BEASTS OF PREY. 253 



tor-oil plant (Palma Christi), the euphorbia, and 

 aloes of various descriptions, with their crimson, yel- 

 low, and scarlet blossoms, are thickly scattered over 

 the surface of the country. The districts, however, 

 bordering* on the Colony frequently suffer severely 

 from continued drought. During the summer months 

 the grass is generally brown and dry, and is fre- 

 quently burnt by the natives, in order that after the 

 first rains the cattle may enjoy the new and tender 

 herbage. Thunder-storms, accompanied with ter- 

 rific flashes of lightning, are exceedingly severe 

 during the hottest months ; and, on these occasions, 

 the very mountains almost appear to tremble beneath 

 the peals which they fearfully reverberate. The still- 

 ness of night is invariably disturbed by the incessant 

 croaking of frogs, the number of which, and the 

 noise they create, is truly surprising ; grasshoppers 

 also, and various other insects in vast numbers, unite 

 their dismal chorus to the wailing of the nocturnal 

 breeze. 



Beasts of prey are not particularly numerous in 

 this part of the country, although now and then a 

 lion, and more frequently a tiger, may be seen 

 prowling about in the more secluded ravines and 

 passes of the mountains. In former years elephants 

 were abundant, but in consequence of the great in- 

 crease of population they are now rarely to be seen, 

 although the extensive forests near the Zimvoobo 

 River and in the vicinity of Natal contain large 



