NEVADA. In addition to the alabaster mentioned above, in Story county, cement rock has been found in the Pinewood district, Humboldt county, and at many other places. No marble has thus far been found in this State, but there is sufficient carbonate of lime in other forms, in nearly all parts of it, to supply material for making lime for building purposes.

BUILDING MATERIALS.-The mountainous nature of the Pacific coast, and the geological formations to which the rocks composing the mountains belong, suggest the existence of a great variety of building materials. Few countries possess greater abundance or variety of these materials than California, and there are few cities in the United States where equal opportunities are afforded for comparing the merits of the materials used in other countries with those obtained at home, than are presented at San Francisco. In the early days of this city everything was imported, from bread and clothing for its inhabitants to lumber, brick and stone for their houses. The city hall is built of Australian freestone, several of the banks and other large edifices are built of China granite, and there are hundreds of steps, pillars, lintels, and other portions of buildings, of sandstone and granite imported from the Atlantic States and Europe. The foundations of many of the old buildings in the city are laid on imported bricks. None of these materials are found to be as durable or as handsome as those since obtained in California. In this, as in other mineral resources, the cost of labor and transportation has impeded development. It is only under favorable conditions that stone for building will pay to ship to San Francisco from the interior of the State; while the cheapness, excellence, and abundance of the lumber, and the general adaptability of the soil for the manufacture of bricks, cause these materials to be used for building almost everywhere throughout the State. The introduction of iron mouldings for the decorative portions of large structures prevents a demand for stone for such purposes. The Bank of California building, at San Francisco, is the only structure of cut stone of any magnitude, outside of the government fortifications, on the Pacific coast. Under such circumstances little attention is paid to opening quarries to test the quality of the stone. The consumption of stone is confined to granite for curbing and paving the streets, and the basements and steps for a few of the more costly buildings at San Francisco.

The following details concerning the supply of building materials will show how varied and valuable they are in California:

GRANITE.-Quarries of this rock are in nearly every county, including portions of the foot-hills or sierras. But as none of them are convenient to railroads or rivers, except the following, only these will be referred to:

The oldest and best known is located near Folsom, Placer county; another quarry worked to some extent exists at Natoma, in the cañon of the American river, a few miles from the first; another at Rocklin, 22 miles from Sacramento; and a fourth at Penryn, 28 miles from that city. The last two are on the line of the Central Pacific railroad.

There is a marked difference in the appearance of the rock from these several quarries. That from Folsom is hard and dark, containing feathery crystals of black hornblende in patches, on a dark bluish-gray ground of quartz and feldspar. Very little mica exists in any of the California granite. That from Natoma is as dark as that from Folsom, but the components being more evenly distributed gives it a lighter appearance. The stone-cutters consider this the best rock for sinooth blocks. It has a clean and fresh appearance, never changing color. The granite from Rocklin is of a nearly snowy whiteness, remarkably fine grained, and free from stains and blotches, and is susceptible of a fine finish. The upper portion of the State capitol at Sacramento is being built of this stone. The mouldings and other architectural ornaments are cut with sharpness and elegance. The lower portion of the structure is built of the Folsom stone, which has a dark and dingy appearance in comparison with the lighter and marble-like stone above.

The fortifications in course of construction near San Francisco are being built of Penryn granite, which is somewhat darker than that from Rocklin, but lighter than the others described above. The basements of nearly all the large stores and warehouses in San Francisco are built of Folsom rock. The quarries at Rocklin are very extensive. It is possible to break off blocks of large dimensions-masses 100 feet long by 100 feet deep, and 10 feet thick, have been quarried out and afterwards split into smaller blocks, of any required thickness, across the grain, by means of gads and sledges. The rock splits evenly. There is a body of this rock several miles in length and breadth and of unknown depth. In San Francisco are 10 stone-yards, at which about 350 men are employed dressing and trimming granite for building and paving purposes. These yards use about 400 tons of stone per month. The curbs and crossings of the principal streets are made of this rock. There are 20 miles of such curbing and crosswalks. The Central Pacific railroad carries about 5,000 tons of granite from Rocklin and Penryn to Sacramento, the greater portion of which is brought to San Francisco by schooners. About 1,000 tons per month are brought from the quarries at Folsom and Natoma.

The price of granite at San Francisco is $1 50 per cubic foot, or $21 per ton in blocks delivered at the wharf. The cost of trimming it is high; stone-cutters being paid $4 per day in gold for nine hours work.

SANDSTONES, &c.-Brown stone of good quality for building purposes is quarried near Hayward's, Alameda county. Some of this stone is used in the city cemeteries as bases for monuments and for building vaults. Its sombre appearance is considered an advantage.

Greenish-gray sandstone is obtained from Angel island, in the Bay of San Francisco. Of this beautiful stone the new building of the Bank of California has been built. The scroll-work and sculpture on the front are fine and smooth in outline as if cut in marble, while the color is soft and pleasant to the eye. Each pillar, lintel, and post of the doors and windows is formed of a single block, some of them 10 feet in length. The wheels used in the linseed oil factory at Steamboat Point are also made of Angel Island stone. These wheels are seven feet in diameter and 18 inches thick, each weighing five tons.

In several of the interior counties are deposits of a variety of trachytes, forming portions of table mountain, which make good materials for buildings. It is generally of a pinkish or gray color, fine in grain, and when first taken from the quarry is sufficiently soft to be trimmed with a common hatchet, but a few months' exposure to the air renders it quite hard. A valuable deposit is found near Mokelumne Hill, Calaveras county. Wells & Fargo's office, several hotels, and other buildings in that town are made of it. Some of these buildings are 14 years old, and the stones in them retain the marks and edges as when first made.

A quarry of freestone, of a pale drab color and fine texture, is found near Marsh's creek, six miles from the Mount Diablo coal mines.

Near the Merced river, in Mariposa county, on the road between Bear Valley and Stockton, there are beds of freestone well adapted to building purposes. The stone is of a pleasant pinkish tint, with wavy lines of brown and purple, and is compact and stands exposure well. With cheap transportation it would become a favorite for many purposes, as it can be cut cheaper than granite, and is better adapted to building than marble, and is more elegant and durable than brick.

BRICKS. The manufacture of bricks is carried on extensively in nearly every county in the State. The tough clay of the Sacramento valley probably makes the best. Some of the earth used in one or two localities along the coast in early times, contained a per centum of soda and potash. Such bricks are illsuited for a climate as humid as that of San Francisco. The moisture causes the alkali to exude, injuring the paint or plaster with which the bricks are covered.

The consumption of bricks at San Francisco amounts to about 100,000,000 annually. The average price is $12 per 1,000. About 20,000,000 are used annually in the interior of the State, at an average cost of $16 per 1,000. Until recently the bricks made were the product of hand labor. A brick-making machine was introduced in July, 1867. The increase of building consumes all that are made. The city corporation uses many millions annually in the construction of sewers, of which there are 10 miles within the city limits.

ROOFING SLATES.-Notwithstanding the abundance of slate on this coast, but little of it fit for roofing purposes has thus far been found. The use of shingles, asphaltum, and tin for roofing, which are so much cheaper and lighter than slate, is almost general, so that but little inducement is held out to furnish slate. In 1865 a company was organized in Amador county for the purpose of working a slate quarry found in that county. Experienced Welsh slaters were interested in the enterprise. They say the Amador slate is quite equal to any found in Wales. The causes above stated, together with the cost of labor and transportation, rendered the enterprise unprofitable, and it was abandoned. No doubt a proper search would result in the discovery of an abundant supply of roofing slates on this coast.

STEATITE, OR SOAPSTONE, though not strictly a building material, is classed under this head because it is valuable in various departments of arts and manufactures. There are localities in all the States and Territories on this coast, except Arizona, where this mineral is known to exist in great abundance, but its consumption is limited at present. Only one or two deposits are found profitable to work, and these only to an inconsiderable extent. There is but one establishment on the coast for the manufacture of articles from soapstone. This is at San Francisco, where it was commenced in 1866. As marble can be obtained cheaper than this stone, its use is confined to blocks for lining furnaces, slabs for the chemical works, linings for stoves, beds for ovens, &c. Its peculiar property of standing a high temperature, and retaining the heat a long time, makes it valuable for such purposes. About 200 tons are used at San Francisco annually; part of it in the form of powder by soap-makers, chemists, boot-makers, and others. Twenty tons of this powder are sold annually at $3 per 100 pounds. The price of the stone, in blocks, is $4 80 per cubic foot, or $40 per ton. In slabs of one inch thick, 75 cents per superficial foot.

Most of that used at San Francisco is brought from near Placerville, El Dorado county, where the company owning the factory have a claim containing 3,000 feet in length on a bed of this material 363 feet wide, and there are "extensions" on the same "lead" for miles on both sides of the original claim. Other quarries are worked to some extent-one near Sonora, Tuolumne county; another on Santa Catalina island, off the southern coast, near Santa Barbara; another on the south of the San José valley, near the city of San José, in Santa Clara county; another at Copperopolis, in Calaveras county, &c.

The cost of transportation from Placerville amounts to $12 per ton for freight alone, divided as follows: For hauling by team from quarry to railroad, nine and a half miles, $6 per ton; by railroad to Sacramento, 40 miles, $4 per ton; to San Francisco by steamer, $2 per ton.

The California steatite is superior to that obtained in the Atlantic States or Europe for many important purposes. It contains neither mica nor iron. The Golden City Chemical Works, an extensive establishment, uses steatite to line the retorts for distillation of nitric and sulphuric acids. When commencing operations this company imported steatite from New York, which, owing to its containing mica and iron, was soon destroyed by the fumes of the acids. Induced to try some of the California stone, it was found to last for a long time, the acids having but little effect on it.

Don Abel Stearns states that when he came to California, in 1825, the common people cooked their food in vessels made of this stone, which is abundant

in all the southern counties, and almost as soft as wood. These "crocks" were made of various sizes, usually about an inch thick on the sides and two inches on the bottom. Such vessels are occasionally found by the surface miners in various parts of the State. Parcels of California steatite have been exported to China, where it is used for various purposes.

The furnaces at the copper-smelting works at Aubrey City, Arizona, are lined with steatite taken from Santa Catalina island.

CLAYS.-Under this heading will be included materials used in the manufac ture of pottery, glass, colors, &c.

As already stated, reference can only be made to such products of the earth as are of immediate economical importance. Many minerals of interest and prospective value must necessarily be passed without notice, and several articles. of dissimilar natures are included under one head, for the purpose of securing conciseness.

Clay, suitable for the manufacture of fire-bricks, is found beneath the coal in the Mount Diablo coal mines, in Contra Costa county; at Grass Valley, Nevada county; near Colusa, Colusa county, and at other places in California, Nevada, and Oregon.

Clay suitable for pottery is found near Marsh's creek, six miles west of the Mount Diablo coal mines; also at Pratt's Hill, near Ione City, Amador county, in the foot-hills.

The manufacture of pottery is carried on to some extent in all the Pacific States and Territories. In California there are factories of earthenware at San Francisco; Antioch, Contra Costa county; San Antonio, Alameda county; Monterey, Sacramento, San José, Santa Clara county, and at several other places. In Nevada there is a pottery near Virginia City, at which brownstone ware is made from clay obtained in the vicinity. There are several potteries in Oregon. The establishment at Antioch was commenced in 1867. Various kinds of earthenware, both coarse and fine, are made here. It gives employment to about a dozen moulders and throwers, and a number of laborers. The potters work by contract, earning from $3 to $7 per day, according to their industry and the description of wares made.

The cosmopolitan character of the population of California is singularly illustrated by the articles made at this pottery. The French, German, Mexican, Russian, Chinese, and other nationalities represented here, each require differently-shaped crocks and pots in their culinary and other domestic arrangements. The storehouse of the pottery, in which a stock of these goods is kept, presents a curious medley of oddly-shaped articles made from designs to suit the tastes of all classes of customers.

Some of the moulded teapots, jugs, and water-pitchers, made in imitation of French and English ware, are very handsome, and exhibit the excellence of the material used as well as the skill of the workmen. Fancy articles of many kinds, cornices and mouldings, crucibles, muffles, fire-bricks, and tiles, drainage pipes, and a variety of other articles used by the local manufactories, are made here.

The clay is obtained from the deposit which underlies the coal at Mount Diablo. The pottery at San Francisco is located at the Mission. Stoneware and utensils used by refiners, assayers, metallurgists, artists, and manufacturers are made here. The clay is obtained from a deposit near Michigan Bar, Sacramento county.

There is a bed of good fire-clay near Grass Valley, Nevada county. KAOLIN.-Deposits of this clay are found in Marin, Amador, Tuolumne, Calaveras, and several other counties. It exists in many places in the coast range, the foot-hills, and the high Sierras. One of the most noted of these deposits is at Michigan Bar, Sacramento county. In El Dorado county there is a peculiar deposit of pure white clay, formed by the decomposition of the granite in the vicinity, which is well adapted to the manufacture of porcelain.

PIPE CLAY.-This material has been found near Dutch Flat, Placer county, and at San José, Contra Costa county; also in Tuolumne, Amador, and Calaveras couuties, and at several other localities in the Coast range and foot-hills.

COLORING EARTHS, &c.-Terra de sienna, umber, red, yellow, and other ochreous coloring earths, are found in abundance and purity in many places in the Coast range and foot-hills of California. Several deposits have been opened. The colors prepared from them are varied and excellent. The limited market for their sale, and the importations from the Atlantic States and Europe, render their manufacture on a large scale unprofitable, though considerable quantities are used by the local painters and others.

The most noted of these ochreous deposits was discovered in 1860, near the town of Martinez, Contra Costa county. Six well-defined beds of ochre have been found in this locality, which range from 10 to 20 feet thick, and extend from El Humbre creek to San Pablo bay, a distance of six miles. In 1862 a company was organized to make colors from these materials. A factory, with a 20-horse power steam engine, for grinding the colors, was erected, and about 100 tons, of as many as 84 tints, from white to black, embracing a pale buff and bright vermillion, were prepared. But the causes above mentioned rendered the enterprise unprofitable, and it was abandoned within a year of its commencement. Some of the colors made are as bright to-day as when first prepared.

In 1866 a deposit of terra de sienna was found on Gold gulch, about six miles from San Lorenzo, Santa Clara county. Yellow ochre is found in the same locality.

There are bodies of coloring earth, red, purple, and white, about five miles west of Ione City, Amador county, which form a portion of what is known as Pratt's Hill, a promontory extending some distance into the Sacramento valley from the foot-hills.

Beds of sienna and umber exist in the mountains in the vicinity of San José, Santa Clara county. Fuller's earth is found in the same locality.

Red ochre is found on Red Rock, in the harbor of San Francisco, and at other places along the coast.

The above localities are named because the materials found in them have been used and are known to be valuable. But there are many localities where coloring earths, clays, &c., are known to exist, which are omitted because they have not been developed.

SANDS. Since the introduction of the manufacture of glass at San Francisco, the quality of the sand along the coast has been tested in order to obtain a supply of such as is best adapted to this business. Much of the sand obtained along the shores of the harbor of San Francisco contains too much iron to be used in making glass. Near the harbor of Monterey there is an exhaustless supply, free from impurities. The sand used by the glass factories is imported chiefly from this place. A small quantity is obtained along the bay shore in Alameda county, near Oakland. Eight miles north of Santa Cruz there is a hill of white sand well adapted to glass-making, being free from iron and manganese.

The sand dunes, which form a peculiar feature in the scenery at some points in the bay of San Francisco, do not contain materials suitable for glass-making. The pinky hue of these dunes is imparted by the grains of iron they contain. They are not without value nevertheless. Parties owning them make as large | a revenue from their product as is derived from equal quantities of fertile soil. This sand is adapted to building purposes, for which it is used. Small vessels are employed in carrying it to Napa and other counties where suitable sand is scarce. Such vessels are charged $5 per cargo. It sells at $1 50 per ton to brickmakers and builders in the interior.

The consumption of sand for glass-making is considerable. Two glass works at San Francisco make $250,000 of glassware annually, giving employment to about 150 men and boys. These works make nearly all the wine bottles, carboys,