Taste. Minerals may be salt, bitter, sweet, etc.
Odor. This test is not of much use with most minerals until heat is applied. All the petroleum oils, however, are often detected by their odor.
Chemical Composition. This may always be determined by suitable tests with reagents.
Pyrognostic Characters. As a means of readily determining the nature of a specimen the blowpipe is unrivalled—if in the hands of one who understands it.
Mode of occurrence and associated minerals. A knowledge of these matters often assists in a determination.
A regular fire assay is not within reach of many prospectors, for the necessary apparatus cannot, as a rule, be carried in the wilderness. Whenever possible, however, a fire assay gives the truest results, especially in the case of gold and silver.
SCALE FOR WEIGHING ORE.
The operation includes testing the ore, sampling and pulverizing, weighing the ore and reagents, calcination and roasting, reduction and fusion, distillation and sublimation, scorification and cupellation, inquartation and parting the gold and silver, weighing and tabulating. "Notes on Assaying" by Dr. Ricketts is a very useful manual to have at hand.
A TOLERABLY COMPLETE OUTFIT INCLUDES: