Sec. I, Ch. 2: Where Precious Stones are Found

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	8 Where Precious Stones are Found. crystalline form. The Pearl, however, being composed only of carbonate of lime, when travelling with hard stones, would in time suffer complete destruction. In Ceylon, India, Burma, Siam, Brazil, Australia, Siberia, South Africa, Borneo, and parts of the United States—from which countries the great majority of our Precious Stones are obtained—they commonly occur in these derivative beds ; and it is interesting to notice how various kinds of Precious Stones are found in company in the same locality, forming as it were a noble society of Gems, rendered still more illustrious by their association with the noble metals—gold and platinum. It is noteworthy, however, that the majority of the South African Diamonds are unearthed from a rock which fills certain volcanic pipes and is considered by some mineralogists to represent the matrix in which the stones have been developed, though it must be confessed that much can be said against such a view. The habitat, or native home of each Precious Stone, and the conditions under which it occurs, will be specially indicated in this work in the description of the individual gems.

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