Dr. H. Exton — Geology of Lady smith. 551 



from Field Hospital). This Bester's Farm (occupied by a man of 

 that name) must not be confounded with " Besters," a railway station 

 on the Harrismith line, about 16 miles from Ladysmith. 



Following the watercourse (at this season merely a dry donga) 

 towards the hills a mile and a half away from Bester's house 

 I found many of these Olifant Klip ^ blocks in situ, embedded in the 

 blue shale. Some were embedded in the bed of the watercourse, 

 but others were revealed by projecting from the almost perpendicular 

 sides of the donga, having ten feet of shale between them and the 

 surface of the ground. These are absolutely untouched by the 

 hand of man. A casing of similar sandstone is here also evident ; 

 but, from moisture during the rainy season, more or less decomposition 

 has ensued. 



A blow with the hammer sufficient to break the crust generally 

 detaches the same from its contained central mass ; in order, therefore, 

 that you may have the fullest opportunity of investigation I am 

 having a small block sawn through by a local mason here, so as 

 to give a section of the central portion still retaining its part of the 

 crust above and below. This is from the site of my first find, on 

 the declivity near the Klip Kiver at this Station Hospital. 



The thickness of the portion sliced off is 3 to 5 inches, and the 

 diameters of its flat face are 16|^ by 12 inches. 



In the same package I have enclosed specimens from the centre 

 of blocks found by me at Bester's Farm. These, as far as I can see, 

 possess the same characters as the specimens sent you by post 

 at first. 



The enquiry as to the source of these blocks becomes more 

 interesting, and their geological relations more important, since 

 I am now enabled to prove their presence on or in the Ecca Shale 

 at four different points widely apart. 



Nicholson's Nek 

 ■k- 



Besters Farm. 



Fig. 2.— Showing the relative position of the four localities in which the travelled 

 concentric blocks have been found in the Ecca Shales near Ladysmith. 



The fourth point is in the Nek between Gun Hill and the 

 mountain Umbulwana (Locality No. 4). Gun Hill is four miles 

 east of Ladysmith and 5| from the Hospital Camp. At this Nek 

 there are eight or ten blocks lyings partially exposed, in situ, on 



1 The kernel of these blocks resembles in microscopic structure the so-called 

 ' Elephant Eock,' or ' Olifant Klip ' of the Transvaal. 



