1 882.] Mineralogy. 79 



In America, our knowledge of Vanadium minerals has been 

 largely increased by the important papers of Genth. 1 Vanadium 

 has been shown by the editor to occur in the Philadelphia gneisses. 2 

 More recently Silliman 3 has announced the discovery of two impor- 

 tant localities for Vanadium minerals in Arizona. He states that 

 very beautiful and perfect orange-red and yellow crystals of Vanad- 

 inite have been found in that State. He also describes Vanadium 

 minerals which he believes to be Descloizite and Volborthite. 

 Chileite and Mottramite are also suspected. It is to be hoped 

 that a more exact chemical and crystallographic examination 

 may be made upon these interesting minerals. 



Microlite from Virignia. — Very fine and large crystals of 

 this rare mineral have been found in Amelia Co., Virginia. 4 The 

 crystals are octahedrons modified by cubic, dodecahedral and 

 sometimes also trapezohedral planes. Some of these crystals 

 which have been brought to Philadelphia are several inches in 

 diameter, and we have seen masses of the mineral weighing as 

 much as thirty pounds ; a circumstance rendering the name of 

 the mineral an inappropriate one. The mineral is of a wax 

 yellow or brown color, and has a resinous lustre and conchoidal 



Amelia county has become a remarkable mineral locality. It 

 has yielded also Beryl, Fluorite, Columbite, Amethyst, Apatite, 

 and Tourmaline. We have seen a beryl from there which was a 

 perfect hexagon with sharp edges, measuring nine inches in dia- 

 meter by over two and a half feet in length. The interesting va- 

 riety of quartz which occurs in the Amelia county muscovite as 

 minute circular plates composed of radiating fibres is already 

 known to microscopists as a most beautiful object for the polari- 



Diadochite, a phosphato-sulphate of iron has been found in 

 some French anthracite coal mines. It occurs as amorphous 

 brown crusts of resinous lustre. It should be looked for in the 

 coal mines of this country. 



, Vivianite has been produced artificially by fusing a salt of 

 iron with bone black. 



Roster ite is a variety of beryl from Elba, of a light rose red 

 color. It occurs in short hexagonal tables. 



Uranothorite is a Thorite from the Lake Champlain Iron 

 district, containing much Uranic oxide. 



Beauxite, according to Fischer, is a mixture of oxide of iron 

 and red clay. 



* Amer Journ. Sc, July, 1876, p. 32. Proc. Amer. Pfailos. Soc, XVII, 113. 

 iroc. Acad. Nat. Sc, Phila., 1880, 256. 



