The blowpipe vade macum : the blowpipe characters of minerals deduced from the original observations of Aquilla Smith ; alphabetically arranged and edited by Samuel Haughton and Robert H. Scott / [Aquilla Smith].

  • Aquilla Smith
Date:
1862
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: The blowpipe vade macum : the blowpipe characters of minerals deduced from the original observations of Aquilla Smith ; alphabetically arranged and edited by Samuel Haughton and Robert H. Scott / [Aquilla Smith]. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    comes magnetic; in a strong heat it fuses on the edge into a black glaze. Contains water. With borax effervesces, and dissolves rea- dily into a glass coloured by iron. No trace of manganese. This mineral is generally supposed to be brown wavellite, and is sold in London at a very high price. Iron, titaniferous (Ph, 216).—Auvergne. Translucent, on the edge. Hardness=5-0-5-5; streak greyish. Infusible. With borax slowly so- luble into a glass coloured by iron ; with salt of phosphorus, dissolves slowly into a glass coloured by iron while warm; reddish amethyst colour when cold. Iron, Tungstate of (Wolfram). (Ph. 236).—Zinnwald, Bohemia. Hard- ness =4'5; streak reddish-brown. In the forceps it fuses rather readilj' into a black scoriaceous bead not attracted by the magnet. No water. With borax, dissolves readily, in the outer flame, into a glass, reddish-piu-ple when cold; in the inner flame it is greenish while warm, and nearly colourless when cold. Isopyre (Th. 377 ; Al. 190).—From Huel Bassett, Cornwall. Not so hard as quartz ; powder greenish-white ; thin fragments are trans- lucent, with an olive colour. In the forceps it is infusible, but loses its colour and becomes greyish-white. Contains a good deal of water. With borax dissolves very slowly into a glass, coloured by iron while warm; with biphosphate of soda pai’tially fuses, and be- comes slightly opaline when cold, if saturated. [Jelletite.—Saas Thai, Switzerland. Hardness=7; sp. gr. = 3*741. In the forceps turns black, and fuses, with difficulty, on the edge. No water. With borax, fuses into a bead coloured with much iron. With microcosmic salt dissolves slowly, leaving no skeleton. This is a variety of Garnet.—Ed.] Johannite (sulphate of Uranium). (Ph. 271).—Joachimsthal, Bohemia. Sectile; powder very pale green. In the forceps, at a low heat, it becomes orange-coloured; is reduced in size (probably owing to the vaporization of the water), and is infusible. Contains much water. With borax it effervesces, and dissolves readily into a glass of a yellow colour, not discharged on adding nitre. Dissolves readily in nitric acid, with effervescence ; at least, thej-ellow pulverulent coat- ing behaves thus with nitric acid. Extremely rare. Karpholite (Th. 325; Al. 161).—Schlackenwald, Bohemia. Hardness about = 5*0 ; streak white. In the forceps becomes white, and fuses rather readily, with ebullition, into a yellowish bead. Trace of moisture. With borax, in outer flame, fuses rather readily, with slight effervescence at first, into an amethyst-coloured glass. Karpholite (Th. 325; Al. 161).—Schlackenwald, Bohemia. Hardness about= 4 ; stfeak white. In the forceps the fibres diverge, and fume with slight intumescence and effervesccEce into a pale brown scoria, Avhich, in a good heat, forms a bead of the same colour. No water. With borax dissolves readily into a glass, colom*ed by manganese in the outer flame; in the inner flame it becomes colourless.
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