Daily independent. [volume] (Elko, Nev.) 188?-1915, 1889-12-20
UNFAMILIAR oEMs.

OF the Bible Will; OF course, remember thai
two lists or precious stones are given IL,
that book. The first il given in the descrip
ton OF the Jewish high priests hreastplatS
and is as follows:
"And thou shalt set it (the breastplate)
In setting OF stones, four rows Of stoneS; o
row OF sardius, topaz and carbuncle shall
be the first row; and the second row an
emerald, sapphire and Q diamond; and
the third row jacinth, an agate and an
amethyst; and the fourth row . beryl and
an onyx and O jasper"
The second lis is given in the description
Of the New Jerusalem:
"The foundations Of the walls Of the city
were adorned with all manner Of precious
stones. The first foundation was jasper,
the second sapphire, the third chalcedony,
the fourth emerald, the fifth sardonyx, the
sixth sardius, the seventh chrysolite, the
eighth beryl, the niuth topaz, the tenth
chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the
twelfth amethyst, and the twelve gates
were twelve pearls" 49,. 800.
In these two lists there are six stones. the
sardius, chacedony, chrysolite, beryl,
chrysoprase aud jacinth, that may be called
unknown; and two, the jasper and sar-
donyx, which we are not accustomed to put
In lists OF gems. ~ 20.
Before going any further It will be inter
estinR to find out something about the un-
used half dozen, and this, 1t will be found,
can be comparatively done by frat consid-
erinR the chalcedony, which Is the mother
stone Of large family. Chalcedony
is q semftransparent kind Of quartz. ap-
parently produced by the intiltration Of
water holding silicious matters In solution.
The name is that Of the locality, Chalcedon,
In Asia Minor, where 1t Is said to have been
originally found. Chaloedony, In some Of
its many varieties, is found in Tuscany,
Iceland, the Farce Islands, Saxony, Hun
gary, India, Arabia, Surinam, Siberia,
Cornwall, Scotland, the Giants Causeway
and in California, near Vallejo. Beautiful
chalcedonic pebbles may be picked I'D on
some Of the southern English beaches, at
Pescadero, in California, and at Lake Tahoe.
Chalcedony is usually milk white, but 1t as
Bumes number Of colors and markinEa
When 1t Is OF light red or yellow color Il
Is called carnelian, because of its flesh
color. Carnelian was formerly much used
for beads and seal-stones, but now it is sell
dom seen as an ornament except in the
shape OF cheap rings sold at country fairs.
When 1t Is OF a deep brown it Is called
sardius, or sard; when It shows alternat-
Ing parallel bands Of different calors with
out any pronounced contrast It Is called
onyx; and when these layers are Of very
dark sard and nearly Opaque white chalce.
dony IL Is called sardOnyx, q stone that was
and Ia still held In great esteem for engrav-
ing into canoes.
Lastly, flint, horn-stone and plasma are
all baser forms Of this same chalcedony.
Though so closely alike in name the beryl
and chrysoheryl have little else in common.
The beryl Is a variety OF the emerald, and 10
found In stx-sided prisms Of variable dimen-
slons. The colors are generally blue or
yellow, but some are colorless. When of
clear ttnts or, sea-green or sky-blue they
are called by the jewellers aqua-marines.
Beryl crystals are found in New Hampshire
and Massachusetts, China, Brazil, Siberia,
Cornwall, ireland ana Scotland, the irish
specimens being Of a fine blue color and
sometimes quite transparent.
The chrysoberylis found In small rounded
masses about the size Of o, pea, which on
being cut show various tints Of greenish
yellow, with clear, translucent and very
Aard body. Sometimes they show o blush
opalescence internally. The finer chryso-
beryls are equal IN appearance to the yellow
diamond. They are found in Ireland, Brazil
and CeyAon.
The chrysolite, like tho chalcedony, IL a
saiioate. 1t Is rarely found in crystals, but.
generally in angular pieces of greenish or
Roldep-yellOw color, embedded in basalt or
lava. The principal localities are Vesuyius
and the Isle of Bourbon, in lava; Real del
Monte In Mexico, Upper Egypt, CONSTANT.
nople, andin pale green transparent crys
tails among the. sand Of q stream in
AuverRne. Inferior varieties Of the chryso-
lite are called olivines, and arc found in the
basalt Of the Giants Causevay, the lavas
Of Unkel, on tho Rhine, and those Of the
Sandwich Islands, II Ia sometimes found,
too, In meteoric stones.
Jacinth is only another name for hyacinth,
and the hyacinth IL variety of another
silicate called zircoR, found In Ceylon, Nor.
way, some OF the islands Of Scotland and
certain ISssh streams, Zircon occurs In
crystals, generally square, four-siaed
pstsns terminated by fonr,sidea pyramids,
and pslsO In grains, sometimes white, hut
more frequently red, yellow, green or
gray. The coaorless or slightly smoky kinda
are called jargoons the bright red hyacinth
and tho grayish or hEownish zivconite.
Another precious efitcate is the more per.
foot form Of sehorl called tourmnllne. The
red toarmaHne or, ruhellite, which 10
brought from Brazil, Ceylon, AyaF and
Siberia possesseR conssJarabla beauty. The
sransparenS colored varieties are sometimes
still cut into ring stones, etc. and yvhen