82 VICTORIAN MINERAIS.—OASE XIV. 
A QUARTZ AND ITS VARIETIES. 
- The following remarks on Quartz are taken from “Notes on the 
Physical Geography, Geology and Mineralogy of Victoria” :— 
Quartz is, as the “massive variety,” the most common of colonial 
minerals, represented by the thousands of auriferous and non-auriferous 
reefs that traverse our Silurian rocks, and also as extensive beds of 
“quartz rock,” some nearly 40 feet in thickness, in the lower Miocene 
tertiary formation. It is partly, and perhaps more commonly, white 
opaque, or what might be called “ milky quartz,” partly vitreous, semi- 
translucent. Sometimes it shows, especially in veins traversing the 
granite, a greasy lustre—“ greasy quartz.” In the Belltopper reef, Tara- 
dale, it is quite sugary or fine granular ; in some of the St. Arnaud and 
Heathcote reefs cellular ; and in most auriferous reefs there occur opaque 
patches of a uniform brown or yellow color—“‘ferruginous quartz.” 
Druses of crystals occur in all reefs, yet not in such abundance as in 
the European ore lodes. Fine, very perfect, opaque white crystals 
(double hexagonal pyramid with narrow planes of the prism) occur in 
an Elvan dyke on the Back Creek, near Dr. Baynton’s station (4 sheet 
51 S.W. Map No. Mb 26. See specimen No. 50). In quartz veins 
traversing the granite, near Pigeon Hill, Tarrangower, specimens of the 
so-called “ Hauben” or “Hood quartz” are occasionally found. Some 
peculiar crystals were discovered by Mr. Norman Taylor, of the Geo- 
logical Survey, which exhibit in a striking manner their growth. (See 
specimens No, 43 and following note). Large and fine crystals of quartz 
enclosing “actinolite,” and accompanied by large and perfect crystals 
of felspar, were found in a bed of granite drift and clay, in the Coliban 
River, below Orr’s station (Stratford Lodge). 
Quartz occurs also, though, generally speaking, only in moderate 
abundance, in a transparent crystallized slate, and in colored varieties, 
fine enough to be cut for jewellery. Thus we have Rock erystal, both 
as crystals of large size, sometimes rich in rare planes, and as pebbles ; 
the latter frequently found in the Older and Newer Pliocene gold drifts, 
- though seldom-of sufficient size to make them valuable. Curved and 
twin-like crystals are also frequent, and several have been found with 
filamental tufts of “ Chlorite” in the centre. 
The varieties hitherto discovered in Victoria are :— 
1. Rock crystal.—Distinct crystals and waterworn pebbles. 
2. Smoky Topaz and Cairngorm.—As pebbles in drifts, and in 
some quartz veins traversing granite. 
3. Amethyst.—Occurs similarly to the last. 
4. Prase.—Of rare occurrence. 
5. Chalcedony.—Chiefly occurs as mammillary coatings of cavities 
in the newer basalt, and as nodules and pebbles derived 
from the older basalt, &c. 
6. Corneliun.—Rarely as pebbles in drifts. 
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