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Mineral Industries and Geology of Certain Areas - Vermont Agency ...

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54 REPORT OF THE VERMONT STATE GEOLOGIST.<br />

present. Apatite, magnetite, titanite, tourmaline, <strong>and</strong> epidote<br />

are the remaining accessories. Calcite, part <strong>of</strong> the muscovite,<br />

<strong>and</strong> chlorite are <strong>of</strong> secondary origin.<br />

The microcline <strong>of</strong> this rock commonly shows the delicate<br />

polvsvnthetjc twinning which generally characterizes the rnineral.<br />

Its substance is usually quite fresh <strong>and</strong> glassy, but it is<br />

at times slightly altered <strong>and</strong> clouded at the center. Minute<br />

lenses <strong>and</strong> spindle shaped bodies <strong>of</strong> plagioclase are intergrown<br />

with the microcline. Their index <strong>of</strong> refraction is higher than<br />

that <strong>of</strong> their host, <strong>and</strong> from the extinction angles they are<br />

believed to he oligoclase.<br />

The quartz is perfectly clear <strong>and</strong> glassy as a rule, but at times<br />

the mineral is clouded over with gas inclusions <strong>and</strong> cavities.<br />

containing bubbles. A rude approximation to crystal outlines<br />

against anhedra <strong>of</strong> microcline is occasionally noted, but generally<br />

the outlines <strong>of</strong> the mineral are very irregular. The inclusions<br />

are microcline, magnetite, <strong>and</strong> the long, very perfect<br />

needles which have been referred to rutile. These occur with<br />

a definite orientation in three planes, making angles <strong>of</strong> 600 with<br />

each other. The pronounced cracks which are seen to cross<br />

from one crystal to its neighbor, without interruption, are an<br />

indication <strong>of</strong> pressure phenomena in the magma after its consolidation.<br />

These cracks are notable as containing microscopic<br />

dendritic growths, which are analagous to the arborescent forms<br />

<strong>of</strong> M110 2 , <strong>and</strong> possibly identical with them.<br />

Biotite is present in brown patches. It sometimes shows a<br />

metallic luster. The lamellae are <strong>of</strong>ten bent or broken. The<br />

absorption is strong. Rays vibrating at right angles to the<br />

cleavage are brownish yellow. The figtire is nearly that <strong>of</strong> a<br />

uniaxial substance. The effects <strong>of</strong> weathering are apparent in<br />

the chloritized lamellae, <strong>and</strong> in the rims <strong>of</strong> chlorite which sur -<br />

round the mineral.<br />

Plagioclase feldspar is very generally present but only in<br />

small amounts. It is invariably finely twinned on the Albite<br />

law, while lamellae, due to Pericline twinning, may <strong>of</strong>ten be<br />

observed. Carlsbad twins are extremely rare. In the absence<br />

ib<br />

.4,<br />

le<br />

REPORT OF THE VERMONT STATE GEOLOGIST. 55•<br />

<strong>of</strong> any section perpendicular to M (oio) which might show<br />

Aihite lamellae in the two halves <strong>of</strong> a Carlsbad twin, the optical<br />

determination as oligoclase, with the composition Ab<br />

3An 1 , rests<br />

upon the observed symmetrical extinction angles <strong>of</strong> 6 ° or less.<br />

The plagioclase is much more deeply weathered than the microdine,<br />

<strong>and</strong> its substance is commonly clouded over by earthy<br />

alteration products. The twinning lamellae <strong>of</strong>ten show the<br />

effects <strong>of</strong> pressure, as being noticeably bent. MicrogranitiC<br />

intergrowtlls with little club-shaped pieces <strong>of</strong> quartz occur, all<br />

the quartz crystals extinguishing simultaneously.<br />

Muscovite is an imortant constituent <strong>of</strong> the rock. It may<br />

even be more abundant than the biotite, with which it is so generally<br />

associatedl. When originally present it occurs in broad<br />

flakes. Much <strong>of</strong> it is, however, secondary, as resulting from<br />

the weathering <strong>of</strong> the feldspar. In such cases it is in small<br />

irregular patches <strong>and</strong> scaly aggregates. The muscovite shows<br />

faint absorption. The axial angle is wide.<br />

Apatite is found sparingly in short, blunt prisms, which give<br />

the usual six-sided basal sections. Magnetite occurs, but not<br />

abundantly, in very irregular grains. Pieces .2 mm. across are<br />

seldom noted. Titanite exhibits perfect lozenge-shaped sections<br />

.25 mm. in diameter. It is one <strong>of</strong> the more rarely found<br />

accessory minerals. Tourmaline occurs at one locality. The<br />

prismatic crystals <strong>of</strong> this mineral may be i cm. in length. Original<br />

epidote in small needles is occasionally met with <strong>and</strong> minute<br />

amounts <strong>of</strong> secondary calcite are found.<br />

A chemical analysis <strong>of</strong> the darker granite collected in the<br />

area south <strong>of</strong> Millstone Hill yielded the following percentages:<br />

I. II.<br />

Si02 .............................69.89<br />

68.55<br />

Ti0 2 ..................................<br />

A123 C) .............................i.o8 16.21<br />

Fe 203 ............................. 1.04<br />

2.26<br />

1.46<br />

FeO<br />

MnO...................................

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