28 The federal SPECIES* 



Precious ftones may, with refpecl: to their va* 

 rious figures, be fuppofed to approach fomewhat 

 nearer to the pyrites. The mountain- cryftal, that 

 is, the diamond white tranfparent fort, as furpri- 

 fing as it is common in our mines, affumes all 

 manner of figures $ tho* che more common be 

 -either the cubical, or the prifmatical figure ; this 

 laft running to a point with five unequal fides and 

 angles. Topazes, hyacinths, emeralds, fapphires, 

 and the like variegated ftones, generally arTecl: a cu- 

 bical form : Tho' indeed the gran ate ufually is 

 feen to have twelve and fourteen fides (a thing not 

 common for the other precious ftones) and never to 

 be prifmatical. 'Tis however to be added, that the 

 granate (whether all I know not) is fomething more 

 than a ftone ilightly tinged ; it is rather richly fa- 

 turatcd with fome metal, particularly tin, whether 

 with gold is not fo evident -, fo that it may juftly 

 claim rank amongft genuine tin- ores. Of the prif- 

 matical figure, we find at Stolpen in Mifnia a hard 

 iron-coloured, black-grey marble, called Bafaltes(a) 

 touch-ftone ; of feven, fix, five, and fometimes 

 only four fides, and of fuch length and thicknefs 

 as to be fet up on end in the corners of ftreets 

 and near houfes. Of the like figure are the ftones 

 near the draining-hut of Grunenthal, in the road 

 from Brandau to Gerkau. Of a triangular figure 

 are the quartz, or flint of Anholt, an Ifland near 

 Jutland ; of which the learned in Denmark make 

 mention, but which I never faw, any more than 

 other ftones of that figure (b). Laftly, with re- 

 gard 



{a) Bafaltes derives either from to&vwi^ai, I explore or try j 

 or from Bifaltia, a country of Macedonia ; and then 'tis the 

 fame as Bifaltes. Gefner, p. 21. 



{b) Jnfula hasc, intuit Olaus Borrichius, hi finu Codano in* 

 finitos habet filices aigros, albos, varios, in fabulo hinc inde 

 fepultos, at fex tranfverfos digitos in longitudinem protenfos, 

 Ittos digiiura unuro, omn« (riqueKQs, a$ £ t&uiv artificis 



ftyffent 



