100 ON THE MINERALOGY t)F THE 



to the south, near Kinsale, in rocks of a similar 

 kind, and through the goodness of Mr Jennings 

 ^of Cork, I had an opportunity of inspecting speci- 

 mens from that quarter. 



It is in the thick slaty varieties of the slate-clay, 

 that the Wavellite of Ireland is found, and in this 

 district, at a place called Springhill, near Fracton 

 Ahbey. The appearances which the wavellite of 

 this place -exhibit, are so minutely detailed by my 

 friend Dr Fitton, in his " Notes on the Minera- 

 logy of Dublin," p. 55., that few observations are 

 here necessary. It occurs in three distinct states. 



1. As a coating on the surface of the natural 

 joints or rents of the stone. In this situation, it is 

 diverging, radiated, translucent, nearly colourless, 

 or with a slight tinge of green. — 2. As a ce- 

 ment, uniting small angular pieces of the rock, 

 and exhibiting its natural stellular, radiated ap- 

 pearance. — 3. In the form .of contemporaneous veins 

 in the rock. - In this last situation, it has a ten- 

 dency to form spherical concretions. These are 

 sometimes separate, sometimes united in pairs, or 

 grouped, so as to exhibit botryoidal and reniform 

 .appearances. 



These concretions are from the size of a pin's 

 'head to an inch and quarter in diameter. They 

 consist of angular wedge-shaped spiculse, which pro- 

 ceed from the centre to the circumference. The 

 surface is sometimes smooth, but generally rough 

 with the projecting ends of the spiculae. 



