part unevenly, but often somewhat smoothly along 

 planes of weakness, portions of which show permanent brilliant 

 metallic luster. This is due to a thin coating of presumably 

 carbonaceous matter like that noticed in the coke-like material. 

 Bravo reports enclosures of brilliant black " asphaltite " and 

 also sulphur visible to the naked eye. JSTo sulphur was to be 

 seen in the samples at my disposal,* but there were many patches 

 and points of a dull pyritous mineral, whiter than pyrite and 

 usually of a faint reddish cast, apparently due to tarnish. These 

 consist of an iron-nickel sulphide, of which more later, carry- 

 ing vanadium and siliceous and titaniferous matter. Heated 

 in the closed tube, the ore gives off sulphur copiously and then 

 hydrogen sulphide. It does not melt. 



The chief component was given in both the earlier publica- 

 tions as a vanadium sulphide, to which Hewett gave the name 

 patronite and Bravo that of Rizo-Patronita, in honor of Senor 

 Antenor Rizo-Patron, the discoverer of the ore and its vana- 

 dium contents. The paper of Hewett was published Sept. 1, 



* Specimens received from Mr. Hewett since this was written do show 

 free sulphur on some of the parting surfaces in the form of scales. 



