BUSHMAN ROCK-PICTURES AT D'SJATE. 

 By Henry Alexander Spencer, M.R.C.S., L.R.C.P. 



In August, 1910, I found myself at Mr. Massey's Store irt 

 the extreme north-eastern corner of the Middelburg district,. 

 on a vaccination tour. This store is in the sub-district of 

 Pokwani, perhaps six miles from the boundary of the Lyden- 

 berg- district on the east, and 12 from the Zoutspansberg district 

 due north. Learning some interesting details of two years, 

 spent by my host, close to a place called D'sjate, opening up 

 an old copper mine, and of some Bushmen's rock-pictures of 

 which he heard from one of his natives and visited, I deter- 

 mined to visit the spot myself and examine both of these ob- 

 jects of interest. The store at which I was lay some 65 miles 

 away from the spot, the road to which ran along a valley, 

 many miles long, at the foot of the magnificent, rugged range 

 of mountains known as the Lulus. This valley was, as far as 

 one! could see, everywhere bushed with thorn trees, which 

 appeared to be all of one height, and in the winter, devoid of 

 foliage, gave a distinctly sombre look to the view. We passed 

 Hackney, the residence of Mr. Hanse Winter, and the site of 

 another store, past the scene of Secocoeni's last stand in the 

 war of 1881, on Moudimo-Ua, and at sun-down on the second 

 day reached another store about three miles from our objec- 

 tive. At D'sjate lives Rev. John Winter, who has lived there 

 for nearly forty years; yet, although he understands and 

 speaks Basuto like a native, until Mr. Massey told him of these 

 rock-pictures, he had never heard of them, though they are 

 to be found on the hillside no more than three miles beyond 

 his house. Here, on the hillside of the Lulus, and about 150 

 feet from the floor of the valley, will be found an outcrop of 

 rock from which the mountain range slightly recedes on either 

 side, giving an extensive view for many miles up and down 

 the valley. The rocky shelter, upon which the pictures are. 

 is thus at the base of a projecting foot of the mountain and 

 had perhaps a stragetic value to the occupants from the ex- 

 tent of vallev visible right and left and beneath. The shelter 

 is roofed and backed by this huge outcrop sloping backwards, 

 partly the result of the splitting off of very large fragments, 

 partly of weathering. x\t the foot of this sloping rock exists 

 a sort of earth-strewn platform, formed by the stratum of 

 rock, beneath the sloping face, projecting almost horizontally. 

 There is nothing in the shape of a cave or aperture, merely a 

 sort of rocky " lean to." On the face of this sloping rock 

 are pictures in red pigment of Bushmen about four inches in 

 height with bow and arrows, of an elephant, several harte- 

 beeste, and a lion. There are a few Bushman women, also in 

 red, recognisable by their breasts, in a standing attitude with 

 uplifted arms. The men are mostly running, some shooting 

 wnth a bow, but some are standing with arms outstretched in 

 front of them, maybe pointing at the animals wdiose pictures 

 are near by. At one extremity of the rock face, I should 

 imagine facing eastward, are several black figures twice the 



