Ariz.,
is estimated as high as a million tons, but the material suitable for
decorative purposes is comparatively small in quantity.
This
material was selected to form the base of a beautiful silver
testimonial made by Tiffany & Company for presentation to the
French sculptor, Bartholdi. It was chosen on account of its superior
hardness, and the warmth and pleasing combination of its colors; also,
as the designer remarked, it was eminently fitting that the testimonial
should rest "on a solid American base." The problem of polishing this
exceedingly hard material having been solved,1 its
application for decorative purposes naturally follows. The
combinations of color offer a great field for interior designs. In
tiling floors, for mantels, and similar purposes, it is most valuable;
for clock-cases and table-tops it also promises to take an important
place, defying imitation, by reason of its marvelous colorings, close
texture, and remarkable polish ; and in the future the material may be
worked into decorative columns for the interior of fine houses. The
lustre of its finish cannot be marred or impaired by metal or acid,
except hydrofluoric acid, with which it may be etched in the same way
as glass. A column i foot in diameter and 2 feet long, bored out of the
section of a tree across the grain of the wood, so as to display the
heart in the center, was exhibited in New York City and was considered
the most beautiful of all the polished specimens thus far shown.
Smaller articles of jewelry, mosaic work, paper-weights, paper-cutters,
toilet articles, handles for canes and umbrellas, and similar objects
made from this material may find a ready sale. A number of pieces of
this material was placed on exhibition during the early part of 1889,
and attracted considerable notice from those interested in American
minerals.
Opal
showing a brilliant play of rainbow colors, either of the noble or of
the fire opal variety, has been observed in the United States only,
near John Davis River, in Crook County, Ore. The specimen found there
is transparent, grayish-white in color, with red, green, and yellow
flames. The play of colors equals in beauty that of any Mexican
material, and it is the first opal found in the United States that
exhibits color. It strikingly
1 See Lapidary Work.
