398 VENUS' PENCILS, 



same name is applied to Eock Crystal in- 

 closing silky tufts of Amianthus of great 

 fineness, and displaying a pearly lustre. 

 Both varieties are employed in jewelry. 



There is also another kind found at St. 

 Gotthard, in which the red oxide of tita- 

 nium occurs in needle - shaped crystals, 

 crossing each otlier in all directions. In 

 consequence of this reticulated appearance- 

 this sub-variety has received the name of 

 Cupid's 7iet, or Love's mesJies, and also of 

 Fleches d' Amour. 



Venus' or Cupid's Pencils. Violet 

 Quartz, enveloping small separate fibres of 

 capillary oxide of iron, of a golden brown 

 colour. They are found at Bristol ; Troza- 

 vodsk, in Russia; Oberstein, in Germany; 

 Framont, in the Vosges ; in Hungary, Bo- 

 hemia, &c. 



Verde Antique. An aggregate of Ser- 

 pentine and Limestone irregularly mingled, 

 and constituting a very beautiful marble. 



Verde di Corsica duro. A variety 

 of Hornblende, admitting of a high polish. 

 It is found in the island of Corsica. The 

 name Verde di Corsica is restricted by 

 Beudant to .he included Smaragdite. 



Verde di Pratd. A dark-green variety 

 of Serpentine, with black or red and white 

 veins. It is found at Prata, near Pistoja in 

 Florence, and is much used for statuettes 

 and sculptured ornaments. 



Verde di Susa. Green Serpentine, mar- 

 ked with white veins. 



Vermeil, or Vermeille. The name 

 given by jewellers to crimson-red Garnet, 

 inclining slightly to orange (see Pyrope). 

 It is cut like the Dutch rose, and is set side 

 by side, either as a border for other stones, 

 or m clustered masses. 



Vbrmiculite, Wehh. A variety of Py- 

 rosclerite, resembling Talc in appearance. 

 It has a granular scalv struf^ture and greasy 

 feel. When heated to 500° or 600° F. the 

 scales divide into worm-like threads made 

 np of separated laminae of cleavage, swelling 

 out to nearly a hundred times the original 

 length, with such force as to burst the glass 

 tube in which they are confined, and scatter 

 the fragments to a distance. S.G. 2'7o6. 



BB in the forceps, a scale fuses readily to 

 a yellowish green glass: witli soda to an 

 opaque brown globule. 



Analysis, from Millbury, by Crossley : 



Silica . 

 Alumina 

 Magnesia 



35 74 



16-42 

 27-44 



VILLARSITE. 

 Protoxide of iron . .10-02 



Water ..... 10-30 



99-92 



Localities. Millbury, Massachusetts, and 

 Vermont, United States. 



Name. From vermes, a worm, and A/^oj, 

 stone. 



Vermontite. See Mispickel. 



Veronitb, Leymerie. See Terre de 

 Verone. 



Vert Antique. See Verde Antique. 



Vert de Cuivre, Brochant. See Chry- 



SOCOLLA. 



Vesuvian. The name given by Werner 

 to Idocrase, after the locality, Vesuvius, 

 where it was originally observed in ejected 

 calcareous blocks, in druses, associated with 

 Glassv Felspar, Mica, Garnet, Hornblende, 

 &c. The Vesuvian Idocrase is of a hair- 

 brown or olive-green colour. 



Brit. Mus., Case 35. 



Vesuvian Garnet, Kirwan. See Leu- 

 cite. 



Vesuvian Salt See Glaserite. 



Vierzonite. Yellow Ochre from Vier- 

 zon, Dept. du Cher, in France. See Ochre. 



ViGNiTE, Dufrenoy. It is considered by 

 Rammelsberg to be a simple mixture of 

 Magnetic Iron, Carbonate and Phosphate of 

 Iron. 



Analysis, by Kersten : 



Peroxide of iron . . 49-03 



Protoxide of iron . . 33-75 

 Carbonic acid . . .11-19 

 Phosphoric acid . . . 4-03 



100-00 

 Locality. Vignes, in the Moselle, France. 

 VlLL.4RSITE, Dnfrenny, Nirol. A pseudo- 

 morphic mineral after Chrysolite, resembling 

 Serpentine in hardness and translucence, 

 and in texture and colour very like certain 

 kinds of phosphate of lime, from Arendal. 

 It occurs in small crystalline veins and in 



<^ 



Fig. 452. 



1-hombic octahedrons, with truncated sum- 

 mits and brilliant faces ; also massive and 

 granular. Colour yellowish-green or grey- 

 ish yellow. Translucent. Easily frangible. 

 Fracture uneven. Easily scratched. H. 3. 

 S.G. 2 9 to 3. 



Comp. — Hydrated Olivine, or Mg^bi 



+ H. 



