The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1900-04-14
WE ARE RICH IN GEMS.
The United States Can Supply Every
Kind but One,

Inc ohiteu StateS Can supply EVERY
Kind but One.
From The Brooklyn Eagle.
The United States have never taken
their proper, place among the GEM
producing countries, principally, 1t
would appear because of the superior
gains offered in the metal mines.
Patient and skilful working of the gem
mines, however, would appear to prom
Use as well as many of the metal in
dustries. There are in Montana sap
phires of beauty and value. True,
they are light in color. but they have
more brilliancy than the Asian sap
phires. and often exhibit dichroism. or
double color, under different lights.
The suppositiCn that sapphire should
be dark blue is possibly responsible
for the slowness of their acceptance
i'm the market. but as a matter Of fact,
sapphires are not of necessity blue;
they are green, yellow. purple, white,
and when they are red we call them
rubies, for the ruby and sapphire are
identically the same save for frac-
tion of a per cent of colcring natter.
Every gem known e. the lapidary
has been found within our borders, ex-
cept that form of chrysoberyl known
as alexandria. a stone most common-
ly found in the Trails, and showing
green by day and red by artificial
light. We have also found but few of
the vari-colored garnets of which Rus
sia furnishes such remarkable and
beautiful examples, and none that
have their brilliancY. though the red
garnets of Arizona and contiguous ter
ritory are unsurpassed in richness. Ws
have several gems. moreover, that are
almost peculiar to this country. AMI
that should be used more extensively
because Of their intrinsic beauty. Sucn
are the golden bervls Of Connecticut,
that are OF brilliant yellow, full Of
light and sparkle, and the curious
chlofastrolites and thomsonites of Laks
superior that arc useful as green or
mottled grounds in the making of de-
sigts.
Among the lesser known but inter-
esting and often beautiful minerals
that are found in this country ami
that lend themselves To purposes of
ornament are the grass green hidden
ite, the superior of emerald i'm vivacity:
which is a rival of turquoise If it can
b" made to keep its color and tex
tUrc: the zirCon, of red ana brown.
/ and especially the tourma)ine, which
presents wide range Of color. from
jet black to almost water white. and
+ Including pink brown, blue and almost
every shade o. green. These tourmal-
! ines are more appreciated abroad than
! they are at home. and whereas we buy
! sapphircs and rubies from BYrmeh. and
| diamonds from Africa. AMI topaze5
! from Persio, we remain seemingly in
! different to the gems that come from
! Maine anI Connecticut. Collectors
have known them for years, however,
aud have priced them at their value.
| Many of the crystals show two and
even three colors, being red at one end
aud green at the other, or green with
out and deep link within. Cf these
! tourmalines $1,000 worth We're mined
| last year at Mount Mica, Me.
Turquoise has been known to the In
1ians of the southwest for centuries,
and there is good reason to believe that
Il was mined by the AZteCs. Brooklyn
capital has been invested in one of the
I New Mexico mines, and it is said that
a superior quality has heen produced.
. There is probably no ornamental stone
that is so eAtcrsiy ely Initiated. Hun
dreds of people are wearing what they
1uppose to be turquoise, but is IN real
ity glass or enanel or composition
that closely copies its color and appar-
ont texture. and does not fade, as the
stone itself is apt to do. There has
been an addition TO the scmi-preciOus
stones of a new variety Of garnet
known as rhodolite, Of pale rose red,
but not many specimens have been
brought to the cities, and t has not ap-
Deared to any extent in iewclry. It
would seem 10 be worth our while to
work our gem deposits more thorough
ly. for according To thu report for 1898,
by Mr.. George F. Kunz. the expert,
there continues tO be a profitable ac-
tjvity in the making OF iaWelry. This
country has imported as much as Sl4,-
ial in Il single year, while Ihe nome
production has always been relatively
slight albeit there is gain. In 1898,
for instance, the production of precious
stones in the United States represented
about Sl61 coo, as aaains, sl@0 600 in ;he
year before and E9S.00n in the year be-
fore that. The Indications are that we
have mineral veins and deposits hat
will. when adequately worked, offer Ie-
wards far IN excess Of these figures.