November 2, 1905] 



,V. / Tl r RE 



19 



turn. Mr. Schunke Hollway traced the first efforts to 

 obtain levels, and showed how the railway surveys had 

 been the chief means of securing the knowledge we 

 possess of relief. He then discussed the natural divisions 

 ol the Cape Colony, distinguishing (i) the coast, and (2) 

 the Orange River basin. The coast, varying from So miles 

 to 170 miles wide, he divided into [a) the eastern region, 

 a narrow tract of land which rose in terraces from the 

 of the south-east sweep of the Sneeuwbergen, 

 Tandjesbergen, and Bankberg ranges, to where it dipped 

 into the Fish River, and along that river to the sea ; 

 (b) the south-western region, which nearly coincided with 

 ilh' folded mountain belt, and stretched as a narrow zone 

 of mountains not more than 85 miles wide from the 

 Olifants River in the west to the Fish River in the east ; 

 (<-) the lower Karroo region, a comparatively narrow strip 

 of land between the southern mountain belt and the water- 

 shed, which extended from Uitenhage and Somerset East 

 to the north end of the Bokkeveld Karroo, south of 

 Calvinia; (d) the north-west coast region, which lay 

 between the Olifants and the Orange rivers. The Orange 

 River region consisted broadly of a hollow plain which 

 sloped gently from east to west, with but few isolated 

 ridges and hills scattered over its surface. It was 1000 

 miles long, rose to more than 3000 feet within No miles 

 of the coast, and remained above this height for 250 miles 

 in width. Seen from the tableland, the RoggevM ami 

 other bordering mountains seemed insignificant, but seen 

 from the Karroo the escarpment presented the appearance 

 ol a magnificent mountain range. This rose to the 

 Drakensbergen or Kahlamba mountains in the east, 1S0 

 miles of which lay within the colony, with an average 

 ridge level of 8000 feet. In the west, valleys containing 

 - ttlements at more than 6000 feet were to be found. After 

 a detailed examination of each region, its economic con- 

 ditions were briefly discussed, and their relationship to 

 rainfall pointed out. 



file physi, al geography of the region further north was 

 discussed in Mr. Tudor Trevor's paper on the physical 

 features of the Transvaal. He divided the country 

 into : — (1) the plateau country or High Veld ; (2) the slopes 

 of the plateau locally called Banken ; and (3) the basement 

 country locally called Low or Bush Veld. These were sub- 

 divided as follows : — 



Square Per 



High Veld True High Veld 14,900 



Middle Veld lS,8oo 



Outliers (Zoutpansberg and 



Waterberg) 4,400 



Total 38,100 



Slope Country ... Main Slope 19,700 



Outliers (Zoutpansberg and 



Waterberg) 7.400 



Low Veld . 



Total 



Total 



. 27,100 

 . 52,000 

 ■ 1 17,200 



127 

 160 



37 

 324 

 167 



63 

 23-0 

 44 '6 



He described the water systems and pointed out the 

 absence of alluvial deposits, and directed attention to the 

 steady diminution of the water in springs in recent historic 

 times. 



Mr. F. S. YVatermeyer dealt with a wider area in his 

 geographical notes on Africa south of the Limpopo. He 

 gave a brief historical sketch of the cartography of South 

 Africa, a summary of the history of its population, and 

 an account of the physical features and climatic conditions, 

 .specially with regard to the influences on the develop- 

 ment of pastoral and agricultural pursuits. 



Mr. C. Stewart, Government meteorologist, communi- 

 cated at Cape Town a paper on the climate of South 

 Urica. Ihe uniformity of mean annual temperature was 

 pointed out— the Royal Observatory, Cradock, Bloemfon- 

 tein, and Johannesburg being all about 62 F. — the 

 higher altitude neutralising the' lower latitude. The mean 



temperature curve was at a maximum in February ; it 

 fell rapidly until June, slightly to July, and rose with 

 a peculiar flattening in September to the maximum. The 

 minimum of the year occurred in a cold spell in July. 

 The flattening in September was assoi iated with an increase 

 in the cloud curve coincident with the change in the prevail- 

 ing winds from north-west in August to south in September. 

 As to rainfall, there were three regions : — (1) the south- 

 west winter rain region ; (2) the small area in the south 

 of constant rains; and (3) the cast, with summer rains. 

 Rain came with north-westerly winds in the west, with 

 south-westerly winds in the south and east, and sometimes 

 with north-easterly winds in the east. 



Remarkable winds, locally called " Berg winds," blew 

 from the plateau at right angles to the coast and raised 

 the temperature. At Port Nolloth they blew when de- 

 pressions were commonest in South Africa — from autumn 

 through winter to spring — and made it warmer in winter. 

 The storms of South Africa were associated with A de- 

 pressions, and so were similar to those of southern 

 Australia. 



Mr. Hutchings read a paper on the indigenous forests of 

 South Africa. He divided them into : — (1) the dense 

 evergreen indigenous forests of which yellow-wood was the 

 chief species, commonly called the yellow-wood forest ; 

 (2) the open timber forest, which generally occupied drier 

 country than the yellow-wood forest, and was of inferior 

 type, though it might contain trees of first importance, such 

 as the cedar forest of Clanwilliam and the Rhodesian teak 

 (Afzelia cunanzensis) forest of YVankie ; (3) the scrub forests 

 of the dry, hot coastlands and portions of the interior. 

 where the rainfall was scanty and uncertain. There was 

 no timber of large size in the scrub forests, and not much 

 in the open timber forests. The yellow-wood forests were 

 found in the rainy regions of the south coast, where they 

 appeared as dense evergreen woods disposed in two storeys. 

 The lower storey was formed by stinkwood, assegai, hard 

 pear, iron wood, &c, and the upper storey by the large 

 yellow-wood trees, which attained the stature and 

 dimensions of the largest oak trees in Europe. For 1200 

 miles from Cape Town to the north-east Transvaal the 

 species remained much the same, but in the Rhodesian 

 forests most of the trees were deciduous and of different 

 species to those of the yellow-wood forest. 



Major Stevenson Hamilton, warden of the game pre- 

 serves, gave an interesting account of the past and present 

 distribution of game in the Transvaal, and of the attempts 

 which were being made, with gratifying success, to prevent 

 its extermination. 



Two papers dealt with Africa as a whole. Mr. J. Bolton 

 discussed the boundaries and areas more particularly of 

 British colonies and protectorates. The boundary treaties 

 and agreements which have resulted in boundary survevs 

 were specially treated, as these surveys are almost the 

 only pieces of scientific map-making in the continent. 



Messrs. Herbertson and Waite showed a new map of 

 the annual rainfall of Africa, based on all available data. 



Two papers were communicated on surveying and 

 mapping. The triangulation of the gold fields was de- 

 scribed by Mr. van der Steer, who had helped Mr. Melville, 

 vice-president of the section, to carry out the triangulation 

 of the central and most important section. This paper will 

 be published in full in the Journal of the Institute of Land 

 Surveyors of the Transvaal. 



Colonel Johnston, late director-general of the Ordnance 

 Survey, gave a very clear account of the history and work 

 of the survey, and described the various maps which it 

 issues, illustrating his remarks by specimens and bv lantern 

 slides. He pointed out the vari.'tis advantages to be derived 

 from a topographical survey of South Africa, and showed 

 that it need not be so expensive an operation as was 

 commonly supposed. 



There were very few papers dealing with geographical 

 exploration. At Cape Town Mr. L. Bernacchi lectured on 

 the results of the National Antarctic Expedition with the 

 Discovery, in which he paid special attention to the mag- 

 netic and meteorological results. Mr. Ferrar, another 

 member of the expedition, gave an evening lecture at 

 Pietermaritzburg on the same subject. A paper on the 

 volcanic Gough Island, bv Mr. Rudmose Brown, of the 



NO. 1879, VOL. "J?)) 



