Antimony is a thin white and extremely brittle metal. It has been found in mineral waters, in coal and in river sands. However, it is too rare to be of commercial importance. During the six years from 1908 to 1913, inclusive, the price of Cookson's antimony ranged from 7.41 to 10.31 cents per pound, with yearly averages of from 8.24 to 8.58 cents per pound. At these prices antimony ores cannot be worked profitably under the high cost prevailing in the mining regions of the United States, unless the deposits are very extensive and advantageously situated, to which conditions the antimony deposits of the United States do not conform. As a result of these conditions, practically all of the antimony metal used here is imported from Europe, mostlly from England. At present, however, because of the war and its disturbing effects upon sea traffic, the prices are raised to such an extent as to enable the working of some of the American deposits. These prices, however, are only temporary, and as soon as the war is over, they will probably drop, and great initial outlay toward the development of antimony mines would not be advisable. 8 p.

The most important antimony mineral of commerce is stibnite (antimonite, antimony glance, gray antimony, or antimony sulfide). Beginners practicing the following tests should use antimony sulfide. 1. Antimony can usually be detected by the dense, white fumes given off and the heavy, white coating formed near the mineral when it is heated on charcoal with the blowpipe. To make this test: Transfer to a flat stick of charcoal a little of the mineral to be tested for antimony. Use about the amount of powdered mineral that can be held on the tip of a knife blade or a piece of the mineral about as large as a grain of wheat. Heat the mineral in the oxidizing (bluish) flame of the blowpipe until the material is thoroughly fused. By this treatment, most antimony minerals give off dense, white . fumes which often continue to rise even after the heating has ceased. These fumes deposit as a dense, white sublimate (coating) on the charcoal near the mineral; the outer edges, where the coating is thin, appear bluish-white. The bluish-white coating of antimony must not be confused with those of lead or zinc which are very similar on the outer edges.