distance of about
thirty-eight miles.

For the first five miles we passed through the most curious granite
formation, a succession of small hills entirely composed of rounded
boulders of granite, weighing from five to 1000 tons, and looking
exactly like piles of gigantic snow-balls hurled together by some mighty
hand. The granite formation prevails in all this part of the country,
and individual boulders sometimes take very curious shapes; for
instance, in the bush-veldt we passed a great column towering high above
the trees, composed of six boulders getting smaller and smaller from
the base up, and each accurately balanced on the one beneath it. Then
we crossed the range of hills which overlooks the fort, and passing
Secocoeni's old kraal where he used to live before he retreated to his
fastnesses, we arrived at a great alluvial valley nine miles broad, on
the other side of which rises the Loolu. It was on this plain that the
only real fight between the volunteers and Secocoeni's men took place,
when the former managed to get between the Basutus and the hills,
and shot them down like game, killing over 200 men. Leaving the
battle-field, where the skeletons still lie, a little to our right, we
crossed the plain and came to the foot of the Loolu, all along the base
of which stand neat villages inhabited by Secocoeni's people. Some of
these villages have been burnt by the volunteers, and the remainder are
entirely deserted, their inhabitants having built fresh huts among the
rocks in almost inaccessible places. The appearance of these white huts
peeping out all over the black rocks was very curious, and reminded one
of the Swiss chalets.

By the stream that runs along past the villages we off-saddled, as both
ourselves and our horses were nearly exhausted by the burning heat; but
as there was not much time to lose, after a short rest we started off
again, and rode on over a bed of magnetic iron lying on the ground in
great lumps of almost pure metal, until we came to a stretch of what
looked remarkably like gold-bearing quartz, and then to a limestone
formation. The whole country is evidently rich beyond measure in
minerals. All this time we were passing through scenery inexpressibly
wild and grand, and when we had arrived at the highest spot of the pass,
it reached a climax of savage beauty. About forty miles in front of us
towered up another magnificent range of blue-tinged mountains known as
the Blue Berg, whilst al