2 Annals of the South African Museum. 



dropped down in the ground, and must have jumped up again. I 

 reported the matter to the people at home, and it was eventually 

 reported to Headman Dlakana, who said it was to be brought to the 

 office." 



Mr. Gladwin states that the stone fell at 11 p.m. on January 3, 

 1903, that it weighed 30^ lbs. (13« kg.) when found, and "scintil- 

 lated," but some natives had washed it, and it had in consequence 

 lost this effect. 



According to other communications, a piece was broken from the 

 meteorite and passed into the hands of a German trader, but it has 

 not since been traced. 



Most of the phenomena here recorded — the bright light, sounds of 

 an explosion, a rumbling noise, fall of a heavy body — are those which 

 usually accompany the advent of a meteorite. But a peculiar and, 

 as far as I know, hitherto unrecorded feature of this particular fall 

 is the assertion that the stone lay, when found, beside the hole. 

 About the direction of the latter nothing is said, but if one assumes 

 that it was a trench, then with an inclined fall a rebounding would 

 be conceivable. To this the extraordinary tenacity of the stone, due 

 to its fine and even structure, comparable to that of basalt and 

 diabase, may have contributed favourably. 



One is reminded here of Delaunay's description of the meteor of 

 Than-Duc, which scooped out a trench 32 metres long, 6 wide, and 

 2 deep, and is said to have then disappeared again, the account of 

 the Indian by whom the apparition was observed running as 

 follows: "The animal which created the furrow has flown back 

 again to the sky." " 



The meteorite, which when it reached me weighed 13,783 gr., is a 

 wedge-shaped slab, from 10^ to bh cm. thick. The two principal 

 surfaces are of a roughly trapezoidal form, the sides of one (Plate II., 

 Fig. 1) measuring 24, 22, 15, and 13, and those of the other (Plate II., 

 Fig. 2), allowing for a wedge-shaped piece which has broken off, 26, 

 23, 20, and 16 cm. respectively. Of the five sides of the meteorite, 

 four are at nearly right angles to the principal surfaces, and form 

 with them remarkably sharp edges, while the fifth is inclined to 

 them at acute and obtuse angles (Plate II., Fig. 2, on the right). 



In spite of the shape, which is unusual for oriented meteorites, 

 this meteorite shows a well-defined orientation, w^hich is hardly 

 more beautiful and distinct in any other. 



* "Chute le 2.5 Octobre, 1887, a Than-Duc, d'une meteorite qui parait avoir 

 disparu a la suite d'un ricochet." Comptes rendus hebdomadaires des Seances 

 de I'Academie des Sciences, 1887, CV., 1292. 



