62 Rev. S. S. Dornan — Geology of Basitfoland. 



comparatively recent, certainly within 70 yeai-s or so, as horses and 

 riders are depicted upon them, and these animals were not brought 

 into Basutoland till the early part of last century. 



Fossils are comparatively rare in the Cave Sandstone, hut althoui!;h 

 the actual remains of the animals are seldom met with their footprints 

 are fairly common. The remains of the forearm and part of the 

 shoulders of a Dinosaur, species undetermined, occur at Sebapala.' 

 The footprints of Dinosaurs of large size occur at the following phices, 

 all in a band of green mud about 18 inches thick, viz., Tsikuane, Qalo, 

 Morija, and Teyateyaneng. Those at Qalo are most distinct, showing 

 the corrugations of the skin. The largest prints are 14^ inches long 

 by 10 wide. Other impressions are shown in relief on the roof near 

 by. The animals walked from west to east up-stream, over the bed of 

 a river, as indicated by the ripple-marks, similar to what one sees 

 every day in the beds of all the large rivers. This green miidstone is 

 interesting as it lies on a jagged surface of coarse sandstone, and points 

 to some denudation having previously taken place. 



At Tsikuane, 25 miles further south-west, a magnificent series of 

 dinosaurian footprints are to be seen in the same green mud, on the 

 underside of an overhanging clifF. They are all in relief. The huge 

 block which has broken olf, with the impressions in their natural state, 

 lies below. There are more than 50 of these prints all with the same 

 general direction from west to east, but crossing and recrossing each 

 other in the most extraordinary fashion. Large and small are mixed 

 up together, but the great bulk of them are small prints. There are 

 two sets of verj- large prints most conspicuous, evidently belonging to 

 two large individuals. The length of these tracks is not less than 

 15 inches (middle toe). They are all of the three-toed variety. A study 

 of these footprints, which ramble about a great deal, shows that they 

 were probably not all made at one time, as some have been imprinted 

 on the others subsequently, when they had to some extent hardened, 

 for if they had all been formed at the same time the first would have 

 obliterated the second. One is irresistibly driven to the conclusion 

 that these prints belong to a single family of Dinosaurs. This would 

 imply that Dinosaurs were rather prolific, or that their families 

 remained with them a long time. Another and more probable 

 suggestion is that the animals were gregarious. - 



At Morija, 75 miles further south-west, there are two slabs con- 

 taining dinosaurian tracks. The smaller contains one large and a few 

 small impressions. The larger slab is many tons in weight, and in 

 falling has split into two, showing the tracks in reverse. It contains 

 three different sets of impressions large and small, belonging to 

 individuals of different sizes and possibly of difi^erent species. Here the 

 same crossing of prints occurs as at Tsikuane. The middle toe of the 

 largest track is 15 inches long, and the stride 3 ft. 3 ins. to 5 feet. 

 Besides these impressions it contains well-preserved sun- cracks, showing 



^ Part of a jaw was found near Morija ; it probably belongs to Horfalofarsus. 



- Since writing- this, further study of these footprints has convinced me that what 

 I took to be footprints partially obliterated by others made long subsequently were 

 only the partial obliteration made by the hind-feet of animals following the others 

 immediately. 



