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INTRODUCTION.
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GENERAL OBSERVATIONS.
Minerals consist
of all those substances which have neither animal nor vegetable life,
and are therefore devoid of sensation, existing merely by the power of
aggregation or chemical affinity.
The
science which treats of minerals is called Mineralogy, and is divided
into two distinct branches, viz., that which preserves the name, and
treats simply of minerals with regard to their component elements, and
Geology, which regards minerals pure or mixed, as they exist in nature
and in relation to the soil.
Mineralogy
describes the individual quality of the various mineralogical species;
geology treats only of minerals as constituent parts of the earth.
Those minerals which are used ornamentally and are prized for their rarity are called Gems.
In
mineralogy, as in other departments of natural history, minerals are
united in groups, forming great classes, which are divided into genera,
species, and varieties.
We are indebted to Theophrastus, philosopher of
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