"Evidently
the decomposition of the feldspar of the 'trachyte' furnished the
alumina, while the apatite or phosphate of lime, which the microscope
detects in thin sections of the Cerillos rock, supplied the phosphoric
acid. It seems probable that the bluish-green color of the mineral is
due to the associated copper, which is derived from the copper ores
occurring in the Cerillos mountains.
••The
turquois occurs in thin veinlets or concretions throughout the of
yellowish white rock. The concretions or 'nuggets' are covered with a
crust of nearly white aluminous rock, and on being broken generally
afford the commoner and less valued varieties of the stone, such as are
cut roughly and sold on the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe trains by
the Indians at the towns of Wallace and Algodones. Fine stones of
sky-blue color and of considerable value are -extremely rare, and many
tons of rock may be broken before finding a stone which could be
classed as a gem.
••The
observer is deeply impressed on inspecting this locality with the
enormous amount of labor which in ancient times has been expended here.
The waste of debris excavated in the former workings covers an area of
at least 20 acres. On the slopes and sides of the great piles of
rubbish are growing large cedars and pines, the age of which must be
very great. That considerable quantities of the stone have been
obtained can hardly be questioned. The early Mexican settlers attached
great value to the turquois, as'do the Indians of the present day. It
is a matter of history that these mines were well developed in 1680, in
which year a large section of the mountain suddenly fell in as a result
of undermining the mountain by the Indian miners, killing a
considerable number of them.'']
All
the American turquois is sold to either tourists or collectors, or iu
the jewelry trade only as oddities. The material cut and sold as gems
annually amounts to about $1,500. That cut into specimens and sold
amounts to fully as much more.
Labradorite (Labrador spar).—Labrador
spar is found in large quantities in Lewis and Essex counties, New
York, and in bowlders all the way down to Long Island and New Jersey in
the drift from the New York counties named above. It is scarcely used
at all in the arts, owing to the cheapness and superiority of the same
mineral from Labrador.
Amazon stone.—Pike's
Peak, Colorado, and several localities in North Carolina, furnish this
mineral, which is often cut and is generally used in cheap and
tourists' jewelry. The quantity of material thus cut and sold amounts
to over $1,000, while that sold as mineral specimens brings probably
two or three times that amount.
Sunstone.—Sunstone
of very good quality, almost equal to the Norwegian, is found at
Media, Delaware county, Pennsylvania, and at Orange Court-house, Amelia
county, Virginia. It is as yet used to a rery limited extent, and the
annual sales may amount to about $250.
Moorstone.—Moonstone of very good quality, resembling the St. Goth-
