ANDOVER.
F.
G. Hillman, of Xew Bedford, Mass., has reported his discovery in
pegmatite in Andover of lilac-colored spodumene, or kunzite, as well as
of some with a greenish color. A cleavage specimen sent to the Survey
measured about 12 by 10 by 3£ millimeters and had a very pretty clear
pink color. It was not entirely without cleavage cracks, however. The
greenish material was a pale aquamarine, nearly clear, though rather
badly fractured. This spodumene was obtained near the surface, and
excavating to a greater depth has disclosed no material of gem quality.
BUCKFIELD.
The
rocks of the town of Buckfield are largely quartz-mica schists which
have been injected by pegmatite. The pegmatites have not been
extensively worked in any part of the town but have at a few places
yielded golden beryl, aquamarine, and caesium beryl. A fine twinned
crystal of chrysoberyl from this town in the museum of the Sheffield
Scientific School of Yale University is 2 inches long and one-half inch
thick. This same collection also contains very perfect diamond-shaped
crystals of muscovite from Buckfield.
GREENWOOD.
So
far as known the rocks of the southern part of the town of Greenwood
are schists which have been intruded by granite and pegmatite. In the
northern part of the town granite is believed to become more abundant.
A
small abandoned mine which has yielded many interesting mineral
specimens and some gem tourmalines is situated about three-fourths of a
mile east of Hicks Pond in the southern part of the town. The pit,
which is 15 feet in width and about 25 feet long, is located on the
western slope of a steep forested hillside, near its summit. It was
visited by the writer in September, 1906.
The
rock is a coarse pegmatite made up largely of quartz, musco-. vite,
albite of the clevelandite variety, and some orthoclase-microcline. The
feldspar does not occur in commercial amounts. Some of the muscovite
books are 14 inches across the plates and afoot in thickness, hut all
except a few show twinning and wedge structure, which render them
useless as a source of plate mica. In places mica constitutes half of
the rock. Black tourmaline is present but is not abundant.
Pockets are numerous, most of those observed being under 1 foot in diameter. One gigantic one was 7 feet wide and 10 feet long, with a depth of at least 4 feet, the floor being buried under a considerable thickness of detritus; numerous small lobes add irregularity to its
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