412  CONTRIBUTIONS    TO   ECONOMIC    GEOLOGY,   L906,   PART    I. 
bunches  or  pockets  of  crystals  at  varying  intervals  through  the  mass. 
It  is  said  that  in  mining  often  several  feet  of  barren  "vein"  would 
have  to  be  removed  before  one  of  these  pockets  was  encountered. 
They  generally  yielded  a  good  quantity  of  mica,  however.  In  the 
hoi  torn  of  the  cut  on  the  southeast  side  a  mass  of  quartz  had  been  laid 
bare,  but  it  was  not  sufficiently  exposed  to  determine  its  relation  to  the 
rest  of  the  pegmatite.  An  irregular  band  of  solid  mica  composed  of 
an  aggregate  of  small  crystals,  one-eighth  to  one-half  inch  or  more  in 
diameter  was  included  in  this  quartz.  It  was  6  to  10  inches  thick  and 
8  feet  long.  A  little  biotite  is  found  with  the  muscovite  at  this  mine. 
The  two  are  in  places  intergrow  n,  and  in  one  specimen  seen  a  sheet  of 
black  mica  inclosed  a  rhombic-shaped  plateof  clear  mica.  The  latter 
ha<l  very  much  the  appearance  of  a  fancy  window  in  a  dark  wall.  A 
small  amount  of  pyrrhot  ite  carrying  a  little  chalcopyrite  is  scattered 
through  this  quartz  in  lumps  up  to  half  a  pound  in  weight. 
This  mine  has  not  been  worked  for  several  years.  The  "vein" 
material  thai  had  to  be  removed  was  found  to  be  exceedingly  hard. 
The  distance  of  the  mine  from  any  settlements  made  it  difficult  to 
obtain  labor.  The  mica  was  reported  to  be  fairly  plentiful,  howeverl 
and  this  combined  with  its  light  color  and  excellent  quality  ought  to 
equalize  any  disadvantages  due  to  location. 
MINKS    l\    THE    WAY  MI    BALD    REGION. 
Four  mines  have  been  opened  in  the  Nanlahala  Mountains  on  the 
east  and  northeast  side  of  Wayah  Bald.  Macon  County.  These  are 
the  Turkey-  Nest,  Lyle  Cut  or  Evans,  Wayah  Bald,  and  Raven  Cliff, 
All  but  the  Raven  Cliff  were  examined,  and  since  they  have  so  many 
feature-  in  common,  a  description  of  one  with  reference  to  the  other 
two  will  answer  for  all  three.  The  Lyle  Cut  has  been  chosen  for 
description.  It  has  been  worked  by  an  open  cut  the  width  of  the  peg- 
matite and  about  40  yards  back  into  the  side  of  the  ridge  leading  east- 
ward from  Wayah  Bald.     The  depth  is  nowhere  over  35  feet. 
The  country  rock  is  mica  gneiss,  which  strikes  \.  S()°  E.  and  dips 
60c  \*\Y.  The  pegmatite  cuts  across  the  gneiss  with  a  strike  of  N. 
40°  E.  and  a  dip  of  about  70°  SE.  It  is  7  Peel  wide  in  places,  but 
pinches  down  to  about  3  feet  at  the  entrance  to  the  cut.  These  varia- 
tions in  thickness  are  rather  gradual  and  the  deposit  appears  to  be 
very  regular.  The  strike  and  dip  remain  uniform  as  far  as  the  rock  is 
exposed  in  the  cut.  A  persistent  quartz  streak  of  variable  thickness 
and  continuity  occurs  within  and  near  the  middle  of  the  pegmatite.  It 
varies  from  10  inches  up  to  2  feet  in  thickness,  and  is  present  in  the 
full  height  of  the  pegmatite  exposed  in  the  face  of  the  cut.  It  has  a 
peculiar  banding  parallel  to  its  direction  and  the  walls  of  the  pegma- 
tite.    In  hand  specimens  the  texture  is  granular  and  the  banding 
