Flora of the Leribe Plateau and Environs. 19 



past Mafeteng, Maseru, Tholtse, to the head of the Caledou Eiver. 

 The high ground to the north of Ficksburg and round Harrismith is 

 built up of Ked beds and Cave Sandstone. 



3. CAVE SANDSTONE. So called on account of the unequal weather- 

 ing which causes the formation of large caves. It varies in thickness 

 from 2-400 ft., and rests on the Eed beds. 



4. VOLCANIC BEDS. Consist almost entirely of basic lavas which 

 penetrate the sedimentary rocks. On the Natal side of the Drakens- 

 bergen the dolerite capping does not extend lower than 5900 ft. to 

 6100 ft. above sea-level. 



The whole of these Stormberg beds rest on the Karroo beds which 

 crop out in the Orange Free State and in the lower parts of Natal 

 (see fig. 3). The soils derived from the Stormberg Series are very 

 uniform in texture and fine in grain, and contain relativelv laro-e 



* 



proportions of lime.* 



The reader will have noticed that both the altitude and the geological 



O O 



formation mark off the Eastern Mountain Region into a well-defined 

 area. 



METEOROLOGY. 



The temperature and rainfall records from this Region are very 

 meagre. What records I have been able to obtain are given in the 

 following tables : 



TABLE 1. Annual Eainfall, 1901-1908. 



19nl ' 1902 ' 1903 ' 1904 ' 1905 ' 1906 - 190 ~- 1908. Mean. 



Mafeteng . 5600 21'66 26'55 25'17 37'37 22'67 26'68f 



Mohalie's Hoek 2722 2974 18'94 20'85 28'72 28'19 41'30 28'02 27'87 



Maseru . . 5065 29'46 32'24 23'20 23'47 30'08 30'98 39'09 21'64 24'89 



Teyateyaneng . 5690 37'00 33'78 20'52 24'49 30'28 28'00 39'30 27'21 30'07 

 Moyeni Quth- 



ing . 6000 42-81 22'01 24-47 37'53 46'12 34'58f 



Quacha's Nek . 6236 28'74 27'00 27'63 25-31 32'35 27'68 46'19 43'37 32-28 



t Average for five years. 



The only other records are for Harrismith, 25'43 inches (1905) 

 24-91 inches (1913), and Thaba Uiichu, 19'09 inches (1904). For the 

 rainfall at Leribe the reader is referred to a table on p. 5. 



* C. F. Juritz, " The Fertility of some Colonial Soils, as Influenced by 

 Geological Conditions," ' Trans. S. Afr. Philos. Soc.,' vol. xviii, p. 27. 



