Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-11-21
WHERE THE FIGHTING is
Topography and Climate of the Country Of
the Beers.
How Some of These Natural Charac-
teristics Affect the Campaign-
Clear Air and Color Effects.
Frcm the London Telegraph.

war was practically a blank upon the map.
1t was inhabited by native races, chiefly
Basutos, but in part dominated by the Zu-
lus. and remained for some time unknown
to the white man. But i'll the fourth dec
AIDE of the century the Boer began to make
his way toward and across the Faal, and by
1887 had reached what is now known as the
Transvaal or South African Republic; the
Orange River Free State being occupied by
another detachment of Dutch inhabitants of
the Cape Colony, who had left their homes
in order to find country where they would
have a freer hand in treating the natives as
us are separated by no more important bar
r.er than the Naal river and in physical
geography are practically one region. The
Outline bears a very rude resemblance to
the profile of a f1at-noSed monkey looking
toward the west. Natal cuts off the Orange
River Free State from the Indian ocean.
Zululand and Portuguese East Africa do
the same Tor the Transvaal. Both states
nave British territory on the west, which
also forms the northern boundary of the
one and the southern of the other. The
valley of the LimpopO constitutes the north
ern limit of the Transvaal a richly wooded
ana luXufiant region. but one ill-suited for
military operations. as it is very malarious.
and parts of the neishborhood are haunted
by the worst of scOurges, the tetse fly.
The most striking feature of the region,
the eastern side Here the country is dis
tnctly mountainous. In fact the two
states might be described a vast upland
plateau, bordered on one side by a group OF
mountain ranges. These run through con-
siderable part of South Africa northward
from the Cape. At the extreme south they
lie far back, the Little and the Great Karoo
forming, as it We're. steps in the ascent
from the sea to the inmost range. This,
called further north the Drakenberg, is in
some sort OF relation with the coast of
southern and eastern Africa, for in the
former part 1t has almost west and east
trend and then sweeps gradually around
toward the northeast, dying away beyond
the Lfmpopo. 1t passes through Natal af-
lordlns some fine scenery in Basutoland
the Switzerland of South Africa where its
SUBMITS are occasionally about ] l 900 feet
above sea level, and there separates Natal
from the eastern part of the Orange River
free state: then enters the Transvaal. hav-
ing lastly Portuguese East Africa between
it and the ocean. In the northern part geog-
raphers divide this chain of hills into an
inner range, the Drakenberg proper, a
larger and loftier massif, for even in the
Transvaal it rises above 5000 feet in ele-
walton, and an outer one the I,ihomba
ranse-much lower, for it only attains some
2Hr feet-whCh overlooks the hot and
rather malarious coastal plains.
Scenery Not Imposing.
The scenery of the Drakenberg north of
the granite region of Basutoland is not par
licularly imposing, especially on the Trans
vaal side, for there the plateau itself is
often quite 1910 feet above sea level The
mountains are rounded or. at most. tahu-
lar in outline. consisting largely of strait
fled rock. sandstone and shale, which lie
in almost horizontal beds but canned occa-
sionally by sheets of basaltic rock probably
fragments of ancient lava flows which
nave preserved the softer masses beneath
from denudatfon. Cliffs now and again offer
some striking variations IN the scenery:
but, as whole, it is rather mOnotonOus
-haJuba HllI. of evil memory, has just such
a structure as we have mentiOned-aIter-
mating sandstone and shaIe capped with
lSneous rock, and the adjoining ridge to
which it sinks down Is Laing's Mex over
winch the road to the Transvaal from
Natal once ran, and which is now pierced
by the railway. But such is the elevation
Of the surrounding district that Laings
Mex. though $500 feet above sea level Is
only about 300 feet above its base. Nai,ba
flll overlapping it by about twice as much
Inc mountain barrier once passed we en-
ter the great South African plateau. Of
which the Transvaal and the Orange River
+ rec state are the eastern portion, for it
extends to the west far away beyond both
On this side, indeed the frontier line be-
tween them and our own territory is largely
artificial. he one almost everyuhare Iiac
open to attack from the other. Thus Mafe
King, near the border of the one and Kim
bcrley, near that of the other are we
know, liable, unless adequately protected
to be rushed by strong bands of raiders In
the Transvaal three regions are recognized
the Bush Neldt in the north which is NOT
very likely to play any part in the present
campaign; the Baken (or Terraced Neldt
lying east Of the Drakenberg which also
may probably be excluded: and the Hoope
Cor High Neldt, forming he major part OF
the republic. From one side to the OF her
the principal outlines Of the scenery are the
same: broad, undulating plains rising
some times into hills, now low and rounded
now craggy, but of no great elevation-the
kopJes-thc sandstone rock Of which some
times assumes strange forms. These plains
are 1nrrOWed here and there by valleys in
many of which the streams run dry in the
winter season. They flow on the one side
10 the Limpopo, on the other to the Vaal
river. Pretoria itself stands in a valley
commanded by low hills. now crowned with
batteries, behind which rise some of greater
elevation. The stream from the capital
flows north, so that the watershed between
me Llmpopo and the Naal is a compare
lively unimpOrtant, rocky region-the Wit
Wdtersrand, near Johannesburg In seen
cry the Orange Free State is not very diff
ferent from the Transvaal-an upland pIa-
tedu, perhaps rather less interrupted a lit
tie better watered and much of 1t from
four to five thousand feet above sea level
Thus as has been well remarked a journey
OF 100 miles in western Europe would afford
a greater variety of scenery than twice
that distance in the Transvaal, but the
clear air produces fine effects Of color
Climate Healthy.
The climate of the High Veldt and the
region south of the Naal river in most
places is very healthy. Though these cor
respond roughly in latitude with Lower
Egypt the heat of summer is mtigated by
their much greater eleVatio and the win
ters are rather cold-the winds being very
keen. and snow falling on The slopes of the
Drakenberg. The air for most of the year
IS clear and bracng, but the summers are
hot-at Pretoria the January temperature
being given as 30 degrees, or even % de-
grees; the winter as 40 degrees. But the
summer is also the rainy season. Storms
with thunder and hail are frequently Sc
we're; floods occasionally occur, as at Pre-
torla. in January. 1891, and the rains which
begin in October last Internationally till
April, almost the whole fall taking place
during these months. The quantity varies.
II amounts to about thirty inches year at
Pretoria, increases toward the east, reach
ing maximum in the mountain region
and decreases westward, in the direction of
the Great kalahari desert-a barren and
dry land-so that on the frontier it is
about twelve inches. Such Il climate, OBJ
viuusly. ii not favorable to the growth of
timber, except in the lowiands by rivers
Thus in both states anything bigger than
L IL