* That is, 2.94 contained in the sulphat of iron, (this salt when crystallized containing 28 per cent. of oxyd of iron, according to Kirwan) and 1.875 additional of oxyd of iron.

MINERALIST. s. (from mineral.) One skilled or employed in minerals (Boyle). MINERALOGIST. s. (mineralogie, Fr.) One who discourses on minerals (Brown).

MINERALOGY. (from minera, Latin, a metallic vein; and λoyo, Greek, a treatise or discourse. The science of minerals or fossils. The term, however, is intrinsically barbarous, as being composed of two distinct languages, and might be advantageously exchanged for oryctology, but that it has obtained too extensive an introduction into almost all modern languages to be conveniently relinquished or altered.

So far as this science is connected with the arts of the jeweller and lapidary, it may be said to be nearly coeval with the world; for amongst the earliest historical records we meet with frequent references to the use of various metals and precious stones. The writings of Pliny, Theophrastus, and Dioscorides, unfold to us a very extensive degree of information concerning the knowledge of the Greeks and Romans in the same branch of natural history. But in none of these do we meet with any thing like a systematic arrangement; so that the first mineralogist who has any pretensions to a scientific study of fossile substances is George Agricola of Saxony: he first investigated their external characters, and judiciously defined and described them. His arrangement consists of two classes; first, simple or homogeneous minerals, subdivided into the four orders of terra, succus concretus, lapis and metallum; and second, heterogeneous minerals, subdivided into the orders of compound and mixed.

Cardan published his celebrated treatise very soon afterwards. He differs chiefly from Agricola in separating the saline from the inflammable bodies. Keatman's work De omni rerum Fossilium genere, Gemmis, Lapidibus, Metallis, &c. published in 1665, is nearly a transcript of Agricola, De Natura Fossi lium. It contains, however, the addition of a treatise on petrifactions. Casalpinus, the botanist, and Bootius Von Boot, had already published their respective works on metals and precious stones, but they contain nothing of importance. The work, however, of a Mexican priest, Alonzo Barba, written in Spanish, about the same time, is entitled to a more minute notice, as accurately describing the mode of working minerals, and as being the first treatise on amalgamation. This work is entitled, De los Metallos. Aldrovandus followed shortly afterwards with his Museum Metallicum, a compilation extracted from Agricola, Cardan, and Cæsalpinus; and first drew the attention of mineralogists in any considerable degree to the subject of petrifactions. Aldrovandus was followed by Johnstone, in his Notitiæ Regni Mineralis, published in 1667, and by the celebrated jesuit Athanasius Kircher, in his Mundus Subterraneus, published in 1678. A few years afterwards Woodward published his Catalogue of Minerals, and may be regarded as the first English mineralogist of note. In 1708, Becher published at Leyden his Physica Subterranea, in which he endeavoured to arrange minerals according to their constituent parts. He was the first writer who proposed the opinion that the difference in composition of earths and stones might be employed in their arrangement and discrimination; and first introduced the division of metals into perfect and imperfect. Bromel, who was a scholar of Becher's, improved upon this arrange. ment, and arranged sulphur and bituminous bodies in one common class. In the beginning and towards the middle of the same century, Beyer, Buttner, and Scheuchzer, employed themselves princi

This system is faulty in many respects; it has the merit however of having first drawn the attention of mineralogists to the study of the crystalline figures of minerals. Independently of which, although Linnéus eannot be said to have contributed much to the progress of mineralogy, yet indirectly his labours in the other branches of natural history laid the foundation of that reformation which was effected by subsequent mineralogists. He was the first who established right ideas of system, and showed that its principal object was to assist the memory, and to enable naturalists to distinguish bodies from one another, and thus to ascertain if the respective subjects of their investigation have been previously described by others.

He also

has the merit of having taught that no system can be of use that does not possess an uniformity in the basis of its classification and nomenclature, and a fixed and generally received language.

In the midst of the career of Linnéus, mineralogical chemistry was much advanced by the labours of Pott and Henckel; and especially of the former. Pott arranged earthy minerals according to their proportion of ingredients, and thus paved the way for many of the chemical systems of the present day. His four classes are the alkaline, siliceous, argillaceous and gypseous. An early death prevented this indefatigable chemist from extending his inquiries to the metals.

Waller, the contemporary of Linuéus, and professor of mineralogy at Upsal, published a system of much repute at Stockholm in 1747, and republished it with additions in 1772. The classes and orders were as follows:

I. EARTHS.

1. Dry.

2. Tenacious.

3. Mineralized.

4. Hard.

II. STONES.

1. Calcareous.

2. Vitrescent.

3. Fusible.

4. Apyrous.

5. Rocks.

III. MINERALS.

1. Salts.

2. Sulphurs.
3. Semi-metals.
4. Metals.

IV. CONCRETE.

1. Porous.

2. Petrifactive. 3. Figured.

4. Calculous.

In this system the external characters of the species were more accurately detailed than in any hitherto advanced; the terminology was improved, and the Synonyms of preceding authors were elucidated. Waller was the first who subjected to a serious examination the principles on which mineralogists had hitherto arranged minerals. He rejected the characters drawn from use, value, and geological situation; and contended that classes, orders, and genera, should be arranged according to chemical, but species chi fly in conformity with the external characters.

In the interval between Waller's first and second edition of his system appeared those of Woltersdorf, a disciple of Pott; Cronstedt, Lehman, Vogel, Cartheuser and Just; none of which, however, excepting Cronstedt, which appeared in 1758, is entitled to a detailed notice. Cronstedt's system is built upon the

following form:

I. EARTHS.
1. Calcareous.

2. Sliceous.

3. Granative.

4. Argillaceous. 5. Micaceous. 6. Fluors.

7. Asbestine.

8. Zeolithic.

9. Magnesiate.
II. SALTS.
1. Acids.

2. Alkaliues.

III. PHLOGISTIC. IV. METALS. 1. Perfect.

2. Imperfect.

This system is chiefly metallurgic; investigated upon chemical principles, peculiar and not compiled. It excludes many genera, as sand-stone, schist, soil, toph, stalactite, eagle-stone, calculus, nitre. Pumice-stone, rock, and petrifactions are added in an appendix. The author denies that crystals originate from salts, and considers their figures to be rather curious than useful. He doubts whether the colours of gems have their origin from metals; believes that calx existed before animals and vegetables; denies that the strata of the earth are gular; and considers characteristic definitions as

useless.

re

Our limits will not permit us to descant on the numerous systems that have since flowed in rapid succession. We shall only observe that the best of them are successively those of Veltheim, Bergman, Kirwan, Werner, Schmeisser, Babington, Gmelin, and Brogniast and confine our remarks to the two which have been most extensively studied, namely, Werner's and Gmelin's.

Of these two we have selected the last, as offering the best text book for the Pantologia: not, however, that we would recommend it in preference to the student who wishes to become deeply and extensively versed in mineralogy, but as being simpler and more comprehensible to the general reader. We shall begin therefore with this, though published a few years later in order of time, and shall close our article with a succinct epitome of the general scope and system of Werner, and of the improvements it has received from several illustrious scholars of this justly celebrated school.

The system of Gmelin is little more than an improvement upon that of Linnéus: it was published at Leipsic in 1793, and consists of the five following classes, instead of four, to which Linnéus had limited the subject.

CLASS 1. EARTHS.

54.

Creta.

11. Tophus.

62.

Breccia.

12. Spathum.

13. Schistolithus,

In enumerating the genera we have not added in the present table those of later discovery, because we bave been desirous of giving it as published by the author himself. In the general course of our work, however, the reader will find that we have brought the science down to the present day, and have added the recently discovered metals of Osmium, Iridium, Rhodium, Palladium, Chromium, Columbium, Potassium, Sodium, &c. as well as the recent genera under the other classes.

The system of Werner is by far the most comprehensive of all the systems. It contemplates the science of mineralogy under the five following branches; oryctognosy, mineralogical chemistry, geognosy mineralogical geography, and economical mineralogy.

Oryctognosy is that division of the subject which teaches us to know fossils, and to recognize them whenever they occur to us. It exhibits the different subjects arranged in an order corresponding as nearly as possible with that of their affinities, and distinguished from each other by appropriate denominations, and by determinate and defined characters. The object of mineralogical chemistry is the analysis of fossils, and the discovery of their constituent principles. Geognosy treats of the general structure of the earth. It makes us acquainted with the common and particular beds of fossils, with their probable origin, relative formation and arrangement in the earth with the rocks which compose mountains, and which constitute, if not the solid mass, at least the great shell of the globe. The geognosy of this system is therefore, as we have already had occasion to observe, the geology of natural philosophers in general. (See the article GEOLOGY.) The province of minevalogical geography is to describe geographically the scite of fossils in diffrent countries: and that of economical mineralogy the various economical purposes to which fossils may be applied.

It is to the first, second, and fourth of these branches of the general science as here laid down, that we confine our view of mineralogy upon the present occasion: the third having been already treated of under the article GEOLOGY, and the fifth entering into the detailed consideration of the individual articles as they occur in the course of the work.

The peculiar excellency of the Wernerian system is the accuracy and determinate power of the language which it has introduced and in this respect the illustrious author has laudably as well as most successfully followed up the first efforts of Waller, upon the same subject. In his classical work, Vonder Renzeichen der Fossilier, he has admirably collected all the old and admitted characters, described others traced by himself on comparing minerals with minerals; defined the characters in common use, given to each an appropriate and fixed determination, and arranged the whole into a systematic order. The system of Werner is now therefore embraced with no small degree of enthusiasm over most parts of Europe, perhaps of the globe: Mr. Kirwan was one of the first who gave it publicity in our own country; M. Brochant, who has very considerably improved upon it, in France; and De la Rio in Spain: and now that it has enlisted into its service the very splendid and important discoveries of Roma de Lisle, and the Abbé Hauy, in the department of crystallography, it bids fair to triumph eventually over all the rest, and perhaps to continue as long as the science shall continue itself.

The following constitute its general principles and arrangement: the classes being four, viz. earths, salts, inflammables, and metals.

1. The earths, earthy fossils, or minerals compose the greater part of the crust of the earth, and generally form a covering to the rest. They are not remarkable for being brittle, heavy, or lightcoloured: are little disposed to crystallize: are uninflammable in a low temperature; insipid; and with

out much smell.

2. The saline minerals are commonly heavyish, soft, and possess some degree of transparency.

3. The inflammables are light, brittle, mostly opake, of a yellow brown, or black colour, seldom crystallize, and never feel cold.

4. The metallic fossils are heavy, generally opake, tough, malleable, cold, not easily inflamed, and exhibit a great variety of colours of a peculiar lustre.

Under each of these classes are various genera, species, sub-species, and varieties, which we shall instance as we proceed. Sometimes, as in the vegetable kingdom, we find a strict affinity between different species of minerals; in which case they constitute or are said to belong to the same family. But in mineralogy one class does not always blend with another in a chemical point of view, nor furnish that beautiful gradation and almost imperceptible union which is to be traced in the other kingdoms of nature.

Antecedently, however, to a full developement of the classification in its different ramifications, it is necessary to give a brief explanation of the external characters by which minerals are distinguished under this system for without this neither the individuals nor even the subdivisions themselves would be understood.