Metals.
“Thatthimble, Henry, which you are looking at, and think so pretty, is made of silver. Silver is dug out of the earth, and so are all metals. There are a great many metals: I will tell you the names of some of them, but I cannot tell you all. Gold is metal; so is silver, iron, lead, copper, tin, brass, and a great many more. Some are pure metals, that is, not mixed together. Gold is considered the most valuable. Silver is also valuable; but I think we may consider iron the most useful; for what should we do without spades, shovels, rakes, ploughs, and many other things which are made of iron?
“We should have no wheat, unless the earth was ploughed before the seeds were sown. We could not dig up the potatoes without a spade; we could have no fire in our rooms without a grate; besides, the saucepans are made of iron, which could not be made of any other metal. Gold and silver are also very useful. Spoons made of silver are pleasanter to use than iron ones would be. Gold is chiefly used for money and jewelry, although kings and many very rich people have their plate made of gold. Lead is very useful in building; the tops of houses are sometimes covered with lead, to prevent the rain from coming through. Water pipes are made of it; the point of my pencil is made of black lead.”
“Is not your ring made of gold, mamma?”
“Yes, my ring and watch are both gold.”
“And was that gold found in the earth?”
“Some gold is dug out of mines, but not all. Gold is sometimes found amongst the sand and mud at the bottom of rivers; it is found in very small grains, and is collected by the people of the place with much trouble and care. There is not much gold found in Europe; there is more found in America than in any other part of the globe, although a good deal is obtained in some of the rivers of France and Germany. Copper is more abundant in England than elsewhere, and there are mines of iron in most countries.”