236 KLOOF AND KARROO. 



atmosphere, usually appears not much more than a 

 few hundred yards away. 



A ride of an hour or less up constantly rising 

 ground, brings one to Schoorstenberg (chimney 

 mountain), a bold and isolated pile of rock standing 

 solitary upon the veldt, and rising upon its northern 

 side (which presents a curious resemblance to a 

 chimney) to a sheer elevation of more than 5,000 feet 

 above sea level. From this peak, on a clear day, a 

 magnificent panorama greets the eye. If you turn 

 to the north-west, you may stretch your gaze across 

 the broad expanse of plains until arrested by the 

 Beaufort West mountains, which form the northern 

 limit of the karroo, some eighty miles away. To 

 the north-east, the bold range of Fore Sneeuwberg, 

 beneath which shelters the town of Graaff Reinet, 

 billows blue upon the skyline, 120 miles distant. 

 South-eastward, the magnificent peaks of the 

 Cockscomb ■ — the' highest point, nearly 7,000 feet 

 in altitude, of the Great Winterhoek — rear 

 aloft, plainly apparent, though ninety miles 

 away, from amidst a tossing sea of mountain ; 

 while, to the south-west, the Zwartberg range may 

 be readily picked out in the neighbourhood of 

 Prince Albert, although not less than 180 miles 

 distant. 



Yet one other natural landmark strikes the eye. 

 This is the Tiger Berg (leopard mountain), a 

 conical peak, thrusting itself 3,000 feet sheer from 

 the karroo, some twenty-four miles distant from 

 where we stand. But although Schoorstenberg is, 

 from its isolated position, a sufficiently striking 

 object, it is not equal in height to portions of the 

 Witteberg range lying immediately behind it. The 



