“ OLD RED SANDSTONE.” 61 
the quarry when viewed hastily ; some are of a very 
light blue, or lavender colour, whilst others are of 
a dark aspect, being different shades of drab, and 
even ash ; lastly, at some spots, we have what is 
generally termed red sandstone, which varies indeed 
from pale, to dark brick-colour. Our sandstones are 
most generally of a fissile and sectile character, the 
mass consisting of flat plates placed like the laminae 
of slate, and wearing on this account when super¬ 
ficially viewed, very much the appearance of a 
quarry of that substance, whilst, other sorts consist 
of flattened oblong blocks, placed slantingly, or 
horizontally, and some, of indeterminate shaped 
blocks variously connected, and difficulty separated. 
On examining the intimate structure of these several 
kinds, further variations are discoverable ; such 
as exist in the form of slabs of tolerable thickness, 
are usually of a close texture, and are advantage¬ 
ously used for flooring kitchens, &c. being regarded 
as little inferior to Purbeck stone in durability ; the 
generality of the quarries supply the means for 
general building purposes, the refuse serving for re¬ 
pairs of roads ; such as is of a fine grain, and free 
from admixture of quartz, &c. is often employed 
when cut into proper shape, for sharpening scythes 
and other instruments ; the hardest and closest 
grained, and which is accumulated in squared and 
other shaped masses is worked into the blocks used 
for paving the carriage part of streets, and it is em¬ 
ployed thus on account of its great density and 
resistance. It is cut likewise into mullars. It is 
but rarely that this rock presents a really sandy 
structure. Where sandstone protrudes to the sea, 
it suffers disintegration readily. Very often, sand¬ 
stone exhibits in its fracture scales which wear the 
appearance of mica. Occasionally, blocks are seen 
which have in the direction of their grain, dark lines 
quite parallel to each other, like pencil marks on 
