314 MINERALS TOPNAARS AND OERLAMS. 



surface, or filling up the large gaps and fissures occasioned 

 by ancient eruptions. Iron and sandstone, and slate forma- 

 tions, are also not uncommon. 



At some remote period this land must have been subject- 

 ed to volcanic agencies ; and though not one of these has 

 taken place in the memory of the present generation, rum- 

 bling noises underground and tremors of the earth are of fre- 

 quent occurrence. The existence of hot water springs ; the 

 confusion of the fantastically and curiously-shaped hills — 

 " the strata bending and dipping from the perpendicular to 

 the horizontal, and in others extending in a straight line 

 from one hill to another" — bear ample testimony to its vol- 

 canic nature. The presence, moreover, of vast quantities of 

 minerals is a further evidence of its igneous character. Tin, 

 lead, iron, and copper ore is often met with. I have had 

 specimens of the latter mineral in my possession containing 

 from forty to ninety per cent, of pure metal. At eight to ten 

 days' journey with "ox wagon," east of the missionary 

 station, Bethany, meteoric iron is found in apparently inex- 

 haustible quantities. I have seen lumps, of several hundred 

 weights, brought from thence, so pure and malleable that the 

 natives converted it into balls for their guns, &c., without any 

 previous application of fire. As Great Namaqua-land be- 

 comes better known, it is more than probable that it will be 

 found equally prolific in minerals — if not more so — as Little 

 Nam aqua-land, where, of late, extensive and valuable mines 

 have been brought to light. 



The term Hottentot and Namaqua have probably origin- 

 ated with Europeans, since neither is found in the native 

 language. The Hottentots of these regions may be divided 

 into two great branches, viz., the " Topnaars" and the " Oer- 

 lams." With the latter is generally understood the new- 

 comers and the serai-civilized ; but the real signification of 

 the term is doubtful. Some conjecture the " Oerlam" to be 

 a corruption of the Dutch word " o'erland," or overland — 



