Port Tobacco times, and Charles County advertiser. (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1845-1898, 1851-04-16
AGRICULTURAL GEOLOGY.
BY JOSIAH HoLBRooK.
No.. O..

BY JOSIAH HoLBRooK.
No. o.
Bones are the phosphate Of lime so 10 q
beautiful crystal called spetite. This cry
slal is found in granite rocks, is Of q green
color, hexahedraI shape, and resembles the
beryl and emerald. The phosphate of lime
constitutes q part Of mari beds, and greatly
increases the power of tha. powerful fertll-
lzer. 1t is also one ingredien, Of milk. IN
these various relations, II exists in no small
abundance, and performs no unimporiant
agency, either in animate or inanimate cres-
lion. 1t surely ought to be known, ,least
by every farmer, and of cnurse taught 10
every farmers son, and daughter too.
Derby spar is the flua,e of lime. II
receives beautiful polish, and is much used
for urns and other mantel ornaments. It
also appears in beautiful crystals, both in
regular cubes and oc.ahedron, or equaI'eIght-
sided crystals, precisely the shape Of alum
crystals, easily formed by dssoIving sluns
in hot water, leaving the mass while cool
ing, to arrange its particles around wire
put into the form of card basket, or any
other fancy article preferred. Nitrate Of
lime is another calcareous formation, less
abundant and less useful than either of the
other a,es before named.
Each of the lime formations now given
is composed Of three elements, or ultimate
principles. Two Of these elements are the
same in all-oxygen and calcium, or The
oxyde of calcium. The other elements
are the same in aIl-oxygen and calcium,
or the oxyde of calcium. The other ele-.
men,s entering severally into the compounds
are carbon, sulphur, phosphorus, duorine,
and nitrogen; which, after being acidiied by
the agency of oxygen, combining in each
case with the same oxyde, form the carbon
ate, sulpha'e, phosphate, aua'e, and nitrate
of lime.
All these lime formations, except the nj
'rate frequently appear in beautiful crystals.
Some OF the carbonate crystals are rhombic
spar, pearl spar, dug,on,h spar, tabular spar,
satin spar, arragoni.e, and others, amounting
IN the whole TO two or three hundred
distinct crystalline forms Of the carbonate
of lime. Some Of The crystals of The snlphate
of lime are selente, (moon s.one,) irbrous
gypsum, radisted gypsum, anhydrous gyp-
sum, SC. The principal, perhaps the only.
crystal OF the phosphate of lime is APPETITE.
already named, in the form Of six-sided
prism, not often more than all inch or two
in diameter. The phosphate Of iron some
times presents interesting crystalline forms.
Some Of the mos, beautiful and ins,ruc-
tive eXtIrbitieas Of the wonderful science at
vsiallogoaphy are in the llna,e of lime
The two principal crystals are those already
named-lhe cube and oclahedron-viz: six
and eigh,-sded figures. By cleavage, .hess
two crystals can be changed from one to
the olher-ihe cube into the oclahedron, or
the octahedron into the cube. Both these
crystals, and their process "f,rans("rmali"n,
were beautifully exhibited bv specimens
formed of pss,eb"srd with grea. skull aud
tssle, as the richest possible amusement Of
some girls in school in Washington. for
the Scholars Fair in New York. They
were much admired and largely commented
upon by The crowd of visilers.
ExPERIMENT.-Divld piece Of thin
pas.eboard into equila,eral ,riangIes, figures
with three equal sides, say an inch and a
half in length. Slightly cut the divisions
by The point Of knife for the convenience
of folding them into various desired forms or
boxes. Thus prepared, the paper can be
readily folded into shapes to illustrate the
primary crystals Of the f1ua,e Of lime. alum,
(suIpha,e Of aIumina,) gold, iron, lead, aud
very numerous other minerals.