116 collector's manual 



Many saline minerals occur in the salt deposits of arid and 

 desert regions where natural seepages or old lakes have evaporated. 

 Often well-crystallized minerals can be found under such condi- 

 tions. Any deep depression should be examined. On deserts there 

 may be a separating of the minerals by the wind; sometimes 

 unusual specimens can be found exposed on the surface by this 

 type of erosion. 



Whenever possible, clean your minerals before leaving the 

 locality where they were found. Washing them off in water will 

 give you a chance to see their true color and beaut} r . Then sort 

 them into different groups and select the best specimens for 

 packing. It is a waste of time to retain a lot of poor samples. 



Only preliminary trimming should be done in the field. Never 

 attempt any trimming until the natural fractures in the specimen 

 have been determined, as otherwise you may ruin a choice 

 specimen. Always remove all loose fragmentary material before 

 wrapping, since this can mar or ruin an entire specimen. 



The best of each day's collection should be properly packed 

 and carried back to the base camp. There they should be un- 

 packed and spread out for comparison with the others obtained 

 from that same locality. 



In the packing of the final selection for shipment, old news- 

 papers make excellent wrapping material. Wrap each specimen 

 with its accompanying label separately. Fold the label so that 

 the writing will not be blurred. If a specimen contains delicate 

 crystals, cover them with a soft pad of shredded paper and then 

 wrap with plent3 r of paper. Pack the individually wrapped ma- 

 terial in a box sufficiently strong for shipment, and make sure 

 that the contents plus packing completely fills the box. 



