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Vol. III. Foreign States.
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GREECE.

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parts of Greece . It is not exported, as its qualities arenot yet known. The soap-earth mine is of great extent,and belongs to the Government.]

16 33 ox of terra cimolia (Cimolite). It is a light argilla-ceous earth, soft to the touch, and was known to the an-cients who used it for cleaning cloth and bleaching linen.

[Cimolite, or cymolite, is a hydrous silicate of alumina,containing silica, 68 ; alumina, 28 ; water, 13 ; oxide ofiron, T25 (Klaproth ). It occurs in volcanic districts, andis considered to be a variety of halloysite.—I). T. A. ]

Kimaulia-earth is of very fine grain, and was knownto the ancients, according to the testimony of Dios-corides, who says—“ Kimaulia is either white or purple ;the best is that in which a sort of fatness is perceptible,and which is cold to the touch. The ancients used it tocleanse and wash their manufactures.” It is found inthe island of Milo, .at the place called Eourkovoum, andat the opposite promontory, called 33abi. There is noexportation of it, for the same reason as applies to soap-earth : it is the property of the government.

17 Box of iron ore (Germ, rothel). It is soft, and has abeautiful light-red colour, and is used as a pigment. Itis the best in Greece .

[This red earth is used in dyeing, being very fine, andof the best quality. It is a produce of Milo, but is notexported.]

18 Three pieces of grinding-stone, or mill-stone. Thisstone is fight and hard; it is a combination of pure quartz,with a small portion of clay and potash, in the proportionof 1 per cent, of the two latter. The mill-stones made fromit are divided into six classes. The first or largest averaging

19 inches in diameter, and 11 inches in breadth or depth.

[Mill-stones are light and very strong; they are com-posed of pure quartz, a very small quantity of clay, andpotash to about 1 per cent. The mill-stones are foundin all the eastern coasts of the island of Milo; butthey are at present only obtained from the quarry ofReuma , which yields the finest qualities. These stonesare much used in every part of the kingdom for flour-mills, besides which more than 20,000 are annually ex-ported to Trieste and Turkey. The working them iscarried on by the government through superintendents.]

19 Piece of native sulphur. Sulphur is found in largequantities in the island of Milo ; it is not much exported,being almost unknown. In: different parts of this islandsolfataras are found, and close to them sulphur mixedwith an arenaceous stone and alum.

[Sulphur is found in considerable quantities in theisland of Milo. At different places in the island thereare sulphureous springs, and near to them sulphur mixedwith a sandy petrifaction of alum is found. The samplesent is a piece of pure sulphur taken from a grotto in theisland. The sulphur of Minos was known and highlyvalued by the ancients. The best is crude, sparkling,transparent, and free from stones. The greater part isproduced at Milo.]

20 Naxos .—Box of Emery. It is used in cutting,grinding, and polishing, and is abundantly found in manyparts of the island: it is in small particles and hard, ofa darkish-blue colour, nearly black, occurs in masses andis very heavy : according to Mr. Tennant’s analysis itcontains-—clay, 86; quartz, 4; oxide iron, 5 ; dirt, 5.Annual export about 30,000 cwts.

[The emery of Naxos is of the finest kind, and used invarious ways in the arts in cutting, grinding, and polishing.Xt consists of nearly pure alumina in a semi-crystallinestate (corundum). There are several different qualities,

the best kinds have a blue tint. The best is that ofKoxaki . It is used in powder to work and polish thehardest precious stones and metals. The ancients madeuse of it for the first purpose, as Dioscorides says,“ Emery is a stone with wliicli the ring-makers polishtheir jewels.” Its grain is fine, of a dark red colourtending to black. It is compact, uniform, and of groathardness and weight. The quarry is national property,over which there is a superintendent, who, at the time ofthe hewing, hires the necessary workmen for cutting andtransporting it to the shore. The mines are worked bymeans of fire $ the rock, after being heated; breaks whencold.

The quantity fixed for exportation is sold by publicauction, and every year more than 30,000 cwt. areexported to England and other countries. The price lastpaid was from 12 to 16 drachmas per cwt.]

21 Botjdotteis, Basilio, IAmni , Euboea — Proprietor.

Carbonate of magnesia. This mineral is very white,

and pure of its kind ; it contains 44 per cent, magnesia,46 per cent, carbonic acid, &c., is used for the manufactureof pure magnesia and Epsom salts ; as it resists the heatof fire, it is useful in making bricks for the constructionof furnaces. At present the export is about 40,000 cwt.

[Impure carbonate of magnesia, occurs native, in con-siderable masses, in the form of magnesite, constituting arange of low hills in Hindostan. It is also abundant inGreece. It is found in Euboea , especially in the distinctof Kironile, where there are entire hills of it. The minesare worked, some belonging to public and some to privategentlemen. It is extracted in the villages of Lhnin,Kotsikia, and Matondi, &c., that of the last-named villageis of the best quality. Erom the neighbouring portsmore than 40,000 cwt. are annually exported to Smyrnaand England.

The pharmacist prepares the carbonate of magnesiain a pure form by precipitation from the sulphate.Heavy carbonate of magnesia is obtained in differentways. The most effectual way is to employ strongsolutions of the precipitant carbonate of soda and of thesulphate, and to precipitate the carbonate hot. Calcinedmagnesia is a product generally of heating the carbo-nate in covered crucibles.—It. E.]

The Greek Government.

Maw Materials.

22 Santorin .—Box of puzzolana. This material con-sists of volcanic ash; it is ash-coloured, and has thesame properties as the Italian puzzolana; it is muchused for building aqueducts, &c., in Greece , Turkey, andTrieste .

[This earth is of a volcanic nature, and its colour isgrey: it is found in abundance in the island of Tliera,from which it takes its name, and also in the neighbour-ing small islands. It is of the best quality, and has thesame properties as the Italian pozzolana; mixed withlime, it becomes hard and solid, and sinks in water. Inconsequence of which property it is much used, in thekingdom, in hydraulic works, such as the building ofports, aqueducts, bridges, terraces, &c. A considerablequantity is exported yearly from the port of Thera toTrieste and Turkey.]

23 Thebes .—Box of meerschaum (Ei\ ecurne de mer).

There are two qualities; the inferior quality is found inpieces of the size of a child’s head, and the better sort iusmaller pieces. Some years ago diggings were undertaken,but not to any great extent. ...