This section is from the book "Materia Medica And Therapeutics Inorganic Substances", by Charles D. F. Phillips. Also available from Amazon: Materia medica and therapeutics.
A brilliant white metal, not met with in the native state, but abundantly as the base of an alkaline earth called baryta or barytes (an oxide), which occurs extensively as native sulphate (BaSO4, heavy spar, its most common compound) and native carbonate (witherite).
 
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