*6 8 GRA 
rate from one another. Mr. Gerhard having 
melted some in a crucible, found the feltspar 
run into a transparent glass ; below it the 
mica lay in form of a black slag, the quartz 
remaining unaltered. It melted somewhat 
better when all the three were powdered and 
mixed together ; though even then the quartz 
was still discernible by a magnifying-glass. 
Hence we may explain the reason why grains 
of a white colour are sometimes found in vol- 
canic lavas. The mixture of mica prevents 
flie silex or quartz from splitting or crack- 
ing ; and hence its infusibility 'and use in fur- 
nace-building. 
Granites are seldom slated or laminated. 
In those which are of a close texture, the 
quartz and schoerl predominate. They take 
a good polish ; for which reason the Egyp- 
tians formerly, and Italians still work them 
into large pieces of ornamental architecture, 
tor which they are extremely lit, as not being 
liable to decay in the air. Farber, in his 
Letters from Italy, mentions a kind of stone 
named granitone, composed of feltspar and 
mica : a substance of this kind, which moul- 
ders in the air, is found in Finland ; which is 
said to contain nitre, and sometimes com- 
mon salt. In that country it is called rapa- 
kiri. Wallerius describes 18 species of gra- 
nites, besides many others akin to this ge- 
nus. Those particularly in use are, 
1. The hard white granite, with black 
spots, commonly called moor-stone. This 
is a very valuable kind, consisting of a beau- 
tiful congeries of very variously constructed 
■and differently coloured particles, not dif- 
fused among or running into one another, 
but each pure and distinct, though firmly ad- 
hering tp whichever of the others it comes in 
contact with, and forming a very firm mass. 
It is much used in London for the steps of 
public buildings, and on other occasions 
where great strength and hardness are re- 
quired. 
2. r I he hard red granite variegated with 
black and white, and common in Egypt and 
.Arabia. 
3. The pale-whitish granite, variegated 
■with black and yellow. This is sometimes 
found in strata, but more frequently in loose 
nodules, and is used for paving the streets. 
home of these kinds of stones are found in 
almost every country, and in many places 
they are found of immense size. The lar- 
gest mass of this kind in the known world, 
lying as an unconnected stone, is found near 
the Cape of Good Hope in Africa, and of 
which we have the following description in the 
Philosoph. Transact, vol. 68, given by Mr. 
Anderson, in a letter to sir John Pringle : 
“ The stone is so remarkable, that it is called 
by the people here, the tower of Babel, and 
by some the pearl diamond. It either takes 
the last name from a place near which it is 
situated, or it gives name to the tract of cul- 
tivated land called the Pearl. It lies upon 
the top of a ridge of low hills, beyond a large 
plain, at the distance of about thirty miles 
from the Cape Town ; beyond which, at a 
little distance, is a range of hills of a much 
greater height. It is ot an oblong shape, and 
lies north and south. The south end is high- 
est : the east and west sides are steep and 
high ; but the top is rounded, and slopes 
away gradually to the north end, so that you 
can ascend it that way, and enjoy a mostex- 
G H A 
tensive prospect of the whote country. I 
could not precisely determine its circumfer- 
ence, but it took us about half an hour to 
walk round it ; and by making every allow- 
ance for the rugged way, and stopping a lit- 
tle, I think the most moderate computation 
must make it exceed half a mile. The same 
difficulty occurred with respect to knowing 
its height; but I think that at the south end 
it is nearly equal to half its length ; or, were 
I to compare it to an object you are acquaint- 
ed with, I should say it equalled the dome of 
St. Paul’s church.” " He adds, 
“ I am uncertain whether it ought to be 
considered as the top of the hill, or a detach- 
ed stone, because there is no positive proof 
of either, unless we were to dig aboutits base.” 
A part of this stone being examined by sir 
William Hamilton, he determined it to be a 
granite, and of the same nature with the tops 
of some ot the Alps ; and supposes both of 
them to have been elevated by volcanic ex- 
plosions. 
GRANITELLO, a genus of stones of the 
order of petne, belonging to the class of saxa. 
There are two species, 
1. That composed of distinct particles, 
found in several of the mountainous parts of 
Sweden. In some of these there is a predo- 
minance of quartzose particles, in others of 
micaceous ; in which last case the stone is 
slaty, and easily split. 
2. Granitello composed of convoluted par- 
ticles. This is met with of different colours, 
as whitish-grey, greenish, and reddish. Both 
these kinds of stone are used in building fur- 
naces, on account of the powerful resistance 
they make to the fire ; but the latter is prefer- 
able to the other, on account of its containing 
a little of a refractory clayish substance. It 
is likewise of great use in mills, where the fel- 
low is a coarse sandstone. 
GRANT, in law, a conveyance in writing 
of such things as cannot pass or be conveyed 
by word only ; such are rents, reversions, 
services, advowsons in gross, tithes, &c. 
The person making such a conveyance is 
called the grantor, and he to whom the grant 
is made the grantee. 
A grant has usually the words give and 
grant, See. which in a deed of what lies in 
grant, will amount either to a gift, grant, 
feoffment, or release, &c. and accordingly 
may be pleaded : though to every good grant 
it is requisite that there be a grantor, or per- 
son able to give ; a grantee, capable of the 
thing granted ; something granted, as grant- 
able ; that it be done in the manner the law 
requires ; and that there be an agreement to, 
and an acceptance of, the grant by him to 
whom made, &c. 
When persons non same memorise make 
grants, they may be good as to themselves, 
though voidable by their heirs, & c. and not- 
withstanding infants and feme-coverts are 
prohibited by law to be grantors, yet they 
may be grantees : however an infant, when at 
his full age, may disagree to his grant, and 
the husband to that made to his wife. All 
grants are expounded according to the sub- 
stance of the deed in a reasonable sense, and 
agreeable to the intent of the parties. In case 
a person grants a rent-charge out of land, and 
he has then nothing in the same, admitting he 
afterwards purchases the land, nevertheless 
the grant is void. And the law does not al- 
G R A 
low of grants of titles only, or imperfect in- 
terest, or of things that are merely future.. 
Likewise grants may be void on account of 
uncertainty, impossibility, being against the 
law, &c. 
Grant of the king is good for himself and 
his successors, though they are not named 
therein : but the king may not grant away an 
estate-tail in the crown. 
A grant tending to a monopoly cannot be 
made by the king, to the detriment of the in- 
terest and liberty of the subject ; neither can 
the king make a grant non obstante any sta- 
tute, made or to be made ; for if he does, 
any subsequent statute prohibiting what is 
granted will be a revocation of the grant : yet 
there may be a non obstante to a former 
grant made by the king, where he has been 
deceived in such grant, as where it contains 
more than what was intended to be granted, 
or there is any deceit in the consideration. 
Sec. by which the first grant becomes void. 
GRANULATION. See Chemistry. 
GRAPE. See Vitis. 
Grape-shot, in artillery, is a combina- 
tion of small shot, put into a thick canvas 
bag, and corded strongly together, so as to 
form a kind of cylinder, whose diameter is 
equal to that of the ball adapted to the can- 
non. The number of shot in a grape varies 
according to the service, or size of the guns : 
in sea-service nine is always the number ; but 
by land it is increased to any number or size, 
from an. ounce and a quarter in weight to 
three or four pounds. In the sea-service the 
bottoms and pins are made of iron, whereas 
those used by land are of wood. 
GRAPHIC, gold ore. See Tellurium, 
GRAPHITES, in mineralogy, a mineral 
consisting principally of carbon with a little 
iron, and generally a little silica or alumina ; 
when pure it burns with a reddish flame, emit- 
ting beautiful sparks, and a smell of sulphur, 
and leaving a little residuum. Its colour is 
dark iron-grey, or brownish black ; when cut, 
blueish grey. Opaque : structure slaty. Tex- 
ture fine-grained. Brittle. Specific gravity 
from 1.987 to 2.089; after being soaked in 
water 2.15; after being heated 2.3. Feels 
somewhat greasy, stains the fingers, and 
marks strongly. In modern chemistry it is 
denominated carburet of iron ; and one of 
the species is plumbago ; the use of which, 
when manufactured into pencils, is known to 
every one. When pure it consists ofj 
90 carbon 
10 iron 
100 . 
GRAPHOMETER, a mathematical in- 
strument, otherwise called a semicircle, the 
use of which is to observe any angle, whose 
vertex is at the centre of the instrument in 
any plane (though it is most commonly hori- 
zontal, or nearly so), and to find how many 
degrees it contains. 
The graphometer is a graduated semicircle 
ABC, made of wood, brass, or the like, and 
so fixed on a fulcrum GPI, by means of a 
brass ball and socket, that it easily turns 
about, and retains any situation. It lias two 
sights fixed on its diameter AC, and at the 
centre there are commonly a magnetical nee- 
dle and compass in a box. There is likewise 
