Weekly independent. [volume] (Elko, Nev.) 1887-1914, 1889-12-22
UNFAMILIAR GEMS.

oitss And Other PreeiOos Stonov.
The list OF precious stones with which wo
arc familiar 10 utter oil q very small one.
says awriter In the San Francisco Chronicle,
embracing simply the diamond, emerald,
sapphire ruby, opal, topaz. carbuncic.
amethyst md pearl This, howeyer "A n
very small part OF tho actual list Rendcrs
OF tho Bible will, ofcourse, remember that
W lists OF precious stones are given In
thut book. Tho first Is given In the dcscrip-
ton OF tho jewish high priests breastplnte,
and is as follows;
sane thou shalt set It (the breastpiatc)
In setting OF stones, four rows Of stones: q
: row OF snrdius, topaz and carbuncle shall
DO tho first rows; aud the SO 'ond row an
emerald, n sapphire and o diamond; and
the third row n jacinth, nm agate and an
! amethyst; ind tho fourth row O beryl md
an onyx and q jasper.n
The second list Is given In the description
of the New Jerusalem:
"The foundations Of the walls OF the city
wore adorned with NIL of precious
stones. Tho first foundation was Jasper,
the second sapphire, tho third chnlcedopy,
tho fourth emerald, the fifth sardonyx, the
sixth ~sardius, the seventh ehrysoiite, the
eighth beryl, tho niuth topaz, the tenth
chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the
twelfth amethyst, and the twelve gates
wcrc twelve pearls"
In these two lists there nre ak stones, tho
sardius, chalccdony, chrysolite, beryl,
c~hrysoprase aud jacintb, thnt may bo called
unknown; aud two, tho jasper and sar-
donyx, which we nre not accustomed 10 put
In lists OF gems.
Before going any further It will be intor.
esting TO IND out something about the un-
used half dozen, and this, It will be found,
can DO comparatively done by first consid-
erinG the chalcedony, which is tho mother
stone Of q lurge family. Chnlcedopy
Is o semt-transparent kind Of quartz, np-
parently produced by the i%ntltrntion OF
water holding silicious matters in solution.
The name Is that Of the locality, C~halcedon,
In Asia Minor, where 1t is said to have boon
originally found. Chalcedony, In some of
its many varieties, Is found in Tuscany,
Iceland, tho Fnroe Islands, Saxony, Hum
gary, India, Arabia, Surinam, Siberia,
Cornwall, Scotland, tho Ginnts' Causevny
md In California, near Vallejo. Beautiful
cha!cedontc pebbles may BIO picked up on
some OF tho southern English beaches, ut
Pescadero, in California, md ut Lake Tahoe.
Chnlcedony Is usually milk white, but It rs
m q number OF colors and markings.
When it Is OF a light red or yellow color II
Is called carnelian, because Of its flesh
color. Carnelian was formerly much used
Tor beads aud seal-stoncs, but now it Is sell
dom seen rs IN ornament except In tho
shapeo OF cheap rings sold ut country fairs.
When 1t Is OF q deep brown IL Is called
sardlus, ,or sard; when 1t shows nlternnt-
Ing parallel bands OF different colors with
out any pronounced contrast It Is called
onyx; and when these lnyers are of very
dark sard and nearly opaque white chalce-
oony Ills called snrdonyx, q stone that was
ana is stil held In great esteem for engrnv.
Ing into meos
Lastly, flint, horn-stonc and plasma ara
oil baser forms Of this same chalcedony.
Though SO closely alike in namc the beryI
nnd chrysoberyl havo little else In common.
Tho beryl Is n variety OF tho emerald, and il
found in six-sided prisms OF variable dimen-
sions. Tho colors are generally blue or
yellow, but some arc coIorlcss. When of
clear tints or sea-greeu or sky-blue they
are called by the jewelers. uqua-mnrines,
Beryl crystaIs are found in New Hampshire
and massachusetts,, China, Brazil, Siberia,
CORNWALL, Ireland ana Scotlnnd, tho Irisn
specimens being of q fne blue color and
sometimes quito transparent.
The chrysoberylis found in small rounded
masses about the size of n pea, which ON
being cut show various tints Of greenish
yellow, with clear, translucent md worry
hard body. Sometimes they show q blush
opnlcsccnco internally. The finer chryso-
beryls are equal III appearance 10 the yellow
diamond. They are found in Ireland, Brazil
and Ceylon.
The chrysolitc, like the chalcedony, Is a
silicate. II Is rarely found in crystals, but
generally In angular pieces Of grccnish or
golden-ycllow color, embedded in basult or
lava. The principal localities aro Vesuyius
and tho Isle OF Bourbon, in lava; Real del
Monte In Mexico, Upper Egypt, CONSTANT
noplc, aud in pale green transparent crys-
tails among the sand Of q stream In
Auvergno. Inferior varieties Of the chryso-
lite arc called olivines, mud arc found in tho
basalt OF tho Giants Causoway, tho lawns
OF Unkcl, on tho Rhine, and those OF tho
Sandwich Islands. 1t is sometimes found,
too, In meteoric stones.
Jacinth is only another nnme for hyaclnth.
and tho hyacinth Is u variety Of another
silicate called zircon, found in Ccylon, Nor
way, some Of tho islands OF Scotland md
certain Irish streams. Zircon occurs In
crystals, generally square, four-sided
prisms terminated by four.sidcd pyramids,
nnd also In grains, sometimes white, but
more frequently red, yellow, green or
gray. Tho colorlcss or slightly smoky kinds
arc called jargoou; tho bright red hyacinth
and the grayish or brownish zircouito.
Another precious silicato Is tho moro nor.
fect form OF schorl called %tourmallne. Tho
red tourmnline or rubellite, which is
brought from Brazil, Ceylon, Avar md
Siberia, possesses considerable beauty. Tho
transparent colored varieties are sometimes
still cut into ring s%toneo, etc., and when
reduced 10 thin slices nro much valued for
making experiments In tho polarization OF
light.
Libraries for war Vessels.
Tho purchase Of libraries for ten now
ships Of tho navy has boon ordcrod for
tho use Of tho enlisted mon on board.
About throe hundred volumes in NIL will
! DO placed on each ship. About eight
years ago the usual naval ships library
consisted Of a Biblo, q p~raycr-book. nm
almanac, a dictionary and ono or two
works on navigation-not moro than
half n dozen. But since Acting Roar
Admiral Walker has been at tho bond
Of the Bureau OF Navigation, he has
taken pains to havo suitable additions
made to these, until now n ships library
contains from ono thousand to fftcon
hundred valuable volumes. Tho now
Libraries arc for tho most part composed
Of the best grade OF n~ovels-Scott,
Thackoray, Dickens and others-nnd
various miscellaneous works, and nro
intended for tho entertainment OF tho
mon In tho forecastlo when OF duty
Domorcst's Monthly.
Novelties for Evening Wear.
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