AN OUTLINE OF THE

MINERALOGY

OF THE

 SHETLAND ISLANDS

AND OF THE

ISLAND OF ARRAN

ILLUSTRATED WITH COPPER-PLATES

WITH AN

APPENDIX;

CONTAINING OBSERVATIONS ON

PEAT, KELP, AND COAL

BY

ROBERT JAMESON

EDINBURGH:

PRINTED FOR WILLIAM CREECH

1798

*****

DESCRIPTION: . 1st EDITION, (25cm) xiv, errata, 202pp.  1 engraved plate (2 maps). Presentation copy to John Bell.  This is almost certainly John Bell the Scottish anatomist and surgeon (1763 – 1820).  Born in Edinburgh, |Bell is considered one of the founders of modern surgery on the vascular system.  His public lectures were very popular and attracted large audiences.  Recent half tan calf, with marbled boards.  New sympathetic endpapers.

CONDITION: VERY GOOD.  A generally excellent copy.   Binding sound. Endpapers replaced with very sympathetic textured paper.  Gift inscription to verso of title-page.  Map of Arran, though original, has browning and loss to edges and has been re-mounted on period paper.  Some minor wear to edges of untrimmed text-block and the odd smudge, but generally excellent throughout.  Professional repair to large open tear on leaf Q2 (see photo). No loss to text. A very good copy with interesting provenance.  There are no other copies in commerce at present that I am aware of.   FULL CONTENTS  BELOW.

*****************

Professor Robert Jameson, FRS FRSE (1774–1854) was a Scottish naturalist and mineralogist.

As Regius Professor at the University of Edinburgh for fifty years, Jameson is notable for his advanced scholarship in natural history, his superb museum collection, and for his tuition of Charles Darwin. Jameson was not at his best in the lecture theatre however, and, for the first half of his career, he grappled with his predecessor John Walker's perverse "Neptunian" geological theories. Darwin attended Robert Jameson's natural history course at the University of Edinburgh in his teenage years, learning about stratigraphic geology and assisting with the collections of the Museum of Edinburgh University, then one of the largest in Europe. At Jameson's Wernerian Natural History Association, the young Charles Darwin saw John James Audubon give a demonstration of his method of using wires to prop up birds to draw or paint them in natural positions. Robert Jameson was the great-uncle of Sir Leander Starr Jameson, Bt, KCMG, CB, British colonial official and inspiration for the Jameson Raid.

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CONTENTS.



CHAP. I

SHETLAND ISLANDS.

SITUATION — general appearance- westerly elevation of
mountains— mountains run in the . longest direction of the
islands — climate. « • « Page I.

CHAP. II

MAINLAND. f. 8^

Size — great difference of breadth - cause?— cliffs — moun
tains— observations upon the plan of writing— Lerwick— Brassay
Sound — Brassay island^— Noss Head, fowling there— -Character
of the sandstone and breccia — Caves — Quars  a fishing
station — Athvoe — cliffs of Coningsburgh— -Sappare dure found
there— Sandlodge^-^vein of copper pyrites — vein of iron ore— «

Island of Mouse— coast from Sandwick to Sumburgh head~»
Sandflood—Fitful-head appearances of iron there— a great
vein of iron pyrites at Garthsness — the coast to Scalloway-*
different species of granite found in that extent — Island of St
Ranens— Ifle of House, a vein of granite observed traversing
the micaceous shistus — Burra Isle— the coast to Weesdale voe
— scenery upon the shores of Sandsting, and Aethsting — Sand-
ness Hill — Doreholm, a great perforated rock— the general
nature of the rocks around the other parts of the island.

CHAP. III.

Islands of Foula, Papa Stour, Vementry, and Muckle Rhooe. - - - p. 31


Foula-size — holds the fame situation with regard to Shet-
land, as St Kilda does to the Hebrides««-only one landing
place— general structure— fowling.

Papa Stour — size — harbours— composed of a stone resembling
wacken, with the common argillaceous sandstone and
breccia— several sporadic and venigenous fossils also occur—*

Vementry –situation -nature of the rocks.
Muckle Rhooe — size -  nature of the rocks.

CHAP. IV.


The North Isles of Shetland, comprehending Unst, Fetlar,
Yell, and Walsey. - - - p. 38
Unst,— size— harbours— Serpentine, forming one fide of
Balta Sound, contains lamellar Actynolite — -Labrador Horn-
blende — common Tremolite -.Shistose Talc — ^Bay of Norwick
- striated micaceous shistus — gneiss — Saxes Kettle— Sha, the
most northern point of his Mjesty’s dominions formed of
gneiss — pillars at the cliffs of Hermaness — west coast rugged — •
micaceous shistus, interspersed with beautiful garnets-- strata
of Ardesia - Serpentine again makes its appearance at Bel-
mont — sandstone, between Uyea Sound and Mounis — from
Mounis to Balta Sound, a compound rock of hornblende and
quartz, also a species. of rock composed of the compact feltfpar and hornblende

Fetlar — size — Bay of Tresta — appearance of black lead —
micaceous shistus — succeeded by serpentine, in which beau-
tiful specimens of rock crystal, asbestus, amianthus, and tal-
cite, of Wallerius, are found — a species of primitive breccia ?
Saussure observed one at Valoisine — gneiss, near the House of
Urie.

Yell – size — general composition^— veins of granite traversing
 the micaceous shistus.

Whalsey— size — composition— Grief and Out-Skerries.



A R R A N.

CHAP. I.

Size and situation of the island — cliffs— mountains— surface
parishes Brodick Bay— its extent, &c — Brodick Castle —
Kilmichael. - - - P* 49

Mineralogy South side of the bay formed of sandstone,
and breccia, penetrated with basalt veins— near Cory-gills, a
great  vein of green pitchstone — above the houses of Corry-
gills, columnar porphyry, with a basis much of the nature of
wacken — at a little distance the sandstone is observed, covered
with grunstein — other appearances of green pitchstone-— Glen-
Cloy— its extent &c— beds of boulder stones, or cailloux
roulés — bottom of the glen formed of sandstone, traversed with
basalt veins -hills on the south side of the same nature— here
and there nodules of black pitchstone ? -a vein of green pitchstone
near Brodick wood, upon the north side of the glen — at
a considerable height the hills on this fide formed of porphyry-
, traversed with veins of basalt— west end formed of sand-
stone and basalt veins — also scenite, traversed with basalt
veins— difficulties attending the investigation of the position of
strata and veins— doubt concerning the relative position of the
sandstone and porphyry — the scenite appears to be covered by
the sandstone<-— -Glen Sherrig, composed principally of sand-
stone, traversed with basalt veins — Glen-Shant, in part form-
ed of sandstone also of micaceous (shistus —Goatfield— height
—general account — Slower part formed of sandstone, penetrat-
ed with basalt veins— -higher up, micaceous shistus makes its
# appearance— summit of granite — wonderful view from the
top. — Glen-Rola — extent, etc.-  appears to be formed of gra-
nite, disposed in strata — La Metherie denies this — ^basalt vein
traversing the granite.— a curious vein — rock crystal in the
cavities, and dispersed through the granite— pierre graphic—
shistose and radiated granite— other veins of basalt— fragments
of pitchstone scattered upon the mountains-^ curious appear*
Slice in granitc-^weft fide of the glen-«-granite, decompofing

in crusts-^Saussure's observations on this appearance.

C H A P. II.

Description of the fossils mentioned in the preceding Chapter

Pitchstone, from Lamlash road, and Brodick wood— *observations
on their fusibility— black pitchstone, two species from
Arran, one from the island of Egg, all remarkably fusible,
their tradition to basalt^-basalt , south side of Glen-Cloy —
basalt which forms a vein running through wacken porphyry,
head of Glen-Cloy— -basalt, which forms a vein, traversing the
granite, east fide of Glen-Cloy remarkably fusible-— different
species of scenite-— wacken porphyry, Cory gills — a nearly similar
porphyry, from Glen-Cloy— base, sometimes the
appearance of indurated clay — granite, description of the great
and small grained— remarkable on account of their containing
three species of feltspar -.micaceous (shistus, different kinds in
general - breccia in general.

CHAP. III.

Cory, Cock of Arran, and Loch Ranza.  P. 94

Lower part of the shore as usual, formed of sandstone, traversed
 with bsalt veins— cristated appearance of the
sandstone from the action of the sea— stratum of limestone near
the Cory, with interposed layers of shells— stalactitical peat —
Cory-Glen - quarries of sandstone at the Cory— another  
stratum of limestone- -great strata of breccia near the Sanickis
 masses of quartz in the breccia, not compressed — this ob-
observed however, in other countries— Glen-Sanicks, composed
of granite, traversed with basaltic veins «-after passing the
Sanicks, the composition of the higher mountains changed — coal,
near the Cock of Arran— the Cock not « great headland-  
disappearance of the Sandstone near Loch-Ranza —basalt veins
traversing the micaceous shistus— junction of the macaceous
shistus, limestone, and sandstone—- Glen-Ranza, size, etc —
composed of micaceous shistus, &c— Glen-na-birach—  
Garise Hodie — vein of columnar pitchstone traversing the granite
also veins of basalt, traversing the granite — view from
Cairn na Calligh - different stages of the disintigration of
granite -  Sausslure's observations, not applicable here - Glen*
Halimidel, size, etc. Quarry of Ardesia.

C H A P- IV.

Description of the fossils occurring in the preceding Chapter


Limestone Cory — ^Limestone near the Cock — ^Indurated
lithomarga — basalt, from a vein near the Sanicks— -Cock coal
its chemical contents solubility of coaly matter in water, by
the action of nitrous acid — ardesia, often interspersed with actynolite

C H A P. V.

Glen-Catacol, Shiskin, Tory Lin, Benin head, Whiting
Bay, Lamlash Bay, and Lamlash island. Glen*

-Catacoal formed principally of granite, with appear^
ances of basalt veins — ^Loch Tannoch — porphyry in a glen,

which leads to Catacol^-curiouf vein of basalt, near Tunder-

«

gay— «the alpine rocks of granite, and micaceous ihiftus difap-
pear at Irfa water, where the sandstone again makes its ap-
pearance — fcenite and porphyry again make dieir appearance,
at the Clachan Glen— ftratum of limeftone, intermixed in fome
^aces, with the sandstone and breccia — Drumodoon— Caves
of FingaU-^ great vein of green pitchftone,. prefeating feveral
remarkable appearances— -polltion of the sandstone and por*
phyry, &c. — a curious fpecies of refting upon {and-

flonc— the matter of sandstone and basalt intermixed together
at the edges of fome of the veins— columns of a porphyry
refting upon red coloured sandstone, at Garbaro-r-curious ba*'
£dtic rock at the farm of Drumodoon— clifis of porphyry
—Tory Lin*— near it, fragments of olive green^coloured
pitchftone, and upon the ftiore the white bafaltic rock, which
occurs at Drumodoon, here again makes its appearance, pene*
trated with bafaltic veins, fimilar to that in Glen-Cloy, &c. —
Benin-head, the moft fouthern point of the island— compofed
of bafatt and porphyry— the basalt traversed with great veins
of a different fpecies of basalt— -from this to Whiting bay,
rocks moftly bafaltic, refting upon sandstone — often colum-
nar—near Whiting bay confiderable rocks of grunftein — a
fine difplay of basalt veins in the bottom of Whiting bay, at
ebb tide— Lamlafli bay — LanQafli island, fize. Sec— composed
of sandstone, having a fpecies of columnar basalt refting upon

it— veins of yellow coloured pitchftone, penetrate the fand-
stone in one part.

CHAP, V
Fossils occurring in the preceding Chapter

Different species of pitch done described from Dramodooa*-^
the different fpecies pafs into each other ; alfo into a foffil near-
ly refembling hornftone— rlaftlj, it appears to graduate into
fand^one— porphyry, with a bafis intermediate between wac«
ken and honiftone, more verging to wacken — ^a fubilance, in-
termediate between sandstone and wacken from Drumodooii.



APPENDIX.

PEAT.

By whom Its use, as fuel, was first introduced into the
Orkney and Shetland islands— -general appearance of a peat moor
-general appearance of peat — fituation in which it is found--,
climates in which it id obferved — ^trees and other matters
found in peats— mineral tallow found in the peat moss of the
Highlands— 4:hemical examination of a peat, from Glencloy,
in Arran, contains an acid different from the Gallic, or Oxalic
, what appears to b^ the Suberique-— a similar acid, from
charcoal'— -from this it is inferred to be a compound of car-
bon and oxygen. Theory of its formation ; of vegetable origin^
the vegetable matters fuppofed to be preferved by the agency
of the gallic acid— fuppofed by Dr Anderfon to be a vegetable
fui generis'^Jit Darwin's obfervations ; fuppofed to be a ve-
getable matter, more or lefs deprived of hydrogen.— explana-
tion of the antifeptic power of peat water, and whj intermit-
tent fevers never occur near peat mofles — ^improvement bf
mofs land — Theory of the aftion of lime on peat. P. 147



KELP.

Its first introduction into the Hebrides, in 1730 - average
price from 1740, to 1790 — present value -^effect in raising
the rents in Orkney, not in Shetland— price of manufacturing
-—drying of the fuci — some curious circumstances attending
on the rotting of ware — ^burning— faults in the mode of  
manufacturing — endeavours to remedy these—artificial growing
of fuci upon shores — merchants rules in examining kelp, vague
— -necessity of attention to ascertain the proportion of alkali
in different kelps— marked according as they are good or in*
different : the other circumstances to be attended to, besides
the proportion of alkali. - •


COAL.

Rules and obfervations for enabling us to detect the presence
 of coal— strata or veins* - - P. 197