The rocks of this parish are principally on the boundary of the
porphyritic and calcareous series; partaking of the former in the
northern part, and of the latter in the southern. The former sometimes
nearly resemble hornblende schist; and, gradually leaving the
hornblende, they pass into a coarse, lamellar, argillaceous rock, of a
dirty yellowish brown colour, irregularly and indistinctly marked with
blue spots. There are several large quarries in this rock round the
town of Leskeard, where the stone is extensively used for building. It
very nearly approaches in character to that of Bodmin, but is not
quite similar.
THE EDITOR. At a short distance from the town, on the road side
leading towards Plymouth, occurs a soft micaceous schist, of a deep
yellow tinge, which was most unfortunately mistaken for an ore of
gold, about fifty years since, by a Mr. Hoskin, of Leskeard, and by
his son, a clergyman, who, in utter ignorance of modern science,
expended considerable sums of money in erecting machinery, for the
prosecution of pursuits so vain as the raising of gold ore and
extracting the metal.