The herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1835-1837, 1837-01-12

have been spoken Of Besides these, stone and rocks
OF round oval or irregular shape with smooth sur
faces, presenting themselves in extensive beds
found In great abundance. They appear OF different
sizes, from the pebble that weighs but an ounce, to
the boulder of the weight of ton. They exist not
only upon the surface but at considerable depths be-
meath. They are found in gorges, rayines, Valleys
plains, and sometimes, but not often, upon high
mountains. They were worn round, smooth, &C., by
being rubbed against each other though the lnstru-
mentality of water. Rivers have run in channels now
exhibiting but few marks OF such a circumstance =
lakes have spread themselves in situations, and rip
Piled upon shores, where ,nless 10 The close observer
there are no signs OF their having cxlsed oceans have
rolled their waves upon regions where now the up
lifted mountain sends its towering summit to the sky.
Primary rocks are said TO compose the frame or
groundwork Of the globe. They compose the most
lofty mountains and as said before, form the base
men of all other rocks, descending 70 the deepest
foundations They cover vast spaces where no ether
rocks ever existed and from having been propelled
through other formations, show themselves in places
where they never could have been situated but from
an all-powerful cause beneath. They exist in many
places merely from such cause, and in others from
having been carried there by lnundalion which more
than once has swept the surface OF the globe.
The primary rocks divided into granite, gneiss
mica slate clay-sate primitive limestone, called
sometimes stanary marble, porphyry, and sienite-
Granite is the most important species belonging to
this class; and from its having been first formed,
lists in the greatest abundance. Ii covers over
spaces where no other rocks abound, showing from
causes that admit Of an easy explanation, that only
single species of rocks formed some extern
surfaces. Granite crops out as it Is called, at
the tops Of great many mountains, and forms IN
others their entire bulk 1t appears IN detached mas
SEES where il has been carried from its native regions
by nundaton, clustered together in small fragments
in many places and the principal or only rock over
large tracts Of country. The state of New Hamp
shire is called emphatcaly the granite state from the
predomnance Of this material. tbs used TO great
extent a material for building, much more, espe-
| Mani z1f
most noted edices in the city OF Boston compo-
sed of it, The old United States Branch Bank, facing
State street. at the head of Wilson's lane is composed
of granite This building is forty-oHr feet IN 'front.'
and ninety six feet deep the porco Is an imitation
of the primitive form OF the Grecan Temple; the CO.
lumns are Of the Grecian Dorc, four feet in diameter
and twenty four feet high the shafts OF which are en-
tire. The granite Of thfs edifce was brought from
Chelmsford The County Jail in Leverett street, the
House of Correction connected with II, and the Mu-
nicpal Court House. are formed Of granite. The Mas
sachusetts General Hospital, considered the finest
building in the state one hundred and forty-egh feet
by fifty four having portco of eight Ionic columns
in fronts composed Of Chelmsford granite. ST. Paus
Church, situated upon Trement street, fronting the
Common, built in imitation of the Grecam model of
| the Ionic order IS composed OF gray granite The
Boston Exchange Coffee House, then the most spa
cious and most extensive establishment of the kind in
| the United States finished in 1903 and destroyed by
| fire in 1885, was OF granite The New Court House,
and the front of the fremont House and fremont
i
upon Water street il Of this material The easements
and front posts of many of the blocks of stores
building and private houses too numerous to mention,
| are of granite.
Another important edifice composed of this mate
rial is the New Market House This is the most su-
perb building of the kind in the world The centre
of il is seventy four and half feet by fy-fve, the
wings two hundred and thirty -one by fifty and two
stores high. The wings have each portico of four
columns three feet seven inches in diameter and
twenty three feet high the shafts of which are of
granite and in a single piece The whole Of this struc-
turc is composed Of hammered granite of a uniform
appearance The posts around the Common in Bos-
ton Of granite, likewise the posts and wall around
the State House That useful, expensive and noble |
work, called the Dry Dock, in Charlestown is of
granite--likewse the State Penentiary in that
place.
The State House at Montpelier in the state of Yer
mont, the nobes specimen of architectural grandeur
in the United States, is formed Of granite. Ii is a
structure of great expense The columns of the por-
tico six in number each shaft OF which is composed of
six pieces cost after the rough material deliver
ed upon the spot, what amounted to thirty six years
labor of one The site of this cdIfice is upon
spot where formerly existed high granite cliff, reno
we'd al great expense expressly for this purpose. II is
therefore, not only composed of granite but founded
upont Unless some unforeseen disaster should be-
fall IT, il will be likely to exist for ages Good Judges
have asserted that il IL susceptible ofcxisng in toll.
cradle degree ofprescrvaton, upwards oftwo thousand
years.
The great use made Of granite may be estimated
from the large number Of workmen continually en-
ployed in hanmerng II, and fitting II for its destna-
lion in this city, and from the vast quantities of the
rough material deposited upon many Of the wharves
in Boston. When fully fitted for use, il IN worth from
fifty cents TO dollar foot great part of what is
used Tn Boston and its vicinity brought from GUM
cy by way of the Quincy Railroad, and is called by
the workmen the Quincy Blue. Ii is brought from
Chelmsford, from Medford, from the state of New
Hampshire, from Green Bay, and some other places
The first operation performed upon granite is called
quarryng which is merely splitting it into blocks At
the ledge. Ii is done by drills, wedges and sledges
Holes by means of the drills are made in a straight
line in some large block, or three inches apart
with every third hole three inches Deep and the others
more shallow. When thisis completed small wedges
are driven by sedgc INTO these Holes and the rock
split with as much facility block of wood. The
next thing t. be performed is TO transport il 10 some
convenient place in Bostoa, Charcstown Cambridge
or elsewhere to be hammered. Those who hammer
IT, must each Of them have their hammers chsels,
and some other tools II Is lined by sort Of chisel
faced by the facing hammer, farther operated upon by
the pean hammer, and finished by the bush hammer.
The chefuse made Of granite In the country, besides
the use made of il in common with other for
stone wall isfor UNDERMINING ofbouscs and posts for
board fence. For the latter purpose the made of
Il has greatly increased within halfa dozen years In
many places il may be split out into ocksof Inc pro- |
per dimensions and delivered upon the spot for TWEEN
ty-fve cents for each post In some places, howe cr
the procuring il is much costly than in others
Granite is a compoundrock, composed Of three dis
~. a