BOTANICAL INFORMATION. 343 



desired to convey to our camp, but soon found it impracti- 

 cable, on account of the great masses of rocks and the climb- 

 ing shrubs along the slope down to the plain. Being obliged 

 to take the skin off the animal, in order to carry it, darkness 

 had set in ere I had finished the task, and not feeling 

 inclined to stop all night at an unsafe spot like this, I sought 

 the best mode of descending to the plain. On hands 

 and knees I scrambled downwards, through clustered thick- 

 ets and over rocks, but with the sacrifice of jacket and trou- 

 sers, and receiving many scratches on my unprotected skin. 



Trees of Rhamnus celtifolia grow occasionally amongst the 

 chaotic deposits of broken rocks, a conglomerate of pebbles 

 and lime, detached from the strata of rocks, forming the 

 top of these hills. These trees seldom exceed 25 or 30 

 feet, and seeming to require protection, their wood being 

 very fragile, they find shelter between the spaces of these 

 high blocks of rocks. The Heteromorpha trifoliata, and 

 Fusanus compressus, likewise occupy here the same places as 

 the former tree. Along the slope of these hills we noticed 

 a tso, in a loamy soil, a fine little shrub, with large lilac 

 flowers, much resembling Barleria obtusa, N. ab Esenb. 

 n. 1415, and another creeping Acanthacea, n. 1409, with a 

 habit different from those species which grow near the 

 southern sea-shores ; the Blepharacanthus procumbens, N. ab 

 E., a repent Hermannia, n. 103, with large rugose leaves, 

 and Dicoma, n. 102b, a prostrate plant, belonging to Compo- 

 site, growing amongst the grass on the plains, were added to 

 the few plants collected here in flower. 



It is in this range of detached mountains that the several 

 tributaries of the Gariep, or Vaal River, begin ; as the Vet 

 Hiver, the Sand River, Fals River, and the Rhinoster River, 

 running nearly at equal distances in an easterly direction, 

 over boundless plains of meadows, of luxuriant growth. 



Having now reached about the 28° 20' of eastern longitude, 

 and 28° 10' south latitude, we found with much satisfac- 

 1lu,1 > that the emigrants considered the unhealthy season 

 °ver, and the destructive distemper of the horses also, for 



