446 Transactions of the South African Philosophical Society. 



Orange Eiver. This cave is about 80 feet by 40 feet, and contains 

 a great number of paintings illustrative of the chase of elands, 

 leopards, hartebeest, gnu, rhebock, and jackals, all of which animals 

 existed not long ago in that part of the country. In another cave 

 near the station of Hermon is a painting representing the Bushmen 

 driving oft" a herd of cattle, while the Kafirs are doing their best to 

 retake the captured stock. That the pursuers are Kafirs is evident 

 from the form of the shield — the oval form — which is not used by 

 the Basutos. This picture is wonderfully true to life. Here we see 

 the Bushmen driving off the herd, while others keep off the pur- 

 suers, who are following in great wrath, but afraid to close with 

 their enemies on account of the poisoned arrows, the least scratch 

 of which speedily proved fatal. 



Bushman thefts of cattle and horses were carried out with a con- 

 siderable amount of skill. During the hours of darkness they drove 

 off the herds in small bands in different directions, so that if the 

 pursuers followed they might recover a few head, but never all. 

 When their enemies retired they drove the loot to the neighbour- 

 hood of their caves, and there slaughtered them one by one, 

 feasting and making merry, till not a single hoof remained. They 

 never attempted to ride horses, the only use they made of them 

 was as food. 



There is a good series of paintings between Masitise and Leloaleng 

 in Southern Basutoland. The individual figures, though small, are 

 remarkably accurate and well finished. They represent the chase 

 of elands by horsemen. They are therefore comparatively recent, cer- 

 tainly well within a century, as the Basuto did not become possessed 

 of horses until about 1820. There are twelve figures in all, usually 

 about the same size, 7|- in. x 4 in., though the elands are slightly 

 larger than the horses. There is also a rhebock upon a neighbour- 

 ing rock, but evidently of the same age as the others. Five horses 

 are done in yellow paint, one in white, while their riders are red. 

 The elands are brown, with white legs and neck. The attitudes of 

 the animals are most lifelike. 



Another series occurs at Thabana Morena. Here are some 

 dozens of paintings, about forty in all, representing the chase of 

 elands, rhebock, hippopotami, &c. At one place we see a battle 

 taking place between some parties of Bushmen and what are pre- 

 sumably Bechuana, but the figures are so defaced that it is difficult 

 to make them out. At another place we see some engaged in an 

 encounter with a hippopotamus. They are decidedly getting the 

 worst of the fight, as the enraged animal has knocked one of them 

 over, and scattered the others and put them to flight. These figures 



