Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1856-02-29

Island, was married long time ago,
but finding afterward, that she was
not supremely happy--doubtless ow-
ing to some little family jars-she
became hoohoo, or angry, and sepa-
rated from her husband, giving him
the mountain of Mauna Kea, for his
dwelling place, and reserved Mauna
Loa for her own. She agreed that
the lava from her volcano should
never overflow Mauna Kea-which
It IS little likely to do, Mauna Kea
being over ! 3 600 feet high. When
ever the volcano is IN an active state,
the natives say Pail is hooho roa,
(very angry J and IN the olden time
II was their custom to offer sacri6-
ces to appease her wrath. Even
now, the oldest of them sometimes
/ practice this rite. A few davs be-
fore our arrival. a very aged native,
OF veserabie appearance, with hair
as white as snow came from a distant
part of the Island, to perform this
sacrifice, aud for the purpose, brought
pig cooked whole With much
difficulty aud danger-his limbs
scarce able to support hIm-he rea-
ched the edge of the crater, and
kueeling down, with his face to-
ward the glowing caldron, and his
long sllvery locks streaming in the
wud--amid the smoke and sitting
vapor, while the roaring and rumb-
ling rom beneath seemed to add an
un@rthly solemnity to the scene, he
Offered up an earnest prayer to his
mighty and terrible deity, and then
cast his obIation into the fiery lake
below.
As | listened to the recital of this
occurrence, detailed by one of the
natives while we were sitting a
round our camp fire,-with all the
eloquence which they possess in
such large measure, | was thrilled
with interest, and to my imagina-
ton no scene could be presented
which would afford better materials
for a painter for a grand and intest-
ing picture. The sincerity of that
old mau-into whose darkened mind
scarce a shadow of a ray of light
and truth had ever penetrated, who
had thus forced his perllous way IN
70 that place SO fraught with dan
ger, and bowed himself to worship,
even in the presence Of that enrag-
ed and awful Deity, whose wrath
fol mutterlngS made the mountain
to tremble and quake, and whose
breath was a flame of hre-would
put to shame the devotion of many
an enlightened Christian in your
most favorable land. After leaving
thus burning lake, we went to a
small cone which we saw III the
distance belchiug out smoke and
steam, and when we reached II:
summit and looked down into IT,
we Involuntarily jumped back. A.
bout fifty feet below us was a rlvel
OF lava running with great voloci.
ty, while the place on which We
were standing was intensely hot
and seemed to crunlble off into the
fiery abyss below.
Our next VISIT was to large
crater, very difficult of access, anc
having attained the brink, we be-
held a sight that might cause the
boldesi to tremble. A vast river o
lava was rushing IN mighty, angry
torrent, over some obstruction, SC
that there was, or seemed to be I
fail of several feet, causing th,
ground 10 tremble beneath our feet
and filling our ears with a grea
roaring, rumblng sound snch as we
had never before heard. This plac,
like ten thousand furnaces, hotter
aud fiercer than Nebuchadnezzar
burning below us-seemed, indeed
'L'mferno,' and had his Satanic
Majesty, then and there, surround
ed by his myriad host of tiends
be n holding high revel, he coulC
scarcely have produced such a com
tination of strange and diabolca
sounds. Our position being one o
imminent danger, we were not in
disposed to hasten our departure. -
We spent the night in hut OH th'
edge of the Old crater, but we wer
not disposed to sleep much-th,
sight we beheld after night shut IL
was too intensely attractive. Tn
effect Of the glare of light, fashin!
continually from twenty differen
places upon the thick darkness a
round, accompanied by the confused
groaning aud signing of the labor
ing mountain, was, II possible, NOR
unearthly and fascinating than tina
produced upon "a ,ha day time.
The next morning we turned on
faces homeward, and, descending
slowly, passed that night at tn
halfway house, and the following
day reached Hllo, aud embarked 70
Honolulu, where were arrived with
out casully or incident worthy o
notice, on the morning of the 18th
and feeling well repaid for the tim
aud trouble we had taken to ylsl
the great Volcano of Kllauea.
LOUIS.
Ne,o ENGLAND Pettitoggers 1,
1865. There is a herd OF drones